Home Defense Shotguns and How to keep them accessible.

In My Humble Opinion
81

I don’t have my wound ballistics references here with me at work (and in fact I think they’re stored away into one of an anonymous series of boxes yet to be unpacked from the latest move) but while not the most scientific of studies, the Box O’ Truth has a specific comparison between the effectiveness of buckshot and #8 birdshot out of both a 12 gauge and 20 gauge shotgun which strongly supports the contention that birdshot in either gague does not offer adequate penetration to for effective and immediate reduction of a threat. Note that at 15 feet against a denim outer layer the shot from either gun did not penetrate more than 6" into water, which would be about 3-4" into 10% ballistic gelatin or soft flesh. This simply isn’t enough penetration to ensure that a center of mass hit would reach vital organs or nerves. The FBI minimum penetration criteria for handgun effectiveness is twelve inches (13.5" into 10% gelatin), which will assure that the bullet or pellets can penetrate the lungs or heart. The major difference between the 12 gauge and 20 gauge is (unsurprising to forensicists) is not the penetration depth but the area of damage; the 12 gauge carries more pellets and therefore has a wider (but not deeper) area of damage. While handloaders widely look at muzzle (kinetic) energy as a measure of handgun “power”, for terminal ballistics the key factor is penetration, which is really dependent upon momentum. Until you get to the hypersonic rounds, hydrostatic shock doesn’t play a significant factor in stopping potential; effectiveness is limited to the permanent wound channel formed by the physical passage of the bullet. (This also argues to a lack of persuasive argument for the effectiveness of one major caliber over another, though I still like the .45 ACP over smaller rounds for more controlled and reliable expansion.)

Martin Fackler and Duncan McPherson are the two pre-eminent authorities on terminal ballistics, and why they have some disagreement on particular issues they are both agreed on the above point. The [URL=http://www.iwba.com/]Internatinoal Wound Ballistics Association* publishes Wound Ballistics Review, the major journal of forensic wound ballistics. I don’t know of any FBI studies on the effectiveness of birdshot because no credible law enforcement agency would use such a load, being neither effective nor non-lethal/maiming enough to be useful.

Again, if you are going to put sights and drop the hammer on some evil-doer, you have decided that the perpetrator has done something that threatens your mortal well-being or that of your friends and family, and should use the most effective means feasible to stop the threat expeditiously without posing excessive hazard to bystanders. Birdshot doesn’t meet this criteria in any way.

Stranger

82

This IMHO is a big one.

The last thing you want to do is give away your position to someone who may wish you harm. Perfect world, you are bunkered down behind a heavy piece of furniture , in a room where someone cant wander around behind you, with your weapon aimed at the door where intruder would have to come through.

If he wants to clean out the rest of the house…fine, thats what insurance is for. If he comes into that room, give intruder a lead shower. IIRC there is no legal obligation to “warn” an intruder you are there and ready to shoot.

I also prefer handguns just because length is an issue and everywhere I have lived, spinning around in a hallway with a longarm could cause challenges.

83

I would argue with you, but I don’t know what we would disagree about. :wink:

Stranger

84

Well the impact which is kinda like someone taking a whack at you with a small sledgehammer will definitely slow them down alot. Shotguns vs. bulletproof vests still often break ribs from the impact.

85

Og, do I despise the ignorant.

“Just rack a shotgun - that will scare anyone away.”
Please stay home, don’t breed, and don’t interact with anyone. It’s really best for everyone.
If you don’t know shit about a subject, don’t offer advice on it. Especially one that involves someone’s safety.
Guru, I do hope you take everything you read here with a grain of salt, and do some other research and fact-checking. Stranger speaks the truth on this matter more that anyone I’ve seen.
I myself am a former LEO, and firearms instructor. My firearms experience is long, broad, and based on actual experience with real guns, not based on what I read on some airsoft page or “special operator” forum.
Now, you only have my word on that, but I will offer illustrations and common sense to support my position, and I hope that you will use some as well in contemplating this important matter.

