Anyone have an opinion on 12ga home defense loads?

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After testing a lot of different loads over the years I have settled on No 1 buck. It can be hard to find though. As far as over penetration goes - just about everything will punch through drywall with ease. KNOW what is behind any wall that you fire at that is not brick or cinderblock and assume your shot will go through it. I have repaired a few walls (client's - not mine) and solid wood doors that were fired at by various handgun and shotgun rounds - all of them went clean through.
 
The general consensus is to pattern your gun with your chosen load. Personally I prefer buckshot for HD but some people use larger bird-shot. I don't agree with that but its not up to me. I have a lot of #4 and 00 for my 590A1 standard riot style gun. Some people feel #4B is to small, but I'm comfortable with it, it will penetrate around 11"-15", which is fine for me. When I am in the truck or the canoe, or tramping around in the woods, I usually carry it loaded with slugs.

But pattern and practice is what makes it.

Edit: Read the Defensive shotgun ammo sticky at the top of this page. Almost nobody recommends birdsh*t for HD/SD. It can create ghastly yet shallow wounds, failure to penetrate heavy clothing, and does not carry enough energy per pellet to be effective. I've had #6 shot fail to penetrate thru-and-thru on squirrels and rabbits, at average shotgun range which for me is 10-30 yards. If it fails at that task, it can most certainly fail at the worst moment.
 
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I see so many posts on this I am hesitant to reply, but I don't want to feel left out.
I keep my Mossberg 590 loaded with field shot. The receiver side saddle holds 6 shots which are usually 3 each of #4 buck and #00 buck. I will probably replace one or the other with slugs on my next outing. The side saddle rounds can be single loaded from the ejection port or stick one in the bottom and fire 2 shots if you are in a real hurry.
 
12 gauge of any stripe at indoor distances is devastating.

I mean seriously, has ANYONE hit squarely with any 12 gauge load indoors continued the fight?
I am only personally acquainted with one gentleman who absorbed a 12 gauge blast indoors, and survived. It took his arm off at the elbow.
I don't know what ammo was used.

00 buck if it goes from indoors to outdoors.
 
Any wound from a shotgun is a forensic techs delight since you not only know the size shot used - but also you can just about calculate the actual distance between weapon used and the point of impact (provided you have the weapon involved). Without the weapon you can still make a pretty good approximation of the distance involved, pretty much based solely on the impact pattern. That's just one more reason why anyone that makes false statements about a shooting incident is making a bad mistake....

Without even knowing a thing about the circumstances of a shotgun wound where "an arm was taken off at the elbow" I'd make a fairly accurate guess that it was at very close quarters range...

One of the officers on my department was hit in the knee with a contact wound from a single shot .410 round during a struggle with a suicidal individual. The wound was almost a perfect signature of a contact wound - if you didn't know that birdshot was involved -there wasn't a trace of it in the single entrance and exit wound - since the shot never had a chance to disperse at all until after it left the victim... The officer survived but with a permanent disability. The last time I spoke with him (a good ten years after the incident) the docs were still talking about removing the lower portion of that leg from the knee on down.... and some day that might still be required...
 
An Opinion on Home Defense Shotshell Ammunition:

Needed: Factory loads, (12 and 20 gauge), with 1 ounce of lead "T" buckshot.

Yes, the voluntary Sporting Arms & Ammunition Manufacturers Institute defines the nominal .20" lead pellet as buckshot!

With 38 pellets to the ounce, such a load would begin to balance the need for adequate defensive performance while limiting structural penetration in a moderate recoil load.
 
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Birdshot is for birds.

Birdshot will not penetrate deep enough to reliably stop a human attacker.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr
 
Those that consider something other than buckshot for close quarters work might want to consider the consequences of having a really angry and fired up opponent still standing and not happy at all about being "wounded" and inside your house.... Seriously -ending the fight with a single shot is the best you can hope for (if you actually really, really need to stop someone's aggression before you or your family are injured or killed). No, you won't like what happens after a defensive shooting - but you might still be standing and able to protect your loved ones.
 
