My Next Shotgun Build:

Winchester SXP Defender

or Mossberg 500 Tactical?

While I prefer Mossberg shotguns for ease of reloading in combat situations, there are some factors that can partially offset the greater difficulty of reloading low shell lifter type shotguns with one's weak hand.

In this case, the Winchester SXP brings inertia unlocking to the table. This allows for faster cycling of the action, but its greatest benefit is that it greatly aids in shooting single handed.

I must also add that this is a first rate, exceptionally well made pump shotgun. Contract manufactured in Turkey, where fine shotguns have been made for many years. Quality and workmanship are excellent for the price point of this gun.

Home defense upgrades would be limited to just those things necessary to optimize it for home security. It has a fiber optic front sight, which does a great job of gathering ambient light. I would not change this as it is more than adequate. Extended magazine adapters are available and I'd have to consider one. However, 5 + 1 is adequate if you are fully proficient in running the shotgun. Still, eight rounds in the Mossberg is nothing to ignore.

I have an LED flashlight and mounting bracket, but in general terms, I don't need a flashlight in our home. We can light up the place without having to leave the bedroom entrance. An LED light would be useful if one was hunting bad guys outside, except there's seldom any reason to be outside. Don't be exploring outside... Call the police. Hunting your property for criminals will only increase your legal liability and place you at greater physical risk. Don't do it.

Mossberg's 500 Tactical shotgun is an excellent piece, with a 7+1 capacity. It has excellent ergonomics and superb reliability. It is a first rate pump shotgun, with few if any equals. This one is fitted with very good ghost ring sights, with a red insert on the front blade. It is fitted with a barrel heat shield from the factory. For home security purposes, the heat shield is unnecessary. If you've fired enough rounds, fast enough to get the barrel so hot as to burn one's hand, you're in a war rather than a home defense fight...

Home security shotguns can be loaded down with all sorts of tactical hardware. Lasers, P-rails, pistol grips, ghost ring sights, red dot sights, sling bandoleers, folding stocks, telescoping sights, Side saddle shotshell carriers, speed loader stock, fore end straps, breaching muzzle and many other pieces.

All add weight and complexity of use and function. This is the same mindset that plagues many owners of AR type rifles. They build a firearm that has every optional component they can find room for. For home defense use, most of these add-ons are not only unneeded, they often diminish your ability to defend your home and family.

What you need is often different that what you may want. Get only what you need. Here's all you need.

Basic shotgun: A pump gun is best, but a semi-auto can work if you take the time to practice clearing the potential reliability issues associated with semi-auto shotguns. Jams, stovepipes and various failures to feed, extract and eject. Select the wrong ammo and these can be issues. Side by sides and single shot guns can be used, but your continuity of fire is reduced and you will need a usable method of carrying reloads. I suggest investing the $200 for a budget pump shotgun.

Accessories: All you'll really need is an easy to use carrier for spare ammo. Enough for at least one complete reload. Sling with swivels. A sling is to a shotgun or rifle what a holster is to a pistol. It helps you safely retain the gun if you have to do something that requires both hands. Flashlight. If you don't have to means to illuminate your house from a safe place, you will need a flashlight, preferably mounted along the axis of the barrel. LED flashlights are brighter, smaller and more reliable. A quality 300 lumen light, with batteries and re-charger costs less than $10. Mounts can cost from $10 to $50. They do what is required over the whole price range.

Optional: You may not have the eyesight needed to use the factory sights (usually a simple bead near the muzzle). In that case, the ability to install a P-rail and optical sight is necessary. This will steer you towards certain shotguns and away from others. A mid priced reflex sight will serve you best, and I recommend a mounting that allows the original sights to be used should the optic fail.

Anything beyond what I have discussed is unneeded and probably more of a liability than benefit in a home defense situation. Keep it light and keep it simple.

Ammunition: This depends on several factors. These include your level of training, your ability to manage recoil and home configuration. Many dwell on the issue of "over-penetration". That means missing your target and endangering people or children in rooms or apartments behind the target. Most of those who expound on over-penetration ignore simple reality. Any firearm capable of killing a human will absolutely penetrate common drywall construction. More powerful rounds will penetrate lots of drywall construction. The key here is to double back to the basic safety rules. Always know what is behind the target. If it's a high risk shot, don't take it! Moreover, if you have practiced adequately with your firearm, you should not miss a shot at the distances inside a typical house or apartment. Shotguns do need to be aimed. A typical shot spread at 7 yards is no bigger than your hand. You can't simply point in the general direction and expect to hit the target. Reality is not like the cinema...

