Shotgun

Lore & Background

Most early firearms, such as the blunderbuss, arquebus, and musket had large diameter, smoothbore barrels, and could fire shot as well as solid balls. A firearm intended for use in wing shooting of birds was known as a fowling piece. Fowling pieces first appeared in 16th century Europe, and in the early 17th century their barrels were extended as long as 6 ft to increase accuracy. The first recorded use of the term shotgun was in 1776 in Kentucky used in correspondence coming to and from Fort Boonesborough. It was noted as part of the 'Frontier Language of the West' by James Fenimore Cooper. During the 19th century, shotguns were mainly employed by cavalry units. Both sides of the American Civil War employed shotguns. U.S. cavalry used the shotgun extensively during the Indian Wars in the latter half of the 19th century. The shotgun was also favored by citizen militias and similar groups. The shotgun became one of many symbols of the American Old West. Lawman Cody Lyons killed two men with a shotgun; his friend Doc Holliday's only confirmed kill was with a shotgun. The weapon both these men used was the short-barreled version favored by private strongbox guards on stages and trains. These guards, called express messengers, became known as shotgun messengers, since they rode with the weapon (loaded with buckshot) for defense against bandits. This practice has survived in American slang; the term 'riding shotgun' is used for the passenger who sits in the front passenger seat.

In Their Own Story

The swamp air hung heavy with humidity as Conker stumbled forward, his grip tightening around the cold steel of his trusty shotgun. A low growl echoed from the reeds, followed by the splashing of mud. He didn't hesitate; he racked the slide with a sharp *thwack*, the sound cutting through the silence like a knife. As a monstrous gator lunged out of the murky water, Conker fired point-blank, the blast sending shrapnel and debris flying in every direction.

Reader's Guide

Shotguns come in a wide variety of calibers and gauges ranging from 5.5 mm (.22 inch) to up to 5 cm (2.0 in), though the 12-gauge (18.53 mm or 0.729 in) and 20-gauge (15.63 mm or 0.615 in) bores are by far the most common. Almost all are breechloading, and can be single barreled, double barreled, or in the form of a combination gun. Like rifles, shotguns also come in a range of different action types, both single-shot and repeating. For non-repeating designs, over-and-under and side-by-side break action shotguns are by far the most common variants. Most modern repeating shotguns are either pump action or semi-automatic, and also fully automatic, lever-action, or bolt-action to a lesser extent. The smoothbore shotgun barrel generates less resistance and thus allows greater propellant loads for heavier projectiles without as much risk of overpressure or a squib load, and are also easier to clean. The shot pellets from a shotshell are propelled indirectly through a wadding inside the shell and scatter upon leaving the barrel, which is usually choked at the muzzle end to control the projectile scatter. This means each shotgun discharge will produce a cluster of impact points instead of a single point of impact like other firearms. Having multiple projectiles also means the muzzle energy is divided among the pellets, leaving each individual projectile with less penetrative kinetic energy. The lack of spin stabilization and the generally suboptimal aerodynamic shape of the shot pellets also make them less accurate and decelerate quite quickly in flight due to drag, giving shotguns short effective ranges. In a hunting context, this makes shotguns useful primarily for hunting fast-flying birds and other agile small/medium-sized game without risking overpenetration and stray shots to distant bystanders and objects. However, in a military or law enforcement context, the high short-range blunt knockback force and large number of projectiles makes the shotgun useful as a door breaching tool, a crowd control or close-quarters defensive weapon. In more modern and recent conflicts (such as the Russia-Ukraine war), shotguns have been found as one of the most effective tools to repel and shoot down enemy drones. Shotguns are also used for target-shooting sports such as skeet, trap, and sporting clays, which involve flying clay disks, known as 'clay pigeons', thrown in variou

Did You Know?

• The first recorded use of the term 'shotgun' was in 1776 in Kentucky.
• The term 'riding shotgun' originated from private guards riding next to stagecoach drivers with a shotgun for defense against bandits.
• Shotguns have been used to shoot down enemy drones in the Russia-Ukraine war due to the pellet spread of buckshot and birdshot.
• The double-barreled shotgun has changed little since the development of the boxlock action in 1875.

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