Has the 12 gauge lost popularity as a HD gun over the past few years

[Crayfish]

I honestly think a 12 gauge pump is the most versatile weapon made ...overall. I mean if I could only own one gun that would be the one. However, for me as a daily CC'er I just put my revolver on the nightstand when I take it off. Not that a 12 gauge isn't a good HD gun but, the handgun is just more convenient as I live in a tiny house and no place to get to a long gun quick without leaning it in a corner. I mean my front door is 18 feet from my side of the bed so, not a lot of time if someone kicks it down.
I did at one time rack a pump when a former college roommate who still had a key came into my house at 2am. I had been bird hunting the day before and the shotgun was still laying on my dresser. I heard the door open and grabbed the shotgun (empty) and went to the top of the stairs and pumped it once. The person froze and called my name in a shaky voice. He was a British subject who had never been around guns of any type and he still knew what that sound was. PS, I have had a loaded gun available ever since.

 

[ADKWOODSMAN]

Didn't the VP say we should all have one!

Mine is a buck barrel 12 ga. In Remington 1100.

For a back up Ruger 5 1/2" 44 mag. Loaded with 44 special HORNADT XTP's.

 

[ZZZ]

God forbid that situation occurs, but if it did, I'd rather have a cheap shotgun sitting in an evidence locker somewhere likely to not be seen again for a long time, instead of an expensive AR.

 

[msmp5]

.......I think there is a declining popularity in shotguns for home defense, as opposed to a home defense pistol (as CCW is becoming more and more common, and many choose to just keep their CCW pistol in the nightstand or such), or home defense rifle (the AR-15's skyrocketing popularity after efforts to ban them).....

I think this is pretty close to an accurate answer to the OP's original question. We've had a lot of new/first-time shooters join our ranks over the last few years, and a significant number of these new shooters are women. For these folks new to shooting, I think a handgun is a better HD weapon than a shotgun, especially if it is also their daily CCW gun. I say this based on many years experience as both an LE and civ firearms instructor. A shotgun is a great HD weapon in the hands of someone who practices with it. But for many who are new to firearms - especially women, as well as those who practice with their weapons less than what one would hope - it has been my experience that a handgun is a better choice. If there is a decline in shotgun ownership for HD, I'm guessing it might be more due to all the new CCW/pistol shooters joining the ranks of firearms owners, rather than new folks going out and buying tactical rifles for HD.

 

[benEzra]

There is a lot to be said for using for HD what you shoot at lot and are familiar with.

In the past, for a lot of people, that was a shotgun, often used for hunting or wingshooting or clays sports or whatever.

Today, with arguably fewer people bird hunting, and more people owning and shooting carbines recreationally or for competition, for a lot of people the "long gun you shoot best" is the carbine. Couple that with the facts that a carbine is lighter recoiling, has better reserve capacity, and with the right loads can limit wall penetration to less than that of buckshot, and it's not that surprising that a lot of carbine shooters make the carbine their go-to gun of choice.

with all of the lights and lasers attached to them.

I don't currently own a shotgun, HD or otherwise, but if I ever get one and I ever consider it for the HD role, it will have a light (Rule Four).

 

[strambo]

God forbid that situation occurs, but if it did, I'd rather have a cheap shotgun sitting in an evidence locker somewhere likely to not be seen again for a long time, instead of an expensive AR.

Since the odds are slim and my, and my family's, life are on the line I'd rather use the very best suited firearm I have to save our lives, evidence locker afterward be Da@$d. Then, I'll still have whatever I thought was 2nd best to protect myself with.

If my best suited weapon is a $2k+ SBR AR-15 and it gets locked up, so be it. Why should it just be locked up in my safe looking pretty?

I'd also use some cheap body armor too, no doubt it will be seized as evidence as well. Don't want the good expensive armor I use at training courses locked up in an evidence locker.

 

[Drail]

I have lots of guns to choose from for home defense. My go to gun will always be the 12 ga. Always.

 

[Officers'Wife]

God forbid that situation occurs, but if it did, I'd rather have a cheap shotgun sitting in an evidence locker somewhere likely to not be seen again for a long time, instead of an expensive AR.

Too each their own, God forbid that situation occurs if the only weapon available was the Walker pistol my great-great-great Grandfather brought home from the Civil War I would rather see it in an evidence locker than one of my children on a morgue slab.

 

[Jason_W]

This thread pops up a lot and always seems to result in some animosity between the carbine guys and the shotgun guys, each side trying to prove their choice is better.

