Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Maybe a shotgun is better for home defense...

Does anyone actually spend their days w/ a shotgun or rifle in hand and able to present it and make a shot in<under 3 seconds? Or predict the circumstances of the fight?



mike r

While I am completely comfortable investigating bumps in the night and unknown sounds with a handgun, if it is a definite break in they are going to meet the Gentleman from Belgium or an AR :

Jerry, I've seen a lot of good ballistics testing that endorses plated or hardened #1 buck. I don't have much street data for that load, however, nor does anyone else I know who keeps track of such things.

However: there is a LOT of good data showing 00 buck is highly effective, and since the "laboratory" ballistics of #1 and 00 are very close at home-defense distances, I think you're on a good track. I still use 00 buck as my primary load in my 11-87. It's not because 00 is a tad more effective once you get past home defense distances, but because I haven't been able to procure a decent supply of plate #1 buckshot I have to stick with the 00 loads I have already patterned and trust.

I fell down the rabbit hole watching YouTube videos where armed homeowners were shooting up their home interiors trying to hit intruders.

From what I saw, it was evident that a handgun wasn’t getting the job done, unless scaring the living shît out of the burglar was the only intention.

1-5 bad guys ranging in color from black to black (not stereotyping) just what was on the cameras...The variety of invaders all had one thing in common, besides skin color...They all could move like a panther lit on fire with incredible agility and quickness as rounds from homeowners handguns were tearing holes in sheetrock, doors, paneling, and furnishings.

It’s apparent a lot of people have a difficult time hitting a burglar within their home, even at close range...

Why? Besides coming apart mentally that someone is in their home, the spaces are small, and there is a lot of obstacles in the way of a clear shot.

Door jambs, walls, staircase, kitchen counters, furniture, etc, make for a very brief shoot window on a quick and nimble bad guy.

Getting off anything more than a snap shot before the burglar disappears behind a wall, or through a doorway, or down a hall juking and sliding trying to get out of the house was the norm from what I watched.

Made me think the average homeowner might do better with a gauge as their choice for home protection.

Caveat. Some may consider scaring the bad guys away with missed shots is a win. YMMV.
😎

Just how often do you guys have a running gun fight inside your house??

you think missed handgun shots are blowing hell out of your sheetrock , wait till you have a bunch of 12 gauge holes in the walls

Per Jeff Cooper as channeled by Clint Smith and others, the object of shooting is hitting.

If those folks are shooting holes in walls vs. holes in people, their training sucks.

I don't think it is the pellets from a shotgun shell that makes the difference. It is "accuracy" which is drastically improved by the longer sight radius of the barrel of a shotgun or rifle that makes the difference. It is easier for a novice to control the accurate pointing of the muzzle of a long arm than a relative short handgun muzzle. In my experience, shotgun patterns, at relative close range, are small in diameter.

I shot an armed home invasion intruder with a 12 gauge and Federal #4 buckshot. It is the same shotgun and load that I keep in the house today, along with a .40 S&W loaded with Federal Hydro-Shoks.