POTD: Raptors Don’t Like Shine – A Nickel Plated Franchi SPAS 12
Sam.S 08.17.23
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have a gun we have already covered before but it is always good to get a refresher. This is the Franchi SPAS 12 and better yet it is an extremely rare nickel-plated version! The SPAS-12 was a pretty nifty dual-mode shotgun that the Italian company Franchi made back in the 1980s and 90s. It had a unique switch that let you toggle between semi-auto and pump-action firing modes, which gave it good versatility for police and military use. The SPAS-12 started gaining some popularity in the US gun market until the 1994 assault weapons ban basically stopped imports in their tracks. It’s too bad because it seemed like a well-designed shotgun that appealed to professionals and sporting shooters alike. Nowadays the SPAS-12 lives on as an iconic movie gun, even if a practical dual-mode scattergun like that can’t be sold here anymore. Gotta love those classic ’80s action flicks!
“Introduced in Italy in 1979, featuring a dual-action mechanism that can be changed from pump action to semi-automatic. Blade front and aperture rear sights, 2 3/4 inch chamber, improved cylinder choke, full length magazine, stamped heat shield, standard frame markings, ribbed forearm, pistol grip and folding metal stock. Length of pull is 13 1/4 inches. With extra choke tube.”
Lot 769: Rare Nickel Plated Franchi SPAS 12 Shotgun – Rare Nickel Plated Franchi SPAS 12 Semi-Automatic/Slide Action Shotgun. (n.d.-am). Rock Island Auction Company. photograph. Retrieved August 16, 2023, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/77/769/rare-nickel-plated-franchi-spas12-shotgun.
