General Facts
- TYPE
Shotgun - ORIGIN
United States - NICKNAMES
SLP / Self Loading Police shotgun - DESIGNED
Unknown - DESIGNER
FN America - PRODUCTION
Unknown - PRODUCERS
Portugal - FN America - QUANTITY
Unknown - UNIT COST
Unknown - CHARACTERISTICS
Semi-automatic
Fires shells 3" length shells
Very fast cycling
Does not cycle weak loads
Introduction
The SLP is a modern self-loading shotgun of US origin that was designed for law enforcement use. SLP stands for Self Loading Police shotgun. The SLP family of shotguns was developed to meet the demands of law enforcement units, mainly for the US market.
Design
The SLP is a self-loading gas operated shotgun. Design wise it is very similar to the Browning Auto 5. It is built on the short stroke piston principle. The SLP has a conventional design with a fixed shoulder stock and a tubular magazine below the barrel. The receiver, barrel and mechanism are made out of metal and the forearm and stock are synthetic. The stock is fitted with a recoil pad. The SLP has a similar speed loading ability as the Browning Auto 5 it is derived from.
Firepower
The SLP is semi-automatic shotgun firing 12ga shells of 2.75 and 3 inch length. For a self-loading shotgun the SLP is very reliable and the fast cycling mechanism allows for quick follow up shots. The SLP fires semi-automatic and with gas operation only. There is no option for pump action operation. As such low powered rounds cannot be cycled.
Users
The SLP is intended mainly for the US law enforcement market and is produced by the US branch of Fabrique Nationale. It is also available for civilian sales.
SLP
The SLP was the first model of the SLP family of semi-automatic shotguns to be designed. The other models use exactly the same internal mechanism, but differ in barrel and magazine length, sight setup and grip and stock design.
- Specifications:
- SLP
| Type | Shotgun |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 12ga 3" |
| Magazine | Tubular magazine, 6+1 with 2.75" shells, 5+1 with 3" shells |
| Operation | Active valve gas system |
| Fire selector | 0-1 |
| Rate of fire | Semi-automatic |
| Barrel length | 457 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | Smoothbore |
| Muzzle velocity | ? |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 984 mm |
| Width | 61 mm |
| Height | 201 mm |
|---|---|
| Weight | 3.5 kg empty |
| Sights | Iron sights |
| Remarks | - |
SLP Mark 1
The SLP Mark 1 is a longer version of the SLP. The Mark 1 differs from the SLP in having low profile sights in which the front sight is placed in front of an accessory rail. A special version of the Mark 1 is available with a rifled barrel for firing slugs more accurately.
- Specifications:
- SLP Mark 1
| Type | Shotgun |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 12ga 3" |
| Magazine | Tubular magazine, 8+1 with 2.75"shells, 7+1 with 3" shells |
| Operation | Active valve gas system |
| Fire selector | 0-1 |
| Rate of fire | Semi-automatic |
| Barrel length | 559 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | Smoothbore or rifled |
| Muzzle velocity | ? |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 1.092 mm |
| Width | 61 mm |
| Height | 201 mm |
|---|---|
| Weight | 3.7 kg empty |
| Sights | Iron sights |
| Remarks | - |
SLP Tactical
The SLP Tactical is similar to the Mark 1 in design. It has the same new iron sight setup. The differences are the pistol grip and stock design and side mounted accessory rails are fitted as standard. The Tactical model is available in the same barrel lengths as the SLP and Mark 1.
- Specifications:
- SLP Tactical (18 inch)
- SLP Tactical (22 inch)
| Type | Shotgun |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 12ga 3" |
| Magazine | Tubular magazine, 6+1 with 2.75" shells, 5+1 with 3" shells |
| Operation | Active valve gas system |
| Fire selector | 0-1 |
| Rate of fire | Semi-automatic |
| Barrel length | 457 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | Smoothbore |
| Muzzle velocity | ? |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 991 mm |
| Width | 61 mm |
| Height | ? |
|---|---|
| Weight | 3.35 kg empty |
| Sights | Iron sights |
| Remarks | - |
| Type | Shotgun |
|---|---|
| Caliber | 12ga 3" |
| Magazine | Tubular magazine, 8+1 with 2.75"shells, 7+1 with 3" shells |
| Operation | Active valve gas system |
| Fire selector | 0-1 |
| Rate of fire | Semi-automatic |
| Barrel length | 559 mm |
|---|---|
| Rifling | Smoothbore |
| Muzzle velocity | ? |
| Stock | Fixed |
| Length | 1.092 mm |
| Width | 61 mm |
| Height | ? |
|---|---|
| Weight | 3.58 kg empty |
| Sights | Iron sights |
| Remarks | - |
Benelli M4 Super 90
The SLP is a competitor to the Italian Benelli M4 Super 90 semi-automatic shotgun.
Fabarm SAT-8
The Italian Fabarm SAT-8 was designed to fulfill a similar law enforcement role as the FN SLP.