Why A Pump Over Auto For Home Defense

TBH the pump shotgun has the 1)Price
2)Sound
3)Simplicity (This is of course in cleaning and all of that).
4)870 is the number 1 selling shotgun in history(over 10 million). I mean why go out and look for something over a $1K when you can get one of those used?

Also as far as speed of follow up goes...I can have a second round chambered by the time I am back on target with a pump. It all becomes instinct when you use the gun enough.

So basically if you want something with no frills that you can use anywhere then you pick up the pump 870 that your daddy taught you to shoot. I mean isn't that what we shooters gravitate too? Something that we are familiar with? Comfortable with?
 
And there's nothing more frightening to an intended felon as the sound of a pump action chambering a round.
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Don't rely on acoustics to ward off a committed assailant's plan of attack. More often than not, all the sound of a shucking pump does is to betray your whereabouts.
 
1. Wider field of coverage.

2. Lower cost.

3. It is more intimidating to an intruder/assailant than an auto is.
 
I prefer the pump of my Remington 870 Express Tactical because it allows me to run whatever low-recoil/managed-recoil shells I'd like. In a semi-auto, that might not be the case.

In addition, the sound of loading the chamber from a pump just gives me goose bumps. You don't get that in a semi-auto.
 
The point raised by This Is Nascar is a very good one (the ability to use lighter loads) and especially if you have over penetration problems, as in an apartment or condo, although I doubt many consider it when chosing a pump.

The ability to eat any ammo, low recoil or dirty WalMart stuff, is even more important in a long term survival situtation where the selection of available ammo is limited.
 
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Don't rely on acoustics to ward off a committed assailant's plan of attack. More often than not, all the sound of a shucking pump does is to betray your whereabouts.
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I've heard this, and while true, the other information conveyed (along with your GENERAL whereabouts... Mr. Robby McBurglar won't know your exact location... he isn't DareDevil...) are little datums such as the homeowner knows there's an intruder, the homeowner is armed with a weapon of significant capability, and the homeowner is prepared to use said weapon on said intruder.

With the advantage of surprise gone, the home invader is now in an unfamiliar place with an adversary who is not only armed at least as well (probably armed way better, even) and knows the territory intimately. To say nothing of that homeowner having the law 100% on his/her side in most states.

But then again, keep in mind that chambering a round in a semiauto is not a silent action either, so location information can be deduced from that act as well.
 
Gentlemen:

There is no question based on available models, that the pump shotgun is more popular than the auto for home defense. My question is "Why"?

Most people site the occurance of a failure to feed as the primary reason. Well, I have over 10,000 rounds in my Remington 1100 and it has never failed to feed. Of course I keep it clean, but for a home defense weapon, how would it ever get dirty?

I would be curious to know the other reasons that people think a pump is better than an auto.
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My 1100 choked on one last time i took it out...First time in 15years:)...But I like pumps over autos for the same reason I like revolvers over semi's. They don't choke due to under/over powered ammo.
 
An 870 is more likely to jam than a top grade semi-auto like an FN or a Benelli assuming you have appropriate ammunition. The world record holding SX3 semi-auto will go hundreds of thousands of rounds with no FTF. I think the whole pump a shotgun action and the BG will pee his pants is way over rated. I'll take an FN SLP over any pump action for self defense - way faster, less recoil and probably more reliable with the right ammunition.
 
I think people who don't have experience with 1100s just don't understand. I have had my 1100 since 1967, and have hunted dove, quail, pheasant, and shot skeet and trap. In all that shooting I have had one ftf. That was due to a clogged gas port that was quickly opened with a tooth pick. In other words I forgot to clean my ports after extensive shooting one time.

One of the best features of the 1100 for HD is I can shoot 00Buck one right after the other with very little recoil, and I can practice with the lowest cost and power shells. Also there is no chance of short shucking a shell as is commonly experienced under stress with pumps.

Remington recently came out with an 18 1/2" barrel for the 1100, and I plan on getting one which will give me the perfect HD shotgun.
 
"Remington recently came out with an 18 1/2" barrel for the 1100, and I plan on getting one which will give me the perfect HD shotgun"
Yes you will.
 