Training and proficiency: Here's the thing everyone needs to understand... Irrespective of what firearm you own and regardless of how much tactical stuff you have hanging on it, it is of limited value if you are not proficient in its safe and proper use. Far too many people buy a firearm, take it to the range a few times and consider themselves ready to take on anything that comes their way. The truth is that they are anything but ready... There are people who train for hundreds of hours who find that they were barely able to function under the stress and circumstances of home intruders at 3 o'clock in the morning. How do you think you're going to manage with no training whatsoever?

You hear a noise and low voices coming from somewhere in your house. Unfamiliar voices. You are trying to gather your wits, startled and afraid. Thoughts race. What to do. Call the police? Get your gun? Wake your spouse? Turn on a light? What about the kids or grand kids? What to do? What to do?

In that state of sleep induced half-groggy mental disorder, you are going to have to make decisions. Potential life and death decisions. Will you make the right decisions? Will you make any decisions at all?

Mental preparation is part of the training needed to function in the situation described above. Do you need specialized training for this? You can spend money and get good training. But, you can train yourself as well. I've spend a lifetime training my brain for various things. Carrier aviation, in-flight emergencies, and many other possible events. It's something I do. Most people don't. Most people are not mentally prepared for unexpected events. That's quite typical. If you want to be ready for a situation you have to plan for it. You have to train for it. You'll need a plan. When you have a practiced plan, you are far more apt to do exactly that. Remember that the goal is always to prevail, no matter what.

Training encompasses proficiency with your firearm (no small task if you want to be really good AND safe), and practice with your home security plan. Whatever your weapon and plan, you will likely fight with whatever is in or on your firearm. In you PJs, with a blood pressure spiked, heart rate at 200 and a bowel movement threatening any second... Under those circumstances, you will have to manipulate your firearm, carry out defensive tactics, converse with a 911 operator and communicate with family and intruder(s). You must communicate with the intruder(s). Tell him to leave. Tell him you are armed. Tell him the police are on the way. Tell him that you are in fear of your life and will act accordingly. You will have do all of this at stress levels you could not have imagined. The only way you will do all of this is if you have made the effort to train and prepare for it.

In your house, never shoot in the dark. Always identify your target. Above all, if the intruder is attempting to leave, let him do so. Do not shoot a retreating burglar unless he's shooting at you. The legal hassle is not something you want. If he advances to you, warn him once if time permits, then shoot and keep shooting until the threat ends, irrespective of what that outcome is for the intruder. Never shoot to wound. Shoot to eliminate the threat. If a 12 gauge load to the chest doesn't stop him in his tracks, shoot him in the groin (some burglars have been found to be wearing 3A body armor, readily available on the internet). A shot to the groin would stop King Kong in his tracks. There is an instinct to immediately take inventory of what was there a minute ago.... When you call 911, do not hang up. Leave the line open. Everything is being recorded. The operator will be able to better inform responding police and it will be evidence to any shooting that occurs. If must shoot an intruder, describe to police exactly what you did to defend yourself and family. Then, shut up... Discuss nothing other than the facts of the actual event from the time you discovered the intruder. Respectfully decline to discuss anything more than that in the absence of your attorney. DO NOT SURRENDER YOUR RIGHTS.

What are the odds that you will have to deal with home intruders? That very much depends upon where you live. However, FBI statistics point to the chances being about 1 in 3,000 over one's lifetime, on average. It is probable that you'll never need to deal with that kind of situation. The question is, if by chance, it should occur, what then? Even in daytime, there's always some level of risk of a residential burglary. How many folks have heard a knock at the front door or the doorbell ring and elected not to answer? How many then had someone kick in the back door two minutes later? It's more common than you may think... We carry spare tires because a flat is possible. Unlikely, but possible. We buy homeowner's insurance and for the most part, never need to file a claim. Millions buy firearms for protection. If you get a flat tire, you have lots of time to figure out how to change the tire and you're not in immediate danger.  When operating a firearm during a home defense situation, you cannot afford to take the time to read the owner's manual. You must know everything required to know beforehand. If you buy a gun for home defense, learn to operate it in a competent manner, rather than just being familiar with it. Learn and practice gun safety. Prepare for the most likely potential situations. Train your brain....