Now, to your original question: Store a shotgun safely, yet accessible.
Please allow me to offer my suggestion, complete with 29 color pictures with circles and arrows, and a paragraph - well, you get the idea.

My closet shotgun is a Mossberg 500 with a Surefireforegrip for lighting up and identifying targets.
It has a Butler Creek folding stock should I feel the need to shorten things up a bit, and has a Sidesaddleloaded with six additional rounds.
It resides safely in a Progardlock, the kind you see in police cars. Police cars are left un-attended on occasion, and generally the police like to keep their weapons secure from, well, un-authorized users for a variety of reasons.

I mounted my lock to a 2x8, glued and screwed another 2x8 behind it, then lagged them into the studs in the closet, countersinking the screws, and gluing plugs on top of them. This installation will have to stay with the house when I leave.

No children, visitors, errant teens, or determined burglars will be able to access this weapon, yet with the push of a button somewhere, my wife or I will have instant access to it should it be necessary.

I have my sg loaded with six Federal Tactical reduced-recoil roundsfor expected use inside my home. The Sidesaddle holds slugs, should I decide to grab and load one or more.

The other side of the closet holds a Gunvaultwith pistolinside. One swipe of your fingerprint, and viola! Instant access. Same in my office.

As for you and your situation, the gun you choose is largely immaterial. Any modern pump or semi-auto shotgun loaded with the appropriate load will stop an intruder.
The spread of the shot isn’t really relevant at the distances you will engage an intruder in your home. My apologies if you live in a grand mansion - you’ll have to get a choke on a 28" barrel, but the longest line-of-sight in most homes I visit is no more than 30-40 feet. I’ll trust my 18" barrel and load for that.

Loud? You bet. Thing is, in real-life shootings, many people say they didn’t even hear the shots. Frankly, it’s not something I’d worry about.

Keeping weapons safe from children and bad guys is the most important aspect of gun ownership in my book. Thank you for giving it the proper consideration.

86

We too have been thinking about investing in firearm(s) and appreciate many of the replies.

What about number?

My intuition says to treat them similarly to fire extinguishers. I don’t have a phobia, but there are general fire extinguishers on every floor (basement and two regular floors), and four special extinguishers in key locations (garage, within sight of the fireplace, one in the kitchen, one in the workshop).

Okay, maybe I have a phobia.

No, not really. For thirty bucks, a non-intrusive, passive gadget is at the ready in case something goes Very Wrong–and there’s no predicting where we’ll be in the house or in relation to a fire. Plus, we’re pretty isolated. Though close to New York City, our closest neighbors are about 350 (wooded) yards away. Help will (may?) come, but not for a while.

Clearly, guns ≠ fire extinguishers. But the general approach and mindset do share some characteristics. Home invaders don’t follow a code that requires them to break in only at night. There’s no telling what floor someone will be on. If I’m in the basement and something happens, having a gun locked in the bedroom closet two floors up will be little more than insulting.

I’m not looking to walk around with bandoleers, and don’t think that every room should have a gun ‘just in case’. But is gun-per-floor overkill (heh)?

If not, then what? It seems either:

“Pardon me, Mr. Intruder, might I slip past you for a moment to the coat closet for just a spell? Mighty kind of you sir!”

or

“Why yes Great Aunt Marion, we did have a Kandinsky there, but the Chaos was a little much so we decided to take ‘Control’, so to speak. Crumpet?”

Neither is very enticing. I’m sure the more macho contributors will be tempted to excoriate us for allowing home decorating concerns to trump family protection, but neither firearms nor fire extinguishers are display items.

87

Ducati - The Pro Gard products say the allow for quick access with key override, but I’m not seeing how that is. Can you describe the access mechanism?

88

Chaos, control, chaos, control… it’s all so confusing.
No excoriation necessary. You needn’t deny art in the name of protection, Flan - you can have both!

That’s just one; there are many to be found.
As for the lock on the Progard…hereis a better picture that shows the keyhole.
It’s on the bottom, and the un-initiated simply wouldn’t know to look.

