types of shotguns

[ferret]

i got to thinking about shotguns during my time off today... why do most departments choose 12 gauge shotguns over 10 gauge?

[tcsd1236]

I would say its a mixture of tradition and weapon/ammo selection and availability.

[CajunKnight]

I asked the same question and was told it was due to the availability of ammo, you can get 12 gauge rounds from most anywhere maybe even from the bad guys when they drop em. http://www.officer.com/ubb/smile.gif

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Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, because you are crunchy and taste like chicken.

[dpdcop]

I don't think a lot of companies make 10 ga. gun and those that do are geared toward the hunters after wild turkeys and waterfowl. Ammunition is a lot cheaper for the 12 ga. as well. Like the man said, you can get 12 ga. ammo almost anywhere.

[dkiefner]

Ammo availability and versatility. I've never seen a 10 ga slug, and I think buck would almost have to be a custom load. DPD hit it when he said that the 10 is primarily a turkey and waterfowl gun.

Plus, touching off the 12 ga warshots is bad enough. I wouldn't even want to think about firing 40 or 50 10's.

[tcsd1236]

Ithaca Gun had what they called the 10 gauge "Roadblocker" for a few years. It was intended for the LE market quite literally as what it's name implied..roadblocks and shooting through cars. The patent for that model was sold off during one of the company reorganizations a few years ago. The design is now made by another company under another designation.
The ammo supply thing wouldn't be a problem if there was a market for the ammo manufacturers. Look how fast the 40 Auto round gained a wide variety of factory loadings when it became clear that LE was adopting the round en masse.
The basic issue is that the 12 gauge round has been around for a century and has proved adequate for the limited role it's been relegated to. Most agencies aren't going to go out and replace their quite functional 12 gauges without a good reason such as the ammo capacity hysteria that drove the switch to semiauto handguns.