O/U for home defense

[shootist~]

Hickock45's YouTube videos are about as good (and informative) as they get.

 

[YancyW]

I believe in the dark when the dogs bark from 2 to 40 yards hard to beat buckshot, not likely to miss and more likely to end with one shot. In the house wouldn’t even aim, left or right hand point and pull.

That is a very dangerous assumption, because it is simply not true.

 

[YancyW]

Any shot gun is without question the best home defense gun. Never listen to people who say a hand gun. When adrinalin is upon you don’t aim just point and your perpetrator will be stopped dead in their tracks no matter how much she is shaking. For my wife I bought a 20 gauge single shot youth model. Just cock and squeeze and presto a dead perpertrator

At the distance of a bedroom, you will have between 1-2" pattern. Have you patterned that shotgun at 10 feet? It is a single shot rifle at that distance.

 

[mdwest]

Any shot gun is without question the best home defense gun.

I don’t know a single reputable firearms instructor that teaches defense type classes that would agree with that statement…

Based on the OPs original requirement for the firearm to also be a coyote and raccoon engagement device, and the fact that he already owns the O/U, his O/U might be the best solution for his situation…

But if the purpose was to have the best home defense firearm, “any” shotgun would quite literally be close to, if not on the absolute bottom of the list of options most folks that have been in close quarters gunfights would recommend..

Start talking a combat style shotgun,for some situations a scattergun would move up the list a bit (still nowhere near the top)…

But a single shot H&R 12 gauge, 28” bbl O/U, your typical “duck” shotgun, etc are all going to be sitting pretty close to the .22 pistol on the list of preferred self defense weapons (for very different reasons)…

All better than a sharp stick..

But I the throes of a fight for your life…not a whole lot better…

 

[YancyW]

I don’t know a single reputable firearms instructor that teaches defense type classes that would agree with that statement…

Based on the OPs original requirement for the firearm to also be a coyote and raccoon engagement device, and the fact that he already owns the O/U, his O/U might be the best solution for his situation…

But if the purpose was to have the best home defense firearm, “any” shotgun would quite literally be close to, if not on the absolute bottom of the list of options most folks that have been in close quarters gunfights would recommend..

Start talking a combat style shotgun,for some situations a scattergun would move up the list a bit (still nowhere near the top)…

But a single shot H&R 12 gauge, 28” bbl O/U, your typical “duck” shotgun, etc are all going to be sitting pretty close to the .22 pistol on the list of preferred self defense weapons (for very different reasons)…

All better than a sharp stick..

But I the throes of a fight for your life…not a whole lot better…

I have been blessed to train with some of the best and have taken shotgun classes multiple times. The more I train with a shotgun the less I am inclined to use one for self defense.

Once you actually run through a house and shoot at room size distances, you realize you have a really low capacity, hard to reload rife.

 

[Rare Breed]

I have this old and ugly 12ga as a home defense shotgun. Cut it down to 18.5” with a Ridgid steel pipe pipe cutter and reamed the end. Might consider cutting down the 555 if you’re going to use it for self defense.

View attachment 491634

Absolutely perfect. People overthink this. You do not need to pattern anything. #6-7 shot will destroy human flesh at close range.

 

[Rare Breed]

I don’t know a single reputable firearms instructor that teaches defense type classes that would agree with that statement…

Based on the OPs original requirement for the firearm to also be a coyote and raccoon engagement device, and the fact that he already owns the O/U, his O/U might be the best solution for his situation…

But if the purpose was to have the best home defense firearm, “any” shotgun would quite literally be close to, if not on the absolute bottom of the list of options most folks that have been in close quarters gunfights would recommend..

Start talking a combat style shotgun,for some situations a scattergun would move up the list a bit (still nowhere near the top)…

But a single shot H&R 12 gauge, 28” bbl O/U, your typical “duck” shotgun, etc are all going to be sitting pretty close to the .22 pistol on the list of preferred self defense weapons (for very different reasons)…

All better than a sharp stick..

But I the throes of a fight for your life…not a whole lot better…

With respect I am calling bullshit…comparing a shot gun to a 22 pistle. Really?

 

[Rare Breed]

Plus a firearm instructor is not a home defense expert whatsoever

 

[shootist~]

Plus a firearm instructor is not a home defense expert whatsoever

That's totally dependent on what their background is. My CCW guy also instructs the basics up to full self defense use of handguns. Has extensive training himself.

My old 3-Gun match director was also a [well known training site] instructor. Taught shotgun self defense for scientific researchers in the artic. Did work for the marines and po-po agencies, and did a stint traing Green Force types in the sand box.

He ran our matches like a drill instructor. (Also saw combat in Vietnam as a marine, fwiw.)

So it just depends, but good basic instruction - from a professional, is always a good first step.

 

[BeeMaa]

Absolutely perfect. People overthink this. You do not need to pattern anything. #6-7 shot will destroy human flesh at close range.

