This age-old debate… It seems like no matter who you ask, everyone seems to fall into one of two camps on this issue. The shotgun is either the quintessential, end-all be-all home defense weapon. The one round fight stopper with enough knock down power to send anyone else in the vicinity running. Or it’s the worst choice you could possibly make when choosing a home defense firearm. Being just a razor's edge above a pointy stick, you’re basically relegating you and your family's well-being to the pages of history. Like most debates, the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. I take issue with some points made on either side of the debate, so I thought it would be fun to weigh in and give my thoughts and opinions on the issue. This is bound to stir some emotions, and most will find something in this piece to get upset about. But keep in mind, these are just my opinions and I have no doubts that the debate will continue to rage on. So, buckle up and let's get into it!
Let's first talk about the options when looking into the home defense shotgun. And while I am fond of them, please ignore the gun advice from Joe Biden and do not use the double barrel shotgun for home defense. For the discussion of the defensive shotgun, I'm going to be focusing on semi auto and pump action shotguns that are chambered in either 12 or 20 gauge. There are some really nice semi auto defensive shotguns out there. There is of course the iconic Benelli M4, and now Beretta has its offerings with the 1301 and the A300. These firearms are great choices in this category but can carry a relatively steep price tag. Many of us looking for a defensive shotgun are going to end up with a more budget friendly pump shotgun in the Remington 870 or Mossberg 500 series variety. While easier on the pocketbook, both of these firearms are proven and in use with many military units and law enforcement.
Shotgun Myths:
First, I think we need to address some of the misconceptions surrounding the shotgun as I believe these can be the root of some flawed thinking about the capabilities of the platform. And I think the most ubiquitous one is that "the racking sound of a pump shotgun will scare off any intruder." Now I almost didn't want to bring it up because it is so cliche at this point, but the discussion just would not be complete without addressing it. While many articles and youtube videos point out this as a flawed way to think about the defensive shogun, I'm willing to throw a bone to those who wholeheartedly believe this statement. I will concede that... it might. And it would be a wonderful thing if it worked and avoided a potentially violent confrontation. However, this is most certainly something that cannot be relied upon in a defensive situation and I would consider you lucky at best if it actually worked. And as the famous Paul Harrell once pointed out in a video, most firearms actions will make a similar "racking" sound when charging the gun. But while I find it silly to rely on the pumping of a shotgun as a home defense strategy, I've also seen people use this misguided thought process as a reason to dispel the merits of the shotgun all together. And I find this reasoning just as puzzling. Simply because the noise of a pumping shotgun is not an effective deterrent does not necessarily mean the shotgun is not an effective choice for one's home defense.
The other common myth, and I can already hear everyone yelling at their screens, is "you don't have to aim a shotgun." I'm not going to beat a dead horse on this one, suffice it to say, this is not true. Anyone who has done any amount of hunting with a shotgun can attest to this. Shotguns, like any other gun, need to be aimed. And at inside the home distances the spread won't be very big anyway. And personally, that's what I prefer. I don't want stray pellets wandering off target and turning themselves into liabilities. Ideally for me at those distances I would like the pattern to be not much bigger than the size of my hand.
The Cons:
And with that out of the way we can talk about the actual pros and cons of the shotgun. The first con to a shotgun being the ease of use... or lack thereof. There is this notion out there of the pump shotgun being one of the simplest battery of arms in a firearms platform and I just don't find that to be true. The fact that the action needs to be manually manipulated between every shot adds another layer of complexity and thought process during a potentially stressful situation that can result in operator error. And for those with often limited practice on the platform that can be a very real problem. Short stroking can also cause a malfunction when running a pump shotgun. If the weapon is not cycled fully and with enough force, it can cause the firearm to fail to eject the spent shell or to pick up a new one. And while this issue is somewhat resolved if you choose to go with a semi auto shotgun, it is still more difficult to load than a semi auto rifle or handgun. Trying to quickly load single rounds into a shotgun, be it pump action or semi auto, takes a fair bit of practice and technique to do efficiently and reliably. These are all things that can be worked through with some practice, but if you are not willing to put in the time then the shotgun may not be the right choice for you.
