Does the KelTec KS7 12 Gauge Pump Shotgun Need a Magazine Plug?

AmmoLand ^ | November 24, 2025 | Dean Weingarten

[marktwain]

As this correspondent considered the Keltec KS7 as a potential hunting shotgun, it became evident that a magazine plug would be required to legally hunt migratory game birds, such as ducks, geese, and mourning doves.

KelTec KS7 12 Gauge Pump Shotgun

Shotguns, which are used to hunt migratory birds, are limited to three shots, including shells in the magazine. As the Keltec KS7 will hold seven 2.75-inch shells in the magazine, a magazine plug is necessary for legally hunting those birds.

Three loaded 2.75-inch shells require about 7 inches of magazine space. Two 3-inch loaded shells require about 5.6 inches of magazine space. A 12-inch plug made from a 1/4 inch wooden dowel in the magazine tube of my Keltec KS7 blocks the third 2.75-inch loaded shell with about a 1/4 inch to spare. It allows two loaded 3-inch shells with room to spare. A dowel between 12 and 13 inches long and 1/4 to 1/2 inch in diameter appears to work very well. They are narrow enough to fit inside the magazine spring, and both long and short enough to allow two three-inch shells and block three 2.75-inch shells.

There is not much stress on magazine plugs. They can be made from a variety of materials. Wooden dowels, plastic rods, plastic tubes, aluminum tubes, and fiberglass rods have been successfully used. Because the plugs are relatively loose in the tubular magazine, they can move and make noise. This is one reason to use wood or plastic instead of metal. Metal-on-metal makes a more distinct noise, which is undesirable in the hunting field. The material best suited to the author’s Keltec KS7 was made from a damaged plastic Lee cartridge case feeder tube. It is light, sturdy, and makes little noise when installed.

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TOPICS:
KEYWORDS: banglist; keltec; ks7; magazine

[GMThrust]

Answer: Because you can.

[marktwain]

I tested the 1 3/4 inch shells quite a bit. I put 30 magazine loads through without a problem.

I found if you turned the KS7 upside down and worked the action very slowly, you could occasionally get a shorty shell to bounce around and land backwards in the ejection port. I had to work hard at it. A very reliable shotgun, IMHO.

[Dave911]

Oh hell, go for it. But that bullet drop is going to be a doozy.

[marktwain]

My only criticism of the article is why the author appears to have chosen to limit himself to one less 3” shell when both 2-3/4” and 3” shells are federally limited to three in total.

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I should have been more clear. The magazine plug limited the load too two loaded 3” shells in the magazine. With one in the chamber, that is the three shot limit. It also limited the load to two 2 3/4 inch shells in the magazine.

[Cobra64]

Yup. Most people haven’t a clue.