I think people who don't have experience with 1100s just don't understand. I have had my 1100 since 1967, and have hunted dove, quail, pheasant, and shot skeet and trap. In all that shooting I have had one ftf. That was due to a clogged gas port that was quickly opened with a tooth pick. In other words I forgot to clean my ports after extensive shooting one time.
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I have 1100 experience. Great gun. Wish they still made them in the many varieties (they keep killing it and bringing back different variants). However, there's more than just the gas system that can hang one up. The one I was using would not reliably feed the Federal value pack ammo; it would do the Remington and even the Winchester (the Win is notoriously bad stuff), but the Federal would hang up on the shell lifter for some unknown reason.

That's a failure that is not going to happen in a pump.
 
IMO it is cost and the fact that pumps have been around longer. If everyone grew up shooting Benellis (for example) then more people would prefer them over pumps. Pumps are cheaper and reliable...and this is enough for most people.

I prefer autos over pumps because they shoot fast and there is one less thing to think about (operating the pump).

The 'scary noise' that a pump makes is highly overrated.
 
I have 1100 experience. Great gun. Wish they still made them in the many varieties (they keep killing it and bringing back different variants). However, there's more than just the gas system that can hang one up. The one I was using would not reliably feed the Federal value pack ammo; it would do the Remington and even the Winchester (the Win is notoriously bad stuff), but the Federal would hang up on the shell lifter for some unknown reason.

That's a failure that is not going to happen in a pump.
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Very true, but you shouldn't be using "Value Pack" ammo in any weapon for SD. As mentioned before I have had one hang up since 1967 in my 1100, and that's shooting everything imaginable, including value pack ammo. 1100s are just like any semi auto. Some are finicky and some are not. Luckily I got one I can trust with my life.
 
Mathman says...
I prefer autos over pumps because they shoot fast and there is one less thing to think about (operating the pump).
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When you force yourself to practice enuff... Cycling the action on a pump and pulling the trigger is as second nature as brushin' yer teeth... No thought required...

Under hard core practice, I could walk my shooting arrangement lettin' rounds fly and the hardest thing I had to learn was to keep track of how many rounds were already sent downrange as I wanted to know when I was down to one last round.

Brent
 
I have owned both types and have used both types for hd. The ideas of pumps being more reliable isn't a stretch from the truth. I have had rem 1100s that jam. But I have never had pump jam. Half or short jacking a pump can happen. Bottom line is you need to buy what you like(or can afford) and practice with it!! If you shoot ur auto or pump enough u will know what rounds feed the best and what pattern the best out of ur gun.
Never never buy a gun and leave it ready for use if you have never figured out how it works. And with what ammo!!
I now use a win 1300 with mag ext and a smoth bore slug barrel!!
 
I came late to the semi-auto owner camp but it has been as reliable as any other gun I have. My criteria is I use the one I am most familiar with and I can shoot 5 rounds on target faster with the pump than I can with the semi just because I am so much more used to it.

I have no problem using either and I have no intention of trying to scare a boogerman by cycling my pump. Both guns stay loaded with a round chambered because a gun unchambered is a club. The only thing a boogerman is going to hear is my command to freeze and identify himself. The only other sound would be a safety coming off and Bang if I don't hear or see an appropriate response. It won't matter to the boogerman which gun it is and it won't matter to me.
 
It's almost like no one remembers with THIS was the top of the line in home defense...

boss_robertson_SxS.jpg


Since when did, "Give 'em both barrels" become obsolete in favor of a consistent wall of buckshot?

In all honesty, any model of shotgun is good for home defense. I also don't really see a semi-auto 12 ga as having a substantial advantage over any other shotgun design above a single-shot.

~LT
 
Very true, but you shouldn't be using "Value Pack" ammo in any weapon for SD.
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Oh, no argument. Just saying that it's more than the gas system that can cause issues; if the shell coming out of the magazine doesn't trip the bolt release, you're hung up.

Murphy will show, and boy, is he a jerk. :D
 
What shooter1911 said about picking up an 18.5" barrel for an 1100 caused me to think of one reason a lot of us get a pump for home defense. Besides the reputation a pump has for reliability, how prevalent are short barrel semis?
To me an HD length is no more than 21" and the shorter the better.
 
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