When I was younger, I'd try out any sort of "hard kickers" just to do it, but now that I'm a tad brittle and my retinas aren't what they were, I am a lot more diffident.
I am down to one shotgun these days, and it is a general-purpose "house" shotgun deliberately kept simple, short and light. As such, it does smack me with even medium loads; I put a good "R3" pad on it and that does make a big difference. Still, when I recently took it out to practice with, I could not find any reduced recoil buckshot and the full power stuff rang my aging bell pretty good; I need to revise my technique to reflect my new limitations.
Mr. niteowl77
You need the Federal Premium Law Enforcement Flight Control buckshot. 1145 feet per second, with 9 OO buckshot in a 2 3/4 inch load.
Execellent buckshot, and much milder than most buckshot loads.
The box in my hand says LE132 OO.
I found some on sale on the Internet a couple of years ago.
You might want to try one of these the next time you practice.
http://recoilapparelusa.com/mens/pocket-polos/mens-pocket-polo-sport-grey.html
They are available in a lot of different styles so you’re not limited to a polo shirt, but they do work, and the polo shirt version is not too expensive.
Not too far off-topic ... during the Thanksgiving break my very tech savvy middle son mentioned the latest in “break-in prevention” for those who may not have a shotgun available. It is a phone app that simply, and very loudly plays the sound of a shotgun racking in a shell!
Of course if one is face to face with an intruder, holding up one’s i-phone and playing that may not deter the perp. But I am pretty sure that if a perp starts crawling thru a window and hears that noise, he will change his mind.
The Federal Flight Control stuff is very good. They do make it in different velocities, so make sure it’s the 1145 fps stuff. Fiocchi has reduced recoil buck shot. Sometimes you can find it for 50 cents a round. It may not cycle properly in some semi-autos.
http://www.ammosupplywarehouse.com/product/1329/Fiocchi-Exacta-00-BUCK-LR-2-34-12-ga-10-rndsbox.html
A semi-auto shotgun will be a lot easier on your shoulder than a pump. Mossberg 930 is a good one.
I have considered going to a gas-operated gun, but the Benellis seem to pound the snot out of me, the Beretta 1301 is light enough that recoil is on par with my current gun (870), and I kind of shy away from Mossbergs in general. I don't do enough shotgun shooting anymore so that trading would make a lot of sense anyway, so I'm relying on lighter loads and adjusting my style. A really GOOD modern recoil pad and a shortened LOP stock help, but physics is physics.
Mr. niteowl77