12 ga shot test video
- Thread starter Green Lantern
- Start date
wild cat mccane
New member
all being equal, it is not the same. Energy by mass yes, but there is more cross sectional density in shot than a slug-ie the shot has more surface. So what that energy does is totally different.
ShootistPRS
New member
The fact is that it has been tested many times with repeatable results that show shot is effective in stopping a confrontation at household ranges. You can talk all about what you believe happens but the fact stands, it is effective.
Take-aways:
If the distance is less than 6 yards [the length of the longest hall in my house], birdshot will work without as much fear of hitting my granddaughter through the wall, or my pets in another room.
If the distance is over 12 yards, then buckshot seems the best bet, as birdshot is spreading- and losing the impact it had.
From what I've read, any apartment dweller is best off when their neighbor uses birdshot for home defense- but someone living alone [or with a spouse in the same room] on some property where the next house is 100 yards away is just fine with buckshot.
It seems the concern is about what is the best blend of safety from over-penetration within a house vs straight stopping power.
Here is another thought- no matter what you think about buck vs bird shot, can we all agree that they are better at stopping than a .380 or smaller?
If the distance is less than 6 yards [the length of the longest hall in my house], birdshot will work without as much fear of hitting my granddaughter through the wall, or my pets in another room.
If the distance is over 12 yards, then buckshot seems the best bet, as birdshot is spreading- and losing the impact it had.
From what I've read, any apartment dweller is best off when their neighbor uses birdshot for home defense- but someone living alone [or with a spouse in the same room] on some property where the next house is 100 yards away is just fine with buckshot.
It seems the concern is about what is the best blend of safety from over-penetration within a house vs straight stopping power.
Here is another thought- no matter what you think about buck vs bird shot, can we all agree that they are better at stopping than a .380 or smaller?
I wouldn't risk a psychological stop if I had better options open to me. And using birdshot also seems to rely on extremely close range (even by shotgun standards) and puts more of an emphasis on shot placement compared to buckshot. But hey, if you're comfortable using birdshot for home defense, then I hope it performs well for you.
Bill DeShivs
New member
Shot placement is paramount- even with a shotgun. Don't fool yourself.
In one of the incidents I mentioned above, the man was shot in the right chest. The wadding penetrated to his spine. He lived. He ran 35 yards before dropping from blood loss. Buckshot would have made no difference.
In one of the incidents I mentioned above, the man was shot in the right chest. The wadding penetrated to his spine. He lived. He ran 35 yards before dropping from blood loss. Buckshot would have made no difference.
"Bird"shot at household ranges will -- I say again -- WILL go through both sides of dual-sided drywall pretty much as a solid mass
Start at 3:40 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C29mEJFFIvo
Don't kid yourself.....
It will kill whatever's on the other side deader than a doornail... and make a mess while doing it.
https://1source.basspro.com/images/k2_images/choke_on_shot_800.jpg
Depending on your choice of choke....your load will start to “spread” in two directions the moment that it leaves the muzzle. It will begin to get wider and it will begin to get longer.
The link above illustrates what is expected at different ranges. It is pretty much in line with other estimates of spread that are available.
Cylinder choke - you can expect two inches a yard.
Your experience may vary of course but these are the common figures.
Full choke - one inch a yard.
Depending on your choice of choke....your load will start to “spread” in two directions the moment that it leaves the muzzle. It will begin to get wider and it will begin to get longer.
The link above illustrates what is expected at different ranges. It is pretty much in line with other estimates of spread that are available.
Cylinder choke - you can expect two inches a yard.
Your experience may vary of course but these are the common figures.
Full choke - one inch a yard.
This is standard E-Cheapo buckshot at 25 yards out of a 20" straight cylinder Model-12
That's 1½ - 1¾” at 3-4 yards – dining/living room – and effectively a slug
I’ll run a AA#8 skeet load at 3 yards tonight, but the pattern is clear…
Do NOT even think that a shotgun load will not penetrate household walls as anything but a near solid mass—and kill anything on the other side.
That's 1½ - 1¾” at 3-4 yards – dining/living room – and effectively a slug
I’ll run a AA#8 skeet load at 3 yards tonight, but the pattern is clear…
Do NOT even think that a shotgun load will not penetrate household walls as anything but a near solid mass—and kill anything on the other side.
It will be interesting to see what happens with the birdshot.
What you are probably going to find is what other researchers have found: that buckshot patterns tighter than birdshot. This has been my own experience.
There is a wealth of info about this on the net.
Birdshot expands, as noted in the NRA Firearms Fact Book, and the Bass Pro info that i linked earlier, at about two inches a yard. At five yards, you will have about 10 inches (buckshot about half that. Maybe less if your pattern holds true.), cylinder bore.
Here is yet another link:
http://modernsurvivalonline.com/shot-patterns-of-different-12-gauge-loads/
What you are probably going to find is what other researchers have found: that buckshot patterns tighter than birdshot. This has been my own experience.
There is a wealth of info about this on the net.
Birdshot expands, as noted in the NRA Firearms Fact Book, and the Bass Pro info that i linked earlier, at about two inches a yard. At five yards, you will have about 10 inches (buckshot about half that. Maybe less if your pattern holds true.), cylinder bore.
Here is yet another link:
http://modernsurvivalonline.com/shot-patterns-of-different-12-gauge-loads/
Last edited:
Assailants shot with bird shot in the torso often live to see the paramedics/med techs, then maaybe to the ER, then the OR, then the med surge floor to recover (generally a year-long, excruciating, and messy process that often ends up with colostomy bags and even worse impairments after all the healing is done). Some don't make it off med surge, what with sepsis, clots, etc.
Assailants shot with buckshot or slugs in the torso generally do not live to see a med tech/paramedic, don't make it live to the ER, or the OR, or med surge. That is because they died at the scene. Matter of fact, in a large metro area with beau coup GSWs per year, at the Level I trauma center over a 5 year period, not a single shootee who got shot with buck or a slug in the torso made it to med surge.
Anyways, I would load up with slugs, except my neighbors are too close. So 00 or 000 buck it is, along with an understanding of my home's layout and likely lines of fire.
Assailants shot with buckshot or slugs in the torso generally do not live to see a med tech/paramedic, don't make it live to the ER, or the OR, or med surge. That is because they died at the scene. Matter of fact, in a large metro area with beau coup GSWs per year, at the Level I trauma center over a 5 year period, not a single shootee who got shot with buck or a slug in the torso made it to med surge.
Anyways, I would load up with slugs, except my neighbors are too close. So 00 or 000 buck it is, along with an understanding of my home's layout and likely lines of fire.