The Sticky on Defensive Shotgun ammunition at the top of this section is definitely worth reading. Particularly post # 158.

As Virginian correctly states, these are just opinions. Many of the opinions however are based on personal observation and extensive experience. For me, the choice is the non exotic, plain jane, but highly effective stopping power of 00 buck.
 
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For inside the home, I think anything between #4 and #1 is best. The 00 buck fanboys have such a 1920's view on it making it out to be the only shot that should be used in a fight along with a big 'ole 1911. 00 has its place, but when over penetration is a concern, it's best left in the field box with the skinning knife.

The experts have studied and determined that #1 buck is the best all around buckshot size, the issue I see with it is it's relative scarcity because the ammo manufacturers cater to the 00 fanboys. If you can't find #1, then use #4 because you'll be able to find that.

I'm not totally against 00, but I think it's been overrated for a long time. I think the most important ammo to use is that which you shoot best with, and if that's a reduced recoil load or a 2 1/4" Herter's shell with 6 pellets of 00 or an Aguila 1 3/4" minishell loaded with both #1 and #4 buck than use what's best for you and works in your gun.
 
I think you are discounting the importance of heavy clothing and light barrier penetration particularly for law enforcement "00 fan boys".

Mike
 
Another possibility are two .625 HeviShot balls per shell with avg. Vo of 1250fps. It was designed for hunting large hogs at close ranges. Men are basically large pigs walking on two legs. This load should prove very effective for HD.
 
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Another possibility are two .625 HeviShot balls per shell with avg. Vo of 1250fps.
Click to expand...

Holy Toledo. Which brand are you thinking of?



Geno

I use Estate [00] buckshot. It patterns nicely to 25 and 35 yards, placing all 12of the 00 into a 15" steel plate.
Click to expand...

What choke equivalent is that Tactical Extended Remington Choke on your M870 that allows that pattern at 35 yards?
.
 
At "Hallway" Distances:

At "hallway distances" none of the pattern enhancement developments in buckshot ammunition, at least since the introduction of the pin-fire breech loader of the mid-19th century, make any meaningful difference.
 
RMc said:
At "hallway distances" none of the pattern enhancement developments in buckshot ammunition, at least since the introduction of the pin-fire breech loader of the mid-19th century, make any meaningful difference.
Click to expand...
Yeah, those talking about the Flite wad ammo... that's designed to keep patterns tight out to 30+ yards. At under 7 yards, the pellets don't even spread.
 
I agree. There is no shot within my home beyond 12 yards and most would be much closer. Rio buck and Suprema 00 is cheap enough for practice and reliable enough to handle the task at least in my guns. I get a consistent 15" spread at 15 yards with a cylinder choke. That's good enough for me.
Here's where the opinion takes over. I'd gladly trade a few shot (00) per round for a bit less recoil as long as fps is equal. Full blown 12 gage 00 is at the upper end of my tolerance and I do not believe light birdshot is the answer.
 
PabloJ said:
Another possibility are two .625 HeviShot balls per shell with avg. Vo of 1250fps. It was designed for hunting large hogs at close ranges. Men are basically large pigs walking on two legs. This load should prove very effective for HD.
Click to expand...
Each .625" non-toxic Zinc pellet weighs in at 206 grains. If cast of lead wheel weight alloy a ball of that size would weigh 350 grains.

http://www.hevishot.com/catalog/hog-wild/

If you want a buckshot load that really penetrates try the Dixie Tri-Ball buckshot round with three .60" hard cast lead 320 grain pellets:

http://www.dixieslugs.com/triballorderform.html
 
I rely on whatever I grab out of the stash whenever I feel the need to load a shottie up. 2-4-6-8 and I don't really care if it is steel or lead because after a shot or two inside the house whoever or whatever isn't going to be posing a continuing threat to my safety. Just my take on it because I won't be playing the good cowboy and taking a warning shot or shooting them in the hand, besides they're going to be busy enough with Gus' attentions.
 
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