12 ga. or 20 ga. for HD?

1911Ford · May 28, 2000, 12:30 AM

I have a Remington 11-87 SPS 12 ga. and a Remington 870 20 ga. I want to make one of these into a "Tactical" shotgun. I hunt more with the 11-87 and would rather do the modifications on the 870. The only thing is, is that I am unsure of how the 20 ga. would be for HD. Is there that much of a difference between the 12 and 20 when using it for HD. The only real advantage that I can think of for the 20 ga. is that it would be easier for my wife to use if she ever would, or had to. But she also has a .357.

Dave McC · May 28, 2000, 05:35 AM

Either will work, but if there's a chance the wife might need it, that 20 ga would be the better choice, probably.

Also, to correct a popular mis-impression, a stock, out of the box 870 is a good HD weapon as is.The first accessory one should buy is ammo, not fender skirts and fuzzy dice...

Gunsmith friend of mine took a Youth Model 870, added a two round mag extension, did a little trigger work and now his wife has one great tool for HD when her hubby isn't around.The weight of the extension turns the kick mule into a pony...

Remember, whatever you get, practice is the key....

Erick Gelhaus · May 28, 2000, 12:55 PM

As Dave said, A lot of it is Practice. Good practice not just winging rounds downrange. That said, even though I prefer the 12ga for serious social work, I have an 870 Youth Model in 20ga for the house - the better half can't handle my 12ga 870.

Using the Search function, I came up with following threads from here that you might want to look at:
http://www.thefiringline.com/NonCGI/...ML/000731.html http://www.thefiringline.com/NonCGI/...ML/000352.html http://www.thefiringline.com/NonCGI/...ML/000138.html http://www.thefiringline.com/NonCGI/...ML/000899.html

Since we've discussed this within the last month, I'm locking the thread.

Erick

[This message has been edited by Erick (edited May 28, 2000).]

May 28, 2000, 12:30 AM	#1
1911Ford Senior Member Join Date: April 6, 2000 Posts: 224	I have a Remington 11-87 SPS 12 ga. and a Remington 870 20 ga. I want to make one of these into a "Tactical" shotgun. I hunt more with the 11-87 and would rather do the modifications on the 870. The only thing is, is that I am unsure of how the 20 ga. would be for HD. Is there that much of a difference between the 12 and 20 when using it for HD. The only real advantage that I can think of for the 20 ga. is that it would be easier for my wife to use if she ever would, or had to. But she also has a .357.

May 28, 2000, 05:35 AM	#2
Dave McC Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 14, 1999 Location: Columbia, Md, USA Posts: 8,831	Either will work, but if there's a chance the wife might need it, that 20 ga would be the better choice, probably. Also, to correct a popular mis-impression, a stock, out of the box 870 is a good HD weapon as is.The first accessory one should buy is ammo, not fender skirts and fuzzy dice... Gunsmith friend of mine took a Youth Model 870, added a two round mag extension, did a little trigger work and now his wife has one great tool for HD when her hubby isn't around.The weight of the extension turns the kick mule into a pony... Remember, whatever you get, practice is the key....

May 28, 2000, 12:55 PM	#3
Erick Gelhaus Staff Emeritus Join Date: October 28, 1998 Location: Northern CA Posts: 2,750	As Dave said, A lot of it is Practice. Good practice not just winging rounds downrange. That said, even though I prefer the 12ga for serious social work, I have an 870 Youth Model in 20ga for the house - the better half can't handle my 12ga 870. Using the Search function, I came up with following threads from here that you might want to look at: http://www.thefiringline.com/NonCGI/...ML/000731.html http://www.thefiringline.com/NonCGI/...ML/000352.html http://www.thefiringline.com/NonCGI/...ML/000138.html http://www.thefiringline.com/NonCGI/...ML/000899.html Since we've discussed this within the last month, I'm locking the thread. Erick [This message has been edited by Erick (edited May 28, 2000).]