89

I know there’s a key, but it says it’s electronic providing quick access, with the key for backup. Is the only method of access the key? If that’s the case, I don’t think it qualifies for quick access.

90

Great link, thanks. We’d thought of getting one of those paper-like lamps and discretely hanging it on a wall. Somewhere where it will look mildly decorative, enclosed (but not lit up), and unobjectionably hiding a wall-mounted locking mechanism.

In line with the cha-chunk sound’s intimidating factors, maybe the bad guys will be impressed off the property as MrsDvl puts her hand through an otherwise innocuous piece and pulls out … pulls out a key and asks for them to wait a moment while she unlocks the rest. Hmm… that’s part of the gist of the OP.

But it’s nice to see that there are options for keeping things locatable on each floor.

91

Sorry. This type of lock is electronic, and operates on 12vdc.
It is wired to the battery in a car, to a hidden switch or combination of switches, and a delay timer. Push the button and you have 10 seconds to open the lock and remove the weapon. In a police car, you may see as many as 30 buttons and switches; it may be one, two, or this one up and that one down - you’ll never figure it out.

Mine is wired into the wall to hidden button, and that is all you need to know!

If you simply must come and see it, I suggest you call first!:smiley:

92

Best home defense shotgun, soon to be available in 12 guage (I wish).

93

Bah. Not even close. The best home (and otherwise) defense shotgun is the twelve-gauge double-barreled Remington, made in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Retails for about a $109.95. It’s got a walnut stock, cobalt blue steel, and a hair trigger. That’s right. Shop smart. Shop S-Mart. You got that?

94

[nitpick rant]

I know this was just an off-hand comment, but it’s an unfortunately common and damaging misconception that jurors are somehow dumber or worse at critical thinking than the population as a whole. Juries are pretty random. Most courts require you to show up and give your reason for not being able to serve to the judge. And in most courts, you need a pretty good and rare reason to be excused. It is the rare person who is willing and able to outright lie directly to a judge’s face after getting the speech about how important jury service is. Nor does the selection bias you’re describing happen as a result of attorneys dismissing jurors. About 90% of that is just demographic profiling based on age, sex, the kind of magazines you read, etc.

Having been involved in the selection of many juries, my impression is that to the extent there’s a trend, its that jurors tend to be more stable and civic-minded than the population as a whole, since they generally haven’t moved recently, and have a reason not to get in trouble with the court for not showing or just show up because they believe in civic service. Often they are asked whether they own a home, etc., and selected on that basis. Grand jurors (and ordinary jurors when they are allowed to do so) often ask quite incisive questions, and are far from the credulous fools you profile them as being.

I’m the last guy to defend the wisdom of the common man, but watching juries and seeing them debrief their experience is one of the few things that makes me feel positive about leaving important decisions in the hands of ordinary people.

[/nitpick rant]

95

Although I’ve never owned a shotgun, I’d like to someday try owning a 10 gauge, because the shells are wide enough for #0000 shot (yes, that’s quadruple-ought) to pack efficiently.

96

There’s an extra quotation mark at the end of your link that results in a 404 error. I think a mod could take care of it, but given the mark’s size I think a .22 would be appropriate.

97

Thanks for the shout-out.

98

Ok, so it’s similar to a Simplex mechanical lock, just electronic. Are the buttons on the unit or are they in another location? How long does it take to enter the combination? I ask because I’m interested in a shotgun solution and as of yet have not found one that is adequate for both security and ease of access.

And as a gun owner and general supporter of civil rights, I want to be on a jury. I encourage all other civil rights supporters to do your duty and serve on juries as a check on government.

99

Its kind of a hijack, but I wonder if CS shells would do wonders for the home invader, a little whiff of tear gas and the urban youth making a social transfer of assets would be more than a little incapacitated.

That and a shark bang stick would come to mind, a blank shotgun shell, simply to impart trauma to the body when you poke it at something.

Come to think of it, a skald special could also include a can of raid with a shotgun shell as the detonator, downside would require a respirator.

Declan

100

You would also get a whiff of tear gas.

One point of using a gun is to maintain distance between you and the intruder.