How should my HD shotgun be kept?

[DasFriek]

I dont know if i should keep it different than my handguns,all of which sit next to me or on me all cocked and locked and chambered at the ready for my DAO guns.
I told my Dad i was gonna keep this gun in condition 1 chambered and safety on and he felt that was unnecessary.
The gun in question is a Mossberg 500SPX
I will NOT keep it chambered and the safety off,not gonna happen.
Also i went to the range and this was the first time in 20 years since ive last fired a SG,and i forgot just how much it hurt.But was a blast anyhow.
75 rounds of slugs,3" 00buck and birdshot i was done,and my shoulder is bruised up also
Dang 3" 00 buckshot looks like a flame thrower and kicks like 4 mules tied together.

[hoytinak]

I think it depends on the shotgun. I keep my Mossberg 500 unchambered with the safety off and trigger pulled so all I have to do is pump it to chamber a round and pull the trigger to fire. I mostly keep it this way cause when I head out to the farm it just gets tossed in the back of my truck and it's been known to get knocked around purdy good in there.

I'm not much of a "shotgunner" but I was taught that my 500 doesn't have a drop safety and I don't need it getting knocked around too hard and the thing going off inside my truck. Someone please correct me is this is not correct.

[hogdogs]

Most shotguns of most design are not "drop safe" even with safety engaged... The safety is more of a "while toted" type safety!
Brent

[hoytinak]

That's what I was taught a while back and thanks for confirming it Brent.

[DasFriek]

Well i guess mine could fall over,or i do a header down the stairs while carrying it.But mainly it will just sit next to my bed.

BTW i didnt mention it is a Mossberg 500SPX,ill put that in the first post to help.
Ive had it almost a week now and its been kept unchambered and safety off,but that seems odd sitting 6" from my cocked and locked 1911.

[biggun_]

In hd I think if you rack a shell you are just giving away your location if the intruder has a weapon. I like to have one chambered so all I have to do is take off the safety and find out who's in my house.

[Old Grump]

Mine stays in my bedroom in a corner loaded, round chambered and safety on. It doesn't get handled except when I go outside and blast things that needed blasting. I do that fairly regularly. Other than that it's duty ready. I don't need to be making any noise if I need to leave my bedroom and check things out and I only have one little button to push which is pretty much second nature after all these years.

I am not of the school that the sound of the pump being worked will scare the boogerman and I do not believe in warning shots. An intruder gets asked who he is and what his business is, if he makes any move that could be considered dangerous the only sound they will hear may very well be the last sound they ever hear. If they survive they will not want to hear it again.

An unchambered home defense gun is for all practical purposes a club, ie. an empty gun.

[USMCGrunt]

I was originally trained in the Marines to keep them in "cruiser ready" which is loaded magazine, empty chamber, hammer dropped and safety off. It's as safe in this configuration as you can get and just as fast (or faster) as using the safety button.

[DasFriek]

Great opinions,it surely helps in making my mind up.
I did just think of something,sort of a design flaw that will have alot of weight in this decision.
Here is a pic of my gun for referance from google.


If you dont know the 500 well,the pump release is located on the left side to the rear of the trigger guard.A great design with a normal stock,but not with a pistol grip added.Making it very hard to hit that release unless you take your hand off the pistol grip and rotate it enough to hit it with your thumb on your right hand.
Even still it isnt easy to find,as it feels so unnatural.

So it seems in the act of figureing this out the gun made the decision for me.
Mossberg needs to rethink this design if they are going to continue adding pistol grips too 500's.

So im gonna go with chambered and saftey on,as fumbleing and trying to find the release could be deadly.
This gun wont be carried or transported chambered,just sitting next to my bed so a drop saftey isnt a big issue.

[Big Bill]

Here's what I do for HD.

For home defense, the first thing I do is make sure all the doors are locked at all times; and then, I also installed dead bolts in addition to my regular door locks. My front door has a peep in it and I have a floodlight on the back door that is motion activated.

Then I have two small lap dogs who bark, even if someone is walking by across the street. They also go crazy, if someone comes to the door that they don't know.

In addition, I have two loaded tactical shotguns 9cruiser ready) and two 9mm semi-autos loaded, but unchambered and in different locations in the house. And, our bedroom also has a lock on the door which we use at night. I move my guns into the bedroom at night and lock the door. We have plenty of ammo and a telephone in there in addition to our cell phones.

