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I would appreciate some recommendations on a short shotgun primarily for home defense, but with the ability to put on a hunting barrel. Don't care about beautiful, just durable and reliable for the long haul. Doug 36th EVAC HOSP * VUNG TAU * FEB 67- FEB 68 * MOS 92B * E-5 | ||
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I'm quite comfortable keeping a 12 ga. Ithaca mod. 37 M & P w/ pistol grip and full length magazine tube next to my bed. Short bbl, 8 rds. of #4 Buck. I make it a point to take it out and practice....it's not just there for "looks". Don | |||
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12 gauge side by side in a coach gun configuration as used by the cowboy shooters. Very inexpensive. Get a hunting gun as a separate item. "When you play, play hard; when you work, don't play at all." Theodore Roosevelt | |||
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Buy a Remington 870 Express combo with the 2 barrels. | |||
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I have a Remington 870 "Marine" shotgun. It is a combination of stainless steel and nickel plated parts. All the furniture is plastic. the only modification I have done is to replace the front bead with a tritium bead by Ashley Outdoor; now known as X-S Systems (or something equally stupid). It holds seven; I have five in there for better handling. I load it with high base plated #4 shot shells (i.e. "turkey loads"). Simple, and very effective. Winchester and Mossberg both make similar models. Oops, Winchester used to make a similar model. lawndart  | |||
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OK, thanks for your input and I will put your suggestions into the hopper. Are the barrels easily interchangeable on most shotguns these days? I really have to watch how many extra toys I accumulate because we are living in our 5th wheel while we shop for another house. I really need some room to spread out and get back on the reloading bench. Doug 36th EVAC HOSP * VUNG TAU * FEB 67- FEB 68 * MOS 92B * E-5 | |||
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Grubby, 870 express in 12 ga. I use Rem duplex 2x6 shot times 5 in the gun with 5 more (00 buck) on the stock in an elastic shell holder. SKS is half the price and has a longer reach if you need it. Used to work with 95 Bravos a few years after you left. The year of the .30-06!! 100 years of mostly flawless performance on demand.....Celebrate...buy a new one!! | |||
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Another vote for the Rem 870 express. All the 870 barrels are interchangeable so you won't have any problem, just screw the end cap off and swap the barrel. | |||
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Even if the thing is parts gun it's worth more then $35. | |||
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Sorry about this, thought I was responding to another post. Maybe I'm not to young for alzheimers! | |||
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Yep, an 870 Express is about as versatile and foolproof (and economical) as you can buy these days. And as you seem to have correctly ascertained, a shotgun is about an order of magnitude more effective than any handgun for a defensive situation. | |||
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I went back & forth on this myself. I was going to get a 12 ga. Stoeger Coach gun. A coach gun is non-EVIL looking, easy to swing in close quarters and "Almost" dummy proof, in the dead of the night.(O.K. it's just plain "cool" too  I started showshoeing this year and thought it would be great fun for winter rabbits & the odd pheasant. Maybe use it on a boar (Though I don't know how well a coachgun shoots slugs due to the barrel regulation????? So, I believe I'm ready to buy a Rem. 870 HD with the factory extened mag sitting in the local gun shop. (unless some tells me I'm wrong about the coachgun & slugs  I'd put a ghost ring sight on. I don't know if I'd put a flashlight on it or not? I do like the idea that I can change barrels. While I doupt I'll ever shoulder any weapon in home defence as invaders will need to get past the rottweiler home defence network 1st. It's as good a reason as any to buy another firearm. I've done two bivy elk bowhunts were it would have be nice to have a shotgun in camp. One future dream hunt would be drop camp for Alaskian Moose Bowhunt. If you can't smell his breath, your're not close enough! | |||
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You get more rounds with a pump than a coach gun, and even more with an extended magazine. Forget the ghost ring, you'll never see it in the dark or need it at the range you'll need to use the gun. If you drop the hammer on someone at more than about 3 yards you might be in deep yogurt when the cops come calling to talk to you about the mess in your house  Also if the person isn't armed it could get really sticky. A hint, have a knife/gun (both untraceable of course) handy to drop near the body after you put the (defunct) intruders prints on it  My home defense shotgun is a Winchester 1200 with a 20 inch barrel that I had threaded for chokes which I also use for Grouse hunting. So it's nice and handy in the close cover Grouse like  and does double duty at home.Lets hope you (or I) never have to use a gun for "home defense" but I'd rather be prepared than not  DRSS member Constant change is here to stay. | |||
