better home defense

[horsemen61]

Which is better in your opinion a 12 gauge coach gun or say a short barrel rifle for home defense?
In my opinion I like a 12 gauge with buckshot what ever size you can handle with confidence.

 

[Skribs]

I'm not trying to be a jerk or grammar nazi here, but I've seen several of your questions posted which include no capitalization, punctuation, or any input from yourself as to what you think of the issue or why you're asking the question. A little bit of effort would go a long way towards helping out.

Personally, of the two, I'd rather have an SBR, because a coach gun holds significantly less ammunition. However, I'd have to make sure the ammunition that I get would be viable when fired from a shorter barrel.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

As far a shotguns go, the coachgun might look cool in a cowboy flick, but is hardly my choice for HD.

I can't answer for you for a SBR. IMO, that depends on what you are protecting. My home has smaller rooms, plus close neighbors. I don't need/want a rifle.

As far a long guns go, a basic 12 gauge pump is hard to beat.

 

[ErikO]

1st off, I'd look into a big, loud, friendly dog. Beyond that, a 12ga or 20ga shotgun may be your best bet due to the options in ammo that you have.

 

[MtnCreek]

Do you own either? Coach gun is pretty strait forward; SBR (visioning an AR) is a little more complicated and would be more prone to malfunction. The SBR will also require a waiting period till the background/paperwork goes through, if you don’t already have one. If you have and are proficient with both, I would opt for the SBR.

Skribs, I used a semicolon.

 

[AK_Maine_iac]

http://www.stoegerindustries.com/firearms/stoeger_double_defense.php

My jury is still out on rather i like it or not.

 

[rcmodel]

Get a 12 ga pump gun for HD readyness.

Unlike the hammerless S/S double, it is safe to leave setting around with an empty chamber and a full magazine tube.

Cocked & loaded double guns are dangerous to everyone when left loaded & unattended all the time.

rc

 

[Noah]

Agreed, the whole double barreled shotgun is just a thing a select few companies market just because they know some new gun owners will buy one for $300+++... As for rifles and home defense, it is my personal opinion that a bolt action, AK, AR-15, Semi auto, any rifle really, is a bad home defense weapon. It is my personal opinion that any situation that a rifle's range is an advantage is a situation that won't go well for the rifle owner in court, and that a rifle in a home is a pointless waste of replacement drywall, windows, and bricks, if you take my meaning.

As for a pistol, if you want to CCW, a good compact Glock or anything similar could work as a carry and bedside gun, and pistols are fun to shoot. Ammo and the guns themselves are kind of pricey, according to my standards, anyway.

It is my personal opinion the #1 choice for a home defense gun is a basic Maverick/Mossberg/Remington/H&R/Savage/Weatherby/Stoeger/Ithaca/Benelli/Insert Brand Here pump, long or short barreled, depending on if you want to hunt, or a combo, and less than $300, if not less than $200. Any pump shotgun will work, based on budget and personal preference, so long as you know how to use it. Which means take it to the range, or your country backyard if you're lucky like me, and just blast some rotten fruit and old electronics and cardboard boxes and hunks of plywood and other junk with your choice of HD ammo every few days if possible, be it #4 Buck, 00 Buck, whatever. Practice with slugs as well, and mostly practice with Birdshot 'cuz it's cheap and has less recoil, but it still does fun things to old pumpkins.

Don't fall for expensive gimmick ammo or guns, like (IMO) pistol grip shotguns, or the whole coach gun thing. A pump is much, much better and cheaper. That's not to say that the (I'm assuming) Stoeger coachgun is a bad gun, but it is an overpriced marketing ploy for new HD gun owners, I believe.


"1st off, I'd look into a big, loud, friendly dog." I love dogs even more than I love guns.

 

[M2 Carbine]

Which gun you choose/need depends on your own HD situation.

Although I keep several loaded 12 ga pump shotguns handy, a couple M4 size AR rifles serve me better.

As far as the coach gun? I like the double barrel hammer gun and would keep it loaded somewhere around the house but given a choice my first shotgun pick is a 18-20 inch pump.

