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grumpy1

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I have been scouring the net about shotguns for home defense. Everything I have read is about pump shotguns. Why?? What is wrong with a single shot short barrelled youth shotgun? What happened to the KISS theory? Now my two cents is that a single shot is better. Its lighter easier and faster to handle simple to operate and the best part is that if you ever needed to use it for home defense it will leave the jury with a better impression than a shotgun capable of carrying multiple rounds. What do you guys think?
 
I think you may need more then one shot if there is more then one bad guy.
Or you miss.

IMO: A single-shot is way better then no gun.

But a double-barrel is better then a single-shot.

And a repeater is better then a double-gun, be it pump or semi-auto.

rcmodel
 
Depends on where you put your shot. And a single is pretty fast to load if you know what you are doing with it. I think most of the time people forget about the simple rule of always being on the move in a bad situation. A moving target is harder to hit. Not only that but taking cover has its merits too if you are faced with more than one opponent. That being said though it does take more skill to effectively use a single shot than it does to use a pump or semi automatic.
 
will leave the jury with a better impression than a shotgun capable of carrying multiple rounds

Dismiss that theory right now! Maybe a jury will feel better if you use a 410 instead of a 12, too. If you are dead there ain't no jury that can bring you back. One is better than none, two is better than one, seven is way better than two. I do agree about ease of handling but a pump is really not that much heavier.
 
That stoeger is nice wheelgunner. I bet its expensive though. Another thing to consider is that if you use a shotgun in home defense and have to go to trial over it you might not get the gun back.
 
if you use a shotgun in home defense and have to go to trial over it you might not get the gun back

The last thing I would worry about in that setuation is how to get the gun back.
 
To me it's even simpler: Use what ever you can reach quickly. There is no gun that is more expensive than your life. ;)
 
To me its real simple. Only use what you are willing to lose.

If it were a life or death shoot-no-shoot situation, I think my life is worth a good deal more than ANY gun.

Use what's effective... if it were truly a justified shoot, I think you won't have too much trouble getting off in most places of the US.
 
think about it. it is in the middle of the night. you just woke up. it is dark. and you really dont know if there is anyone there or not, how many, where he or they are. if they are armed or not. how good they are if they are armed. now, do you really want the lives of your whole family to rest on one shot?
 
That one shot is only part of my home defense system. I also have two entry way doors with door locks on them and noise makers on the doors. I also have a motion activated porch light for outside and I always leave a low watt light on in my enclosed front porch. I also have a red heeler who is about two years old and a pup that is a rott shepard mix. Not only that but I know the layout of my house and I picked the bedroom with the best field of vision for the house. I can for example lay a muzzle out my bedroom door and have a clear field of fire all the way to the back door. The front door is equally covered. Also with a cheap wal mart laser pointer flash light mounted on the shotgun I will see what I am shooting at and I will not miss. How many people can come through a door at the same time? Only one. That is how I will deal with them. One through the door equals one on the floor. You just have to set it up like a fire drill.
 
Many single shots have only extractors.

It takes a rather long time to reload an extractor gun, and even more so under stress. I use an old double for hunting and dog training sometimes, so I know from experience.

I would only use an extractor single shot if I had to choose between that and a stick or something. The gun would be better than the stick.

An ejector gun would be more viable. With practice, it can be reloaded relatively quickly.

An ejector gun with two barrels would be better still.

Also with a cheap wal mart laser pointer flash light mounted on the shotgun I will see what I am shooting at and I will not miss.

This is where I start wondering if the OP is serious...
 
Why? Its cheap and it works. I can beat it up and break it and go buy another one. All a laser sight does is give you an indication of where your shot is going to go. That is as close to accurate as they get realistically speaking. A cheap laser pointer will do the same thing. It just helps tell you in a hurry where your barrel is pointed. Another factor in my opinion is how well the rest of the members of your family can use the gun. A home defense gun should be something that is light enough and simple enough that everyone in the house can use it with ease. Maybe the old school ways are still the best ways. Funny thing about mechanical equipment is that the more moving parts you have in it the more Murphy has to work with.
 
I mean dont get me wrong I can see the fascination with pump shotguns. Some look really cool. But I just cant quite figure out where their popularity came from. Pump shotguns to my mind were something given to people who were not very good shots. That way if they miss they can rapidly fire again.
 
I wish there were more videos on the net of shooters who were proficient with single shots. Its like watching poetry in motion. There should be more shooting competitions that deal with single shot shotguns.
 
Why? Its cheap and it works.

Uh, because it's not designed to withstand the recoil of a light 12 Gauge, and therefore can't be trusted to hold zero, or to keep working. Relying on a laser sight that can't be trusted means risking that your one precious shot will miss.

Maybe the old school ways are still the best ways.

Single shot shotguns have never been the favored design for defensive purposes. There's nothing "old school" about them.

Pump shotguns to my mind were something given to people who were not very good shots.

A funny statement from someone who thinks a Wal-Mart laser pointer is either necessary or beneficial when shooting a shotgun.
 
Single shots have been around longer than pumps. As for the laser light it shouldnt be a problem if you mount it to the foregrip instead of the barrel.
 
A funny statement from someone who thinks a Wal-Mart laser pointer is either necessary or beneficial when shooting a shotgun.


No time to aim poor lighting conditions etc.
 
As for the laser light it shouldnt be a problem if you mount it to the foregrip instead of the barrel

You figure that the foreend moves independently from the rest of the gun when you fire it, so that it's isolated from recoil somehow?
 
No. Gouge a grove toward the front of the fore grip and line it with padding. Then get a couple of those brass push clamps and mount them in the groove with screws. Wrap the laser pointer in black electrical tape and just push it into place.
 
line it with padding

So the laser pointer isn't even rigidly attached? This would mean it would NEVER hold zero.

Please tell me you're just having fun, here.:)
 
It is but it isnt. As I said all you need it to do is give you an idictation of where your barrel is pointed. I did something similar with the stock of my mauser 8mm when I floated the barrel. What I did was cut the barrel down and reattach the front bead sight. Then I cut the stock down so that it was short enough to be supported by the screws alone so that I could then remove the front ring that secured the front of the longer stock to the barrel. In effect there is a minute gap between the front of the stock and the barrel of the rifle. I took it from about 7 or 8 pounds down to just over 5 and it hits dead on.
 
The real question is why use single shot, when you can use pump action?

IMO, if it is possible to have an extra 4 - 9 rounds under the barrel, let me have it.
 
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