Advice?

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Jumping_Jehosaphat

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Sorry ahead of time for the length.

Be brutal, be honest, I can handle it, I'm a big boy...

Anyway, I have a gun lust (I feel like an alcoholic finding release now). I have a decent collection of guns, but I WANT MORE!!!! I'll spare you all the extras and get to the point. The LGS has a freakin' sweet deal on an AR 15 NIB; one of those freakin' sweet deals that if I were to walk away from I seriously doubt I could stumble across again. Here's where the dilemma begins, I have the money to get it without having to trade in something of what I have to knock price down (I really don't want to trade what I have because I'm a gun hoarder). I recently came across a Mossberg 500 HD that I LOVE. I got it for home defense only and I pray to God Almighty I never have to pull the trigger on someone with it because it'll be ugly. I bought an FNX .40 back in February that I loved so much that I bought the FNX .45. The FNX .45 has become my CCW because of how well it shoots.

To the point: To justify this AR purchase I am going to end up trading either the Mossberg or the FNX .40 in to knock some of the price down. What do y'all think?
 
Oh how we've all been down your road lol. Here's my view and thus far I've stuck to it 100%. If you have the money then buy it. Don't pass it up and if you don't NEED to get rid of anything don't. I've seen to many people kick themselves later down the road. I've been there twice with cars. 6 years later I still regret it.

Now with that being said out of your choices I'd let the mossberg go if you absolutely had to unload one. Mossy's are a dime a dozen, you could always find one later dirt cheap with no problem. The fnx however could be tricky. At least my area they are. They are sweet guns and I'd rather have that then the mossberg. But if you must sell the fnx I suppose for the right price I could take it off your hands!!:rolleyes:
 
Hmmmm, I hate to sell or trade anything, but if I had to trade something, it'd be the FNX .40. While Mossbergs are common, they're also good shotguns, and a good shotgun is a very versatile weapon (HD, hunting, competition . . . ). You also have two FNXs, one in .40 and one in .45. I'm not a huge fan of the .40, and you said that the .45 has become your carry weapon. Hence, trade the .40 if you must trade anything.
 
If you absolutely have to trade something, I'd put the FNX .40 on the chopping block since I don't really see it doing much that the .45 won't.
 
I guess if I were you I'd trade off the 40 because a FNX 40 & 45 are redundant, they fill the exact same roll and require you to stock different ammo for each.

I'd never replace a good shotty with a AR for interior home defense though...
The AR is harder to aim and can pass through several walls, maybe even making it out of your house and into your neighbor's.
The shotgun is also arguably more effective at close range with the right shells.
 
I say keep the shotgun, too. Very versatile. You can get other barrels, chokes, etc., use buck, slugs, or birdshot, to fit a wide range of uses. The two pistols are redundant, and fulfill the same purpose.
 
The AR is harder to aim and can pass through several walls, maybe even making it out of your house and into your neighbor's.
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At home defense ranges out of an 18" barrel a shotgun pattern is hardly going to spread at all; you're going to have to aim it just like you would have to aim an AR.

And an AR is generally much safer to fire indoors than a shotgun if you're using the right ammo. 55 gr. or lighter ballistic-tipped hollow points are extremely effective but will penetrate though walls far less than buckshot.
 
From a clinical perspective, you should follow your instincts. Don't confuse yourself, you know what you are, don't deny yourself because it will make your problem worse if you do.

At the same time, do not indulge your weakness at the cost of your family or home. Provide first, play later. Make sure you have a sound and accurate view of where you sit in this world from a financial standpoint. This is important even if you are young and single, but vital if you are married with kids and more so if you are single with kids.

If you don't know where you stand financially then you are driving blind and better get your eyes fixed. Don't guess where you are, know where you are. Once you have this straight and you know you are straight, then you can feed that little addiction all you want.
 