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grubbydug: Far more important than the kind of weapon is - will you use it on the spot? One of the prime reasons that many police officers are not in favor of home defense weapons is because the "mind set" of a law abiding citizen who works day by day where violence is unheard of is 180 degrees different from the criminal intruder. Hesitation by the householder may cost him his life. People today think of all kinds of legal consequences -and they hesitate. The intruder smiles - and they hesitate. He looks so young - and they hesitate. What I think you have to realize is that killing somebody is serious business. Normal people shrink from killing people. What normal people also can do, however, is to know that they will kill in defense of self and family. It won't be a movie or TV picture and far more important than what weapon to use is - Will I use the weapon at all - with no hesitation when I see a weapon in the hands of a criminal? Just my thoughts. | |||
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Having taught firearms self defense for years, I'm seeing quite a few good replies above. One thing that I've been recommending is the Rem 870, but in 20ga. If you have a significant other who might have to use it, its a lot easier teaching 20ga tactics and firing than it is 12ga. Recoil is much lighter and, in a home, you aren't giving much up in power. Another comment, don't use buckshot in the home. It will go right through most walls...and who knows who is on the other side? Turkey loads, or heavy pheasant loads will do all you need to do in your house. I did see a man hit with a 1-1/8oz trap load (#7-1/2 shot) at about 20 feet in a home. Does the term rat-chewed bring up the appropriate vision? Oh, and yeah, he died. .395 Family Member DRSS, po' boy member Political correctness is nothing but liberal enforced censorship | |||
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I would recommend the xsx coach gun. single trigger. No moving parts. If you cant do the job in a hallway with two shots, you wont get it done any other way. Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum | |||
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I think any pump would be my first choice. I like Remington so if I was using a shotgun for my home defense gun I would simply put a shorter barrel on one of the 870s I have. I think prof242 makes a good alternative recommendation with the twenty gauge if one of the people that might possibly handle the gun isn't an experienced shooter or used to the recoil of a twelve gauge. I also see that he suggested not using buckshot. I recently watched a thread where people discussed the same topic and it was stated that anything smaller "might not" or even "would not" deter an intruder. Fellas, after witnessing a few deer dropped in their tracks by loads of #7 1/2-#8 at around ten yards you know that isn't true. The same thing would happen to a man. Even an open choke like I/C only has a spread of around 14" at 12 yards and I doubt if very few shots inside a house are more than half that far. SH ------------------------------------ I admit there are advantages in game of every type; But I've never heard of beast or bird to excel the twisting snipe. Nicholas Kane, Louisiana, 1880 Got Snipe? | |||
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IF one can find a police model 870 that is the way to go for a pump. They are a little differant then the standard model making them just a bit better. For a simi the Benlli is the way to go. | |||
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I would concur with Prof242 regarding the recommendation of the 20 gauge and birdshot. I hate to have to use this as an example, but consider that VP Cheney incapacitated a guy with a 28 gauge and 9s at a distance of 30 yards. Yes, I know that the guy was in his 70s, but if he had been even a bit closer and the shot just a little bigger.... Obviously a 20 gauge with 4s at close range would be quite effective. Best of all he loved the Fall.... E. Hemingway | |||
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I'll take a whole different tack from everyone else: find the best side by side upland gun (I have a 25" Chapuis side by side)you can afford (you will never regret the purchase), load it up with 7 and 1/2 shot and keep in handy. No prosecutor will have an easy time of accusing you of premeditation if you ever have to use it. _________________________________ AR, where the hopeless, hysterical hypochondriacs of history become the nattering nabobs of negativisim. | |||
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