Posted on 10/02/2021 9:37:51 PM PDT by Paul R.
For home defense at a very budget constrained price, what do FReepers (or their sources) think: Semi-auto or pump action 12 ga. shotgun? Semi-auto will deliver the most stopping power in a very short time, but might it be less reliable? Other considerations?
Have a 500 myself
870 or go home.
I love the pump, the sound alone will give anyone pause.
Please stop that.
An auto, which I have never owned in shotgun form, ideally could be brought into action with one hand to load.
I could see being stuck in a constrained place without room to operate the slide of a pump with the authority needed (very neglected) to keep running.
Not switching, but if I were, this is what I would think about.
I think he refers to it as "pullrack."
Semi-auto. One less thing to do in the heat of the moment. Bennelli M1 Super 90 is my go-to.
Pump all day every day for a defensive shotgun. Semiautos are fantastic for hunting, sporting clays, and 3-gun matches.
However, they are too unreliable and ammo-sensitive for home defense. For home defense you want something that goes *bang* every time you pull the trigger, and a pump shotgun will do that. light load, heavy load, dud load, you rack the slide and you get a fresh round in the tube.
Now, if you were experienced enough with firearms, their operation, and their limitations to not have to ask this question in the first place, then a semiauto shotgun for home defense may make sense for you. But since you have to ask, then the answer is pump.
I second your motion. Too many people believe what they see in the movies.
Weird.
My pump still makes "that noise", whether yours does or not.
It's a comforting sound.
00 Buckshot should be the deterrent not “that noise”. If you don’t have one racked already I hope you have your final plans in order.
Weird.
The Ruger 9mm.
What? You wander around without your carry piece?
Weird.
The 870 Wingmaster was popular because of the double action bars instead of a single and the ease to interchange barrels and with a machined steel receiver. The next best 12 Guage pump was the Winchester Model 12. Pumps are much more reliable especially for people that do not clean their weapons or get them dirty in the field. Decades of hunting I have witnessed several Rem Model 1100's and Browing Auto 5's jam or fail to extract shells. I have never seen an 870 jam or fail and after 50 years have never had a failure to cycle or fire and mostly with reloads.
As far as the myth about speed, I automatically begin to cycle the chamber as soon as the trigger is pulled. This is so fast that often burnt powder residue flies in my face. Someone that shoots often will cycle an 870 pump as fast as any auto, not that a split second matters when with both weapons you are recovering from recoil to sight again. I find that cycling the round pulls the muzzle down faster with a pump after shooting to get back on the sight picture faster than with an Auto.
I don’t follow the jump from racking a shotgun to a Ruger 9MM.
Weird.
Tuco could teach you a thing or two.
I meant to say dual slide bars for the action. Some may misconstrue what I meant by double slide bars. Nearly all pump action shot guns had a single slide bar and the 870 was one o the first to design it with dual slide bars on both sides of the receiver.
Neither as a primary home defense weapon as, unlike a handgun, it’s impossible to have a shotgun on my person or within reach 24/7 while at home.
I have my .38 Special revolver on me as I type this. I wouldn’t have a shotgun within reach right now and I can’t picture myself mowing the lawn or doing other chores carrying a shotgun.
A long gun may be a viable option as a backup. I’ve considered a shotgun for my wife because she doesn’t have the inclination to put in the time to become reasonably proficient in handling a handgun. And that shotgun would be a break action single shot because she doesn’t have the inclination to become proficient in the handling of a pump or semi-auto. The single shot is almost 100% reliable and and is the easiest to train with. I wouldn’t pick a single shot as a primary, or any long gun for that matter, but for my wife to use as backup for me, it would work.
It is an intimidating sound. I’m retired law enforcement and the one time I heard that from behind a closed door I couldn’t get down and examine the floor tile quick enough. Yes, Hollywood plays up that angle but that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to it.
CC
I believe double action bars are the industry standard now, even on the cheapies.
CC
Tuco had his carry piece in the bath.
You need to do less talking.
Better than a cup of black cowboy coffee.
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