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Mossberg 590 Shock Wave

Just remember guys ... Bird shot for home defence is useless LOL I sure wouldn't want to take one of those hits.

Agreed, I wouldn`t want to walk into a load of that! I`m fairly confident that in close quarters (0 to 21ft.) and in most home invasion scenarios one or two well placed loads of this 7.5 shot will stop the threat or inspire them to unass the area....

In this video I`m firing the same load from 14ft in a sitting position, my point of aim are 5 playing cards....

 
I dropped by the local Walmart yesterday to see what all they had available and opted for a box of #6 instead of the #4 mostly because of cost....a box of 25 #4 was about $12.50 and the #6 was $7.50.​

The #6 was cutting a hole about 2.5 to 3" from about 14ft. I didn`t notice much more recoil than you would feel with a 7.5 shot. Most definitely a viable HD option for the SW in close quarters, next time out I`ll step off 21ft and see how it patterns for there.​

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Not telling you what to do at all, but I have skinned rabbits and squirrels that have been shot with everything from #4-#9, and while it killed small game, it's hard not to notice all of the pellets that failed to fully penetrate even a squirrel at distance.

Granted that I am aware you're talking much less than 20-30 yards like I would normally be within while hunting, I think I'd rather save the bird shot for the birds. There's a lot to be said about mass.

Would you rather be hit from a swinging golf ball on a string, or be hit with a big wrecking ball at the same distance?
 
Not telling you what to do at all, but I have skinned rabbits and squirrels that have been shot with everything from #4-#9, and while it killed small game, it's hard not to notice all of the pellets that failed to fully penetrate even a squirrel at distance.

Granted that I am aware you're talking much less than 20-30 yards like I would normally be within while hunting, I think I'd rather save the bird shot for the birds. There's a lot to be said about mass.

Would you rather be hit from a swinging golf ball on a string, or be hit with a big wrecking ball at the same distance?

Roger that! If I was in the field I would be sportin` a heavier load and maybe a slug or two in the saddle but my SW is used primarily for HD in close quarters (0 to 21ft). I live in a rural setting so over penetration is not a concern to me and my hands are still relatively in good shape so they hold up well under a full load of 00 buckshot. My favorite load is Federal`s 2 3/4" 9 pellet 00 Power Shok, recoil is manageable and it patterns well.

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Buckshot VS Birshot for HD? My thinkin` is that a 2" hole is a 2" hole no matter the load, the question is can it cut through the 2" of meat and bone to get to the heart? I`m fairly certain that a load of bird shot in close quarters delivered to the t zone will turn out the lights....

My advice is to test multiple loads from different distance equal to those in your home and choose a load that you are confident and comfortable with and practice!
 
What type of shells you use for HD depends on the type of intruder you anticipate (two legged and/or four legged) and the weather conditions! Lot of difference if you're encountering a two legged predator wearing a t-shirt vice one wearing a heavy coat over both a shirt and t-shirt. Or even over a sweater.

Don't know your location but before choosing a HD round I'd test against the worst conditions (and the worst threat) you might possibility encounter. Maybe pull out a couple of old heavy winter coats and see if your test rounds will penetrate them with authority. Head shots are great but sometimes you don't have that opportunity and must shoot the torso.

If you have the potential for four legged predators then that's a totally different situation.

Just some food for thought.

Regards
 
What type of shells you use for HD depends on the type of intruder you anticipate (two legged and/or four legged) and the weather conditions! Lot of difference if you're encountering a two legged predator wearing a t-shirt vice one wearing a heavy coat over both a shirt and t-shirt. Or even over a sweater.

Don't know your location but before choosing a HD round I'd test against the worst conditions (and the worst threat) you might possibility encounter. Maybe pull out a couple of old heavy winter coats and see if your test rounds will penetrate them with authority. Head shots are great but sometimes you don't have that opportunity and must shoot the torso.

If you have the potential for four legged predators then that's a totally different situation.

Just some food for thought.

Regards

Leather jackets can be pretty hard to penetrate also. BUT, if you hammered a man at 10 -15 feet with 5 rounds of #4 birdshot it would hurt LOL
 
I ran some Fiocchi 2 3/4" low recoil 00 buck through the SW this morning. I was getting about a 3.5" spread at 21ft....I get these in a box of 80 box (.62¢ per shell) from SGAmmo.com here in Oklahoma. It shoots soft, hits hard and patterns well in close quarters!
 

