Home Defense Shotgun

[thebearpack]

Since I'm not a shotgun guy and only wanted one to sit in the closet as a backup HD gun I didn't want to spend a lot on it. I chose the Savage Protector 350 which is a Chinese Ithaca 37 clone. Reviews online were all very positive. Got it for $200 OTD at Dunham's during one of their sales. Ergonomics and action were very good as was function. No complaints.

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/p...ducts_id/64358

[B.A.]

remington 870 is the best pump gun ever made period. they have been in production for over 60 years. if they make any accessory its for the 870. don't waist your time with some fancy European gun that cost $500+ you don't need it.

as for a mossberg 500. i not saying its a bad gun for me i just don't like manipulating the safety on them. 870 feels more natural. but i've also been handling the 870 since i was like 10

[Misery Loves Shotguns]

Your bad experience with your 870 is clouding your view on the subject. Of the millions of them in existence they have built a reputation over decades as nearly unstoppable. You got a bad gun. Don't let it skew your judgement.


Any one of your 230gr slugs will go through a wall the same way any of the shotgun pellets would.


And the exact reason you don't like the shotgun, is the reason I do. I pull the trigger (once) and NINE .30 caliber balls go zipping along at 1200fps into said douche bag in my home and impact the target at the same time. At HD distances this might be a 2-3" spread at most. The resulting trauma from that impact far exceeds what .45 can do.

Which is why a shotgun is good to have around IMO.

I'm not suggesting that the Remington 870 is a bad gun but mine is a piece of F'ing trash and it infuriates me that I've spent so much money on it and it can't even properly eject spent hulls. I just think a guy who's new to shotguns should be made of aware of the possibility of failure (however small) that exists even with a pump action shotgun. I've owned three of them and the two I had prior to this one (which I sold) were flawless.

Don't misunderstand man, I LOVE shotguns. I just prefer a handgun for HD because I don't need two hands to use it. If you're caught off guard or in a struggle, what have you. With a shotgun, one squeeze of the trigger will throw 9 pellets at your target and sure as shit, they're not getting back up but a well placed shot or two from my .45 or even my 9mm will remove the threat just as effectively. I'm not saying you're wrong or I'm right, my opinion is simply that I would rather only have to account for one lethal projectile. When it comes to blowing up jugs or watermelons though, SCREW HANDGUNS!

Here's my take on the two popular shotguns . . . The Mossberg is much more complicated to take down than an 870 so that's something worth considering if you're weighing 870 vs 500/590. The Mossberg doesn't require you to change your grip to manually cycle the action because the slide release is at the back of the trigger guard. The 870's slide release is at the front of the trigger guard and unless you have freakishly large hands or long fingers, you'll have to come off the trigger to engage it. The Mossy slide release is behind the trigger guard on the left side and the safety is on top of the reciever right about where your thumb would be. The 870 has the safety behind the trigger and the slide release is front left. I think you'd be able to get a Mossy cheaper than a Remington but having said that, the 870 clone is cheaper than both. I have no experience with it but I've never heard anything bad about it. I see them all the time at Dick's for less than $200 new.

[Valorius]

I get what you are saying, but we cant all do what you've done, or catch the deal you did. Plus I don't believe they make them any more. Which means you pretty much have to buy a used gun. Some people aren't too enthusiastic about doing that.

That being said, when you initially posted it in another thread a while back it put it on my radar and if I do come across one I will probably snap it up.

The ones for the prices i'm discussing are police trade ins.

Either the 1200FP or the 1201FP model is suitable, both are built on the Benelii M1 Super 90 recoil operated mechansim. The 1201FPs are a little more expensive. I've owned both models, they're equally effective IMO.

I honestly prefer top notch used guns. I like letting someone else take the depreciation hit instead of taking it myself.

I would try and call surplus city and see if they can either get more, or direct you where to get one. When i bought mine they had a bunch of them. Shopping around will save you many hundreds of dollars vs the price of a Benelli M1.

