New to Shotguns ~ need Ammo advice!

[.40Cal]

Hi guys,

I'm new to shotguns. Infact, I am about to buy a Mossberg 500 sometimes this week. I have seriously no clue with so many different kinds of ammo for 12G. Pistols & Rifles are easy to understand...haha.

So, I want to get the Cheapest possible ammo for range shooting (practice). I would prefer buying online and in bulk (100+ rounds) if there's a good deal.

For "HD" the best possible ammo obviously.

And if someone can explain the purpose and different kinds in ammo. Yeah, I've seen a lot of Youtube, done reading... but still unclear in the back of my mind.

Thanks!

[mikajo39]

SGammo.com is usually where I pick up my cheap shotgun blasting ammo. They sell Spartan 00bk in a 250 round crate for 107 +SH for case of 250, RIO Royal 00Bk (my blasting ammo of choice) for 124+SH and last Nobel Sport in either 4BK or 00BK, for 130+SH.
I haven't ran the Spartan buckshot but have heard it goes bang and patterns alright. The RIO Royal is what I use and has been reliable in all my pumps and semi autos, it's loaded on the hotter side but is manageable.
Lastly, is the Nobel Sport Buckshot, I like this stuff, but it's a bit more expensive in both shipping and initial price. It has a higher shipping price because it's really a light magnum shell. Instead of 9 00BK pellets @ 1345 FPS like the RIO, Nobel Sport goes all out for 12 00BK pellets @1290FPS, and it packs a serious wallop and each shell weighs a bit more, so higher shipping prices.

Any of the above are perfect for blasting ammo. For HD I'd go with either Hornady (TAP,Critical Defense, Superperformance 00BK) <<(They're all the same loading so whatever is cheapest, buy) Or Federal 00bk with the "flite control wad"

Both the Hornady loads and Federal loads put a fist sized hole of 00BK through my targets @ 20 yards with a cyl bore 590A1.
One note of warning though is that the Hornady loadings are 8 00BK pellets @ 1600FPS!!! The recoil is very manageable but the muzzle blast and concussion from a 18.5 barrel is intense and may be a problem for HD.

Hope this helps.

[Steve_In_29]

Since 00 Buck is by FAR the most prolific defense (or attack depending on situation/user) load on the market it is the cheapest bang for the buck as far as HD ammo goes but #1 Buck is an arguably better load and #4 Buck (NOT #4 birdshot) gives slightly better pattern coverage.

That Federal "flite control wad" has been shown to give amazingly tighter pellet grouping on target.

Pretty much ANY 00 Buck will fit your needs, with only incremental improvements (if any) in performance provided by the more expensive brands so don't worry too much about buying the cheapest loads you can find.

[Jimmybacon43]

Practice with the cheap birdshot ($6 for 25 rounds)

Load it with any type of 00 Buckshot. ($1 per shot)

Generally it's a good idea to shoot some buckshot at the range as well, you need to see what it feels like and how it patterns.


As far as there being so many different types of 12 GA ammo......
12 GA is first divided by the length of the shell. There are 2 and 3/4 inch shells (most common, just stick with these) there are 3" magnum shells (no point to use these) and there are 3 and 1/2 inch magnum shells. (your shotgun probably isn't chambered for these)

Within each one of these shell lengths there are 3 basic types of rounds.
Birdshot-shoots a lot of tiny little bb's, there are different sizes of birdshot, #8 and #7 are pretty common, there are many others.

Buckshot- Shoots a couple of larger pellets. 00 Buck is the most common. There's also 4 Buck, 000 Buck.......etc.

Slugs- Shoots one big bullet. Pretty simple. There are different kinds, hunting slugs, brennekes....but most of them are just big pieces of lead.

