Who here practices with a s.g.?

J

jeager106

Moderator
I have probably 7 shotguns, only one not a 12 bore.
A Verona semi auto 3 Mossy 500s, 3 Remmie 870s, all 12 bores.
All but the Verona have rifle type sights except the ones with rifled barrels, they wear low magnification glass, were for deer hunting.
I have about 100 rounds of 00 buck, some #4 buck, & even handload #1, #2, #3, & #4 buck. (varmint loads, buffered, good patterns to 60 yards)
By the way, Wally has a great price on 25 rnd box of 00 standard 9 pel 2 3/4" loads for just a hair under $12 bucks. Best price I've seen on 25 pac of 00 buck ever.
Do any of you keep a s.g. for home defense? What loads do you prefer?
Do you practice with the s.g. like you do your handguns?
I did 22.5 yrs as a police officer, was the deadly force instructor so shot hundreds of rounds of buck & slugs.
Our crusier 870s were sighted at 50 yards with slugs, each car had 5 rounds of slugs & 4 buck in the s.g., 5 extra buck in the car.
I live in the country so overpenetration isn't an issue & I keep an 870 loaded with 5 00 buck handy.
Not just for the possibility of a burglar but we get dogs dumped on us & they turn feral & are dangerous. I don't like shooting dogs one bit tho.
Cats??? Well......
I practice at ranges up to 25 yards but mosty I shoot at 5 to 20 feet, the likely distance in a house.
How 'bout you fellas?
 
Ive pretty much given up on shotties in favor of short barreled AR type rifles

But... When i had a SG as an issued patrol weapon i trained alot with it. Pattern it with the ammo you carry in it. Know where slugs group at different ranges. ETC..

At one point all we had was our pistols and 1 SG per vehicle. So i got good with what we had. Now, other then for speciality ammo (breaching, gas, etc) i think the rifle has more to offer the shooter.

Ability to "reach out" easier then slugs can. Ability to defeat soft body armor. Easier to hit small targets when presented.

YMMV
 
I am convinced that the best way to start training with a shotgun is by shooting clay birds. Trap to start with, then skeet.

There is nothing quite like a shotgun for hitting a moving target. That is its strength. So we should practice to take advantage of that strength.

In addition, there are techniques to managing shotgun recoil that must be practiced.

To make trap and skeet more like combat, use magnum shot loads to simulate what you will feel with buckshot. Shoulder the weapon only after the bird is launched. Yes your score will be low compared to the competitive trap and skeet shooters... so what. It is great practice.
 
I used to use my trusty 12 gauge quite a lot.
Trap, skeet, action style side matches, and general self defense practice.
But since I got to be an old wimp, not so much anymore.
One of my favorite practice sessions was to spread clay birds all around the berm and then break them as fast as possible with bird shot, from 10 to 20 yards distance.
More birds than mag capacity, requiring reloading on the fly.
 
For those of us who don't have a plate rack or mag extension, that could be done with six clay birds, and one round reloads between shots.
 
Sure, change it up anyway you want to, just keep track and you can still chart your improvement.

I will use 2 autopoppers and constantly move shooting 2, reload 2, etc. for maybe 10 rounds fired total. I also will take the empty hulls and toss them and shoot them...cheap target. Another scrap target is a 2 foot 2x4 with an empty on top. Shoot the 2x4 and then the hull before it hits the ground.
 
jeager106 said:
I don't like shooting dogs one bit tho.
Cats??? Well......
Click to expand...

If you'll shoot a stray cat what's your hang up on shooting a stray dog?

Put out a plate of food for 'em and give them a last meal. Number 4 buck works great on a feral dog or cat.
 
For my Remington 870, 12 gauge Law Enforcement...I use trigger time at our range --- by sometimes pumping during recoil --- which brings in some very fast times. I favor low recoil, 9 pellet, 00 or 4 buck; with Federal's FliteControl wad.
 
Being a former skeet shooter and primarily an upland bird hunter, I have a Rem 100 Special Field, 21" barrel with which I've hunted grouse, woodcock, ducks, and deer. It has never failed to function, even when shot one-handed, so I feel very comfortable using it for home protection. I use 2 3/4" turkey loads backed up with slugs with either an Improved Cylinder or Skeet choke tube.

I can mount the gun and fire accurately in about 1/4 second, with 3 others less than a half-second apart behind it. Recoil is much less than with pumps and the gas-operated action is very fast.
 
I used to do a fair amount of shooting with the slug gun, but a combination of recoil and ammo costs depleted my interest. Eventually I gave up entirely and went over to hard casts out of a levergun for bear. Esp. post 2008, it's been really hard to find good slugs locally.
 
I don't practice with my 20" Browning BPS as often as I should. I do have a good stash of 9 ball 00 Buckshot and 1 oz. slugs, and the BPS stays loaded with the buck, and wears 5 slugs in an on-board carrier.

I originally bought it with the idea of using it for home defense, but with the arrival of grandkids it stays in the safe mostly, and home defense has fallen to various handguns I carry.

This post is a good reminder that I should get get the shotty out for some much needed practice.
 
Just gave daughter a A5 for HD,...

went to local sportsman club to get her use to it.

Had two boxes of AA s"Sporting clays" load @ 1300fps, which duplicated the box of Rem "reduce recoil" buckshot that I functioned fired after detailing the A5.

Was directed to go to the skeet/trap range for use, meet the RO, and he proceeded to expound on the poor choice of the A5.

Did you know that the A5 is a gas operated auto-loader? The resulting recoil would BEAT the heck out of my daughter and the slug barrel was a poor choice? The best loads for HD are the "AA" loads of #8 shot as any larger shot will pass through interior walls (faced with drywall material) and kill a cat in the other room.

My daughter and I kept straight faces at the above and she went on the three mid stations and nailed the first four birds.

We were advise that for HD to go to the open range and complete the familiarization. My daughter said she keep the A5.
I'm looking for a sporting barrel for it now.

Secondly, I have two shotguns @ home set-up for HD , plus an M1 Carbine.
 
If you'll shoot a stray cat what's your hang up on shooting a stray dog?
Click to expand...

No shooting dogs, thank you. Cats, fire away (LOL). I am allergic to cats.

Only reason the dog is feral, is that it doesn't have a good home or owner and is hungry . I have never found a dog I could not just walk up to and tame, even the junk yard ones. There are dog people and cat people, I am definitely a dog person.

For cats, use a 22 LR, a shotgun is way overkill unless we are talking about lions and tigers.

But back to the post, NO I do not practice with my shotgun, I do not need to I do not shoot birds or trap or skeet, it is strictly for SD and HD. And I have shot more slugs and buck over the last 50 years than I care to count. I will pattern the gun and then put it away.

Jim

 
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