[JAS104]

GOD Benelli is a good gun.
Went to the range with one of those badboys tonight, THATS something you can trust your life on I'll tell ya what

[Misery Loves Shotguns]

GOD Benelli is a good gun.
Went to the range with one of those badboys tonight, THATS something you can trust your life on I'll tell ya what

I've never had the pleasure of firing a Benelli autoloader but I own a Nova Tactical pump. I like it better than my 870 for a lot of reasons other than the obvious reliability. I saw an M1014 a few months ago when I was visiting my brother at the Marine Corps Air Station in San Diego. The guy at one of the checkpoints was holding it and I can't believe how beautiful they are in person. I love the LPA sights (I have them on my Nova) too. Much better sight picture than the XS ghost ring systems or anything else out there for that matter. That's just my opinion though. If I could magically come up with a couple grand, I'd buy a Benelli in a heartbeat and never regret it.

[JAS104]

Does anybody know of a good/cheap licensed FFL dealer in Philadelphia or nearby? Found a website (Cheaperthandirt.com) where I found a 12 Gauge Mossberg Purpose Persuader/Cruiser for $270. I'm seriously considering that one, but will I be able to add a rail system and different sights (I'm thinkin LPA thanks to KDE 870). I've heard a lot of good things about mossberg, so if anyone has any different suggesions throwem out!

[Misery Loves Shotguns]

Does anybody know of a good/cheap licensed FFL dealer in Philadelphia or nearby? Found a website (Cheaperthandirt.com) where I found a 12 Gauge Mossberg Purpose Persuader/Cruiser for $270. I'm seriously considering that one, but will I be able to add a rail system and different sights (I'm thinkin LPA thanks to KDE 870). I've heard a lot of good things about mossberg, so if anyone has any different suggesions throwem out!

Mossberg 500 SPX and 590 SPX shotguns come with LPA sights. You would spend $200-300 installing LPAs on a gun that doesn't come with them and you'll have a really hard time finding them to begin with. Fortunately, they're offered on a lot of Mossberg and Benelli shotguns so you don't have to go through that. If it's strictly an HD gun, it wouldn't be a bad idea to stick with the bead sight though for two reasons. You'll pay an extra couple hundred for a shotgun with the LPAs on it and the hypothetical confrontation isn't going to be happening a hundred yards away where the sights would really benefit you. Close range, you'll be better off with simple, instinctive 'point and shoot'. The LPAs are more for extending the effective range of the shotgun.

If you want a pump with LPAs, have you given the Benelli Nova Tactical a look? Here's a photo of mine.

[JAS104]

Mossberg 500 SPX and 590 SPX shotguns come with LPA sights. You would spend $200-300 installing LPAs on a gun that doesn't come with them and you'll have a really hard time finding them to begin with. Fortunately, they're offered on a lot of Mossberg and Benelli shotguns so you don't have to go through that. If it's strictly an HD gun, it wouldn't be a bad idea to stick with the bead sight though for two reasons. You'll pay an extra couple hundred for a shotgun with the LPAs on it and the hypothetical confrontation isn't going to be happening a hundred yards away where the sights would really benefit you. Close range, you'll be better off with simple, instinctive 'point and shoot'. The LPAs are more for extending the effective range of the shotgun.

If you want a pump with LPAs, have you given the Benelli Nova Tactical a look? Here's a photo of mine.

It's beeaaauutiiffuulll. Yeah I've read a ton here, seems my two main options for a HD shotgun are 1) Remington 870, or 2) A mossberg. Both seem like great guns, but mossberg seems more economical. The only attachments I think I'd add are a rail, a taclight, and maybe some new sights. But for the sake of being economical i might look for an 870 used...
Lots of undecided stuff. But I did decide on using buckshot instead of slugs.

[ishoot4fun]

I myself have a Remington 870 ready in the closet. I then went to mossberg.com and ordered a replacement 18 1/2" barrel. I was extremely impressed with how the barrel lined up - no problems feeding, extracting, shooting, whatever. I then keep it fed with Hornady's 00buck defense loads. And here's the bonus I like...I still have the 26" barrel in the safe for the clay bird days!!! Just swap out the barrels and you're back to HD.

I got mine at wally-world when Remington was running a mail-in rebate. I think it was 269.99 with a $30 mail-in. Which I then spent on ammo. The only addition I'm looking to add to mine is to replace the forearm with one from GG&G to accommodate a light. A lot of guys have suped-up-taliban-splattering shotguns. I've preferred to keep mine simple. I figure all I need to do is see my target, and pull the trigger. I also like that reassuring clack-clack that a pump gives off. JMO thogh.