My G & A
G&A Recommends
Shotguns
Shotguns For Home Defense
Here's how to choose and use the most effective tool for stopping an attack.
I remain a staunch advocate of the 12-gauge shotgun for defense--home or otherwise. While it is true that the 5.56mm carbine has made great inroads in the American law enforcement community, few agencies that adopt or approve this weapons system scrap the traditional police scattergun. There is a very good reason for this The shotgun is incredibly effective.
If there is one handheld weapon that is more likely than others to offer a one-shot stop of a hostile opponent, it would be "the gauge" or "12 banger" as it is known on the street. During my almost three decades in law enforcement, I spent seven years working in the county jail. While I hated every minute of it, I now realize that it was educational because it allowed me to spend time around my potential adversary.
One of the things I heard over and over from prisoners was their respect for and fear of the shotgun. One inmate who was incarcerated for murder and drug-trafficking charges told me "A determined man with a 'gauge' should not be messed with. That gun can cut you in half!"
Okay, so the gun won't actually cut you in half, but in a situation where a potentially hostile individual has forcibly entered your home and you have confronted him in an effort to protect your family members from death or serious physical injury, you need to stop the attack quickly and decisively. In my opinion, there's no gun that can do this with greater effectiveness than the 12-gauge shotgun.
I use a Remington 870 Express pump that I bought at Wal-Mart. Many will ask why I use a "budget" gun for this purpose while, as a gun writer, I certainly have access to a wide variety of guns. The answer is that the 870 Express is all I need.
I have long subscribed to what I call the SIG principle Simple Is Good. If I can meet my needs without superfluous extras that cost more money--great! The 870 Express is a four-shot, pump gun with an 18-inch barrel and synthetic stock and fore-end that is reliable in the extreme. The only additions that I have made to the gun is an XS Sight tritium dot front sight (which I glued over the factory bead using J.B. Weld) and a piece of Weaver rail that I screwed and glued under the front edge of the fore-end. This allows me to slide an Insight Technology M3 light onto the gun.
For those who want a gun that is a bit more advanced, I would look at the guns that are designed for law enforcement and military operations. Guns designed for this purpose are perfect choices for any defensive function.
The Remington 870 and 11-87 Police guns are two of my favorites. The 870 is a street-proven design that has saved the lives of police officers and military personnel the world over. The 11-87 is a semiauto 12 gauge that has a gas system that's tweaked for defensive/law enforcement loads. The Remington guns come with a variety of sights (bead, rifled or ghost ring), magazine capacities and other related accessories.
Mossberg also has a law enforcement/military line that is built around its pump-action 500 and 590 series. These guns are well built and will stand up to rough use. Like the Remington models, guns from Mossberg are also available with a selection of sights and other accessories, as well as that wonderful tang-mounted safety that will meet the needs of most anyone interested in home defense.
I do firearms training and one of our newer classes includes the use of the shotgun - We use the Mossberg 500 as our training brand and model for our purpose.
It was only up until this year that we actually decided to conduct this class for Civilians shear out of demand. My personal issue with the shotgun is necessity for two hands to use the weapon. Where or how do you obtain light if necessary without the 3rd hand. I am anti pointing a loaded weapon at anything I am not willing to destroy, mounting a light on any weapon defeats this rule.
Without the proper training - most folks are asking for trouble walking into corners where the barrel of the gun if not in the right direction will get stripped out of your hands. And just the common misconception of hearing the racking of the pump will scare someone away - well you just told the bad guys where you are!
As long as they want to learn we'll keep teaching shotgun for self-defense hoping that individuals will learn the proper techniques and loose the myths.
Personally I stay with the Springfield XD as my personal choice for defense and use the first-light liberator flashlight which still gives me the extra hand if I need it.
Great article.
I own a 12 gauge Win model 1300 defender with folding stock. I love it. It has saved my hide more than once from charging bears. As a past timber cruiser, I used a sling with a quick connect buckle and became quite the fast draw with it. I would mix my shots 00/slug/00/slug etc. First shot out was always slug as I was sometimes able to give a warning shot.
The 1300 can be stripped down to the firing pin in less than 1 minute and cleaning it is a breeze.
For in-house protection, I use 7.5 birdshot. The way I see it at ranges within 10 feet, the intruder would not stand a chance and wall pass-throughs are much less than with buckshot and slug and having kids, I must keep that as a major consideration.
You're right on with the birdshot in household ranges and the wall penetration. We've done a heck of a lot of work on that subject filming the show Personal Defense and if I personally kept a shotgun for personal defense, it would have birdshot in the magazine and buckshot and slugs in the side saddle.