I'm Beginning to Wonder if I Have a Need for a Shotgun

[carshooter]

As a reformed shotgun junkie, I freely admit that there's not much that I can do defensively with a shotgun that I couldn't do faster and more accurately with a carbine.

However, a shotgun is still my primary home defense long gun.

I have four firearms that are not stored in a safe. My primary CCW, my "back up" or smaller CCW, an AR15 that's locked in my master bedroom, and an 870 that's stored "cruiser ready" in my master bedroom closet.

I don't want to touch an unsuppressed AR off in my house unless I really, really have to.

[abnk]

...

I don't want to touch an unsuppressed AR off in my house unless I really, really have to.

Wouldn't a shotgun be just as loud?

[carshooter]

I've never seen decibel ratings for both, but my subjective opinion is that a 14.5 or 16" AR is MUCH more uncomfortable to my unprotected ears than an 18" shotgun.

I've fired both without hearing protection, and an AR seems much, much, much louder.

*Well, I stand corrected. I just googled the noise level, and the google results state that 223 is 155 decibels. (although no barrel length is listed) An 18" 12ga is listed at 161.

I still stand by my statement that subjectively, I find a shotgun less painful than a 223 carbine, but now maybe I need to rethink my "plan"

[rhino]

Thekatar,
Take a Louis Awerbuck, Yavapai Firearms Academy, shotgun class first before you make your decision regarding whether to give up on shotguns.

http://www.yfainc.com/schedule.html

That's an excellent recommendation.

There are two reasons why I own a shotgun. One is to shoot 3-gun and practical shotgun matches. Everyone should try it if they have not. It's my least favorite gun to shoot, but it's still fun.

My Remington 1100 has the short Speedfeed IV-S stock with the flat plastic baseplate. So my LOP is about twelve inches. The tradeoff is that I don't have a recoil pad of any kind, which is less of a problem with an 1100. That might hurt a lot more with your Benelli M1S90.

The other is because it seems kind of un-American to not have a 12ga of some kind, whether it's a Benelli race gun, a box stock 870 or your grandpappy's old side-by-side.

[Harv]

I have a 870(cause your suppose to have one) and an Benelli SBE for Pheasants/Upland game.

Other then that.. I don't have much use for Shotguns.. I can run them just fine..I have a few years of Sporting clays under me... I just don't like them as much as my AR.

The Shotgun is not my "go to" gun.

[Patrick Aherne]

A shotgun, rather than being a jack of all trades as it is usually sold, is actually a very specialized weapon that takes practice and training to use. More training and practice, I believe, than the amount required to run a carbine effectively. That said, a Benelli M1S90 is the only loaded long gun in my house.

[nationwide]

My buddy and I discussed this at length a year or so ago...

He was Active Duty USCG on a unit that did lots of boardings and harbor security type stuff... and I have a background in Law Enforcement.

Based on the performance of 5.56 FMJ ammo, what we know today about the truth of "over penetration", ergonomics, and accessories such as weapon lights and optics, we concluded, for ourselves, the shotgun served no real purpose save harvesting winged game.

Of course, that's our opinions... just a couple of dudes. Gotta roll with what works for you.

FWIW, I'll take a 12 gauge pump gun over my Full Auto UZI for home defense 7 days a week!

[Lumpy196]

I LIKE shooting shotguns in sporting and competition roles.

However, the fact remains, there are few serious applications where it would be my weapon of choice outside some VERY specialized uses.

[olds442tyguy]

My 870 is a dust collector. 00B and slugs are pricey for plinking at the range, I have no practical use for it, and it's just not that fun to shoot for me. Right now it's completely disassembled and stripped waiting for me to lay some Cerakote on it. I haven't really cared enough to get up the motivation to finish it, and when I do I'll probably just sell it for pocket change.

That said, I'd love to get a Saiga 12. In fact, seeing as I have no real use for a shotgun (especially a pump), I still kick myself in the bum for having not gotten a Saiga at the time instead.