Home defense shotgun- breakopen or pump?

**hungryjoe** · Posted On: 12/07/2010 4:00pm

Originally Posted by Lord Skeletor

Eh..I'm not sure I want to give my position and choice of armament away to a potential lethal threat by racking a slide. If it comes to the point that I'm using deadly force (with a shotgun) the last thing I want to do is give it a nice, clean, loud RACK that tells them where I'm at and what kind of weapon I have.

Yep.

Good alternative if the house is a rental:

Seriously though, you can't go wrong with the 870.

**hudson69** · Posted On: 12/07/2010 4:32pm

Originally Posted by Neo Sigma

Complete gun noob here, but me and my wife are researching shotguns for the house. A friend's dad is a retired cop of 30 years, and he recommended a break-action shotgun for the following reasons:

-They tend to be shorter due to the lack of the pump mechanism, and therefore easier to handle indoors
-Easier to load/check if loaded
-Less moving bits

Gun bullies, what's been your experience with break-action guns, and what can you recommend? I haven't got my heart set on one, I'm just looking for more information before I drop the money on anything.

This is personal opinion only. I think that a break action type shotgun would be the literally worst shotgun to purchase for home defense. I don't know enough about break action SG's outside of some limited experience with some SASS guns: Break actions either are cocked all the time (bad, really bad for noobs) or you.

If you have to go with a shotgun go with the pump for a few reasons (again personal opinion). 1- Racking a round in a pump shotgun is both comforting to the wielder and terrifying to a bandit. 2- With the pump you shoot one time per pull of the trigger, no accidental second follow up shots due to adrenaline. 3-It holds more than two rounds and reloads very, very quickly. 4-They are everywhere and one can be had at a good price even for the tried and true of the lot: Remington 870's and Mossberg 500's.

Still if you and your wife are FNG's where guns are concerned, or you live anyplace sending multiple projectiles down range with a single pull of the trigger could endanger an innocent you might want to skip on a shotgun and go with something more manageable - I would suggest a revolver.

In a house setting .33 caliber slugs will go through drywall pretty easy, slugs won't stop for anything and bird-shot is really iffy for stopping anything more than birds or stuff/people you don't want stopped. This is even worse in condos and apartments.

If you get a wheel gun you can
-keep it loaded with the least amount of fear of an accidental discharge (still safety is the word to live by; safety first)
-it stores really easy (small gun safe, hidden safe)
-is the simplest firearm to shoot over all
-only requires one hand to operate (the other can open doors, call 911 and more)
-you can get home defense loads that are far less likely to travel very far beyond your property, or even outside the walls of a room if they hit and when they contact human/animal flesh tend to end threats as good as a shotgun round due to their evil design.
-A little simpler to operate than a semi-automatic pistol; aim, pull trigger, repeat as necessary. Especially true for small persons, at night, with an adrenaline dump, in the dark.....

Get the pump gun, get lessons, make your wife get lessons, better yet get a wheel gun or a pistol and get lessons, do your research, do whats right for you.

**BadUglyMagic** · Posted On: 12/07/2010 7:05pm

^^^^^.33 caliber???

I like this better. You know, for the zombies.

**Phrost** · Posted On: 12/07/2010 7:16pm

I gotta admit, I hate the "racking a shotgun to scare an intruder" idea.

First off, why is the chamber empty to begin with? If you have a weapon for home defense that is unloaded, you're giving the attacker extra time to get to you.

Secondly, if you're hoping that a noise will scare off an intruder, you might as well put a bunch of pennies in a jar and shake them around. If the intruder will be afraid of one noise and flee, it doesn't matter if it's a shotgun or a fucking Teddy Ruxpin. Maybe you want to try making ghost sounds, or turning on Christian rock music instead. If the intruder(s) won't be scared off by a simple noise, you'd damn well better be mentally prepared to raise the gun and pull the trigger. Having the notion in your head that "well "maybe I'll scare them away with a *chunk-clack* is indicative of the fact that you're probably lacking the conviction to use the weapon should you find your life actually threatened.

Thirdly, racking the shotgun is, for an intruder intent on doing you harm, a useful warning to take cover and prepare a hasty ambush. Whereas you might have encountered the individual(s) in your living room with their arms full of your Xbox and Hummel figurine collection, now you're going to have to hope they're not hiding behind your Barcalounger with their Hi-Points aimed at the room entrance waiting for you to silhouette yourself in the doorway.

Don't buy a shotgun for the sound effects. Buy a shotgun to shoot people who are threatening your life or property.

**Emevas** · Posted On: 12/07/2010 7:31pm

Originally Posted by The Grinch

I gotta admit, I hate the "racking a shotgun to scare an intruder" idea.

First off, why is the chamber empty to begin with? If you have a weapon for home defense that is unloaded, you're giving the attacker extra time to get to you.

Secondly, if you're hoping that a noise will scare off an intruder, you might as well put a bunch of pennies in a jar and shake them around. If the intruder will be afraid of one noise and flee, it doesn't matter if it's a shotgun or a fucking Teddy Ruxpin. Maybe you want to try making ghost sounds, or turning on Christian rock music instead. If the intruder(s) won't be scared off by a simple noise, you'd damn well better be mentally prepared to raise the gun and pull the trigger. Having the notion in your head that "well "maybe I'll scare them away with a *chunk-clack* is indicative of the fact that you're probably lacking the conviction to use the weapon should you find your life actually threatened.