So, if someone is fool enough to try and break in, the door locks stop them and the dogs bark. And, at that point, I chamber rounds in both my shotguns and 9mms, hand one of the 9mms to my wife, and we call 911.

So far, this system works. I don't need to keep my shotgun loaded and on safety. It's too dangerous. However, I rely on other mechanisms to give me enough time to prime my weapons.

PS - PD is another question altogether.

[Big Bill]

DasFriek - If you leave it unchambered with the safety off and trigger pulled you shouldn't need to press the release to work the forearm. It should already be released; so that all you have to do is pump it. That's how both mine work.

[DasFriek]

PD? -Personal defense? im not sure i know what your saying on this one.

I just checked and mine also will pump as long as its not cocked.
So i guess the question still stands and the poll still rolls.

I cant place guns around my house,but there are 2 downstairs.I make sure my mom who is in a hospital bed has my PPS 9mm holstered with-in arms reach.
My dad has a PT92 but its by his chair unchambered in a case,which i find about useless as id run past it and head for one of my guns before i tried getting his out and ready,but thats his gun and his choice.
Well i guess i do have guns around the house then,plus i do have a 24/7 house holster belt i made wich i carry my P238 in my PJ's.
Kinda like a mini belly band made from 2" elastic and leather holster.Its soft and comfy to wear and i forget i even have it on.

So in the end this posts outcome isn't the most important one in the world,but i do like to be thorough and think things threw as best and safe as possible.


On a side note,we went about 1 year with no gun in the house as we only kept a 12 gauge with a hunting barrel on it for defense.I didn't know it and wasnt told but my dad gave it back to his brother and i wasn't informed.I was pretty upset saying "You mean to tell me had someone came in here to rob us i would have run to the closet to only find a sweeper and some winter coats to defend us with?"
Thats what spurred me to buy my own and get my ccw afterwards.

[sleeper614]

i agree with grunt. i keep my 500 beside the dresser fully loaded ready to go. all it takes is a quick pump.

[drail]

I have always kept the house 870 ready by chambering a round and then pulling the slide back until the shell is about half an inch out of the chamber. It can't fire with the bolt out of battery even if it falls over and all I have to do is grab it and move the slide half an inch without groping for the safety. It can be done quietly if necessary. ( I do not have children in the house)

[Big Bill]

PD? -Personal defense? im not sure i know what your saying on this one.

Das - PD = Personal Defense.

Personal Defense in this sense means protecting yourself when you are outside of your house. In this mode one should chamber a round and be ready for action. Many attacks come as a surprise to the victim. So, when in PD mode outside one's home, situational awareness is a critical skill. One should be fully aware and be continually analyzing the potential threats around them.

However, inside one's home - Home Defense mode (HD), instead of loading cartridges into the chamber, other things need to be considered, such as the precautions I talked about in my other post (door locks, dogs, and protocols). By doing these things inside your home, you thwart the attempts the BG makes to rob and kill you. However, if the BG is highly motivated, the tactics mentioned in my other post buy you precious time to bring your firearms to battery and position yourself and your family for the worst. And, when you buy time it gives the police time to respond without you risking the lives of the BG or your family. The goal is that NO one gets hurt.

[DasFriek]

The goal is that NO one gets hurt.

I just wanted to make a quick comment on this,and hopefully not derail this thread as its a completely different BIG bag of worms.
But if someone enters my home,to steal,damage,hurt,kill or anything besides a stupid drunk mistakingly thinks my house is his and falls asleep on my kitchen floor after eating a sandwich,some WILL get hurt.
We do have the Castle Doctrine in Ohio and i fully support it,but i would also make every attempt possible to make sure of the intruders intentions before i made a decision to hurt anyone.

I was thinking PD meant personal defense but i can only see maybe a 1 in a 1000 chance of me being outside the house needing to carry it.I do have family i visit on occasion in WV and they have been having black bear wandering around alot,but even then i most likely would still just be carrying my 1911 since i don't hunt.And odds are hes gonna run and not attack as i dont like hurting animals unnecessarily.But yes id be cocked and locked in that situation.

As for now im going with cocked and locked on this SG,it only makes sense as the guns next to it are all that way also.To change that up with just one gun could cause me confusion.

But i will be constantly re evaluating this decision daily for a while.