Here's a cool article that breaks it down: (yeah it's from the well armed woman deal with it)

http://www.thewellarmedwoman.com/ammunition-demystifier-types-of-shotgun-ammo

[Thefeeder]

&gt;&lt;

Perrty good deal

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shooting/Ammunition/Shotgun-Ammunition%7C/pc/104792580/c/104691780/sc/104567580/Herters-Select-Field-Dove-and-Quail-Shotshells/1601971.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshotgun-ammunition%2F_%2FN-1100191%2B4294751472%2B4294751475%2FNe-4294751472%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104567580%3FWTz_l%3DSBC%253BMMcat104792580%253Bcat104691780%26WTz_st%3DGuidedNav%26WTz_stype%3DGNU&WTz_l=SBC%3BMMcat104792580%3Bcat104691780%3Bcat104567580

Also if you want to learn more about shells and shotgun shooting

http://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/showthread.php?t=405000

[John Joseph]

Cheap birdshot for the range.
Federal Flite Control is reputed to be the best for LEO, but for HD I doubt there is any appreciable advantage. I'd go for lower recoil buck, 00, or 4B---no big difference and unless the intruder is a ballistics statistician they wouldn't notice a difference. Estate at one time had a contract for making buckshot for the military (I think that was back when they were still in Texas) and you can find Olin military contract overrun stock at places like Big Five but the stuff really kicks.
I've seen 15 round boxes of Remington Express and un-buffered Winchester Super X buck as well as 25 round boxes of Estate buck Walmart. All these are 00 buck and just hunky dory and at a reasonable price. For HD you're looking at very close ranges and even garden variety buck doesn't spread much at 7 yards which is what you want---all nine of those blue whistlers making an unwelcoming impression. Avoid 3" Magnum buck loads like the plague they are. My 2-cents anyway.

[GunnerMichael]

I think the other guys have explained the uses and characteristics of some of the shot better than I could but I have an opinion that varies from most when it come to home defense.

IMO, low recoil slugs are best for HD. I think if you use anything other than a slug for HD you are taking away the biggest advantage of a shotgun, it's immense power capability. Regardless if you use 00 buck, birdshot or slugs for HD you need to aim your shotgun so spray and pray is out. If you miss they will all most likely go through a wall. People say buck shot is like having 9 .32 auto's all at once, but I think 1 shotgun slug is better than 9 hand guns if there is only one person shooting (I hope you see where I am going with this). If a slug hits a bad guy he is going down pretty much regardless of where the shot lands, if you miss with your bird shot and only land a few pellets things might not end the way you wanted them.


I think of it this way, if I was thrown into a forest and had to defend myself against another person with a gun and had only a shotgun and could choose my ammo I would pick slugs (probably a 3 inch 7/8oz sabot slug, if the barrel was rifled).

If you think a 12 gauge is to much power do not hesitate to consider a 20 gauge, still plenty of boom.

But every one is entitled to there opinion and I would say any type of shotgun ammo is good for HD.


I picked up 100 Fiocchi 1 ounce low recoil slugs for $80 at a gun show, so they are not the most cost effective, but still reasonable for practice.

I don't recommend Winchester dear slug for your first range session (on a cycle of the action I accidently placed the stock against my bi-cep and had a bruise for 2 weeks, ouch).

I hope that is helpful.

[L84CABO]

Walk into Walmart and pick up a bulk pack or two of the Federal bird shot. 100 rounds for $24 bucks or something.

If you can find it cheaper on line after tax and shipping and are able to wait for delivery, do it. Otherwise it's the one thing they have that does seem to be plentiful right now.

For home defense...

When it comes to guns and ammo, there are countless opinions on what is "best." Nobody can agree on it.

With that said, the below is certainly VERY high quality and at a pretty awesome price right now. It comes in either 8 Pellet or 9 Pellet. Be aware that some 9 Pellet shells can be just a hair longer than the 8 pellet version. There's a chance that this could make a difference in the number of rounds one is able to load in their magazine.

I found this to be the case with this ammo. The 9 pellets are slightly longer. This doesn't affect my 870. But it does on my Benelli M4. Now I could probably cut a "turn" off of the mag spring to get that last round in there but I would prefer not to. I simply buy the 8 pellets rounds.

http://www.targetsportsusa.com/p-3082-federal-law-enforcement-ammo-12-gauge-2-34-00-buckshot-9-pellets-ammunition.aspx

[Jasonaspears]

If you have a Dick's Sporting Goods or Walmart you can find some target loads for roughly $.25 each.

[Squidward]

I only run 00 buck and slug through my shotgun. While birdshot may be less expensive, I try to stay acclimated to the full effect of a shotgun.

I buy from several internet sources; Natchez (who is having a sale now), Target Sports USA, Bulkammo and a couple of others. For HD/SD I only use Federal LE132 00 Buck,which holds a tight pattern. Target Sports has
Federal Law Enforcement 12 Gauge Ammo 2-3/4" 00 Buckshot 8 Pellet on sale for $3.00 a box of 5 now.

