Home Defense Load Preference

[jsf343]

Good thread.

I know someone on here has a 16 gauge or 20 gauge (Mossberg 500) what would you use for either of those that is low recoil and good home def.?

Is there a hybrid you could use for bird/home def or is that not an option?

[Redmanfms]

Good thread.

I know someone on here has a 16 gauge or 20 gauge (Mossberg 500) what would you use for either of those that is low recoil and good home def.?

Federal makes a buffered #1 buck load in 16 gauge and a buffered #3 buck in 20 gauge, that's probably the best you're going to do with those . I don't know of any manufacturers that load OO buck shells in those calibers. Given the already lighter load, I wouldn't be looking for a low recoil load in 16 or 20 even if it is being made.

Is there a hybrid you could use for bird/home def or is that not an option?

No. Birdshot is for birds.

[scootle]

i have a 3.5 inch 00 buck in the chamber then slug,oobuck slug ,slug all 2 3/4 in the tube

I hope this was a joke post... "Dutch" loading a shotgun is a huge no-no...

Low recoil, patterns great.

Just curious is the Federal PD132 a low-recoil load? For some reason I thought it was a standard load.

I tried some of that a few weeks ago. That wonderful FliteControl Wad kept the pattern to a single 1" hole at 30' away (cylinder bore barrel on an 870). Not sure what it has over slugs at that point. In a shotgun, I want an actual pattern at 30', not a single hole the size of a quarter.

This is one of the discussion points that comes up regarding Flight-Control shells... if you need/want THAT tight a pattern, why not switch to a slug at that point?

Anyone who is actually using buckshot for a HD shot at 25yds or more needs to strongly consider the benefits of learning a slug-select technique imho.

Whatever you do, every shotgun will pattern differently with different ammo... you have to pattern your own gun at each distance you plan to use it (extrapolation isn't really the best choice) with your ammo of choice.

I keep a stock of Remington low-recoil #00 buck and standard 1oz slugs with the shotgun in the safe, myself.