Shotguns for Home Defense

[Scattergun Bob]

Now I have a question.. what exactly is an operator? I remember we used to have telephone operators, a guy who was slick with the girls we'd called him a real operator... I did a couple a years in police work.... no one ever came up to me and asked "Operator, can you give me directions?" or "Operator can you tell me what time it is?"

Sorry for the short hand, it saves time. The word "operator" was coined early in the 1970's to express the term "seasoned, trained and well practiced user of firearms and tactics." This word is used through out the police / military community as well as most specialized training programs such as H&K's MP-5 operator school. I first ran into the term at BUDS and it has stuck with me. Perhaps I should not use the term here with our audience. My mistake.


greensteelforge,

You are all right, it is best to start from lethal and skip the whole thing. The idea here is to do the most damage as quickly as possible and avoid legal fees.

You have it wrong AGAIN! The idea is to STOP an adversaries life threatening activity, so that you may survive. I simply do not believe your suggestion of less than lethal and lethal shotgun rounds mixed into one scattergun is viable to accomplish the above.

Good Luck & Be Safe

[mkim1120]

mossberg

[Kmar40]

handgun is for tactical search and destroy i.e. going on the offensive

Hilarious.

When I'm on "tactical search and destroy" missions, or even just executing a warrant, I NEVER go without a longarm.

[ConradJoyce]

Well, I'm new around here but I do have an opinion, for what it's worth. Mostly I guess it's an observation. A couple of 'em, actually.

#1: Blowin' people up ain't a lot of fun and is certainly nuthin' to be desired. #2: Being prepared is just what you have to do.

If you haven't trained for it (and you really can't train for it adequately) or experienced it what you learn in combat is that the first thing to go is your fine motor skills, the skills you need to cycle your weapon, move without stumbling, control your fingers. And the second thing to go is your capability to think rationally. It happens to everybody to a greater or lesser degree. Some people hang and some people don't. Some folks just wet themselves. Actually, a lot of people wet themselves. Which is not say that just because you lose control of your fluids you can't hang, no, that's not true, I remember a kid who would scream and cry for his momma when the **** was comin' down but he could drop mortar rounds faster than the legendary John Henry could slam his hammer into railroad spikes and that was good enough for everybody on our team. He could hang. He wasn't afraid of being a *****.

Too many people can't. They ain't suited for it. They seize-up, which is normal. And while they're waiting for the Test they try to convince themselves that their shiny new gun or their too-cool laser sight or a compensated stock or whatever piece of techno crap hanging off the end of the barrel of that shiny new gun is gonna' make the difference and the truth is none of that **** means very much.

So don't wish for what ain't a happy experience. Don't play at it. Be ready, sure, but don't hope for it.

And maybe you'll never have to find out whether or not you're a *****. Just assume that you are and practice breathing.

And keep your powder dry. I'll shut up now. I'm sure I've irritated everybody enough.

Conrad

[javven]

Just me...

The shotgun is easier to handle in sub-optimal conditions. The sound of a working pump action will carry through just about any house. I'd rather it be obvious that I'm armed. If they run away, great. Let them run - my stuff can be replaced. I don't have kids to kidnap and my wife'll be right beside me.

In the event the intruder is not frightened away (due to being unstable, on drugs, suicidal, undead, ninjas, etc) I fully intend to yell my fool head off. Why be quiet? I'm not trying to sneak up I'm trying to scare them the hell away. A nice loud assurance that I've already called the cops (wife's mission) and that getting the hell out would be a good idea.

In the UNLIKELY event actual force is required a shotgun offers a couple of advantages. 1. Big muzzle energy vs just about any handgun - certainly more than any that I can shoot well. 2. It is possible to control over penetration by selecting the correct round for your surroundings. 3. You may end up needing a club (again unlikely - but...)

As others have said hopefully this will never come up - but if it does, the best weapon you will have is your mind.

[zombieslayer]

I have no kids in a huge house. I Keep my mossberg by my bed 8+1. The first 3 that go in the tube are 1oz slugs, the next five are 2 3/4" OO Buck. The one in the chamber is a 3" OOO magnum. If someones in my house to do me wrong, they won't even hear the gun rack a round, at least the first one. I don't wish to shoot anyone in my lifetime, but I'd rather kill than die. The instructor at my defensive shooting class taught us "dead men don't tell no lies". my 2cents

[darkgael]

Quote:
A shotgun is easy to hit with
And also easy to miss with.

The mess will not be any more or less than with a rifle or handgun - especially if you're talking about blood splattering everywhere

The main advantage of a shotgun, IMO, is simply the cost of acquisition and ownership - they are generally the least expensive of the three, the ammunition is generally less expensive. They are typically available in more places, as is the ammunition, and even in places with fairly strict gun control, are generally more allowable to be owned - all this while still providing ample firepower for the task at hand.

And if you need to have multiple guns all over your house, you might want to think about moving - not every neighborhood is zombieland

Quote:
handgun is for tactical search and destroy i.e. going on the offensive
And even here in the Gunshine state, THAT gets you into jail real quick
__________________

+1 about all of that.

Pete

[VVG]

Originally Posted by SP101

1. I live in town and there's no convenient place to shoot / teach my wife to shoot.
2. My wife is uncomfortable firing a shotgun.
3. They are kind of big for covert movement indoors.

1. This does not commend a pistol or rifle over a shotgun.
2. That's why I bought a 20 ga.
3. Why would you need to move covertly in a home defense situation?

There is, of course, an immense difference between engaging an armed force as part of a fire team, and trying to defend your loved ones from persons unknown.

[armsmaster270]

Quote Greensteelforge:
"but I'd like to hear from someone who's been hit with a LTL round out of a twelve and hopped right back up, ready to keep coming"

I haven't but I have personally seen a man hit 3 times and stay up. It is no impossible.

[DRice.72]

I have never had a HD weapon. I have always felt I needed one but wasn't in a position to get one. As most of you may have read I have recently acquired my fathers shotgun to use hunting. I have been posting questions about how to prepare for that gun for an upcoming hunt. I was also considering using this as my HD weapon. I have always known that making the decision to not just OWN a weapon, but having a HD weapon is a great deal of responsibility. There is obviously a lot more to a HD weapon. One thing I think I have learned is that if you are going to have a HD weapon you have committed yourself to the possibility of taking a human life. Just leaning ol' betsy in the corner, or having some monster revolver for a pillow isn't gonna be enough. You really do need to take classes and train. Train so your plan of action is secondary. (I might mean second nature here) That mindset will be far more important than anything. You could be sitting in a room like the rec room on the movie Tremors, but if you don't have the proper mind set when meet your agressor, there is a good chance its your outline being traced on the floor, or a family members.

The only snarky remark I will make is about kids. Who would have a HD plan and not teach it to their kids? If your child knows you are going to come through the house packing if there is a break-in sound. Your child will NEVER try to sneak in. That won't happen to me. I have a daughter so I will be up sittinging the living room cleaning said HD weapon when that boyfriend comes to take her out, and I'll STILL be sitting in that chair cleaning that HD gun when he brings her home ON TIME!

I'm sorry if I have mixed up some terms here. I'm a novice at all this and trying to learn.