The truth is, they're both very effective HD choices. If you shoot an intruder in the chest with a load of buckshot at 10 feet, he's probably dead. If you shoot an intruder in the chest with a bullet from a carbine at 10 feet, he's probably dead.

If you're recoil sensitive, a carbine is probably a better HD choice. If you're on a limited budget, a shotgun might be your only choice.

A shotgun is undoubtedly a better choice as a survival gun, though.

 

[Doug S]

I don't think gun forums are really representative of most American homes, and I think that for the average non gun-forum frequenting individual, the shotgun is as useful an popular as it ever was.

 

[Cee Zee]

Since the odds are slim and my, and my family's, life are on the line I'd rather use the very best suited firearm I have to save our lives

What he said. I buy my guns primarily as tools of defense. If they get used up completely for that role then so be it. It was a good cause.

I agree that both platforms are effective and both have their good and bad points. But the change has come after a very long time IMO. AR's are better for HD in more situations now.

 

[Jason_W]

I don't think gun forums are really representative of most American homes, and I think that for the average non gun-forum frequenting individual, the shotgun is as useful an popular as it ever was.

If only someone could dig up sales figures and put the question to bed for good.

Edit: a little bit of google-fu: http://www.statisticbrain.com/firearm-industry-statistics/

The study didn't break down sales of rifles into sub categories, but rifles as a whole,were produced in greater numbers than other firearms types. Shotguns were #2, over both revolvers and pistols. Going down the page a little further, Remington shotguns alone had 21% of the market share.

So, while AR carbines are the in thing right now, shotguns are still plenty popular among American gun buyers.

 

[Cee Zee]

I don't think gun forums are really representative of most American homes, and I think that for the average non gun-forum frequenting individual, the shotgun is as useful an popular as it ever was.

If only someone could dig up sales figures and put the question to bed for good.

The OP's question was has the shotgun lost popularity over the past few years. The answer to that is obviously yes. Debate which is better all you want but more people are making the change and that makes the answer to OP's question clear. The shotgun probably is still the most popular choice but the question was about a change in popularity. And clearly that is happening.

 

[shockwave]

Only speaking for myself, but I've had a few "situations" and what seemed to be natural was:

1. Bump in the night you want to go investigate: handgun
2. Something going on outside and you have time to prepare for it: shotgun

That is, if you just need to go check out the front door, make sure the house is secure, any revolver from .38 or semi-auto from 9mm on up is prudent. If you see you're going to have to confront individuals on your property, go shotgun.

 

[coloradokevin]

I'm not sure that people have any less respect for the 12 gauge these days, but clearly the market has a lot more AR-15 type rifles available now than it did 20 years ago. As such, I think a lot of people are opting for the AR-15 these days, just because that's the kind of gun they find themselves buying.

None of this should suggest that the 12 gauge is ineffectual, nor should it deter anyone from using it as a home defense weapon. I have both, and choose the shotgun as my go-to choice for home defense. I use my AR-15 for duty use in LE. Why?

1) In terms of raw "stopping power" (or whatever you want to call that voodoo) the proper ammo choice from a 12 gauge is probably virtually unbeatable for use against a target that isn't wearing hard body armor (very few home burglars and home invaders are using NIJ Level IV armor). I've seen it perform on game animals, and I've observed the performance in calibrated ballistic gelatin during wound ballistic labs. The shotgun works! In a home defense scenario I'm very unlikely to find myself needing more ammo than my shotgun holds, and will not have the need to take any shots beyond the effective range of this weapon.

2) The AR-15 is my go-to choice at work because it offers several advantages that the shotgun doesn't. First, I can hold thirty rounds of ammo, instead of 7. Second, I can precisely engage targets at much longer distances than I can with the shotgun.

Bottom line? Both work. Choose what you like!

 

[strambo]

My first serious HD choice was an 870 with a side saddle and light. I even have a LE shotgun instructor cert. to go with it. This was before I owned a personal AR though.

Now my choice is my AR-15 SBR. I have 20+ years infantry experience plus a civilian carbine course with that platform. It is shorter, has a RDS, 30 rounds, less over-penetration, less recoil, and still rifle level terminal ballistics and an easier to manipulate light.

That said, I can't imagine a scenario where given a competent operator, survival with one would be failure with the other. My 870 patterns Hornady TAP low recoil 00 into one ragged 2-2 1/2" hole at 10 yds. If it was still my dedicated HD choice, I would have upgraded it with an AP micro and a Knoxx stock by now.

