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sroc112

Best shotgun round for home defence

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Best Defense Round has been debated over and over again.  In this state you are under a whole lot a scrutiny after a discharge, may as well make it worth your while. Low recoil 00 buck and some  slugs for good measure.  

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All good answers so far. Anything smaller than #4 buck lacks sufficient penetration in the target. That's the most common shortcoming in using small shot. Another not often mentioned fault of small shot in this application is small shot that doesnt hit the tartget will ricochet off metal surfaces. Think refrigerators, doors, office chairs, etc.

 

No need for 3" or bigger for SD.

 

Before you settle for a load get a few 5 packs of buckshot and pattern them in your gun. What works well in mine may not work well in yours. A open choke will generally give a spread of about 1 inch per yard. Don't be fooled by some that argue barrel length determines shot spread. Thats all about choke. Low recoil buckshot loads usually patterns tighter.

 

I like 12 ga low recoil 00 buck. No need for slugs unless you contemplate having to shoot over 15 yds.

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I primarily load PDX1s... slug and three 00 buckshot. Not for everyone, but if my girlfriend has to shoot at home, we have a perfect backstop for it (stone fireplace). She isn't going to be clearing the house, so she has standoff distance with that in the background.

 

Other than that, I used to use TAP 00 buckshot. Something along those lines would be perfect.

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I primarily load PDX1s... slug and three 00 buckshot. Not for everyone, but if my girlfriend has to shoot at home, we have a perfect backstop for it (stone fireplace). She isn't going to be clearing the house, so she has standoff distance with that in the background.

Other than that, I used to use TAP 00 buckshot. Something along those lines would be perfect.

Don't count on the bad guy standing in front of the fireplace.

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Don't count on the bad guy standing in front of the fireplace.

I don't... but if my girlfriend needs to shoot, it will be down one avenue, leading right to that backdrop. Again, it isn't her job to clear the house. Alarm goes off, she will wait for response... and keep someone from getting to her.

 

Nobody here is aware of how my home is setup. I considered my needs, and picked that as being the best option. That is enough that needs to be said, and I don't have to defend it. If things change, I will consider new loads.

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I wouldn't suggest shotgun for home protection at all unless you will have ear muffs or other protection ready on you first place. Think about this, I prefer 9mm/.357sig HP ammo with pistol or carbine.

Any firearm will blow your ears out. Ask how I know. Despite how Hollywood portrays gun fire like on our police shows or something as crazy as the Expendables where the whole movie is gun fire, nobody supposedly wears ear protection.

Hell, you don't wear it outside, you'll be hearing Santa's sleigh for a week.

So I don't know where you get that from.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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All good answers but have one problem with all of them.

Range.  I don't know the layout of anyone's home but range is a deciding factor.

As Griz said and correctly so, you can figure on 1" of pattern per yard.

So your hallway is 20' and that's a long hallway... You get a little over 6" of pattern.

You throw 7/8oz of #6 or 7 1/2 birdshot at a bad guy in a 6" circle  that's nasty.

And that's a low recoil load that won't over penetrate..

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I wouldn't suggest shotgun for home protection at all unless you will have ear muffs or other protection ready on you first place. Think about this, I prefer 9mm/.357sig HP ammo with pistol or carbine.

But what about for when the zombies come?

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All good answers but have one problem with all of them.

Range.  I don't know the layout of anyone's home but range is a deciding factor.

As Griz said and correctly so, you can figure on 1" of pattern per yard.

So your hallway is 20' and that's a long hallway... You get a little over 6" of pattern.

You throw 7/8oz of #6 or 7 1/2 birdshot at a bad guy in a 6" circle  that's nasty.

And that's a low recoil load that won't over penetrate..

So what if you just kept it full of 1oz slugs?

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You throw 7/8oz of #6 or 7 1/2 birdshot at a bad guy in a 6" circle that's nasty.

And that's a low recoil load that won't over penetrate..

Birdshot is best left for the birds...

 

Prime example. There is a picture on this following page, saying the dog was hit with about 30-40 pellets. One full ounce of #6 has 225 pellets and 7.5 is 350 (for 7/8 shot, about 196 and 306 pellets, respectively). That means smaller pellets with less energy... so, less penetration. Not saying it won't be nasty looking, but very likely superficial.

 

http://www.tribtoday.com/page/content.detail/id/555778/Dog-suffers-pellet-wounds.html?nav=5021

 

Notice the wound is about 6" in diameter. Dog survived the gunshot. You want a threat inside your home to survive and continue to be a threat? Wrong idea of defensive shooting, in my opinion.

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Birdshot is best left for the birds...