Reloading may be an option as well. A Lee Load All ($50 more or less) may pay for itself depending upon how often/much you shoot.

[.40Cal]

If you have a Dick's Sporting Goods or Walmart you can find some target loads for roughly $.25 each.

^ ^ Like I said, I'm new to shotguns and shells. So could you please be specific which brand, and place I can buy this. And what "type" ammo this is. I am looking for cheap ammo for practice - just wanna get used to shooting a shotgun first.

Thanks everyone........Keep it coming. I will catch on and become an expert at this - someday. And in future help out another noob... The confusion is there different weights (ounces), number of pellets, patterns, recoil, and so much to consider - I'll be able to make a more educated decision on HD ammo then. (Like I know what I want in my 9mm pistol for HD).

However, at this point I'm just looking for cheap ammo to blast away...any type will do.
Thanks!

[Jasonaspears]

^ ^ Like I said, I'm new to shotguns and shells. So could you please be specific which brand, and place I can buy this. And what "type" ammo this is. I am looking for cheap ammo for practice - just wanna get used to shooting a shotgun first.

Thanks everyone........Keep it coming. I will catch on and become an expert at this - someday. And in future help out another noob... The confusion is there different weights (ounces), number of pellets, patterns, recoil, and so much to consider - I'll be able to make a more educated decision on HD ammo then. (Like I know what I want in my 9mm pistol for HD).

However, at this point I'm just looking for cheap ammo to blast away...any type will do.
Thanks!

Sorry...basically look for anything you can find that's in this price range especially if you're just doing clay pigeon or paper targets. Look for a 2-3/4" shell with a size 8-9 shot if possible. Might be labeled as bird shot or target. The biggest thing is just finding shot shells in stock. Hope that gets a little closer to the answers you are looking for.

[L84CABO]

^ ^ Like I said, I'm new to shotguns and shells. So could you please be specific which brand, and place I can buy this. And what "type" ammo this is. I am looking for cheap ammo for practice - just wanna get used to shooting a shotgun first.

Thanks everyone........Keep it coming. I will catch on and become an expert at this - someday. And in future help out another noob... The confusion is there different weights (ounces), number of pellets, patterns, recoil, and so much to consider - I'll be able to make a more educated decision on HD ammo then. (Like I know what I want in my 9mm pistol for HD).

However, at this point I'm just looking for cheap ammo to blast away...any type will do.
Thanks!

Here you go for the Walmart birdshot bulk pack: (scroll down a bit in the link for a picture of the box)

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Federal-Ammunition-12-Gauge-3-DRAM-100ct/17757345

As for de-mystifying shotgun ammo for you, this may help. There are probably plenty of other pages like this that a little GoogleFu can pull up:

https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080227075709AAFRQg1

There are countless types of specialty shogun ammo. However, in a nutshell, you've got a) birdshot which is used for birds of course, b) Buckshot which is primarily used for defense and c) slugs used for both game and defense.

For practicing you can use birdshot since it's fairly cheap...although some practice with Buckshot and slugs is always good in order to get the feel of things since the recoil is usually greater with Buckshot and Slugs (Note too that you will certainly want to run 50-100 rounds through your gun of whatever round you ultimately choose for defense to both get the feel for it and verify that it functions reliably in your gun). And since you aren't talking about hunting yet, you don't need to be overly concerned with the size of birdshot you use.

In the Walmart link I sent you, you can see that the bulk pack is for # 71/2 shot (2.75 inch shells). This is an incredibly common size of birdshot that you will find in practically every store that sells shotgun ammo. It's just fine for target shooting and shooting clays. And it's relatively cheap. And generally plentiful at Walmart unless we get another major shortage. But it's certainly cheap enough to stock up on and well worth it since it's so versatile.

Buckshot - Buckshot comes in a variety of sizes/configurations just like birdshot does. This is what you want to use for defense...or possibly slugs. The vast majority of folks who use buckshot for defense, use 00 Buck. Most police agencies use 00.

