Excellent home defense weapon along with my 45 that I carry with me pretty much all the time :o)
I lost a family member as well in a home invasion. She was in a different state but it still hits home
Posted on 03/12/2005 8:39:18 AM PST by not_apathetic_anymore
I know this question gets asked repeatedly, but this time maybe it's slightly different...I'm leaning more towards a shotgun, unless the consensus convinces me otherwise.
My favorite rifle!
I personally like my Remington 1187...and I am a good shot with it too...
Five shells in the magazine. One in the chamber. Nice soft lead buckshot that won't go through walls.
Practice firing from the hip. Don't shoulder the shotgun unless you have the time.
Call the cops. Yell that you are armed and will kill them. Give them the opportunity to retreat. If they don't and you feel that your life is threatened... Unload.
Jack.
Good points.
The reason I started asking about racking the slide is I really don't know what the difference would be with any firearm. You don't hear of anyone racking the slide on an autoloader within sight of a burglar so why are they mentioning it with a shotgun?
The other day I had one poster claim it was the racking of the slide that sent a couple of bad guys on the run. He seemed to miss the connection that he pointed the shotgun at the guys just before they took off running.
I really think playing around with an unloaded gun after waking up is a bad time to confront someone breaking down your door.
Why wouldn't you have the time? If you started with it on your shoulder, would you have the time to bring it down to your hip? Maybe I'm being a little cranky today but where are you people getting this stuff? Shotguns that don't have to be aimed? Shooting from the hip? Racking the slide when confronting possibly armed assailants? What's next? Advocating the Linda Hamilton one handed chambering?
Shotguns have been known to have been grabbed and taken away from cops and home defenders alike when shouldered or carried above the waist.
Having the shotgun at waist level works to the cop's or defender's advantage. Making it much harder to deflect, snatch or grab away.
There was a well publicized instance in Olney, MD where a single mom deterred home invaders after calling the cops. By loudly announcing her intentions to defend her home and daughter.
Then hitting the Bolt Actuator of her BushMaster 5.56 carbine. The home invaders heard the loud sound and fled the home and property.
Jack.
Sounds like the HCI propaganda to me. Looks like I don't need a gun to defend my home. I can keep my doors unlocked and take the guns away from the armed burglars if it's that easy.
I suppose yelling she had already called the cops had nothing to do with the burglars running away.
Seriously, if you're handling a shotgun in such a manner it can be taken away by anyone, I would think you're not doing something right. Keep the shotgun on the shoulder where it belongs and learn to move around corners by using the far side. You should be ready with the gun loaded, safety off, the finger on the trigger and behind hard cover before the bad guy knows anything. Learning good tactics will keep you out of trouble when other things go wrong. Good tactics work if it's just a kid looking to steal a Playstation or a hit team at the wrong house. It's your call.
Remy 870 Synthetic (stock), 8 + 1, Sure-Fire light, EoTech Red Dot Sight.
One good thing about the Mossberg 500 is that you can keep it closed on an empty chamber, which makes unwanted discharge by a child or a bad guy unlikely.
You on the other hand, will know to press the bolt release (behind the trigger guard,) rack the slide, and flick off the safety before pulling the trigger.
Ah, gun pictures and gun porn; almost as good as the smell of napalm in the morning!
That's why I asked this group...I learned a lot sitting back and 'listening' to the thoughts of people who had definite opinions. Hearing why one preferred one system over another taught me what kind of questions are important to ask.
To summarize (more for my benefit to put this down in one place than anyone else) some of what I've learned:
I'd like to find a range where I can try some of these out...but the closest one I called doesn't allow non-memebers to shoot shotguns. Guess I'll be trying others further away. The defensive handgun course I took was ages ago, and it wouldn't hurt me to find another - this time more pointed towards shotguns.
You should be comfortable leaving a shotgun next to your bed with one in the chamber and the safety in the off position for primary immediate use. Someone can be in the room and stab you with a knife or take the shotgun away from you and kill you with it in the time it takes you to wake up, sit up or get up, grab the shotgun, remember the condition of the shotgun, and go through the above routine.
With a double action revolver, you grab, point, and shoot. You can do it on you back or side in bed with either hand. With a shotgun, you are pretty much limited to using your dominate side and you have to be in a position to bring it up to your shoulder or hip before firing. Shotguns are great if you are up and awake. Yes, I have racked a twelve-gauge riot gun and stopped several people in their tracks. But, I wouldn’t want to do it just waking up in bed with someone coming through the door.
Personally, I keep both next to my bed, the revolver for immediate action on waking and the shotgun with an empty chamber and safety off for going to investigate a noise. Racking in that condition may be enough to scare someone into leaving, but don’t count on it. If you are not prepared to point a gun at someone and extinguish their life without pause, then stick with a dog and a baseball bat. Someone will take the gun away from you and kill you with it if you haven’t practiced and aren’t fully prepared to use deadly force.
You may have noticed that I said point and shoot. You can aim with time. You should practice point shooting at close range. Have your finger off of the trigger and pointing down the side of the gun until you are ready to kill someone. Point your index finger at them before dropping your finger to the trigger and squeezing two rounds off into their center of mass.
If you have small children who may come into your bedroom during the night, then ignore everything above and go with a shotgun in the safest mode and a dog for early warning. If you have family in other areas of the house, you have to be aware of who you are pointing the gun at and where the rest of your family are before pulling the trigger.
Shotgun rounds can go through walls and handgun rounds can go through your house and the neighbor’s houses. There was a methamphetamine house in my sister-in-law’s neighborhood block. Someone was shot and killed over a drug dispute. The round went through the body, through the exterior wall, across the street, through the exterior wall, and lodged in the interior wall of their neighbor’s house. Choose your gun and ammo wisely depending on your family and neighborhood to cut down on the possibility of collateral damage.
No, I am not a law enforcement officer, but I have stayed at a Holiday Inn.
Very good summary. Check the phonebook or go to http://www.nra.org/ for shooting sites. Join the NRA if you aren't already a member. Consider joining a local gun club to practice, practice, practice.
Good choice of ammo. Are all six the same?
Yep
What are you suggesting? Something like frang, frang, frang, hollow, hollow, hollow?
It shoots .410 shot...
That's interesting - one of those revolver that holds shells concepts.
From 20 paces it will drop any burglar and you just have to point and click.
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