At home defense ranges out of an 18" barrel a shotgun pattern is hardly going to spread at all; you're going to have to aim it just like you would have to aim an AR.
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Don’t be silly... at 6-12 yards a shotgun can easily spread 6-8 inches.
A near-miss with a AR would yield a 3 inch coverage hit with a shotty - plenty enough to rip the side out of someone or peel half their face off.

Grabbing a AR instead of the shotgun sitting right next to it to confront a home intruder is just... :rolleyes:
 
Don’t be silly... at 6-12 yards a shotgun can easily spread 6-8 inches.
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First, that seems a little extreme for most self-defense shotgun loads. I've shot Federal personal defense 00 buck loads out of a 6" barrel Mossberg AOW that still spread less than 2 inches at 5 yards or so. Second, 12 yards is a lot farther than most inside-the-house encounters are probably going to take place. With most self-defense shotgun loads at most self-defense ranges, the pattern is going to be a couple of inches at most.

Even if you had a shotgun load that managed to spread 6-8 inches inside your house, it's still so easy to aim an AR that it would be a moot point. I can hit center-mass all day at 15 yards even with an AR that has no sights. Throw in a red dot and it's even easier.

Grabbing a AR instead of the shotgun sitting right next to it to confront a home intruder is just...:rolleyes:
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Really? C'mon. It's OK if you prefer a shotgun over an AR for home defense, but criticizing people who prefer an AR is a little ridiculous.

In my opinion, a 5.56mm AR-15 is a superior home-defense weapon to a shotgun. A shotgun's recoil can be difficult for some people, especially smaller, newer shooters, whereas the AR-15 has barely more recoil than a .22. Also, most AR-15s are shorter than most shotguns and much easier to use one-handed. Pump shotguns can be cumbersome and require two hands, and semi-autos aren't nearly as reliable as an AR-15; and unless the shooter is extremely consistant, even a pump is less reliable than an AR. And I can put 2 or 3 rounds center mass as fast as I can hit just once with a shotgun, making the AR potentially more effective in the same amount of time. And contrary to popular belief, you do need to aim with a shotgun; like I already said, at home defense ranges the blast is only going to spread a few inches. Also, an AR is going to have a much higher magazine capacity and will be much faster to reload. In addition, light plastic-tipped .223 varmint rounds will be extremely effective, will also punch through soft body armor if your attacker happens to be wearing it, but will at the same time penetrate far less through walls than buckshot, meaning you're less likely to kill your neighbors or family members in another room.

There's nothing wrong with using a shotgun for home defense, but I think an AR-15 is easier to use, more effective (especially against multiple attackers and people wearing body armor), and also safer for innocent bystanders because of less penetration through walls. (And just a disclaimer here: Last time I mentioned a .223 penetrating body armor I was accused of being a criminal. I'm referring to body armor worn by criminals, something that is rare but it does occur.)

The "you don't need to aim a shotgun" myth and the "an AR-15 will over penetrate" myth are both just that: Myths.
 
Aaaand NONE of the squabbling will really help get the OP an answer to the question posted:
To the point: To justify this AR purchase I am going to end up trading either the Mossberg or the FNX .40 in to knock some of the price down. What do y'all think?
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Let's stick to the topic at hand, shall we?
 
I think of guns as hard assets to some extent. So if you just buy the AR out right and you need money later. You can choose if you like the shotgun or the AR better and part with one if needed. My dad did this from time to time. He would buy a gun he liked. Figure out what was at the top of his list and then when times got hard part he parted with the ones he was least attached to. Then when things got better he would start over again.
 
Aaaand NONE of the squabbling will really help get the OP an answer to the question posted:
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True, and I completely agree with Dashunde on which gun the OP should sell; those FNXs are somewhat redundant so he'll probably miss one of them the least.

Oh, just before I posted I noticed you already got rid of the FNX-40. That's the one I would have sold, personally. I prefer the recoil of a .45 to the recoil of a .40.
 
Since J_J made his decision (good choice, IMO), there isn't anything more to be said about this, except:

"Congratulations, and enjoy the heck out of your new rifle!"
 
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