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I was able to get in a little trigger time before the excessive heat kicked in. I have several of boxes of NSI mini buck (2 1/4" 6 pellet 00 - 1250 fps) so today I decided to put some on paper, these were giving me about a 4" spread at 21ft with zero ftf. At 2 1/4" these do not require the OPSol adaptor and in my opinion perform better than the Aguila mini shells. I give about $8 for a box of 10 from SGAmmo.com here in Oklahoma.

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Moving up the bird shot chain just a bit with some 4 shot. My target is a 6.5" crosshair printed on typical 8"X10" copy paper. I was putting two loads on each target and as expected with birdshot the recoil is light and at 21` I was getting about... well, I rekon it beats a sharp stick!

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Would not want to get hit by it but it didn't seem to hold the group like the video I posted ??? Wonder if the gun he was using had a Full Choke
 
Friday`s fun was a run of Hornady`s 2 3/4" 8 pellet 00 and American Whitetail 1oz slugs....I was putting 1 load of buckshot and 1 slug on each target and got just about the same results each time, the buckshot give me about a 3.5" spread at 28ft and the slug was just for grins! The buckshot is hot but doable and those slugs have more kick than I`m comfortable with through the SW but the both will without a doubt stop the threat. We're doomed! We're all gonna die, man! Game over, man! -Private Hudson

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Sorry, I just couldn't resist.

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Take this anecdotal story for what it’s worth. Maybe very little as it’s just my experience and hardly empirical.

We have barn cats. There are also plenty of feral cats. As you would expect, we end up with a couple liters of kittens each year.

Among the litters, we’ve had several very sick kittens. Two died al on their own. A couple others were bad off enough that I put them down.

In each instance, I used a 3” turkey magnum. It put them down. Lights out immediately.

But here’s the salient point;
The kittens were maybe 3 months old. The shot, while lethal to a kitten weighing around a pound, did not penetrate at 15 feet. Nothing in either case went all the way through.

There are plenty of photos of people hit with birdshot. Plenty of nasty wounds. I have no idea how many fatalities. And on top of that, there’s enough evidence that even low recoil (lower velocity) buckshot won’t penetrate layers at distance. To be fair we’re talking about distances greater than what would be encountered in a home.
 
I only recall a single instance of a man killed with birdshot during a home invasion. And to be fair about it, the elderly home owner was inside of a closet when the burglar opened the door.

I don't think you could get any more point blank than whatever distance his closet was. I don't recall it being any sort of walk in closet or anything.

I'm not telling anyone what to do.

But I'm not going to use birdshot on a home invader. Play time is over if I ever had to defend myself and family. They automatically get the big stuff. Pass go, do not collect $200, straight to the big stuff.

I guess I need to be honest and forthcoming, my first grab isn't a shotgun. It's a 45acp loaded up with 14 rounds of 230 gr xtp hollow points handloaded a little on the warm side, and if I have my druthers, it would be my suppressed blackout with 194 gr Lehigh maximum expansions, also hand loads. So, I don't really guess that I have a real opinion to give.

Shotguns are fine. I just have slightly different needs and demands at this time.
 
John, totally agree with you regarding the "non use" of birdshot for HD. As I pointed out above in post #868 I'd recommend anyone planning to utilize a shotgun (or even a pistol) for HD try out their selected rounds for penetration through various layers of seasonal clothing.

To me, the selection between a shotgun, a rifle, or a pistol is really dictated by the layout of your house and your planned response to a threat. Lots of difference between a barricade strategy vice a room by room clearing response or something in between. IMO, effective room by room clearing really requires a minimum of two fully trained people. Is you wife or significant other adequately trained to assist in room by room clearing? Plus what type of weapon are they trained to use? If you have children do they know what they are suppose to do in case of a threat situation?

The other issue to take into account is the normal response time by local authorities. I suspect many of us live in areas where a 30 to 60 minute response by a single deputy sheriff at 2 AM would be the norm.

A well thought out response strategy or more appropriately different strategies for day or night situations will tend to dictate the best weapon(s) and ammo to utilize for your unique situation. If affordable, multiple weapon types are probably the best solution. Choices are good!

Plus, depending where you live, don't forget about the four legged threats. The news lately has been full of bear and mountain lions house invasions.

Regards
 
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