Prime example. There is a picture on this following page, saying the dog was hit with about 30-40 pellets. One full ounce of #6 has 225 pellets and 7.5 is 350 (for 7/8 shot, about 196 and 306 pellets, respectively). That means smaller pellets with less energy... so, less penetration. Not saying it won't be nasty looking, but very likely superficial.http://www.tribtoday.com/page/content.detail/id/555778/Dog-suffers-pellet-wounds.html?nav=5021

Notice the wound is about 6" in diameter. Dog survived the gunshot. You want a threat inside your home to survive and continue to be a threat? Wrong idea of defensive shooting, in my opinion.

So 00buck it is

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All good answers but have one problem with all of them.

Range.  I don't know the layout of anyone's home but range is a deciding factor.

As Griz said and correctly so, you can figure on 1" of pattern per yard.

So your hallway is 20' and that's a long hallway... You get a little over 6" of pattern.

You throw 7/8oz of #6 or 7 1/2 birdshot at a bad guy in a 6" circle  that's nasty.

And that's a low recoil load that won't over penetrate..

This is why patterning is so important.  Federal Flight control out of my 590A1 is a 4" pattern at 7 yards and doesn't change significantly from 5 to 12 yards.

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Is it ok to scatter different ammunition in the gun? For example load 2 slugs, 2 04 bucks, 2 00 bucks?

Why?  You can't select a specific load from the magazine when cycling the action.  You're better off just sticking to one load.  Kind of like not mixing FMJs in with JHPs in handgun magazines.

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Birdshot is best left for the birds...

 

Prime example. There is a picture on this following page, saying the dog was hit with about 30-40 pellets. One full ounce of #6 has 225 pellets and 7.5 is 350 (for 7/8 shot, about 196 and 306 pellets, respectively). That means smaller pellets with less energy... so, less penetration. Not saying it won't be nasty looking, but very likely superficial.

 

http://www.tribtoday.com/page/content.detail/id/555778/Dog-suffers-pellet-wounds.html?nav=5021

 

Notice the wound is about 6" in diameter. Dog survived the gunshot. You want a threat inside your home to survive and continue to be a threat? Wrong idea of defensive shooting, in my opinion.

yup bird shot isent that bad of a wound. Especially when a drunk fires through a sticker bush and shoots you in the back while your wearing a thick jacket from 25 yards away. Kinda felt like warm bee stings. I stayed away from WMA bird hunting for almost 20 years after that. However I'm not dead and if I was trying to hurt someone that round would not have stopped me.

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I've never tried 'em, but these are intriguing...the modern version of 'buck-n-ball'

 

  • Multidefense Shotshells — The ultimate knockdown power with a 0.65" round lead ball, backed by six No. 1 buckshot pellets. 12 ga.

http://www.cabelas.com/product/shooting/ammunition/shotgun-ammunition%7C/pc/104792580/c/104691780/sc/104567580/herter-s-reg-defense-shotshells/1555113.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshotgun-ammunition%2F_%2FN-1100191%2B4294751476%2FNe-4294751476%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104567580%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNU

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This is why patterning is so important.  Federal Flight control out of my 590A1 is a 4" pattern at 7 yards and doesn't change significantly from 5 to 12 yards.

I completely agree on the Federal Flight control.  The LE loads hold really tight compared to any other 00 that I have patterned in an open choked HD shotgun.

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I've never tried 'em, but these are intriguing...the modern version of 'buck-n-ball'

 

  • Multidefense Shotshells — The ultimate knockdown power with a 0.65" round lead ball, backed by six No. 1 buckshot pellets. 12 ga.

http://www.cabelas.com/product/shooting/ammunition/shotgun-ammunition%7C/pc/104792580/c/104691780/sc/104567580/herter-s-reg-defense-shotshells/1555113.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshotgun-ammunition%2F_%2FN-1100191%2B4294751476%2FNe-4294751476%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104567580%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNU

 

Ammo for the indecisive.   I've never understood those.  If you think buckshot is the right solution, buy buckshot.  If you think a slug is appropriate, buy slugs.  If you can't decide, go off and think about it some more, and by all means do some patterning.

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I've never tried 'em, but these are intriguing...the modern version of 'buck-n-ball'

 

  • Multidefense Shotshells — The ultimate knockdown power with a 0.65" round lead ball, backed by six No. 1 buckshot pellets. 12 ga.

http://www.cabelas.com/product/shooting/ammunition/shotgun-ammunition%7C/pc/104792580/c/104691780/sc/104567580/herter-s-reg-defense-shotshells/1555113.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshotgun-ammunition%2F_%2FN-1100191%2B4294751476%2FNe-4294751476%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104567580%3FWTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNU

These are basically the same as the Nobelsport LE rounds I posted in post 7...

They work very well. I tested them out to about 25ft and they almost actually hold that pattern inside 3ft wide. I am content with them and use them for HD in my 590 and M4 shotty.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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