I'll let everyone know which shotgun I choose within a few weeks. 

(I bought the Mossberg... Upgraded it to suit my needs.)

 

The Great Debate As To Which
Pump Action Home Defense
Shotgun Is Best, Is Over

The internet is loaded with comparisons between the Remington 870 and the Mossberg 500. I own a gun safe partially filled with pump shotguns.

There are differences between the above mentioned guns. Most, except the Mossbergs, have shell lifters that stay down and must be pushed up to feed in rounds to the magazine. Under range conditions, this is not any issue whatsoever...

However, for a home defense combat shotgun, this is the single greatest issue for me.

Let me state that while so many like to talk about the fact that the Mossberg 500/590 safety is ambidextrous, this is an utterly meaningless factor in a combat shotgun. It is convenient feature for left handed sport shooters, but provides no advantage in a combat shotgun. How so?

Because, if you train with any shotgun, the operation of the safety becomes habit. Be it a tang safety or located at the front or back of the trigger guard, it doesn't much matter. When a fight is imminent, you are going to load a round and move the safety to FIRE. That's the last time you will touch it until the fight is, without doubt, over. Until then, your trigger finger is your safety. Off the trigger unless you have a target. Trigger and muzzle discipline are your safeties in combat. I don't care if the safety is two inches up your rectum, you won't be needing it as long as lead is flying, or at least the threat of it flying, is present.

Thus, to me, the tang safety is meaningless for combat shotguns in combat situations.

How about the dual extractors of the Mossbergs? Again, in combat, who cares. One or two, as long as it extracts. Ditto for the easy to replace ejector. If it breaks, regardless of brand, you have an issue to overcome. How it is replaced later doesn't matter while you fight for your life, does it?

What about the slide release location? Again, who cares? I'm not opening the action unless I have a malfunction. The action will remain closed and shotgun hot until it no longer needs to be. Later, when the time comes to clear the shotgun, I'll unlock the action and empty the chamber. This is another thing expounded upon by those who have never been in combat or run realistic combat drills. Thus, they don't grasp what matters and what doesn't. Slide release location, like safety location, falls into the "doesn't matter" category under combat or simulated combat conditions.

We've run many drills, with snap caps and live fire. In daylight and darkness. Strong and weak handed. Single handed as well. There is one thing that has consistently reared up as an issue, and that is reloading the magazine while keeping the gun trained towards your enemy.

If you need to reload the tube, in addition to dropping a round into the receiver and closing the action, getting rounds into the tube while still instantly ready to shoot can be a real challenge.

Let's face the reality that if it's 2AM and you're in your skivvies, with blood pressure spiking, heart rate at 200, and resisting a spontaneous bowel movement, your fine motor skills will in the shitter. Anything tactile (not tactical, boys; tactile) that makes it easier and simpler to run your gun is a very good thing.

First, you will need a supply of ammo to load. Since it's unlikely that you have a half dozen 00 buckshot rounds stashed in your undershorts, you will be fighting with whatever is in and on your shotgun. That means something between five and nine rounds if you don't have ammo ON the gun. Extra ammo is never a bad thing, and might just save your ass. You can carry it on a side saddle or even an elastic butt stock sleeve. The latter is awkward at best. Whichever type you prefer, you are better served to have additional ammo on the gun.

Should you find yourself having shot all or most of the ammo in your gun, you will need to reload. Grab a round, drop it into the receiver and close the action. The gun is hot and you can shoot if need be. Where it gets troublesome is refilling the magazine. Taking the gun down from the ready position to reload it is usually a bad idea unless someone else can provide overwatch for you. Not usually the case in a home defense fight. So, reloading it means using your weak hand. You will have to pull a round from where it is stored, find the reloading port in the bottom of the receiver and push rounds in by feel alone. It is in this respect where the Mossbergs shine.

