Best Shell for Home Defense?

P

protagonist

Inactive
Hello, all. I recently bought a 12 ga. Remington 870 with an extended tube (6+1) for home defense. I know there a lot of Mossberg fans out there, but I just felt the Remington had a tighter action and was more comfortable for me.

Anyway, I've perused other forums, asked gunshop folk, and talked to my old man about it, but I still don't see a consensus on the best shell for home defense. Buckshot, BB, and #4 shot have all come up, among others. What are some of the pros/cons of each, and what do you all use?

Thanks in advance.
 
Since most of my home defense needs are for the 4 legged bad guys I use 7 1/2 shot and 00 buck, I start with a 7 1/2 in the chamber then a 00 buck then a 7 1/2 again and so on and that works for me. Your needs may be different, YOU need to decide whats right for you. Factors such as range, backstop, pattern, ect. should be considered. Some people may live in an appartment so penetration is a factor whereas I live in the country and all I have to worry about is if I have a family member behind that wall that the bg is sneaking along.
 
It can go either way, if you are focusing on a shotgun, then Buck Shot is a very effective choice, it focuses the larger BB's in a smaller spot, so you can still miss if you are not careful, if you don't want to miss, get some T-shot or something along that line, the BB'S will spread out more giving you a larger area to work with, in a home, it is close enough.

also think about like this, if you get shot with even the smallest bird shot all over your face, do you think your going to just brush it off, no way is that happening, it is ultimately up to you, anything is effective, do you want to immediately kill this intruder :) or just make them completely ineffective and if you want to kill them walk up with a follow on shot to the face, that WILL end that.

As far as Hand guns go, its the same story, how bad do you want this intruder to hurt? .40 is a Fast round that has more than enough power to take a person down, the 9mm will do the same with less punch, the .45 is a thumper that will put a mans lights out in a hurry. for home defense, i would not go over a .45, its not necessary at all.

For me, if i had a shotgun, i would be using Buck shot because i know i am a good enough shot, only if i had a short barrel though, a longer barrel can be a pain.

For a Pistol, i would go with a FNH-USA FNX .40, i personally like that gun and the speed it has :)

Hope this helps

Safe, Happy hunting
 
this one's a no-brainer

buckshot for bad guys
birdshot for birdies
repeat



nathaniel said:
Since most of my home defense needs are for the 4 legged bad guys I use 7 1/2 shot and 00 buck, I start with a 7 1/2 in the chamber then a 00 buck then a 7 1/2 again and so on and that works for me. Your needs may be different, YOU need to decide whats right for you. Factors such as range, backstop, pattern, ect. should be considered. Some people may live in an appartment so penetration is a factor whereas I live in the country and all I have to worry about is if I have a family member behind that wall that the bg is sneaking along
Click to expand...
Alternating ammo in the magazine is a bad idea for a variety of reasons, and DANGEROUS idea to suggest for others to do

Regarding overpenetration; if you knew that there is a person in a room behind the bad guy and you're only separated by drywall, would you really risk taking a shot and rely solely on the design of the bullet or by using "birdshot" to not hurt or kill someone in case of a miss?

You may only get one shot off▬make it count! Not birdshot, not bean bags, but slugs or buckshot
 
Here's a better look at exactly what's coming out of your gun.

attachment.php


After speaking with someone who was shot by some type of small BB or birdshot I wouldn't recommend it for HD unless you want to make a bad LOOKING wound. The smaller shots just don't have the penetration power to disable/stop/kill the BG in most situations.

Stick with 4BK or higher. Find a nice compromise between number of pellets, risk of overpenetration, and diameter of pellets.
 
Alternating ammo in the magazine is a bad idea for a variety of reasons, and DANGEROUS idea to suggest for others to do
Click to expand...

I've been doing this for years and never had a problem. And two I never suggested it to him I said thats what works for me. Three I'm not gonna shoot at a wall that has family members behind it. Four I dont want to kill anyone birdshot will put them out of action no matter what you think. If I shot you at less than 25 yards with birdshot youd go down and dont say you wouldnt cause your a liar if you do.
 
Bird shot is for little birds.

1 Buck, 00 Buck in that order. The standard velocity loadings of either of those will be your best bet.

PS: Don't listen to any of the bird shot advocates, they know not of which they speak. ;)
 
I've been shot with birdshot at various distances, including at about 25 to 30 yards. I managed to turn but not drop before being hit. I will tell you it stings like hell and leaves a nasty rash and swelling but not one single bb (71/2) penetrated the clothing at all. I was heavily cloathed, wearing hunting long sleeve fatigues (army surpluss). You feel the target of a medieval torturing device but you don't fall. You get mad at the hunter shooting low.

Ps best way to pattern a shotgun.
 
Yet another birdshot or buckshot thread.

Birdshot is used by some to cut down on penetration. It will. Less dangerous to innocent bystanders on the other side of those walls, and less dangerous to Bubba---except real close. Unless Bubba is hiding behind some furniture, making birdshot less effective even up close.

00 buck works so well for LE and citizens alike that it can be easily argued that there isn't any reason to change.

Still, there are those who advocate #4 buck, 1 buck, 0 buck, or 000 buck in stead. Except for #4 buck, which is used by LE to intentionally reduce indoor penetration, all work fine. However, 00 buck is easy to find in reduced recoil LE versions-- which hasn't hurt it's performance on the street a whole lot. Federal comes plated. Hornady TAP is lead, as is Ranger, and apparently Remington from the pics.:cool:

TIP: Reduced recoil TAC buck is easier to shoot for fast follow up shots. Still plenty of penetration---especially with plated shot.
 
also think about like this, if you get shot with even the smallest bird shot all over your face, do you think your going to just brush it off, no way is that happening,
Click to expand...

How do you know?

Perhaps you can explain how friend or foe alike can, and do, fight on after receiving horrendous, even fatal wounds that, under the adrenaline and stress of battle, they may not even know they've sustained.

Others may come unglued when the first shot is fired, having sustained no injury at all.



I guess you mean well, so good luck with your nonexperiencially derived logical deductions. :cool:
 
Four I dont want to kill
Click to expand...

Sell the gun right away. If that is your thought process, having a gun is not for you, and that's OK......you would be better served with:
Good alarms and locks
A good dog of the watch-dog variety
Mace or similar chemical agent
A nice 34 oz aluminum baseball bat

If you can keep them from getting in, or incapacitate them once inside, a gun is not needed.

Good luck with that.

If, OTOH, you realize that maybe your view might change, using any of the buckshot sizes will work just fine
 
Don't want to kill ?? You better get your head put on right ! There is always an inherent risk of killing when using a firearm. Besides you really have the right to shoot if you risk death or serious injury from the BG !! Don't be nice to people who are there to harm you.A criminal might be a psycho or sociopath ,high on drugs and alcohol - very difficult to stop !
The best ammo is a 12 ga reduced recoil 00 buck.Easy to handle, effective at indoor range.
 
OO or OOO Buckshot - # 4 has been proven to have less than idea/lethal penetration. Depending on where you live, a shotgun might not be the best HD weapon as even a 22 LR will penetrate drywall. If there are minimum lines of fire and you live in an apartment or densely populated area there are better choices but any miss with any firearm is a potential disaster in such locations.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top