The pump shotgun with a side saddle, light and #1 or 00 buck is hard to beat in terms of capability for the price. Stepping up to any carbine is gonna cost you some coin.

 

[JohnKSa]

My guess is that the 12ga shotgun has declined in popularity as a home defense weapon.

I think that people who already tend to have guns for reasons other than (or additional to) home defense are likely to use a shotgun for home defense. They are fairly likely to have a shotgun (most likely a 12ga) if they hunt or shoot for recreation and they will realize it is a good choice for home defense. Why buy a pistol if you already have a shotgun.

In times past when hunting was very common and needing a gun for pest control was a frequent reality, I imagine that having a 12ga shotgun to serve all those purposes was also very common.

I think that people who don't already have/use guns for other reasons (e.g. hunting, recreation), and who are looking for a gun exclusively for home defense, will be more likely to choose a pistol than a long gun.

I think people choose pistols for home defense over long guns because:

• Pistols are small and easy to store unobtrusively.
• They see the police using pistols and figure they must be a good choice for self-defense.
• They see pistols being used in movies and on TV for self/home defense.
• There is a certain "cool factor" to pistols that isn't quite there for shotguns.
• They offer the possibility of being easily carried on the person or in the car if the need should arise.

Add to that the fact that black rifles have become more common and more mainstream and it's likely that some folks who would have chosen a 12ga shotgun 50 years ago will choose an AR type platform today if they are willing to go to a long gun for home defense.

 

[ZZZ]

I'm not knocking anyone's choice, I'd just prefer to use a shotgun than some high dollar piece. You will lose it. I have no reserves about using a shotgun, it'll work just as well as anything else for someone who's comfortable using it and doesn't endanger anyone because it's cheaper or the fact it's a shotgun. In the end though, kiss it good bye for a while. The important thing is to have a plan and be ready to execute that plan with whatever weapon you choose, just like you would when planning for a fire.

 

[200Apples]

.
Since "HD gun" is part of the thread topic, I'm dropping this here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c71cGMb6sU&feature=player_detailpage

I always like listening to Sheriff Jim Wilson's easy style...

 

[hatt]

The question was about versatility and not effectiveness and clearly just by their nature they are more versatile.

About what I figured. I'll concede that the shotgun has much more ability to add gimmicks and nonsense.

 

[Walkalong]

Around these parts, shotguns are still very popular. I like to keep one in the buggy when puttering around the property.

 

[Jason_W]

.
Since "HD gun" is part of the thread topic, I'm dropping this here.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5c71cGMb6sU&feature=player_detailpage

I always like listening to Sheriff Jim Wilson's easy style...

Not that standard ammo isn't tried and true, but a lever gun in .44 mag loaded with 8-10 of these would be pretty formidable.

http://www.lehighdefense.com/collec...mington-magnum-280gr-multiple-projectile-ammo

I'll file them under interesting but pricey for now.

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

I own multiple AR's and Mini-14's but a short shotgun is what lives behind the bedroom door for HD purposes--along with a hi-cap 9mm by the bed.

I can hit speeding birds and blue rock at 35yds and hardly ever miss-----a human sized target at 15 ft doesn't stand a chance---seriously

 

[rust collector]

It seems likely that shotguns, though effective as ever, don't receive as much publicity as handguns that never miss on TV and tactical carbines, so aren't as prevalent in this arena as they once were.

We can argue what's best indefinitely, but your best choice will usually be what you are most familiar with and have most confidence in.

Practice and training are most important in my book, but a lot tougher to get than simply buying a new black gun with a toothy muzzle device.

 

[Cee Zee]

In times past when hunting was very common and needing a gun for pest control was a frequent reality, I imagine that having a 12ga shotgun to serve all those purposes was also very common.

Those things are still common where I live. They have been my entire life. I tend to do less varmint control with a shotgun than my father would have done but he was big into shotguns. Quail hunting was his thing. I've ate a bunch of quail flavored with bird shot. My teeth still hurt. We were taught to hunt squirrels with a shotgun but we learned to use a .22 for that job pretty early in our lives.

We killed plenty of varmints when I was a kid and I kept right on doing it as an adult. Feral dogs and cats are the biggest problem. Feral dogs kill people so they have to go. A pack of feral dogs killed a woman about 2 miles from my dad's house in fact. People worry about bears on here and if you live in certain places that's a good idea I guess but feral dogs are a far bigger problem.