The most expensive and most unusual shotgun we tested was the Standard Manufacturing DP12. It has dual magazine tubes and dual barrels. Each time you pump, it ejects two hulls and loads two new shells. The trigger has to be pulled twice, firing each barrel in turn, then the action repeats. If you only fire one shell, the action stays locked up and you cannot pump it (unless you engage the action bar release) until you fire the second shell. There are a number of M-Lok compatible mounting points on the rear receiver, and a 13.5-inch Picatinny rail is mounted on top. It does not come with sights, so we put a set of Magpul folding backup iron sights on it and they worked great. The action bar release is ambidextrous and sits at the front of the triggerguard so it can be manipulated with the trigger finger. The safety is AR-style and is also ambidextrous. Because this gun loads and ejects through the bottom, there is zero disadvantage to shooting this left- or right-handed. Holes are cut in the magazine tubes so you can easily see when you are getting to the last few shells, but with a total magazine capacity of 14 plus two in the chamber, it takes a while before you run dry.
Our first thought was it seemed pretty gimmicky. However, as we began shooting it we were all amazed. The gun is really well-made and designed: It loads super easy, and recoil is very light. We figured out it is easiest to load with your dominant hand by rolling the gun inboard and thumbing the shells in. Two shells could be fired as fast as you can pull the trigger. The whole thing is only 29.5 inches long and for a vehicle gun, a home-defense gun or even for law enforcement, this would make a reliable, well-built shotgun. But honestly, I think the “cool” factor of having 2 barrels trumps everything else.
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