Inspired by the fictional question, In what (fictional) tactical scenerios would a doubled-barreled shotgun be superior? - Cafe Society - Straight Dope Message Board, I’m vaguely curious as to this.
Shotguns were used during both World Wars for close combat- loaded with 00SG buckshot.
Anyone hit with that is going to have a bad day. In fact, the Germans tried to have shotgun use banned during WWI as being in breach of the Hague Convention (the same convention that outlawed the use of “dum-dum” bullets in combat).
Besides the Winchester Model 1917 Trench Gun (which could mount a bayonet and was used by the US in both World Wars), British and ANZAC soldiers were known to use sawn-off shotguns in trench raids during the First World War. They were compact, effective, and easy to use.
Shotguns are also used nowadays for breaching doors (ie blowing hinges and locks open to gain entry to buildings), and their comparatively short range (but high effectiveness) makes them useful for house-to-house military operations, I’m told.
…they also are useful in deploying less-than-lethal munitions like rubber slugs, bean bags and CS/riot shells. They can also deploy some heavier penetration items like flechet rounds.
They’re still used aboard naval vessels to repel boarders.
Yep we had them in the Navy for repel boarders. Navy guys don’t get a lot of shooting experience so shotguns are good for them and seems like they would be less likely to damage equipment.
It’s just that they have such crappy range, which is why they are specialized weapons, not standard issue.
The limited range can be a good thing for LE and home defense…less likely to injure someone on the other side of a wall, or a block away.
It is also part of the reason shotguns are used for bird hunting…not really a good idea to fire a rifle into the air, even if you are a good enough shot to hit a bird on the wing. Birdshot only stings a bit when it returns to earth.
Old timers often told yarns of shotgun shells filled with rock salt. Any idea why that is not discussed anymore?
Buckshot’s “crappy” range is around 50 yards. That’s more than enough for most situations – and is a higher effective range than most pistols in the hands of most shooters.
My brother used a shotgun when on patrol in 'Nam. The short range was not a handicap in dense jungle conditions.
Perhaps because it doesn’t work too well, except to frighten those damn neighbor kids off. Cite
In addition to combat, quite a bit of hunting of even larger game like deer is done with slug-loaded shotguns. In some locations longer-ranged weapons aren’t allowed due to proximity to houses, people, etc.
Cpl. Dwayne Hicks, USCM, had an heirloom shotgun as his backup weapon in Aliens, and seemed to do OK with it.
As I’ve posted before, I’ve seen the results of a kid shot with a shotgun loaded with rock salt, and it seriously fucked him up. I do not recall the injuries as being life-threatening, but they required hospitalization and they did leave bad scars.
Some things, like motorcycles, ultra-light airplanes and shotguns just got to have military applications, but such applications are rather hard to find. All have been used in warfare, but none have gained widespread acceptance.
Shotguns are simply less lethal than “real” guns. They have some utility, especially in close quarters and closed spaces, but soldiers do not generally use specialty weapons. We use weapons optimized for normal conditions. If you have a shotgun in your hand, you cannot have a rifle, and most of the time a rifle will work better.
The M203 grenade launcher have a buckshot round (why not fleshettes?). With it you can do everything a shotgun round would do, but it can also fire HE and illum.
(Oddly the shotgun used to be issued to company cooks in some armies as a means of harvesting birds for the pot.)
Actually, most pump and auto shotguns available were made GI in WWII.
Nothing like a load of rock salt to deter the more likely invaders of your property. Had a friend who moved into a house in the woods up north. Her roommates were not country girls and were feeding a local moose. Friend realized the likely sad consequences of such a relationship so, next time the moose came begging, she gave him a butt full of rock salt. Not a full dose, since he started running the moment he saw the shotgun. He apparently had encountered shotguns before.
I thought that was the Winchester 1897 pump shotgun with a bayonet lug welded on the barrel.
It also had a barrel shroud too, IIRC. But yeah, the M1917 shotgun is basically an M1897 with a bayonet lug.
Also, most militaries already have a dedicated close-quarters weapon - the submachine gun. Given the choice between a shotgun and an SMG, most soldiers would choose the latter. It’s more versatile, more compact, more accurate, and carries more ammo.