- This article refers to shotguns designed for use by law enforcement agencies and private civilians. For related variants intended for military use, see combat shotgun
A combat shotgun is a shotgun that is intended for use in an offensive role, typically by a military force. The earliest shotguns specifically designed for combat were the trench guns or trench shotguns issued in World War I...
.
A
riot shotgun is a
shotgunA shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
designed or modified for use as a primarily defensive weapon, primarily by the use of a short barrel. The riot shotgun is used by military personnel for guard duty and was at one time used for riot control, and is commonly used as a patrol weapon by law enforcement personnel, as well as a home defense weapon by private citizens. Guns of this type are often labelled as
tactical shotguns or
special-purpose shotguns to denote the larger scope of their use; however, these are largely marketing terms.
Characteristics
The primary characteristic of a riot shotgun is a "short" barrel (generally 14", 18-18.5", or 20" in length) which makes the shotgun more compact and easier to handle, easier to stow inside a police vehicle, and more suitable for quick aiming at (close) stationary targets. Generally they have an open (cylinder-bore) choke, to permit the shot to spread quickly and to allow use with other types of projectiles, and they may be equipped with bead, rifle, or ghost-ring sights. Riot guns are most often
pump-actionA pump-action rifle or shotgun is one in which the handgrip can be pumped back and forth in order to eject a spent round of ammunition and to chamber a fresh one. It is much faster than a bolt-action and somewhat faster than a lever-action, as it does not require the trigger hand to be removed from...
due to this design's lower cost and higher reliability, although in recent years a number of
semi-automatic shotgunA semi-automatic shotgun is a form of shotgun that is able to fire a cartridge after every trigger squeeze, without any manual chambering of another round being required...
s designed primarily for defensive use have become available and are used by military, law enforcement and civilians alike.
Most riot guns are chambered in 12-gauge and can handle either 2.75" "standard-length" or 3" "magnum" cartridges. Most non-shotshell loads, such as less lethal ammunition like bean bags, are made only in 12-gauge. However, 20-gauge and .410 shotguns in riot gun configuration are also available. Smaller bores are popular for home defense, as the reduced power and recoil make them more suitable for less experienced shooters who, nevertheless, may need to defend themselves in their home.
Another defining feature of riot shotguns is their high capacity. While most hunting shotguns hold between 2-5 rounds (often 3, to comply with U.S. regulations for bird hunting), riot shotguns generally have a magazine tube as long as the barrel, allowing for 6-10 shells to be loaded depending on the model, barrel length, and type of shells loaded.
Configurations of grips and stocks for riot shotguns vary widely, but virtually always feature reinforced plastic "furniture" instead of the wood common on hunting firearms. As compared to hunting shotguns, riot guns more often feature pistol grips, with or without a shoulder stock. Without a shoulder stock (or with a folding stock), a riot shotgun becomes more compact and thus is able to be brought to bear more rapidly in very close quarters. With the stock, the pistol grip facilitates control of the weapon and provides a more ergonomic grip when the shotgun is fired from the shoulder. Foregrips, or forends, also vary, often with the inclusion of a pistol-grip fore-end (further increasing control and absorbing recoil), and/or the addition of an accessory rail or other mounting point for a tactical light.
The multiple projectile ability of a shotgun greatly increases the probability of a hit on an assailant, and the multiple projectiles increase the likelihood of a disabling hit. Though many sizes and configurations of shotshell are used by police, among the most common is the 12-gauge 2 3/4-inch (70 mm) 00 ("double-ought") buckshot
shellA shotgun shell is a self-contained cartridge loaded with shot or a slug designed to be fired from a shotgun. Most shotgun shells are designed to be fired from a smoothbore barrel, but with the recent gain in popularity of dedicated shotguns with rifled barrels for firing slugs, there are many...
, which consists of 9 .33 caliber (8.5 mm) round lead balls, each of which is similar in size and velocity to a 9mm/.38 caliber handgun bullet. This shot spreads out to a greater or lesser degree depending on the barrel choke, and can be effective at ranges as far as 75 yards (70 m). The delivery of the large number of projectiles simultaneously makes the shotgun the most effective short range weapon commonly used, with a hit probability 45% greater than a
submachine gunA submachine gun is a firearm that combines the automatic fire of a machine gun with the cartridge of a pistol, and is usually between the two in weight and size...
, and twice as great as an
assault rifleAn assault rifle is a rifle designed for combat, with selective fire . Assault rifles are the standard infantry weapons in most modern armies, having largely superseded or supplemented larger and more powerful battle rifles such as the M14, FN FAL and the Heckler & Koch G3...
.The ability to use
shotgun slugA shotgun slug is a heavy lead projectile, usually with pre-cut rifling, intended for use in a shotgun and often used for hunting large game. The first effective shotgun slug was introduced by Wilhelm Brenneke in 1898, and his design remains in use today...
s extends the range and penetration capability of the shotgun. Police officers in the US commonly secure a shotgun in their vehicles, for use when armed resistance is expected or at any time greater firepower than the officer's sidearm is needed.
Riot vs. combat shotguns
The division between the riot shotgun and the combat shotgun is blurry, and may be more a matter of application than design. A combat shotgun would be used in military combat situations as a primarily offensive weapon, where a riot shotgun would be used in law enforcement or civilian situations as a primarily defensive weapon. Common additions to a combat shotgun would be provision for attaching a
bayonetA bayonet is a knife-, dagger-, sword-, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on, over or underneath the muzzle of a rifle barrel or similar weapon, effectively turning the gun into a spear. It is a close quarter battle combat or last-resort weapon.-History: The origins of the bayonet are...
