POTD: Street Sweeper Repeater Shotgun 12 Gauge
Sam.S 07.30.21
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! The Street Sweeper shotgun – what an icon! Long before it was featured in film and video games this semi-auto shotgun already had its name. That name definitely did not help its reputation in the houses of legislation. In fairness, this shotgun was manufactured with police, military, riot, and crowd control in mind. It was capable of firing/cycling heavy loads as well as very light loads like the less lethal ones of the time. Nowadays, it is considered an NFA weapon.
“Originating in South Africa as the Armsel Striker in the 1980s, the Cobray Street Sweeper rapidly found itself on the wrong end of legislative action, due to a combination of its positive features and menacing profile. The Street Sweeper operates on principles similar to some early anti-riot gas guns, using a combination of a spring driven cylinder with a double action trigger mechanism. During the loading process, the user manually turns the cylinder, winding the spring in the process, and during firing, the cylinder automatically advances to the next chamber, resulting in a very light trigger pull. While this system is a good deal wider than a comparable semi-auto shotgun, the arm is highly compact in length, making it ideal for urban and vehicle use. Additionally, as the arm is not dependent on recoil to operate, it can achieve high fire rates even when loaded with low power ammunition, such as less-than-lethal rounds.
-Rock Island Auction Company”
Lot 1882: Street Sweeper Repeater Shotgun 12 [Photograph found in Auction Catalog #49, Rock Island Auction Company]. (n.d.). Retrieved July 29, 2021, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/49/1882/street-sweeper-repeater-shotgun-12
