MAUL (shotgun)

Shotgun

MAUL

MAUL shotgun, mounted under a Colt Law Enforcement Carbine above and standalone below

Type| Shotgun
Place of origin|  Australia
Production history
Manufacturer| Metal Storm
Variants| Underslung, standalone
Specifications
Mass| 0.8 kilograms (1.8 lb) (underslung)

* * *

Cartridge| 12 gauge (proprietary)
Action| Superposed load, electrically fired
Feed system| 5 shot preloaded barrel

The Multi-shot Accessory Underbarrel Launcher, or MAUL, is a combat shotgun designed by defunct Brisbane-based company Metal Storm.[1]

## Design

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The MAUL is a shotgun based on Metal Storm's electronically initiated superposed-load technology. In this concept multiple projectiles, in this case of 12-gauge bore, are loaded nose to tail in a single gun barrel with propellant packed between them. Each projectile is ignited sequentially using an electrically fired primer: the electrical charge is provided by a battery.[2] The weapon fires once per trigger pull: while in effect this is semi-automatic, in strict terms it is not as no energy from firing is used to automate any part of the weapon's operating cycle. Designed to be used as either a standalone weapon or an underslung module of a combat rifle such as M4 or M16[3][4] via the use of Picatinny rail, it can also be used in a standalone configuration through the addition of a pistol grip, folding stock or both.[5] The central module is made of carbon fiber, while the barrels are steel.[2] The resulting weapon weighs less than 800 grams (1.8 lb),.[3]

In its underslung configuration, it was boresight-aligned to the host gun's sighting system.[2]

It was intended to fire a range of loads; buckshot, slug, Door breaching slugs, and several kinds of less-lethal loads including blunt-force, electro-muscular incapacitation and frangible nose chemical and marker munitions.[3] Loads were intended to be provided in their own munition tubes, with the operator switching tubes to change ammunition type.

Metal Storm reported the first shoulder-firing of the MAUL during tests on 24 April 2009 at its test facilities in Chantilly, Virginia.[2]

## Contracts

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*  Papua New Guinea: As of 3 August 2010[update], Metal Storm signed a contract with the Correctional Services Minister Tony Aimo to supply 500 standalone MAULs and 10,000 less-lethal barrels for use by correctional services officers. The contract was never ratified due to the company failing to produce the weaponry before it folded in 2012.[1]

## See also

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* Knight's Armament Company Masterkey \- an originator for the underslung shotgun concept
* M26 Modular Accessory Shotgun System \- comparable underslung shotgun adopted by the US Army

## References

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1. ^ a b "Metal Storm win multi-million contract". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. 3 August 2010. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
2. ^ a b c d "Metal Storm Reports 3GL, MAUL Testing Milestones". Defense Update. 17 April 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2019.
3. ^ a b c "MAUL". Metal Storm website. Metal Storm Limited. Archived from the original on 24 July 2010. Retrieved 3 August 2010.
4. ^ "MAUL – Multishot Accessory Underbarrel Launcher". Marines magazine. United States Marine Corps. 5 April 2010. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2010.
5. ^ Finniear, Lee (19 November 2010). ""From the Drawing board to the Battlefield"" (Press release). Land Warfare Conference 2010: Metal Storm Limited.`{{cite press release}}`: CS1 maint: location (link)