I would buy a semiauto pistol in the caliber I wanted and a quality semiauto shotgun & just make it work. Like Jeff Cooper used to say about the carbine & pistol sets they both have the same reach. Give me more reach or more knock-down in my long gun.
Regards,
But you now have two differnt calibers to buy and keep track of. The idea of a simple carbine and handgun that can share ammo dates back to cowboy times and why the Colt SAA was chambered in 44-40 to pair with the Winchester 1873 rifles. one box of ammo was able to feed the rifle/ carbine and the handgun
I agree with you that a shotgun is a gret all around firearm and gives you, with a second barrel, a wide variety of shooting options.
The Ruger PC-9 would have been a hit as LAPD wanted them but they wanted them to feed from Beretta 92 Mags, to replace the shotguns in the squad cars (this was befoere the Hollywood shoot out that casued most departments to adopt the AR-15 / M16 as a squad care rifle). Bill Ruger said NO. that police can buy Ruger handguns to pair with the carbines and killed the project. I would have purchased one if it had an option to take Sig mags.
The long arm would be primary and being able to top off or reload from the pistol would make more sense as it is easier and more accurate to shoot a long gun than a handgun.
Some one could make a mint if they made an AR upper that shoots 9, 40, and 45 and mag well adapter that will accept the most popular pistol mags (Beretta 92, Glock 17 / 23, Sig 226, Ruger 85, S&W 59, and H&K USP) I would buy one. Giving me the ability to have two guns that feed from the same mag system.