[ADB]

The only real answer is, "however you're comfortable keeping it."

My shotgun is kept loaded, not chambered, safety on. I don't think that this reduces my personal safety one bit. If somebody else would rather keep a shell in the chamber, that's their business. I simply don't do it.

[Big Bill]

But if someone enters my home...

It's your job to do everything possible to stop an intruder from entering your home in the first place, before you are required to use deadly force. That's why door locks (dead bolts), alarms, flood lights, dogs, etc. were invented in the first place as a deterent to keep the BGs out.

What have you done to deter the BGs from getting into your home; so that you don't have to kill someone? All of these things may come into play, if you do ever shoot some intruder. It may be easier to defend yourself, if your intruder is determined to overcome your well thought defenses, rather than if you are just careless and leave your door unlocked so that any unarmed, drunk, homeless person can just wander in.

[jlv08]

+ 1 cruiser ready.

[DasFriek]

Bill i cant take any more precautions than i already have,its not my house for one.But its rather safe with lighting,and dead bolts and attack cats.
Heck i even put my PPS9 next to my mom in a hospital bed and i carry a P238 in my house belt i made.

Im still evaluating things,but for now i like having it cocked and locked.
I get 1+ extra shell,and only have to pull down the safety which i can easily reach.Also i find keeping the cocked and locked motto on all my guns makes it easier keep uniformity mentally if the need arises to react without thinking.

I don't live in fear,i just feel relaxed when prepared.

And after seeing what that 500 did to my shoulder this past week,i feel sorry for anything on the wrong end of that barrel.

[hogdogs]

If it is a 500 and you have to "pull down" the safety, you are storing it fully HOT the safety is pushed up/forward for fire and pulled down rearward for safe...

As for "precautions", depending on where you reside, this may not be the requirement.

Here in Florida, the law simply states that I may use any force up to and including lethal force against anyone who makes "unauthorized" entry into my home. I do not have to lock my doors, warn the intruder of impending doom or anything. If a person is in my home without permission I am legally allowed to assume he intends to do GBH to myself or other occupants, thus I am authorized and civilly protected in using any force to eliminate the threat facing us.
Brent

[LoneStarWings]

I keep mine loaded, one in the chamber, safety on. Same philosophy with handguns....I don't want to be mucking around with chambering a round in a stressful situation.

[DasFriek]

Your right i had it backwards in my head,but the safety is on and pulled back.
We have the Castle Doctrine same as you in FL,but that doesn't mean i will shoot without investigating a situation as much as safely possible.

Even tho for now im cocked and locked like my handguns,ill still be re evaluating whats best for me for a while.

[guitar1580]

For Home Defense? I do keep a shotgun loaded, but for me, 99% of the time, I'll grab my .357 Magnum if I need to go check out the house, basement, or porches. It's in my headboard shelf within hand's reach. I can't see how anyone would really grab a shotgun over a handgun in most HD situations, unless there are lots of attackers, and some distance involved .... say, a van full of terrorists out in the street shooting at the house?.

A shotgun in the house, even with a short barrel, is still long, and more easily knocked to the side at close range, or grabbed and used with leverage against you. Especially in a dark house, with hallways, corners, etc., I can keep my left hand free for self defense, and even if I got knocked to the floor, I could hang on to that gun and get that double action around and into someone's side or gut and squeeze a few shots, way easier than with a shotgun.

How you leave the safety & chamber isn't what matters. Having a plan, knowing it, and being able to execute it quickly, quietly & flawlessly in the dark while you're half asleep is what matters. Just my 2 cents.

Josh P

[Anticonn]

For Home Defense? I do keep a shotgun loaded, but for me, 99% of the time, I'll grab my .357 Magnum if I need to go check out the house, basement, or porches.

Same for me, more or less. My 357 is on the nightstand, shotgun is about 6' away above and inside the closet door, 45 wanders around a bit but is never very far. I like having the revolver right there, it's DAO, no external safeties, nothing to mess up if I need it NOW. Shotgun is the "if I have time" gun.


And to answer the poll, I store it cruiser-ready; empty chamber, safety off, hammer down and a tube full of 3½" 00 buck. Sure it makes noise chambering a shell, but any intruder that's not in my bedroom has probably figured out already that I'm in my bedroom, this apartment ain't that big so it may as well go KACHUNK and hopefully save the poor fool from making me shoot him.