Building Your Battery Part 1- One Gun to Rule Them All

I have heard a lot of people express lately their desire to purchase a firearm for protection, even from those normally of politically liberal persuasions. Honestly who can blame them? It is common sense that every home should keep a fire extinguisher to minimize damage from a fire. Likewise part of any home's security system should include a firearm as a tool for fending off intruders. Violent crime is on the rise, especially armed intrusion, and every day the news features more horror stories in the headlines. By far the most common question I hear asked about the subject is, “Which gun do I buy?” The answer to that question is never a simple one because the right recommendation has a lot to do with its intended use, the individual's preexisting knowledge of firearms, and their willingness to practice. Assuming a person intends to use their newly purchased gun primarily for home defense, has been exposed to firearms at some point, and is willing to practice a few times per year, I like to recommend that they consider a pump shotgun.

There are a lot of reasons why a pump shotgun makes sense as a home defense weapon. For starters, they are affordable. For less than $200 you can purchase a Remington 870 or Mossberg 500 shotgun at any of your local sporting goods stores, or at most discount stores that have sporting goods departments. They are also relatively safe to own around children. A pump shotgun can be safely stored with a full magazine and an empty chamber. This still requires the slide lock to be disengaged and the action cycled before the gun is ready to fire, which acts as a preventative to unintended discharge by curious children. The shotgun can be stored in a readily accessible location, preferably in a designated safe room for years with little or no maintenance done to it, and it will still prove reliable when needed. Pump shotguns have been around since the 1800's and are the quintessential example of what Michael Bane calls “debugged technology.” For a relatively small investment, the shotgun can actually fill multiple roles in the household. It is an effective defensive weapon while also being quite capable of providing food for the table should the need arise. The shotgun has been the go-to utility firearm in the homes of Americans throughout history, from the blunderbuss carried by the Pilgrims to the doubles carried in the West, through to modern times. Remington sells a combination package with an 870 equipped with both a defense barrel and a longer hunting barrel for around $300. A shotgun so equipped, with the proper ammunition, is capable of taking most game from squirrels on up to deer.

If you're willing to check out the used firearms offered at your local gun store or carefully browse through almost any pawn shop you should find nice used shotguns for even cheaper. Now for a secret- the home defense shotgun is too often chosen by the man of the house to fit him instead of picking a weapon that will fit everyone. He tends to come home with a heavy 12 gauge that the rest of the family- who are often of smaller stature- may be called upon to use in a time of need. Instead of following that pattern, pick up a 20 gauge instead and keep in mind that the home defense shotgun is going to serve the role of a pool gun- that is, everyone will be expected to use it effectively when the time comes to defend themselves. The 20 offers plenty of firepower for home defense and for hunting purposes but the guns are lighter, give less recoil, and are not so deafening to fire in enclosed spaces or blinding in darkness. In many cases someone shooting a 20 gauge can fire three shells in the time it takes someone with a 12 gauge to shoot twice. This is a good example of how that reduction in recoil and weight can make the 20 gauge more effective as a home defense tool than the 12.

The Kit

Of course, simply purchasing a new firearm is just the beginning. I wouldn't even leave the store without purchasing a simple slip-on shell holder and a soft sided case. You'll find that you also need to invest in a simple cleaning kit and get advice on how to maintain your shotgun after firing it. You'll also need to purchase some ammunition. I recommend buying a half case of 100 shotshells in # 7 ½ or 6 shot. These shells are cheap and ideal for both practice and as inside-the-home ammunition. Finally, purchase a shell bag with a simple belt clip as pictured below. This bag will allow you to store a box of ammunition with your gun, and when needed you can slip the bag onto the waist of your pants and reload as necessary.

Manual of Arms- Pump Shotgun

As with any firearm, you need to develop what some people refer to as a manual of arms with your pump shotgun. This is a basic understanding of the way the weapon works, how to care for, store, and handle the weapon, and how to use it both tactically and strategically.

You will need to practice, and even though your pump gun is extremely reliable, a little oil and some basic cleaning will keep the tool from collecting rust while in the closet.

Take your shotgun to a piece of nationally-owned forest, a friend's farm, or your local range or gun club along with some simple cardboard cutouts of roughly human torso size and proceed to pattern your shotgun at around 21 feet and less. You will need to practice loading a shell into a gun with a full magazine and an empty chamber until long after you can do it without looking, and always practice as often as you can afford it so that the skills you learn with your shotgun do not deteriorate.

Understand that every shotgun, no matter how long an extended magazine tube you put on it, will eventually run out of ammunition. Practice reloading "Cowboy style," which means if you fire two rounds, load two more rounds in the tube as you go. Fire one, load one, and so on. Also keep in mind that hunting down an intruder in your home is a bad idea unless that intruder is threatening someone else in your house. Make it known to all the residents in the home that one specific room is designated the safe room, where they will gather in the event that the home's sanctity is threatened. Store the gun there along with extra ammunition as noted above, and be prepared to use the gun only if your family is actually threatened. If all the intruders want is your television material objects are not worth losing your life or taking someone else's over. Repel an attack, but otherwise barricade your family in the room with you, take up a defensive position, and call the police.

For inside the home defense I recommend loading your gun with shot, but keep a few shells of buckshot handy in case extra firepower is needed. Shot is really only an effective penetrator out to about 7 yards. Anything longer than that will require the use of buckshot, which is effective out to around 50 yards. At this point many of you may be asking why not just load the gun with buckshot and be done with it? The reason is that buckshot will overpenetrate at ranges less than 7 yards or so. Tests have shown the rounds to pass through their intended targets with enough energy to penetrate several layers of sheet rock, so even striking the target with all of the buckshot pellets will still leave bystanders at seriuos risk downrange. Unless you live on a farm with no nearby homes, I can not recommend keeping slugs in your home defense gun. Slugs can be used to disable automobiles, and as such are too penetrative to safely use inside your home.

Homework

Visit your local sporting goods store or pawn shop and price a decent used or new shotgun in an appropriate gauge. Then make a purchase, get some ammunition, and practice with it. If you can get training by a professional self defense instructor by all means do so, but if you can't I recommend you check out Clint Smith's Defensive Shotgun video and practice the techniques demonstrated there.