, and the addition of a ventilated heat shield over the barrel (though this heat shield is a common addition to riot shotguns as well) designed to prevent the operator's fingers from being burned by a barrel heated by multiple shots, and thus to allow the operator to secure a full grip on the weapon while using the attached
bayonetA bayonet is a knife-, dagger-, sword-, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit on, over or underneath the muzzle of a rifle barrel or similar weapon, effectively turning the gun into a spear. It is a close quarter battle combat or last-resort weapon.-History: The origins of the bayonet are...
, even when the barrel was far too hot to touch. This feature can be seen on many military long-arms, including the 1903 Springfield, the SMLE, M1 Garand, and Mauser rifles, to name some of the more obvious types (otherwise, there is little reason to enshroud the barrel and hinder the cooling airflow). The U.S. Army specifications for shotguns require a metal trigger guard for durability, which reduces the number of "special purpose" models used by police that would also be suitable for the military (the Mossberg 590A1 and Benelli M1014 are the standard-issue pump and semi-auto shotguns currently in service).
Riot shotguns are also more limited in range than combat shotguns by the nature of their use. A combat shotgun is considered effective out to 75 yards (70 m) because on average at least 1 pellet of a 9 pellet 00 buckshot load will hit a human sized target at that range. This is enough to degrade the combat effectiveness of an enemy soldier, but it is not enough to reliably disable an assailant in a defensive situation. For that, there must be multiple hits to the target, enough that one or more pellets will hit a vital region. Generally this is well under 40 yards (37 m) with a cylinder bore barrel. Beyond this range, slugs and good iron sights are recommended, extending the range to over 100 meters.
Less lethal alternatives
The latter part of the 20th century saw a new role for the riot shotgun, with the advent of a wide variety of less lethal ammunition for police use. These vary from the early "bean bag" shooting
flexible baton roundThe flexible baton round is the trademarked name for a "bean bag round," a type of shotgun shell used for semi-lethal apprehension of suspects.-Description:...
s, rubber bullets and other impact munitions, to tear gas and, expected to be released in January 2008, a 12 gauge electroshock weapon from
TASER InternationalTaser International, Inc. is an American developer, manufacturer, and distributor of TASER electroshock guns, a handheld less-lethal weapon designed to incapacitate a single person from a distance. The company is based in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA...
. Using the shotgun as the delivery system allows the officers to quickly choose a lethal or a less lethal weapon, so responding officers can adapt to changing situations; An officer in a standoff can quickly eject a chambered buckshot cartridge and replace it with a less-lethal cartridge such as a bean bag, and is not required to unload the magazine as with most rifles or handguns. Alternately, one officer can be equipped with less lethal munitions, while others, equipped with buckshot, can provide a backup in case the less lethal rounds fail to stop the target.
Entry and breaching shotguns
The entry shotgun or breaching shotgun is a role that can be filled by a standard riot shotgun, or one further modified for these purposes. They may have an extremely short barrel and often only a pistol grip rather than a buttstock, or a folding or collapsing buttstock if it is provided with one. In addition, the barrel often has a
muzzle brakeMuzzle brakes and recoil compensators are devices that are fitted to the muzzle of a firearm or cannon to redirect propellant gases with the effect of countering both recoil of the gun and unwanted rising of the barrel during rapid fire...
, used to disperse hot gases that might otherwise be deflected toward the shooter. It is often used with
breaching roundA breaching round or slug-shot is a shotgun shell specially made for the purposes of door breaching. It is typically fired at a range of 6 inches or less, aimed at the hinges or the area between the doorknob and lock and door jamb, and is designed to destroy the object it hits and then disperse...
s, as its extremely short length is ideal for quickly disabling locks and entering the forced door, and may be equipped with a special "standoff" device at the muzzle for use when breaching. Since these shotguns would in most areas be classified as short barreled shotguns, they are highly restricted under gun control laws such as the
National Firearms ActThe National Firearms Act , 73rd Congress, Sess. 2, ch. 757, , enacted 1934-06-26, currently codified as amended as ) is an Act of Congress passed in 1934 that, in general, imposes a statutory excise tax on the manufacture and transfer of certain firearms and mandates the registration of those NFA....
and generally only used by police and military.
See also
- Riot gun
A riot gun or less-lethal launcher is a type of firearm that is used to fire less than lethal ammunition for the purpose of suppressing riots. Less-lethal launchers may be special purpose firearms designed for riot control use, or standard firearms, usually shotguns and grenade launchers, adapted...
- Musketoon
The musketoon is a shorter barrelled version of the musket, and served in the roles of a shotgun or carbine. Musketoons could be of the same caliber as the issue musket, or of a much larger caliber, 1.0-2.5 inches . The musketoon is most commonly associated with naval use, and pirates in...
- Blunderbuss
The blunderbuss is a muzzle-loading firearm with a short, large caliber barrel, which is flared at the muzzle, and used with shot. The blunderbuss is an early form of shotgun adapted to military and defensive use...
- Sawed-off shotgun
A sawed-off shotgun also called a sawn-off shotgun A sawed-off shotgun (US, CAN) also called a sawn-off shotgun A sawed-off shotgun (US, CAN) also called a sawn-off shotgun (UK, IRL, AU, NZ and a short-barreled shotgun (or SBS) (U.S. legislative terminology), is a type of shotgun with a shorter...
- Combat shotgun
A combat shotgun is a shotgun that is intended for use in an offensive role, typically by a military force. The earliest shotguns specifically designed for combat were the trench guns or trench shotguns issued in World War I...