Overall Length: 33 inches
Barrel Length: 18.5 inches
Length of Pull: 13.25 inches
Weight: 7.75 pounds
Capacity: 16 + 1 rounds
Caliber: 12 gauge 2.75 inch and 3 inch compatible
MSRP: $1799

SRM 1216 Review

Shotguns, when you get right down to it, aren't that complicated. A rifle consists of a smoothbore tube, a (often tubular) magazine, a stock, and not much else. Although we wish it could be so easy, the truth is that simplicity never led to breakthroughs in technology.

Being a shotgun geek, I appreciate novelty in design, and SRM Arms' 1216 is about as novel as a shotgun can get.

Roller-delayed blowback action is used in the semi-automatic SRM 1216 shotgun. 

And while that is strange enough, this shotgun is also the quintessential HK design, a design that this company has never produced. 

The bolt of this pistol features a pair of rollers that, when activated, cause a delay long enough for the pressure to drop even before the action cycle starts. 

So far as I'm aware, it's really the only roller delayed shotgun available.

History & Origins

SRM Arms is a leading small arms producer that focuses on manufacturing shotguns and all of the parts shotguns consist of. SRM is run by a group of experts in small arms design, engineering, and machining who have a lot of experience making shotguns and other tactical weapons. 

The SRM team has made shotguns, parts for weapons, and ways to improve them that meet the needs of hunters, police officers, and military units and personnel.

Jeffrey Hajjar opened SRM Arms in 2006. He had been in the gun business for more than 30 years at that point.

Because the SRM 1216 was an innovation in the gun industry, it was included in the Call of Duty game series in 2012.

The following year, 2013, the SRM 1216 was announced by the NRA to be the shotgun of the year.

While SRM 1216 looks like it came from the future to visit us in the year 2022, it actually came out in 2009. 

It's been around for more than a decade, but no one has come up with a better or more unique way to make it work. The magazine system is the main thing that makes the SRM 1216 stand out. It has a set of four tubular magazines that can be taken off.

Key Features

The SRM 1216 is a self-loading shotgun with a high capacity that was made for tactical and home defense uses. It is the most popular product made by SRM Arms, a company that specializes in making shotguns and parts for shotguns.

The upper receiver, barrel, and bolt group of the 1216 are all made of steel. The lower receiver is made of polymer. The pushpin and break-open design make it easy to take apart, just like an AR-style gun. A roller-delayed blowback action cuts down on felt recoil and keeps the gun moving quickly.

Safety

Two ergonomic challenges I'd like to point out are that the safety lever works in the opposite direction of most other weapons with a safety lever, and that it's not easy to get to. To move the lever from "safe" to "fire," you don't use your thumb or forefinger to hit the back of the lever on the right side of the receiver. Instead, you use your forefinger to hit the front of the lever. Now that I'm used to it, I think this way of doing things is faster than the usual way. Also, keep in mind that the bolt release is very small and hard to use. It is much faster to just pull back on the bolt and let it go.

Trigger

The bullpup design of the 1216 makes it possible for a std 18-inch barrel to fit in a 32.5 inch platform. SRM did a great job making sure that this gun doesn't have the dreadful triggers that almost all bullpup-style guns have. This one will break at around 6 and a half pounds. They did this with a innovative design that looks a lot like the hammer and bolt group work on an AR-15. This is because the hammer is in the middle and rises after the bolt. This keeps the hammer closer to the trigger unlike the classic bullpup, so a longer trigger linkage bar isn't needed. The bolt hits a U-shaped buffer that is turned upside down and connected to two recoil springs underneath it. In fact, the sear goes after the hammer, just like in an AR-15.

Sights

When I bought my SRM 1216, it didn't have any sights or optics on it, but it had more than enough Picatinny rails on three sides of the handguard so that I could attach any kind of sights, optics, lights, or other tactical necessities.

Magazines

The SRM 1216’s magazine is quite unique. You use 16 rounds, and you can switch the magazines on the fly if you need to. 

AR-15 magazine changes aren't usually quick, but they aren't hard either. In the front of the gun, just in front of the magazine, there is an easy-to-press tab that lets you take out the magazine.

To put in the next magazine, you have to put it in the back port and then push it up to lock it in place. 

It’s not tough to do, but it’s different and requires some practice to really master. Even though I like the idea of removable tubular magazines, I don't think I'd ever have to reload after 16 or 17 rounds of buckshot for home defense. 

Despite all of this, I love being able to reload with a whole tube, even if I never use it.

It's also kind of a must, since you can't fill up the gun's four tubes when they're already in it. To load the tubes, you have to manually move a shell retainer out of the way. Every round, you have to do this, and you need both hands to do it. It's not quick, but it's also not hard to do or very slow.

How Does The SRM 1216 Perform?

Accuracy

It shoots well at shotgun ranges, and based on my time with it, its good at putting the shot where you want it.

Reliability

The SRM 1216 doesn't complain and easily eats round after round. Anything less than 1100 FPS could be a problem, but that's still a long way below normal speeds. It's possible to make it break, but that wouldn't happen during normal use.

Ergonomics

The combination of a small, ergonomic design and a magazine that can be removed gives it unmatched firepower and tactical advantages.

It's easy to use. Pulling back on the charging handle puts the first round into the gun. When the four rounds in the current magazine tube are used up, you can unlock the magazine by pressing the magazine index lever forward. 

This lets you turn the magazine either clockwise or counterclockwise. As soon as the next loaded magazine tube is lined up with the carrier, the bolt will automatically open to let the next round go into the chamber.

It's also nice that you can change the controls for right- or left-handed people.

Pros

• Rollers with delayed action let you cycle quickly and feel less recoil.
• The semi automatic action is fed by itself as the four-tube, rotating magazine turns.
• The 1216 model is only 33.75 inches long and has a standard barrel that is 18.5 inches long.
• High-capacity rotary magazine that can hold 8, 12, or 16 rounds of 2 3/4-inch or 3-inch shot-shells.
• A three-face hand-guard rail and an integrated Picatinny rail give the shooter many possibilities for mounting optics, lights, and other shooting accessories.
• With a pushpin and a break-open design, field stripping and maintenance are easy.
• The receiver and controls are ambidextrous, so they can be set up for right- or left-handed shooters.

Cons

• This shotgun is on the higher end for price.
• There are no sights included in your purchase.
• I don't see a way to add more bullets to the magazine on the fly.