Thirdly, racking the shotgun is, for an intruder intent on doing you harm, a useful warning to take cover and prepare a hasty ambush. Whereas you might have encountered the individual(s) in your living room with their arms full of your Xbox and Hummel figurine collection, now you're going to have to hope they're not hiding behind your Barcalounger with their Hi-Points aimed at the room entrance waiting for you to silhouette yourself in the doorway.

Don't buy a shotgun for the sound effects. Buy a shotgun to shoot people who are threatening your life or property.

To add to this

http://www.theboxotruth.com/docs/bot3_2.htm

4. I "racked" the shotgun several times during the tests, and no bystanders lost control of their bowels.
Conclusion: Racking a shotgun will not make the bad guy faint.

A good article on shotguns for home defense in general, but just a funny point.

**fourTwenty** · Posted On: 12/07/2010 8:42pm

I prefer my break action to a pump action for the same reason I prefer my revolver to my semi-auto. Less **** that can **** up = less chance it will **** up. Besides, how many shots do you need from a shotgun. You getting robbed by an army?

**Robstafarian** · Posted On: 12/07/2010 11:52pm

Originally Posted by fourTwenty

I prefer my break action to a pump action for the same reason I prefer my revolver to my semi-auto. Less **** that can **** up = less chance it will **** up.

A Ruger SP101 revolver has 63 parts; an M1911 pistol has 52 parts.

Now back to the subject of this thread.

**Gezere** · Posted On: 12/08/2010 8:56am

I have to disagree with the notion that racking a firearm will not scare an people away. I base this on three incidents when it did just that. Two incidents happened to me and the third to a friend of mine.

First was when I was up late one night playing Resident Evil 4. Several people decided to vandalize my patio furniture. I knew there was at least 4 of them from the voices and despite my awesome ninja skills I wasn't going to tackle them empty handed. I my Glock was on the table with me because I had cleaned it from the range earlier that evening. It was unloaded and as I started walking to the side door I loaded and chambered my pistol. They heard the slide and knew I had a gun an took off.

The second was when I was staying in a motel on the road. I had my pistol next to the bed but it wasn't chambered, normally it is but I had forgot. Later that night two guys started beating on my door. Threatening to come in and **** me up. They were looking for someone and had gotten the wrong room. I was yelling back that they had the wrong room but they weren't listening to that. I got my pistol and realized it wasn't chambered. I chambered a round and they heard the slide. They stopped beating on the door and I yelled again they and the wrong room and to go the **** away. They took off running walk way. I called the front desk and dialed 911. (Funny there was not further inquiry about the incident from the motel and the police never showed to my room.) I stayed awake after that and got ready to hit the road again.

The third was when a friend of mine was home and he woke up realizing someone was down stairs. Kids were gone for the summer and the wife was in bed so he figured it was a break in. He got his rifle out of his closet. He said he was still in his room and when he charged his rifle he said he could hear them say, "He's got a gun!" and took off out the kitchen door.

Now I am not saying that you should rely on on the noise to scare people away, but it definitely will play a factor if someone is looking for an easy mark and realize that you are armed and alerted to their presence. A jar of pennies might startle someone but most people would know what it means if they hear a firearm being chambered.

**Gezere** · Posted On: 12/08/2010 9:05am

Originally Posted by Jacked Frost

To add to this

http://www.theboxotruth.com/docs/bot3_2.htm

4. I "racked" the shotgun several times during the tests, and no bystanders lost control of their bowels.
Conclusion: Racking a shotgun will not make the bad guy faint.

A good article on shotguns for home defense in general, but just a funny point.

The problem with this is that its not taking into account the dynamics of his situation. Was is in a field during daylight hours where bystanders weren't trying to stealthy steal things from his house? Does he normally shoot in that area, if so the it stands to reason others in the area knows he shoots there so hearing a shotgun wouldn't be alarming.

Now ask yourself this, if you were sneaking into someones house (yes I know we are all fine lawsbiding citizens) you believe your were undetected coming in and then you hear someone in the house rack a shotgun. Are you going to continue on or are you going to be looking to escape and try somewhere else before the police arrive and/or the homeowner comes looking for you with and instrument you know can kill you in his hands?

***jnp*** · Posted On: 12/08/2010 9:07am

Originally Posted by Madgrenade

^^^^^^^^^ Typical American psycho. If a burglar breaks into your house he's looking to steal your **** and escaped unnoticed. He's not looking to shoot it out with the homeowner. Don't bother buying the gun. Just get the gun oil and liberally sprinkle it around the house. The fiend will smell it and look elsewhere.

Lord Skeletor is a SWAT police officer. He has to deal with crazy people in dangerous situations that most of us will never encounter.

Giving away his position on a SWAT operation could be fatal for him or other members of his team.

However, I do think the vast majority of burglars would turn tail and run out of the house if they heard the sound of a shotgun being racked.