Coach gun

A Coach Gun is a double-barrel shotgun, traditionally 12 gauge, in side-by-side (SxS) configuration, with barrels approximately 18" in length.

The name comes from their use on stagecoaches in the American Wild West and during the Colonial period of Australia.

Coach guns are most commonly encountered nowadays in Single Action Shooting competitions, or as "scrub guns" for hunting in scrub, bush or marsh, where the 24"+ barrels of a traditional shotgun would prove unwieldy. Most modern Coach guns are manufactured either by Boito (Brazil) or Baikal (Russia), and come in a variety of configurations for both Single Action Shooting participants and hunters.

Perhaps the best known example of a Coach gun is Ash's "Boomstick" from the movie Army of Darkness, although it should be noted that Remington do not manufacture Coach guns and the "Boomstick" depicted in the film is perhaps better described as a sawn-off shotgun.

Coach guns differ from sawn-off shotguns in that they have been manufactured as new with 18" barrels, and meet legal requirements for civilian possession in the USA, Australia, and New Zealand. In the United Kingdom, however, shotguns must have a minimum barrel length of 24" to be eligible for ownership on a Shotgun Certificate, and shotguns with barrels under this length (which includes Coach guns) must be obtained on the more stringent Firearms Certificate.