Military 12-gauge cartridges

Last updated
12-gauge
Type Shotgun
Specifications
Overall length2.75 inches (7.0 cm)

Military use of combat shotguns through the 20th century has created a need for ammunition maximizing the combat effectiveness of such weapons within the limitations of international law. 12-gauge has been widely accepted as an appropriate bore diameter to provide an effective number of projectiles within an acceptable recoil. Early 12-gauge popularity for sporting purposes produced a large number of repeating firearms designs readily adaptable to military purposes. [1]

Contents

United States

While shotguns had been used in earlier conflicts, the trench warfare of World War I demonstrated a need for standardized weapons and ammunition. [2] Initial issue with each shotgun was one hundred commercial-production paper-cased shotgun shells containing nine 00 buckshot pellets 0.33 inches (8.4 mm) in diameter. These cartridges became wet in the muddy trench warfare environment; and swelled paper cases would no longer chamber reliably. Full-length brass cartridges proved more resistant to moist field conditions and the repeated loading and unloading during patrols and watches when no ammunition was fired. Some of these early brass cartridges had an unusual saw-tooth crimp. [3]

M19

World War II production of full-length brass cartridges containing 00 buckshot was designated Shell, shotgun, brass, 12 gauge, No. 00 buckshot, M19. [1]

M162

Plastic shotgun shells devised following World War II were equally durable and water resistant as the earlier brass cartridges and had the additional advantages of corrosion resistance and lower cost. Initial production for the Vietnam War loaded 00 buckshot into the same red plastic cases being used for sporting ammunition and was designated: Shell, shotgun, plastic case, 12 gauge, No. 00 buck, XM162. The shells were typically packaged as twelve ten-round cardboard boxes within a metal ammunition box. [1]

M257

Combat experience in Vietnam suggested two improvements. Heavy bullet preferences dating back to the Philippine–American War were re-evaluated considering combat experience with the 5.56×45mm NATO cartridge, and advantages of a larger number of smaller No. 4 buckshot pellets were evident for some situations. These loadings were designated: Shell, shotgun, plastic case, No. 4 buck, special, XM257. Initial production was in the same red plastic cases, but the visibility advantage for sporting use was a liability in jungle warfare; so later production used cases of a subdued green color. [1]

Flechettes

Plastic cases loaded with small steel darts called "flechettes" were issued on a limited trial basis during the Vietnam war. Cartridges manufactured by Western Cartridge Company contained twenty flechettes 18.5 millimetres (0.73 in) long and weighing 7.3 grains (0.47 g) each. The flechettes were packed in a plastic cup with granulated white polyethylene to maintain alignment with the bore axis, and supported by a metal disk to prevent penetration of the over-powder wad during acceleration down the bore. Cartridges manufactured by Federal Cartridge Company contained 25 flechettes. Tips of the flechettes are exposed in the Federal cartridges, but concealed by a conventional star crimp in Western cartridges. [4] Flechettes had flatter trajectory over longer ranges than spherical buckshot, but combat effectiveness did not justify continued production. [5]

A023

The United States Navy included rifled slug cartridges among 21st-century loads. Slugs from these 2.75 in (7.0 cm) cartridges have a muzzle velocity between 1,590 ft (480 m) and 1,770 ft (540 m) per second. [6]

Experimental

FRAG-12 is experimental military shotgun grenade ammunition under consideration by military forces. [7] Coming in three variants: High explosive (HE), high explosive armor-piercing (HEAP) and high explosive fragmenting antipersonnel (HEFA) used by the AA-12 Atchisson Assault Shotgun and potentially other shotguns. [8] [9] [10]

Related Research Articles

Handloading, or reloading, is the practice of making firearm cartridges by manually assembling the individual components, rather than purchasing mass-assembled, factory-loaded commercial ammunition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shotgun</span> Firearm loaded with a cartridge of pellets

A shotgun is a long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge known as a shotshell, which discharges numerous small spherical projectiles called shot, or a single solid projectile called a slug. Shotguns are most commonly used as smoothbore firearms, meaning that their gun barrels have no rifling on the inner wall, but rifled barrels for shooting sabot slugs are also available.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flechette</span> Pointed, fin-stabilized steel projectile

A flechette is a pointed, fin-stabilized steel projectile. The name comes from French fléchette, meaning "little arrow" or "dart", and sometimes retains the acute accent in English: fléchette. They have been used as ballistic weapons since World War I. Delivery systems and methods of launching flechettes vary, from a single shot, to thousands in a single explosive round. The use of flechettes as antipersonnel weapons has been controversial.