00 generally comes in two configurations...either 8 pellets per round or 9 pellets. Both are pretty darn effective. They also usually come in either regular or reduced recoil loads. I wouldn't want to be hit with either of them. Many people feel that the reduced recoil versions are just fine and the reduced recoil will obviously help in follow up shots. If you're not anticipating having to shoot through a car windshield or something, the reduced recoil stuff is probably going to be fine for you. I would make my decision based on whichever one I could shoot better...or whichever is cheaper at the time of purchase.

Now, the thing that is important to understand with 00 Buck is how the specific round/brand you choose patterns in your specific shotgun. What we mean by "patterns" is that you want to understand how much the pellets spread out at different distances (5 yards, 10 yards, 15 yards, etc.). You are responsible for every round you fire. So you want to understand how the round spreads out when fired from your gun so that you understand the point at which it's likely that some of the pellets will miss your target and hit whatever happens to be behind your target.

When we're talking about a defensive round, a tighter pattern is generally regarded as better. The tighter the pattern, the better chance that all pellets will end up on your target. And when we're talking about shooting at defensive distances in a home, the odds are pretty small that the round would have enough time/distance to spread out that much. So the notion of just pointing the shotgun in the general direction of your target is really a myth. You MUST aim a shotgun and especially at the short distances we are generally talking about inside a home.

Now, the link I gave you in my previous posting for the defense ammo has what's called a "flight control wad." The short answer here is that this ammo is specifically designed to provide a very tight pattern. It generally performs well in most shotguns. Something like this is what you are looking for in a defensive round (Lots of other good choices out there too). But you must still, "pattern your shotgun" to understand how the round behaves in your specific gun. Every gun behaves differently. Even the same model from the same mfg may pattern differently gun to gun.

Patterning a shotgun is simple. You take a clean target and start at 5 yards and fire a round on it and observe the spread. Then get a new clean target and do the same thing at 10 yards. Repeat every 5 yards out to 25 yards at least. I'd probably also do a test at 35 yards and 50 yards. You may also want do this two or three times at each distance just to make sure your results are consistent. But after this exercise, you should have a pretty good understanding of how the round performs in your gun. And you should do this with every new gun or every time you change ammo to a different brand/load.

Now there are other options for defense. A slug is a VERY devastating round. However it has a whole lot of penetration which means it could actually go through your target or through a bunch of walls if you miss. Consider your choice carefully.

Birdshot for Defense - If you do a search here, you will find a few folks here that swear by birdshot for home defense. I'm not going to judge anyone who makes an INFORMED decision on choosing this option. The thing to understand about birdshot, however, is that it simply doesn't have the penetration that buckshot has. This could be good and bad. Less penetration means that if you miss, it's not going through as many walls as Buck would. But it also may not have enough penetration to stop the attack (Buckshot isn't immune from this either). Especially if the attacker happens to be wearing thick clothing like denim and/or a leather jacket. Plus, there could be certain defensive situations where you actually do want to take a shot through a wall. The point here is that you want to consider this choice very carefully and make sure you understand all the pros and cons of using this round for defense. Your life may literally depend on it.

Buckshot Other Than 00 - A lot of people like #4 Buck when over penetration is a concern. Some folks also like 0 and/or 000 Buck as well. There's a chart down the page here that show's the number of pellets and size of pellets for each. I'm a fan of 00. But I wouldn't want to be hit with any of them.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shotgun_shell

[bigbearbear]

However, at this point I'm just looking for cheap ammo to blast away...any type will do.
Thanks!

You have to match the ammo to the type of target you're trying to hit. What will you be blasting away at? Clay targets as in trap/skeet/sporting clay? Paper? Live animals?

If you're not sure, I recommend clay targets. It does mean that you will have to get a shotgun with a longer barrel length (best if 26" or longer) because many ranges have min. barrel length rules. Thefeeder runs a skeet clinic, you should seriously consider attending.

[deckhandmike]

Actually your first step should be to contact your local ranges and see what they allow and offer for the shotgun you are going to purchase. Many ranges won't let you shoot skeet with 18" barrels and many rifle ranges only allow slugs to be shot at targets. The buckshot and birdshot blast apart the target stand depending how they construct them.

Once you find what your local ranges allow get the cheapest crap you can find and blast away. Anything that doesn't cycle well is considered a learning lesson and most likely your gun will shoot just about anything fine. Once you get the gun broken in on junk ammo experiment on what you want for hd.