20 gauge is plenty! Mossberg 500 Youth 22" Barrel
Hi, I am (old) puny 62 year old guy and have fired 12 gauge in the past, but wanted a pump for the house, and read a lot here and elsewhere. I chose a youth model Mossberg 500 in 20 gauge. It has a small stock and short barrel so easy to maneuver in the house, and my small bride can handle it.
Another pointer picked up: wise to have a shotgun that looks like a hunting shotgun that you just happened to have around when a BG attempted to bust into your home. The BG's attorney, if BG survives, will make mincemeat of you on the stand as he shows everyone your street sweeper with red dot sight. He will tell the story that you had your wallet on a string in the front yard and reeled the BG into your home on it.
Recoil chart compliments Chuck Hawks website:
http://www.chuckhawks.com/shotgun_recoil_table.htm
I just saw where a 12 guage can have up to 2300 foot pounds at the muzzle, and a super slug web page says a 20 gauge slug can have 1600 Ft pounds of energy. That's more than an M16, double the maximum load of the "most powerful handgun known to man"... and is more than enough.
Another thing to seriously consider is that a shotgun should not be your primary home defense weapon, of course. You can't maneuver it fast enough to defend against a BG already in your house. Can't swing it fast enough so he will take it away from you. A BG can cover 20 feet and stab you to death in less than a second.
I have an XD 9 at my bedside, a Ruger P89 in a hideaway holster mounted inside a cabinet near the front door, and a 20 gauge with 3 #6 and 2 one ounce slugs in the bedroom closet. And then......
Famed defense expert Massad Ayoub's thoughts on boomers: (read: 20 gauge is fine):
http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/ayoob125.html
shovel99
Hi, I am (old) puny 62 year old guy and have fired 12 gauge in the past, but wanted a pump for the house, and read a lot here and elsewhere. I chose a youth model Mossberg 500 in 20 gauge. It has a small stock and short barrel so easy to maneuver in the house, and my small bride can handle it.
Another pointer picked up: wise to have a shotgun that looks like a hunting shotgun that you just happened to have around when a BG attempted to bust into your home. The BG's attorney, if BG survives, will make mincemeat of you on the stand as he shows everyone your street sweeper with red dot sight. He will tell the story that you had your wallet on a string in the front yard and reeled the BG into your home on it.
Recoil chart compliments Chuck Hawks website:
http://www.chuckhawks.com/shotgun_recoil_table.htm
I just saw where a 12 guage can have up to 2300 foot pounds at the muzzle, and a super slug web page says a 20 gauge slug can have 1600 Ft pounds of energy. That's more than an M16, double the maximum load of the "most powerful handgun known to man"... and is more than enough.
Another thing to seriously consider is that a shotgun should not be your primary home defense weapon, of course. You can't maneuver it fast enough to defend against a BG already in your house. Can't swing it fast enough so he will take it away from you. A BG can cover 20 feet and stab you to death in less than a second.
I have an XD 9 at my bedside, a Ruger P89 in a hideaway holster mounted inside a cabinet near the front door, and a 20 gauge with 3 #6 and 2 one ounce slugs in the bedroom closet. And then......
Famed defense expert Massad Ayoub's thoughts on boomers: (read: 20 gauge is fine):
http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/ayoob125.html
shovel99
