Semi-auto vs Pump action shotguns for home defense?
January 18th, 2010 by eranio
Ok.. I know must of you say that pump is better then semi shotguns for home defense, but I still have concerns…
1) Under stressful conditions, I’m more afraid of short shucking a pump. I know I can practice, but who knows how you react in a true life/death scenario. I think that "I" might be more reliable, if all I have to do is keeping pulling a trigger, instead of having to chamber a round between each shot.. Thoughts??
2) Does anyone know the reliability of the Mossberg 930 SPX? How often does it jam with good ammo?
3) Does anyone have any real statistics on how often the average semi-auto jams?
Thanx!
Posted in semi auto shotgun
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
Semi-Autos jam when they get too dirty, that from either being shot or sitting in a closet gathering fuzz. They also can be picky about certain types of ammo. If you have a malfunction then you will have to cycle the chamber anyways. Good luck grabbing the small tab on the gun under stress. You should practice a lot with your pump. Go shoot some trap or go to the range and blast through lots o boxes of rounds. Muscles have memory and they are your best tools when stress happens. They take over and training will carry you. If you are going to use a semi-auto you must practice clearing drills as well. That should never be ignored. Remember the gun should be an extension of yourself. Just buying a shotgun and putting it in the corner of the closet is not enough. Practice, practice, practice.
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
First
pulling the trigger until your empty is not a strategy . Fire, acess, repeat if needed
slow is smooth, smooth is fast .
If your shootin your wepon enough in practice and training short stroking won’t be an issue. Practice develops muscle memory.
That being said- there are a lot of good semi autos for defensive and tactical use
I have a Remington1187 that’s never failed to fire
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
I believe The Long Shot covered that pretty well.
The only thing I would add is that a pump can jam also.
If you practice- you should not be afraid of a semi-auto.
And-as already stated above-you should practice-often.
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
I personally like pump guns because they are reliable when used with different types of shells. I would never have a fear of short stroking a pump because,if anything,your adrenalin will cause you to be more forceful operating the gun. If the auto loader jams or misfires,it is much harder to recycle the action on than a pump gun.
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
You avoid disasterous mistakes by taking the time to learn about your weapons until it is almost reflexive reaction , and anticipate way ahead of the actual event how to respond in a likely scenario. Unless you are a Barney Fife type,if you heed this advice, your actions will be instinctive when the situation arise.
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
I prefer the Remington 1100 with the 18inch barrel and extended magazine tube and extended bolt handle. A close second is the Benelli M4.
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
I have never had any self-defense experience but I would imagine my pump-action shotgun would work just fine. Just the "click-clack" of the pump would be enough to run off any intruders and if they are truely stupid (as ignorant would not be the proper word here) and are continue after hearing that it will likely only take one shot to stop them, even if you are using birdshot.
If not stop them it will at least by you plenty of time to pump again. Even with a standard birdshot load being peppered by hot lead at close range will surely stop them, if not kill them.
A pump-action shotgun is much cheaper and if by some chance it jams it is much easier to unjam a pump than a semi. So it would make more sense if the gun is strictly for home defense to by a cheap but realiable pump shotgun (such as a Mossberg or Remington both under $300) simply because it should only take one shot, two at most and you most likely will never need to use it.
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
Semi-autos jam, but I guess if 5 ninjas are coming through your kitchen skylight it would come in handy. 99.9% of people can protect their property with a dog, and/or a single shot shotgun. Extreme firepower for home protection is just another form of paranoia. You should worry more about being hit by lightning. Oh it makes great imaginary discussion material among boys, but in reality is not relevant. Save money and buy a double barrel coach gun replica in 12 or 20 gauge it is all you will ever need. Use your real money to buy quaility hunting arms.
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
Personally, I have a double barrel with 00 buck shot. No fuss no muss…well there would be a muss, but it will do the job.
January 18th, 2010 at 5:33 pm
I have a Mossberg 930 SPX…. It occasionally jambs… Its a little picky about what ammo I put in it…. Remington 2 3/4 inch sluggers seem to muck it up, 3 inch ammo sometimes causes failure to ejects (stove piping)…. I haven’t had any problems with 2 3/4 inch Wolf or Remington buckshot…. Trap and game loads are fairly problem free also….
I also own Mossberg 500′s, Mossberg 590′s and Remington 870 shotguns…..
Take a look here at some of them…..
http://www.dystopiat.com/Goffpics/guns/DSCN0707.JPG
The shotgun that absolutely has been problem free in terms of reliability is the Mossberg 500 and 590s… They almost never give me a hassle…. And when they rarely do act a little flaky they can be cleared in a couple of seconds unlike the 870 or 930 SPX…..
Take a look at this info also…….
http://jth8260.tripod.com/870.html