Maybe a personal preference but I would much rather be opposite a AK / AR at thirty or forty feet then a 870 loaded with 0 or 00 .
A little back up for my preference !!
A shotgun is a multiple projectile weapon for close range combat. Since it is simpler than modern rifles, it was developed quite early. In the American Revolution, Gen. George Washington encouraged his troops to load their muskets with “buck and ball,” a load consisting of one standard musket ball and three to six buckshot, to increase the probability of a hit. Shotguns were used at the Alamo, by the Marnes in the war with Mexico in 1846, and in the Civil War by Union and Confederate forces, primarily by cavalry units. Followin ghte Civil War, U.S, Cavalry units employed shotguns during the Indian wars between 1866 and 1891. Shotguns saw service during the Philippine insurrection (1899 to 1914), and by Brigadier General John Pershing in the 1916 punitive expedition into Mexico in pursuit of Pancho Villa.
When the United States entered World War I in 1917, General Pershing’s forces employed 12-gauge pump action shotguns, loaded with six No. 00 buckshot shells, for close-range defensive fires against enemy infantry assaults, trench raids, and assaults on enemy trenches and machine gun positions. The shotguns were fitted with bayonets and a heat shield so the barrel area could be gripped when the bayonet was employed. This style of gun, with heat shield and bayonet, was the “trench gun”. Shotguns without these features were “riot guns”. Later, when trench warfare was no longer a military concern, all shotguns were referred to as “riot guns” even if equipped with bayonet and heat shield.https://olive-drab.com/od_other_firearms_shotguns_history.php
When the United States stepped up the deployment of troops to Southeast Asia beginning in the early 1960s, it was recognized that shotguns could be of value for fighting in the jungles and similar terrain. The World War II-vintage trench guns (and some riot guns) were refurbished as necessary, and many were sent to Vietnam. Most of those guns were Parkerized, and any worn or defective parts were replaced as part of the overhaul process. The refurbished World War II shotguns that saw the most use in Vietnam were the Winchester Model 12 and Stevens M520-30 trench guns. A few Winchester Model 97 shotguns saw use during this period as well—even though most of them had been disposed of as surplus by the government in the late 1940s.
Even with the “recycled” World War II guns in inventory, it was obvious that the supply was going to be exhausted before too long, and contracts were given for the procurement of new shotguns .
It was determined that smaller size shot, such as “No. 4 Buckshot,” would be better suited to certain types of combat situations than the standardized 00-buckshot. To this end, ammunition of this type was adopted as “Shell, Shotgun, Plastic Case, No. 4 Buck, Special, XM257.” Early versions of the XM257 shells were red plastic with the nomenclature stamped on the outside while later production shells were made of green “subdued” colored plastic. The XM257 No. 4 buckshot was packaged in the same type of 10-round boxes as the XM 162 No. 00 buckshot, and both types of No. 4s were used more or less concurrently from the time of adoption through at least the early 1990s.
While not well suited for all types of combat applications, shotguns proved to be of value in many engagements during the Vietnam War. Night ambushes and perimeter defense were two applications in which shotguns especially excelled. It is reported that American units armed with shotguns had higher “body counts” than similar units without shotguns.
After the United States’ withdrawal from Vietnam, combat shotguns remained a part of our armed forces’ inventory. Some of those used in Vietnam, especially the Ithaca “S-prefix” and Stevens M77E shotguns, are seldom encountered today because the majority were left in Southeast Asia.
While the M14 and M16 were the primary infantry small arms of the Vietnam War, the various combat shotguns also provided valuable service to our fighting men on many occasions. In certain combat situations, there is no deadlier arm than a slide-action shotgun loaded with buckshot. Many Viet Cong and North Vietnamese discovered what German troops found out in the trenches of France during the World War I and what the Japanese realized in the jungles of the Pacific during World War II: A determined American with a shotgun is a fearsome opponent indeed!
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https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2016/4/22/combat-shotguns-of-the-vietnam-war/
The XM26 / M26 MASS Modular Accessory Shotgun System has its roots in requirements for a lightweight accessory shotgun, formulated by US Army in 1997-98. Original solicitation for prototype was won by private US company C-More Competition, and by 1999 several XM26 underbarrel shotguns were issued to US troops in Afghanistan on an experimental basis. XM26 MASS program faced temporary delay between 2001 and 2003 due to US Army’s preference for a stand-alone XM1014 Joint Service Combat Shotgun (JSCS). However, field experience forced US Army to resume development of XM26, and by 2008 the now-standard M26 Modular Accessory Shotgun System entered official service with US Military.
The Kel-Tec KSG-25: The Deadliest Shotgun on Planet Earth?
The KSG-25 shotgun is a fairly impressive engineering achievement. Manual shotgun technology for the most part plateaued decades ago, and it’s refreshing to see a new take on the pump action shotgun. While not for everyone, the KSG-25 provides unmatched levels of firepower.
