Techno Arms PTY MAG-7

The MAG-7 is a manually operated, pump-action, shotgun manufactured by Techno Arms PTY of South Africa. A close quarter's combat weapon it is best described as combination of compact submachine gun and a pump shotgun. It is very effective in room-to-room searches and in confined places. This weapon primarily offered to the law enforcement and Special Forces, looks somewhat like the to the Israeli UZI submachine guns.

It has enormous stopping power at close ranges. The customized .36 inch or 60 mm long 12-gauge cartridge adds to this power. This gave the gun an effective lethality of 45 to 90 yards.

Unfortunately, the cartridges are sometimes difficult to obtain, but the mini shells manufactured by the Aguila Ammunition Company of Mexico can easily replace these. In some cases the standard 12 gauge cartridges is modified to comply with the 60 mm chamber requirement. Its size and gauge is what makes it truly a close combat shotgun.
High quality material is used to manufacture the gun; the receiver is made of stamped steel, while the pistol grip incorporating the five round box magazine is made of polymer. Many of its design elements make it a lightweight 4 kg or 8.2 pounds, with a detachable top-folding stock it is easy to carry around. Its length is 550 mm or 21.6 in and the barrel length of 320 mm or 12.6 inches, limits the effective range, however, these features add to its close quarter combat efficiency. The sliding forearm linked to the action platform and the bolt operates the pump action. A single locking piece connects the slot in the roof of the receiver to lock the gun. It has a manual safety lever and a special button on the forearm to operate the slide and reload the gun, which means the gun should be safely held with two hands in the height of combat, without opening the action accidentally - it also should be comfortably fired off hand.

The civilian version of the gun called the MAG-7M1, has a longer barrel and a fixed wooden stock. This meets the NFA standards of a barrel length of 18 inches or 457 mm and a total of length of 26 inches 660 mm. As the version was quite different to the original concept of close combat efficiency it did not succeed.

The gun did not prove to be popular because of some design faults. Its manual safety features are difficult to use. The actuation of safety lever is almost impossible, without removing the left arm from the pump, and it becomes all the more complicated with gloves, plus the slide lock button is tricky open in actual combat situations. All this made off hand firing difficult, which one of the important ideas behind the gun.

However, with its many innovative concepts it remains a curiosity among connoisseurs.