[Rebelbase]

Im not a bird hunter, so the wooden dowel thing is confusing. Is this to prevent the pump action from being used, that is, when hunting migratory birds you can only single shot (maually load) each round?

[VRWCmember]

No, it is to reduce the number of rounds that can be held in the magazine and chamber to a total of 3. It is very easy and convenient to remove when not hunting and reinstall prior to hunting.

On my Mossberg 12-ga pump, for example, I simply unscrew the knob at the front of the pump chamber, point the gun down so that the dowel sticks out, pull it out and then reattach the knob and tighten it. Now I can load 5 in the magazine plus one in the chamber. When I go hunting, I remove the knob, insert the dowel, and reattach the knob. With the dowel inserted, the plug (that pushes the shells to the chamber) will only move forward far enough for two shells in the mag, so I can load a total of three (one in the chamber plus two in the mag).