Another drawback to consider is the recoil. You could always drop down to a 20 gauge to help reduce the recoil, but even then, it is noticeably more than your standard AR15. And full power 12 gauge 00 buck loads will push you around a fair amount. And this is something you'll want to consider if the weapon could potentially be used by someone with a smaller stature. I really enjoy putting rounds through my Mossberg 590, but my significant other does not share that same enthusiasm. She does come out with me and shoot it from time to time and, while she does great, I know that she would not be comfortable if this was the gun she had to rely upon if she ever needed to. And yet, this is the platform I have seen suggested to those with little to no firearms experience. The recoil of an adequate 12 gauge home defense round is something that must be taken into consideration when considering the shotgun.
And of course, the ammo capacity issue. This is one of the main arguments against the shotgun and for good reason. With defensive shotguns generally falling somewhere in the 6 to 8 round capacity, that is a far cry from your standard 17 or so rounds from a full-size handgun and about a quarter the capacity of your standard 30 round carbine. Also factor in the fact that if reloading is needed, the shotgun is significantly more difficult to reload than just swapping a magazine in your semi auto pistol or carbine variant. And the lower ammo capacity is the reason why you see many people run extra ammo on some sort of side saddle. For me, I prefer the Esstac Shotgun Cards. They are cheap so they are easy to replace when worn out, but they are also extremely effective. And with the velcro attachment allowing you to be able to rip off one of these cards and slap on a new one just adds that extra ability over the older hard plastic side saddles.
If you do go with some form of side saddle options, how will you run your ammo? Brass up or brass down? Maybe two up for quick port loading and the rest down for topping off your tube? Whatever you choose is fine, as long as you find out what works best for you. And the only way to figure that out is to try it. I prefer to have all my rounds facing the same direction. I don't want to be guessing or trying to remember which round is facing which way when I'm focused down range. And I prefer the "brass up" method. This makes it easier for me to come over the top of the shotgun when port loading which I prefer. I find it easier and more consistent in getting the shell where it needs to go versus trying to wrap my hand around the bottom of the gun. Coming over the top allows me to slightly twist the gun so that I am using gravity to help me "drop" the shell through the port. I'm not saying this is the right way to do it, there are different ways to load a shotgun. But this is what works for me. I suggest you watch some tutorials, try them all, and find out what feels right to you. A good cheap way to do this is with a handful of "dummy rounds". They're cheap and give you an endless amount of practice.
The shotgun can also be somewhat more difficult to accessorize. Unlike the AR with picatinny and mlok slots everywhere they can squeeze one in, the shotgun generally has limited space and ability to add stuff on. I believe it's necessary to have a light with any serious home defense gun. A handheld if using a handgun is fine, but with a long gun it really needs to be mounted to the weapon. The limited space on the shotgun makes this more difficult. Add in the movement of the forend with a pump gun and it can really get tricky. I thought I had a good light setup and placement on mine only to find out when I took it out to the range that the type of light and its placement, along with where I placed my hand, really put a beating on my support thumb after only a handful of rounds. It took some experimenting with different lights and placement to find a system that works for me. And even now I'm still looking to see if I can find a better system. Surefire tackled this issue with their Surefire Shotgun Forend which integrates a light into the forend. Although I have heard some good things about them, they are a bit bulky and pricey and is not the direction that I chose to go. But it's definitely an option for those looking to get a light onto their defensive shotgun.
At this point you may be wondering why you would even consider the shotgun at all. And I don't want this to start sounding like a shotgun bashing piece. But I do want to do my best to cover everything that I find relevant and give you the information that I think you need to consider when making this decision. But with all those cons is there even an argument to be made for the shotgun. Well don't check out yet, because I believe there is. While it has its drawbacks, there are a few distinct areas where the shotgun excels. And the advantages that the shotgun has to offer may just win you back!
The Pros:
The shotgun, at least in America, is the Visa card of firearms... Accepted Everywhere. And what I mean by this is that I'm not aware of any state or jurisdiction that has a ban on shotguns. And in places where there are restrictions on semi auto rifles a shotgun may be a viable alternative. Spending most of my life living in California I know this firsthand. And when you can get a modern rifle, a DA in these places may look at you much more harshly if you were to use an AR style rifle to defend yourself than if you used a shotgun. This is an unfortunate reality, but a reality nonetheless and one that you may want to consider if you live in an area that is less than friendly to the second amendment.
To me, the big advantage that the shotgun has to offer is its undeniable fight stopping potential. A well-placed shot of 12 gauge 00 buck at close quarter distances is a devastating thing. And it is this ability to end a confrontation quickly and decisively that makes it stand out to me as a viable option for defense of one's home and the most attractive feature to me when considering it for my own personal defense. While pistol and even rifle training will teach you to put multiple rounds on target to ensure that you get the desired effect, I have not heard of anyone taking a center mass load of buckshot and continue to be a threat. And when it comes to protecting the safety of my loved ones and myself inside of my home, I want to be able to put an end to the threat as quickly as possible.
