Really consider a Mossberg 500 shotgun… $450 to $500???…. I don’t know what part of the USA you are in but those prices are outrageous!…. In my area the Mossberg 500 12 gauge 20 inch barrel 9 shot shotguns are $299 to $349…….

You mentioned home defense….. If you are serious about defending you and your family then do not do it with a bargain basement shotgun… You and yours are worth more than that…. Even the Maverick 88 shotguns should be available to you for $200 to $249…. They are decently reliable also….

I also recommend against a pistol grip… Sure they look great in the movies but in reality they will beat your hands up when you practice and they are very inaccurate… Get a full stock model……

Shop around a bit more…. If you cant find what you want then buy a used Mossberg 500 12 gauge pump and then order the 18 inch security / defense barrel catalog # 90015 and put that on it…….

http://www.ableammo.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=92344

Take a deep breath and relax… Take the time to shop a bit more…. The Sports Authority sporting good stores in my area are selling the Maverick 88 Field guns on sale for $189 this week…. If you found one of those and put the short barrel on it your still under $300 and have a better shotgun that the C Daly……

Both of these Mossbergs here are under $350 in my area….
http://www.mossberg.com/images/Mossberg_Guns/930/NEW/50411.jpg

http://www.mossberg.com/images/Mossberg_Guns/930/NEW/50577.jpg

I’ve heard that the Charles Daly 12 gauges suffer from poor performance (degrading accuracy, poor bolt operation) after the first 100-200 rounds or so. Apparently they get very poor reviews and a high number of complaints.

It should do the trick of course making sure you also have a handgun as well. They serve different roles in home defense.

Both have their roles in home defense.

The shotgun’s role is holding down the fort such as a safe room where only one door has to be guarded.

The handgun’s role is searching the home, gathering family, etc.

A handgun requires one hand to operate making it usable while on the phone with police, finding family, holding a flashlight, opening doors, etc. A shotgun would have to be lowered to make one hand usable.

Also the handgun does not need to be lowered or raised to look around corners (you would not want to have the barrel of a shotgun peak around the corner giving away or position and then stick your head out). A handgun also gives less to the intruder to grab onto if they get close enough to grapple with you and the weapon. A shotgun will give him or her more to hold onto.

I hope this helps. The Shotgun v. Handgun came from Guns and Ammo: Book of Personal Defense; The Role of the Handgun. I forgot the authors name and the page number. I lent the article out to a friend.