16 gauge is the sweet spot. Harder to find, though.
A little less knockdown power, a shortcoming which can be overcome. Inject a fast-acting poison into each shot shell so any hit is a kill.
I have the Turkish-made Mossberg SA-20 which is fun to shoot. I don’t enjoy shooting 18” barrel 12 ga.
Massad Ayoob recommends 20 ga. for home defense, which is good enough for me.
Holy smokes! How can this obvious grammatically-incorrect headline get past their editors?
I had an old Sears 12 gage bolt action shotgun I sawed off the barrel for home defense. Should scare the hell out of an intruder. Lost it when we moved.
I is not sure, but it strikes me that 20 gauge is less prevalent because the ammunition is less widely available, which is because 20 gauge is less prevalent.
Friend moved to Florida and was cleaning out his place, gave me an Ithica Model 37 20 gauge. Said “thanks” and didn’t really think too much about it until I looked it up. Knew it was a nice gun just by the way the slide felt. But it’s like a $900-$1500 gun! What a friend! I’m going to try it with slugs for deer hunting this year.
If recoil is an issue, you can get light tactical loads for the 12.
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No need for down-sizing your protection.
Just buy Law Enforcement grade 00 buck.
It has a few less pellets, thus reduces the kick.
Why aren’t your English teacher turning over in her grave?