And that brings up the issue of ammo selection. One draw to the shotgun is its versatility and ability to shoot a wide range of projectile sizes and types. From dove to bear, the shotgun can offer the appropriate solution. But this versatility opens the door to the possibility of inappropriate load choices. For the purposes of home defense, I'm going to recommend sticking with any shot size with the word "buck" behind it. This being No. 4 buck being on the low end and up to 000 buck, with 00 buck being my choice and pretty much the gold standard for a defensive shotgun round. Slugs will definitely get the job done but please be mindful that they have significantly more over penetration than the other rounds and probably not the best choice if you have close neighbors, so consider that when deciding if it is the right choice for you. But for most I would recommend sticking with the tried and true 00 buck.
Now this is where we might start ruffling some feathers, but birdshot is the wrong choice.... just hear me out. First of all, it's called birdshot for a reason and that is because it's made for small birds. I hear people advocate for things like #8 birdshot and they will make some statement about over penetration or the spread of the shot at 7 yards. If you take #8 shot and shoot it at paper at about 7 yards, you will get a very impressive looking hole in the paper. Aside from the fact that much of that comes from the wad, the issue is not the width of the hole on paper but the depth of the shot on a violent attacker. And if you were to go right now go and look up "appropriate shot size for duck hunting", what you will generally find is #4 for smaller ducks and #2 for larger ducks. Both of which are significantly larger than #8. So, if #8 is considered too small for a duck, is that really what you want to use to defend your home?
I can give you the ubiquitous stories of watching geese take a solid hit with #2 steel shot and continuing to fly, which I have, but let me share an anecdotal story that I think is much more gratuitous and will drive my point home. I work in a hospital that is the trauma center for a major city and I have spent a good amount of time working down in the ER. On this particular day we got paged for an incoming trauma that read something to the effect of "trauma red, gsw, shotgun to the torso" (gsw being "gunshot wound"). Of course I'm thinking that this is going to be bloody, very critical, and a good chance that this individual does not make it. We got everything ready and prepped for CPR and all the life saving measures that we might need and waited for the patient to get to the trauma bay. When the medics finally arrived and rolled through the doors of the trauma bay, I was surprised to see a young man sitting up straight on the gurney, arms crossed angrily across his chest, with a menacing scowl on his face. My first thought was, "I thought this dude got shot with a shotgun." As we transferred him to the hospital gurney, I could see that on his back, on his white shirt, were a bunch of tiny red holes spanning from his neck down to the bottom of his shirt. Every tiny red hole in his shirt was a pellet of birdshot that went through his shirt and lodged itself just under his skin. Aside from ruining his shirt and making him visibly angry, he was fine. I don't know the range at which he was shot or the exact size birdshot he was shot with, but I can still see the image in my head of that young man sitting up on that gurney, arms crossed and mad. Birdshot did not stop him on that day, not even close. And if anything, only succeeded in pissing him off. And when I hear someone advocating for birdshot for home defense, I can't help but picture that furious young man in my head.
Summary:
Is the shotgun the right choice for you? I don't know. The platform has its advantages, and it has its limits. I think everyone needs to consider their own situation and decide if the shotgun fits their needs. Ask yourself if any of its drawbacks are a deal breaker for you. If you are willing to give up the ammo capacity for the fight stopping potential that it offers. Be honest with yourself about your ability to handle the recoil and if you're willing to put in the time to practice reloading. Or if a pistol or semi auto rifle just makes more sense for you.
For me, I often do use a shotgun for my own home defense. I really like the lethality of the system and I love taking it out shooting. Other times it might be replaced by an AR at the bedside. I honestly go through phases with my home defense depending on what I've been shooting lately and what I feel excited about. If you decide the shotgun isn't right for you, buy one anyway. They are a lot of fun to shoot. And maybe one day it'll find its spot at your bedside. Just writing this article has really made me think a lot about the shotgun and motivated me to improve my shotgun system. I'm thinking of purchasing the Beretta A300 Ultima Patrol. I like that shotgun and am excited about its potential as my new home defense shotgun. If I pick it up, I will definitely follow up with an update. What are your thoughts? Do you utilize a shotgun for home defense? Why or why not? I'm excited to hear your opinions!
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