The Winchester Model 1897, also known as the Model 97, M97, Riot Gun, or Trench Gun, is a pump-action shotgun with an external hammer and tube magazine manufactured by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company. The Model 1897 was an evolution of the Winchester Model 1893 designed by John Browning. From 1897 until 1957, over one million of these shotguns were produced. The Model 1897 was offered in numerous barrel lengths and grades, chambered in 12 and 16 gauge, and as a solid frame or takedown. The 16-gauge guns had a standard barrel length of 28 in (71 cm), while 12-gauge guns were furnished with 30 in (76 cm) barrels. Special length barrels could be ordered in lengths as short as 20 in (51 cm) or as long as 36 in (91 cm). Since the time the Model 1897 was first manufactured, it has been used to great effect by American military personnel, law enforcement officers, and hunters.

SCMITR was part of an experimental military shotgun ammunition created in the 1970s by AAI Corporation. It was a variation on flechette ammunition, but instead of containing a bundle of tiny needle-like steel darts, the cartridge contained a stack of razor-edged stamped sheet-metal arrow shapes designed to fly aerodynamically. It was considered to be very promising but prohibitively expensive to manufacture, so it has never been mass-produced.

A combat shotgun is a shotgun issued by militaries for warfare. The earliest shotguns specifically designed for combat were the trench guns or trench shotguns issued in World War I. While limited in range, the multiple projectiles typically used in a shotgun shell provide increased hit probability unmatched by other small arms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shotgun cartridge</span> Self-contained cartridge loaded with either shot or a solid slug

A shotgun cartridge, shotshell, or shell is a type of rimmed, cylindrical (straight-walled) ammunition used specifically in shotguns. It is typically loaded with numerous small, spherical sub-projectiles called shot. Shotguns typically use a smoothbore barrel with a tapered constriction at the muzzle to regulate the extent of scattering.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">.410 bore</span> Shotgun bore designed by Charles Eley and William Eley

The .410 bore (10.4 mm) is one of the smallest caliber of shotgun shell commonly available. A .410 bore shotgun loaded with shot shells is well suited for small game hunting and pest control. The .410 started off in the United Kingdom as a garden gun along with the .360 and the No. 3 bore (9 mm) rimfire, No. 2 bore (7 mm) rimfire, and No. 1 bore (6 mm) rimfire. .410 shells have similar base dimensions to the .45 Colt cartridge, allowing many single-shot firearms, as well as derringers and revolvers chambered in that caliber, to fire .410 shot shells without any modifications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M67 recoilless rifle</span> American type of recoilless rifle

The M67 recoilless rifle is a 90 mm anti-tank recoilless rifle made in the United States and later in South Korea. It could also be employed in an anti-personnel role with the use of the M590 antipersonnel round. It was designed to be fired primarily from the ground using the bipod and monopod, but could also be fired from the shoulder using the folded bipod as a shoulder rest and the monopod as a front grip. The weapon was air-cooled and breech-loaded, and fired fixed ammunition. It is a direct fire weapon employing stadia lines to allow simple range finding, based on a typical tank target bridging the lines once in range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riot shotgun</span> Type of shotgun

A riot shotgun is a shotgun designed or modified for use as a primarily defensive weapon, by the use of a short barrel and sometimes a larger magazine capacity than shotguns marketed for hunting. 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 door breaching and patrol weapon by law enforcement personnel, as well as a home defense weapon by civilians. Guns of this type are often labeled as breaching shotguns, tactical shotguns or special-purpose shotguns to denote the larger scope of their use; however, these are largely marketing terms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shotgun slug</span> Type of ammunition used mainly in hunting medium and large game

A shotgun slug is a heavy projectile made of lead, copper, or other material and fired from a shotgun. Slugs are designed for hunting large game, and other uses, particularly in areas near human population where their short range and slow speed helps increase safety margin. The first effective modern shotgun slug was introduced by Wilhelm Brenneke in 1898, and his design remains in use today. Most shotgun slugs are designed to be fired through a cylinder bore, improved cylinder choke, rifled choke tubes, or fully rifled bores. Slugs differ from round ball lead projectiles in that they are stabilized in some manner.