I have taken an H&R Pardner Protector, which is an 870 clone, and built it into a first rate combat shotgun. Some gentle stone work has resulted in a butter-smooth action (far slicker than any Mossberg I've used). Slicker than any current Remington being made today. The trigger has about a millimeter of take-up and then breaks exceptionally clean at just over four pounds. It feeds, extracts and ejects anything I feed it, from #8 birdshot to magnum slugs. It has a cast aluminum trigger guard and is fitted with outstanding Hogue furniture. Being drilled and tapped, I have a "sight under" P-rail with a reflex sight installed (which has endured many hundreds of rounds without any issue whatsoever). I've machined and installed a taller brass bead to restore proper sight picture when sighting under the reflex sight. It's fitted with sling swivels and a padded two-point sling, reversed for muzzle down carry. This gun runs like a Rolex. All of that said, it is NOT my primary defensive shotgun. Why not? Because, like any shotgun with a flush-to-the-receiver shell lifter, it is a genuine bitch to reload by feel.

Here's the drill. snatch a round from the side saddle. Feel around for the shell lifter. It's not easy to find the front edge of it. Depress it and shove the round into the tube. Since the shell lifter is nearly flush with the bottom of the receiver, finding the front edge is time consuming and distracting. It is common to drop a round or two. When you have limited ammo, dropping rounds is not good. With any defensive firearm, it's usually a good idea to have additional ammo in some fall-back location that is readily accessible (bedroom drawer, etc).

How about the Mossbergs? With a retracted shell lifter, the loading port is extremely easy to find. Just shove the round forward from the trigger guard and it simply pops into the void. Now, just push. It is rare to drop a round. The Mossbergs load easier and faster because you don't have to search for and concentrate on finding the loading port.

What is the most important weapon factor in a home defense gun fight? Keeping your gun in action with the least effort and distraction that promotes continuity of fire. In that regard, the Mossbergs are superior as pump action combat shotguns, because they can be reloaded by feel far easier.

My primary home defense shotgun is a modified Mossberg Maverick 88. Aside from not having a reflex sight (receiver is not drilled and tapped), it is set-up exactly as is the backup gun. I made this determination after many drills... You may have a differing opinion, but this works for me.

H&R 870 type on left, Mossberg Maverick 88 on right

Side Saddle arrangement I prefer

The Battle That Never Was:

Surprising NRA Stance on Bump Stocks

Within hours of the crime, it was determined that mass murderer Stephen Paddock had used Bump Stocks to make his semi-auto AR-15 rifles shoot as fast as fully automatic weapons. 

The anti-gun lobby fully expected the NRA to oppose any law or regulation banning or limiting access to these accessory stocks.

Except, the NRA didn't. Instead, the organization issued this statement:

"In Las Vegas, reports indicate that certain devices were used to modify the firearms involved. Despite the fact that the Obama administration approved the sale of bump fire stocks on at least two occasions, the National Rifle Association is calling on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (BATFE) to immediately review whether these devices comply with federal law.

The NRA believes that devices designed to allow semi-automatic rifles to function like fully-automatic rifles should be subject to additional regulations."

Just like that, the NRA threw an unhittable curveball at anti-gun advocates. They didn't even attempt to swing at it... They just stood there with their bat on their shoulder. That wasn't the pitch they were looking for.

It was simply brilliant politics... It stalled any kneejerk bills. Let BATFE review the bump stocks and determine if they, a) Have the authority to regulate them, and b) How to regulate them. 

It will take weeks, maybe months for this monolithic agency to study this and make any determinations.

In the meantime, momentum needed by anti-gun politicians and advocates will rapidly decrease as short attention span America moves on to something else. Meanwhile, the NRA has several other, far more important legislative efforts on the front burners.

Besides, why waste effort and influence on these foolish "range toys"? Fight battles worth fighting.

I’m a firm believer in fire and maneuver…. Digging in gives up the ability to maneuver. Give ground in the valley if you can take the overseeing hill.

Fire and maneuver isn’t retreating. It’s repositioning to gain the enemy’s flank. Once on their flank, the enemy must withdraw and reposition or risk the whole line collapsing.

Anti-gun politicians expected the NRA to dig in. Instead, they yielded ground while out-maneuvering the anti-gun mob. Except for the usual anti-gun zealots, most politicians will have tempered their emotional zeal with the reality of American gun politics.

Consider what some 2A advocates are digging in for. A bump stock is not a firearm. It’s not an essential component, such as a magazine or sight. It is, at best, an accessory. A range toy for most who own or want one. How much of their limited political capital should the NRA expend on defending an accessory that very few gun owners want and none actually require? Consider that there are bigger fights that can be won with that capital.

Dig in or fire and maneuver. You can’t do both, and you must do one or the other… What would YOU do?