Pump or autoloading shotgun for home defense?

[M. Sage]

This is the absolute truth: if you are the kind of person like me who would prefer NOT to have to kill someone, just the sound of that pump should be enough to deter (read: make them flee for their lives) most criminals. It's a fact that most criminals are cowards, so unless it's someone that's strung out on meth or crack, they won't be staying around very long after they hear that shotty being pumped....

And if they are cranked-out or are just plain dumb... well, now you've got a loaded shotgun in your hands.

[randy]

If you are going to wait in your room for them to come to you then semi with any stock. If you are going to clear your house then semi with pistol grip.

Move through your house with a pump, stabdard stock and you need two hands to operate it. Now open a door, use the stairs, hold a childs arm, call 911 etc. and you have an unweildly gun using one hand what if you are forced to shoot and you are holding the stair rail for balance you miss and now you have a club or let go of the railing your balance point to pump the gun. A pistol grip and a semi you can tuck the gun farther back under your arm for stability, easier to do all of the above mentioned and much better chance of cycleing the next round if you do shoot.

As for pumps not jamming I've seen countless short stroke them and then "click" some people forget to pump them at all.

Down side to semi is more $$$ more sensitive to ammo (but who would defend themselves with junk ammo?), down side to pistol grip if intruder grabs hold of the gun he can leverage your grip easier.

Try racking a semi and a pump yes the pump is a pump but semis aren't quiet either.

[five.five-six]

The sound of chambering a round in a pump scares the crap out of me so I am sure a criminal would feel the same way.

big +1 that sound is universaly known, the downside is you may have to clean up excrament.

p.s. if you have kids, then your loaded weppons shuld be locked, I have yet to see a bedside shotgun safe

-1 on mp5 to much overpenitration

[Bishop]

From a legal standpoint, being forced to defend yourself and/or your family with a old 870 with wood furniture will look a bit better to a jury than an autoloading "street sweeper" (don't get mad; you know they'll say it) or worse; an eeeevil assault mp5

Don't forget what state we live in, and how good the ciminal justice system is at getting justice for criminals...

Edit: Oh yeah, pump. Period. End of sentence.

[chiefcrash]

i have a pump with the first round as a "pepper blast" (just in case that bump in the night is my roommate being stupid). with the pump, it's pretty easy to dump the pepper and load the buckshot if i need to...

[BossHog]

+1 on pumps for the reliability factor

[anotherone]

There's a couple good reasons why you should choose a pump over an autoloader for home defense:

1) Because pumps are cheaper and there's no reason to spend $1000+ on an M-4 you will probably never ever get to use. Even in the most dangerous neighborhoods your chances of ever having to shoot someone in self defense with a shotgun is probably around 0.01%. Save the big bucks for your hunting shotgun !

2) Because pumps are more reliable and because you won't be using your home defense shotgun often (unless you enjoy shooting buckshot or slugs at ranges) it could accumulate dust and/or other debris (especially if stored in a closet).

3) Because pumps are just more fun than autoloaders.

Now as far as hunting goes I'll choose a pump shotgun any day over an autoloader because in the field reliability is everything. It sucks to go all the way out to a good spot to hunt and then your gas port gets clogged and you end up with a high tech single shot shotgun. This happened to a friend of mine while he was shooting trap and even shooting trap it sucked.

[QuickOnTheDraw]

I'll be ready with my H&K FP6 pump, my wife will be armed with her preferred shotgun of choice, the FN SLP. She likes the semi-auto action, rather than the pump. Maybe I should enroll her in a tactical shotgun course for Christmas?

[luvtolean]

From a legal standpoint, being forced to defend yourself and/or your family with a old 870 with wood furniture will look a bit better to a jury than an autoloading "street sweeper" (don't get mad; you know they'll say it) or worse; an eeeevil assault mp5

Don't forget what state we live in, and how good the ciminal justice system is at getting justice for criminals...

Edit: Oh yeah, pump. Period. End of sentence.

A friend says the best home defense weapon is a regular pump shotgun with a duck tag and duck hunting book next to it.

Though it's not exactly my choice, quite a bit of wisdom there I think.

Try racking the slide on a pump late at night in your house. My house is kinda small, but I know there is no spot in my house it wouldn't be clearly heard.

An intruder coming through a window anywhere in the house will hear it and know what it means...

[Cardinal Sin]

The sound of chambering a round in a pump scares the crap out of me so I am sure a criminal would feel the same way.

[VeryCoolCat]

The only use for a semi auto shotgun is for sport/fun.

If your using standard 00 buck in 2 3/4" or 3" the recoil from the shotgun is way too much for a follow up shot on a crook indoors to risk damage to anything else in your home.

The pump is simpler, less odds of a malfunction and the sound of the CLICK-CLACK can make even the toughest crooks jump out of their bodies and high tail it out of the place.

Unfortunately... I have an FN TPS

I remember this liberal story a while back that they were talking about the TPS "The gun was designed specifically for killing people and should be banned as it has no practical sporting use"

[randy]

If you advocate the pump shotgun for reliability for HD would you then say the revolver is a better choice than a semi auto?

[madjack956]

All you have to due is pull all the way back and push all the way forward. If you screw that up, well, its your own damn fault

Dead On!

Whichever weapon you choose I strongly recommend that you have trained with it under stress conditions. Shooting under stress is a whole different ballgame. Muscle memory is paramount in a self defense situation and one less factor you have to deal with. If you have not done this, find a good tactical instructor and learn something about yourself you never knew.

[secretasianman]

One of the biggest fallacies EVER!!!

+1

I agree. You've probably given up your position and now they know you're armed. They'll be that much more cautious if THEY are armed and determined to get you or your belongings (that's some serious goodies you must have!) Odds are they will just leave and pick an easier target but you never know.

I bought a pump because it's cheaper and I've been told more reliable. Plus I couldn't install a stock with a pistol grip if it was semi-auto from what I understand.

[JeepRescueService14]

Coolcat.. How many times do you plan on shooting that poor burglar? 12 pellets of 00 Buck isn't enough?
I prefer the P2000 with an insight M3X for HD tho.