The Ithaca 37, also known as the Ithaca Model 37, is a pump-action shotgun made in large numbers for the civilian, law enforcement and military markets. Based on a 1915 patent by firearms designer John Browning for a shotgun initially marketed as the Remington Model 17, it utilizes a novel combination ejection/loading port on the bottom of the gun which leaves the sides closed to the elements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buck and ball</span>

Buck and ball was a common load for muzzle-loading muskets, and was frequently used in the American Revolutionary War and into the early days of the American Civil War. The load usually consisted of a .50 to .75 caliber round lead musket ball that was combined with three to six buckshot pellets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heckler & Koch HK CAWS</span> Bullpup automatic shotgun

The Heckler & Koch HK CAWS is a prototype automatic shotgun—designed as a combat shotgun—co-produced by Heckler & Koch and Winchester/Olin during the 1980s. It was Heckler & Koch's entry into the U.S military's Close Assault Weapon System program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">20-gauge shotgun</span> Smoothbore shotgun chambering

The 20-gauge shotgun, also known as 20 bore, is a type of smoothbore shotgun. 20-gauge shotguns have a bore diameter of .615 in (15.6 mm), while the 12-gauge has a bore diameter of .729 in (18.5 mm). 12-gauge and 20-gauge shotguns are the most popular gauges in the United States. The 20-gauge is popular among upland game hunters, target shooters, and skeet shooters.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atchisson AA-12</span> Automatic combat shotgun

The AA-12, originally designed and known as the Atchisson Assault Shotgun, is an automatic combat shotgun developed in 1972 by Maxwell Atchisson. The most prominent feature is reduced recoil. The current 2005 version has been developed over 18 years since the patent was sold to Military Police Systems, Inc. The original design was the basis of several later weapons, including the USAS-12 combat shotgun. The shotgun fires in fully automatic mode only. However, the relatively low cyclic rate of fire of around 300 rounds per minute enables the shooter to fire individual rounds through the use of short trigger pulls. It is fed from either an 8-round box magazine, 20-round drum magazine, or a 32-round drum magazine. The charging handle is located at the top of the gun and does not reciprocate during firing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Snake shot</span> Handgun and rifle cartridge loaded with lead shot

Snake shot, rat shot, or dust shot, more formally known as shotshell or canister shot, refers to handgun and rifle cartridges loaded with lead shot canisters instead of bullets, intended for pest control. As the names suggest, the main targets for such ammunition are snakes, rodents, birds, and other pests at very close range.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taurus Judge</span> Revolver

The Taurus Judge is a five shot revolver designed and produced by Taurus International, chambered for .410 bore shot shells and the .45 Colt cartridge. Taurus promotes the Judge as a self-defense tool against carjacking and for home protection.

The AAI CAWS is a prototype automatic shotgun—designed as a combat shotgun— produced by the AAI Corporation during the 1980s. It was AAI's entry into the U.S military's Close Assault Weapon System program.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">FRAG-12</span> Type of shotgun shell

The FRAG-12 is a specialized 12-gauge shotgun shell which contains a small amount of high explosive to breach intermediate barriers, defeat light armored vehicles, and disrupt IEDs. The shell was designed by the Special Cartridge Company in London, England. Later its patent extended to Olympic Technologies Ltd in Gibraltar.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Canfield, Bruce N. (March 2002). "Combat Shotguns of the Vietnam War". American Rifleman : 44–47 & 92–95.
  2. "Shotguns". GlobalSecurity.org . Archived from the original on 25 September 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2022.
  3. Canfield, Bruce N. (May 2004). "Give Us More Shotguns!". American Rifleman: 58–63.
  4. Di Maio, Vincent J.M. (1999). Gunshot Wounds (Second ed.). Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press. p.  320. ISBN   0-8493-8163-0.
  5. Canfield, Bruce N. (July 2015). "Vietnam-Era Military Shotshells". American Rifleman: 44.
  6. "U.S. Navy Awards Remington 12-Ga. Ammunition Contract". American Rifleman . 172 (4). National Rifle Association of America: 25. 2024.
  7. "FRAG-12 Factsheet" (PDF). Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory. 5 August 2005. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 April 2008.
  8. Beachey, Anthony (12 January 2011). "High Explosive: Innovations in Ammunition". Army Technology.
  9. Crane, David (15 June 2005). "Auto Assault-12 (AA-12) Full-Auto Machine Shotgun/FRAG-12 High-Explosive Round Combo/Weapon System!". Defense Review.
  10. "The AA-12 shotgun". YouTube.