 

[ATBackPackin]

Out of those two I would take the SBR because while I may not need more than two rounds, I sure as hell would want more. With that being said there are much better choices than both. I prefer either a shotgun or full size handgun for home defense.

 

[vellocet]

Get a pump 12. Geez.

 

[Bmac1949]

+1 on having a good dog. That will give me time to reach for my .870. But, the more important thing is what can you shoot well in a stressfull situation?

 

[BSA1]

I can tell you from first hand experience in my young LEO days that a double barrel shotgun does a great job quieting rowdy bars. I traded it off to deputy that was a friend and he had the darn thing nickel plated! Wish I had thought of that.

 

[Leathermarshmallow]

I own several shotguns. My first choice would be my Winchester 1300. But, I wouldn't feel undergunned in the middle of the night in my own home with the 18 1/2 inch barrelled 12 gauge coach gun. I feel comfortable shooting it, it is shorter than many other of my guns and thus, easier to maneuver in the house. It also has a great intimidation factor with those two great big gaping holes pointed at the chest of a potential bad guy. Not the best, but certainly not the worst choice either.

 

[303tom]

Shadow & my 97 Trench..........

 

[Alex23]

If you are serious, start with passive security. 7 lever deadbolt locks, window locks, alarm system, big dogs. That will deter the vast majority of burglars. In the unlikely event you are facing a true home invasion they buy you time to grab whatever is to hand. I favor a pistol as it is a defensive weapon and easy to wield. An M4gerie / AK / 18" shotgun in a genuine home invasion would be my last choice. They're eminently suitable if you are the one doing the B+E though (I imagine).

 

[Bartholomew Roberts]

Not enough information to say. We don't know what kind of short barrel rifle you have in mind and we don't know what kind of skills you have (which is far more important than the weapon).

 

[MachIVshooter]

Inside the house? The shotgun. A rifle is more effective, but trust me, you don't want to touch off a 10"-14" barreled rifle in the confines of a house. You will suffer hearing loss. Shotguns can almost be tolerated without ear protection on an outdoor range; I've fired my 16" AR-10 in the field exactly one time without ear plugs, and don't ever care to repeat that experience.

 

[Robert]

http://www.stoegerindustries.com/fir...le_defense.php

My jury is still out on rather i like it or not.

And here I though Mossberg had the market cornered on mall ninja shotguns... Wow that is just terrible.

 

[Bubba613]

Handgun. It only takes one hand to operate one. Shotguns are OK barricade weapons but that's about it.
Rifle? Not unless it's a lever gun in a pistol caliber or you live out in nowhereville.

 

[FMJMIKE]

I prefer a M1 Carbine................

 

[Strykervet]

I like the M4 carbine.

 

[NG VI]

that a rifle in a home is a pointless waste of replacement drywall, windows, and bricks, if you take my meaning.

Properly loaded rifles in the right type of chambering actually tend pass through targets and other barriers far less often than shotgun or pistol ammunition, and they are usually highly effective on top of that. I wouldn't want to touch off a short barreled 5.56mm rifle indoors, but an ordinary 18-20" wouldn't be bad enough to outweigh the enormous advantages a high velocity, low recoil rifle offers.

The thing about weapons that rely on velocity as a wounding mechanism, is that it's much easier for ammunition designers to limit penetration than it is for a weapon that must have high projectile mass to be effective. They also can be effective without excessive recoil, though the muzzle blast is higher.

But really nearly anything would be a good option for home defense, though I wouldn't bother with a rifle less than 16" in length, tax stamp, blast, and possibly flash are just too off-putting. And it loses some of the speed that makes them so effective despite their small projectiles. And makes proper ammunition selection somewhat harder, and in these weapons it is a serious consideration unless you live in the middle of BF Nowhere with no neighbors.

 

[mortablunt]

Well, academically speaking, a shorter shotgun would be the better idea. The general ease of use is a plus, and with a shotgun, there's the whole fact that a 12ga 00 buck is essentially hitting something with a dozen 9mm balls.

 

[NG VI]

More like .32 balls.

And the reduced recoil 8-pellet stuff has some very real advantages over 3" 12 pellet loads and full power 9-pellet loads, mainly better patterns and faster followup shots, which aren't automatically unnecessary just because it's a shotgun.