You DO need to pattern a shotgun for any range and load you intend to use it...period. Not doing so places your life and those you intend to protect in danger. Not practicing because you are using a "scattergun" with bird shot is not a justification.

Also, injuring (not killing) someone with #6-7 shot at close range is "intent to kill" in any state. You might as well use 00 Buck, finish the job properly and leave only one side of the story to be told to the police when they arrive.

 

[mdwest]

With respect I am calling bullshit…comparing a shot gun to a 22 pistle. Really?

Re-read the post..

They are only comparable in that they are both poor choices for the vast majority of scenarios…

 

[mdwest]

Plus a firearm instructor is not a home defense expert whatsoever

I agree…

However when you are talking about a guy that has about 2000 hours of formal firearms instruction, that has been certified to teach cops and soldiers specifically how to fight with firearms by the FBI, 2 state police certifying bodies, the NRA, and the US Army…that’s actually been involved in several hundred armed entries and a handful of actual shoot situation inside the confines of houses, apartments, business offices, and industrial structures… that’s trained a couple of thousand people over the course of a couple of decades and was the senior firearms trainer for a major metro SWAT team for a few years… I’d guess his opinion might matter?

 

[Rare Breed]

Re-read the post..

They are only comparable in that they are both poor choices for the vast majority of scenarios…

My apologies…I re read your post and I did misconstrue your point which is fair

 

[Daniel Cary]

How about a Stoeger Double Defense? They come in over/ under and side by models with pic rails for mounting accessories if you want.

My Stoeger Supreme .. Had to be sent Back, would Not Fire the Right Barrel!

Common problem, I guess

They fixed it, would Not Recommend it however, ...

 

[NE 7x57]

For defense I prefer long guns with a higher capacity and lower recoil than a shotgun. There's no guarantee that your intruder is going to be alone or is going to stand in the center of the room with no barrier between you and him. Additionally, he or she might have body armor which would really change the equation. I use my shotguns to shoot birds, they work really well for that.

 

[Sourdough]

@Jamie D Van Roekel forget the shotgun, if a person has broken into your home you want them dead, not injured, otherwise it becomes a he said she said lawsuit and will cost you a fortune.

Since this is for defense inside your house all your wife needs is her Glock. She will be hyper stressed and scared so she should stay with a weapon that all she needs do is start pulling the trigger. That means a round in the chamber at all times.

For you if you are competent with an AR, and that means you practice a lot including failure drills, tac mag reloads, etc then an AR is your primary weapon. Your Glock is secondary if you have time to put it on. If you don’t feel you are competent with an AR or you don’t have one then your Glock is your primary.

And no hollow points. Going through drywall they become solids as the material packs the hollow area. Instead use ammo with bullets like resemble the tip of a drill bit or Phillips head screw drive, Lehigh makes some as do others.

Be sure all your home defense weaoons
Have weapon lights.

Defend whatever room you guys find yourselves in. Call law enforcement as soon as you can and:

1. Say what happened (do not elaborate)
2. Give your address
3. Immediately hang up.
4. Absolutely do not answer any call backs.

Don’t say anything else until you talk with your lawyer. Nothing.

 

[Bullthrower338]

It has been a long time but I think old uncle Jed was using a 12 gauge when he was shooting at some food and up from the ground came a bubbling crude!

the o/u is damn sure better than stern words, are there better options? Absolutely, first how is the house laid out, are there possible issues with penetration of adjacent rooms that are occupied by love ones or neighbors. After that is identified then you can choose a firearm. Take her down and find something that fits her and she will not be intimidated by, then get her training, I personally farm this out to 3rd party, my ability to piss a woman off is far above average and it is stupid to piss someone off that has a loaded gun in her hand! Seriously, typically instructions are taken better when there is no emotion involved, meaning if she needs to be corrected it is better received by the student from an instructor rather than a husband. A correction by the **NOT**PERMITTED** instructor is a critique, from a husband it is a personal attack because you are a meanie! After all that buy her all the ammo she cares to shoot and include her in range sessions. Just my two pesos

 

[Inline6]

@Bullthrower338 it's nice to know I'm not the only one with that superpower!

 

[DLSJR]

For a lot of years I kept a shotgun loaded as a home defense weapon. It was a 2 3/4” Beretta A302 with a 26” IC barrel. The reason I chose THAT gun was that I’d fired approximately 30,000 rounds through it and knew it to be reliable and it shot where I looked. But, I never loaded it with 00 buck. I loaded it with HeviShot’s Dead Coyote load, which features much higher density pellets in T shot size. They’re hard, high density pellets that penetrate very well.

Nowadays I keep a Glock 17 on hand, mainly because I’ve started shooting handguns more regularly. At home defense ranges, nobody is going to walk away from a high center mass shot from either gun.