Submachine Gun vs Combat Shotgun

This article is mainly aimed at listing the pros and cons for the two most common military weapons in the world for room clearance and CQC (close quarter combat). These weapons are the combat shotgun and the submachine gun, and they are both very effective for the line of work that they are generally enrolled in. There is much controversy over which weapon is more effective, and there will never be a definite answer to that. After researching all available resources, one must decide for oneself whether the power and versatility of the combat shotgun or the portability and rapid fire of the submachine gun is the best CQC weapon.
Combat Shotgun
The combat shotgun is the older technology of the two; shotguns have been in service with the U.S. military for over a century. They are generally low-maintenance, smooth-bore weapons that traditionally fire a variety of 12-gauge shotgun shells. This type of ammunition comes in many different types, including birdshot, 00 buck, and slugs. These munitions make the combat shotgun one of the most formidable anti-personnel firearms within 100 yards of a target because of the high velocity and power of the multiple projectiles expelled from the gun. Multiple projectiles also mean more lead-on-target, more penetration, and more lethality in anti-personnel situations. Shotgun slugs are generally used for missions such as door breaching, and this is another one of the key functions of a shotgun. Rifle rounds are sometimes unable to penetrate or incapacitate door-locking mechanisms (or enemy personnel), and a shotgun is able to expel the entire device with one shot.
Combat shotguns are also ideal for room clearance in areas even the size of a bedroom, due to their relatively compact size and “spread” ability when fired, which creates a better chance of hitting a target in a close quarter combat environment. Shotguns also have a high penetration level, which results in more enemy vulnerability.
There are disadvantages with conventional combat shotguns as well, one of them being that they are descended from hunting rifles. This is evident even with standard models in areas such as the tubular magazine, pump-action, and front sight post. Traditional shotguns sport a very low rate of fire, and do not generally hold an extensive amount of ammunition. They also have high recoil, and are associated with an extremely short range when compared to other firearms in terms of lethality and accuracy. However, militaries around the world are beginning to use and standardize semiautomatic and fully automatic shotguns into their weapon arsenal.
An example would be the Auto Assault 12 (AA12) shotgun, which the United States Marine Corps is running through trials. It is a fully automatic, low-recoil, self-cleaning, self-lubricating, ultra-reliable 12-gauge shotgun, capable of 300 rounds a minute. It sports a 20-round drum magazine, and has a range of up to 100 yards with standard munitions. It has the least amount of recoil of any shotgun to date, allowing soldiers who only weigh 100 pounds the ability to use it in combat. The product designers say that it is also lubrication and cleaning free, thanks to the recoil and feeding system it uses. They brag that it is made of multiple types of stainless steel, and can be fired in harsh environments like the arctic or desert and never jam, even if fired upside down. There is also a new shotgun shell called the Frag-12, a stabilized 12 gauge warhead that arms itself after being fired. It has a range of 175 meters with the AA12, and is produced in three different types: armor piercing, high explosive, and fragmentation. Together, these types of weapons may be the future of combat shotguns.
Submachine Gun
On the other side of the spectrum, the submachine gun is another widely used CQC weapon. For the sake of this comparison, PDWs (Personal Defense Weapons) will also be categorized as submachine guns as well. These weapons are generally very compact, light and portable, which is ideal for CQC. They also sport a high rate of fire, average ammunition capacity, and small-caliber ammunition. SMGs are standard issue to personnel who don’t generally need the protection an assault rifle brings, such as pilots, tank crewmen and vehicle drivers. They are able to reach out to distances that a pistol can’t, and still remain small enough to be considered a sidearm. Their high rate of fire allows for maximum security when in close quarters, and the expression “spray and pray” refers to the high rate of fire combined with the high recoil of an SMG. Room clearance is what the submachine gun is made for, and it's able to clear out a room in seconds.
SMGs generally fire pistol rounds, which are ideal because of their small size and portability. A smaller round also means less recoil and a faster rate of fire for the gun. However, these pistol rounds, including the 9mm and .45 caliber, do not have a high penetration rate, and they also do not sport high lethality when compared to rifle rounds or shotgun shells. They also have a shorter range than larger calibers, partly because they are usually fired from a CQC-length barrel, which is short to ensure maneuverability. PDWs are an exception, such as the P90 or MP7A1, for they fire small rifle rounds instead, but these rifles still have to deal with problems such as recoil and lethality. SMGs have also been known to have a farther range than some shotguns, with an effective range of 50-100 meters and a maximum range of 150 meters.
These types of firearms are known to have high recoil, due to the fact that the weapon itself is light and small, offering no resistance and forcing the muzzle to rise upward dramatically. This causes more and more shots to stray off target, and minimizes accuracy and range. SMGs have also been known to not be as reliable as other CQC weapons such as the combat shotgun, because they have a very high rate of fire and have a lot more moving parts than a traditional pump-action mechanism. However, recent developments in technology have allowed small caliber weapons the ability to sport less recoil than conventional weapons.
An example of this is the TD KRISS Vector, which is a .45 ACP submachine gun that minimizes recoil better than any other gun in its class. It uses a system which forces recoil down instead back into the shooter’s shoulder, producing 60% less felt recoil and 90% less muzzle climb than conventional weapons, like the MP5 (the MP5 even fires the smaller 9mm round, which has less recoil than the .45 ACP). The KRISS also fires at 1500 rounds per minute, which is relatively high for a firearm, and is a lighter and therefore more portable weapon than the MP5 as well. It is a notable breakthrough for firearms around the world.

It is not totally clear whether the submachine gun or the combat shotgun is the best choice for a CQC mission, but they are both generally sufficient for the missions they are generally expected to accomplish.
http://world.guns.ru/shotgun/sh29-e.htm
http://world.guns.ru/smg/smg96-e.htm
http://en. .org/wiki/Combat_shotgun
http://en. .org/wiki/Submachine_gun
http://en. .org/wiki/Atchisson_Assault_Shotgun
http://www.kriss-tdi.com/
http://en. .org/wiki/TDI_Kriss

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