For my home defense shotgun, should I keep a shell in the chamber or only chamber it when invaded?
610286
no.it only takes a second to chamber a round and the KA-CHUNK is a scary sound that everybody knows the meaning of. in some states you are better off shooting someone that your are working them over with a baseball bat since the issue of how many blows were enought and did you use too many can come up. 3 rounds center of mass may be overkill but is not generally held to be over the line. a side comment- an unloaded long gun can be a nasty weapon in the right hands. find a grunt and have in teach you the basic strikes he learned in boot camp. a butt stroke to the head or guts will end things pretty well. then you can claim you decided not to shoot the dumb SOB but just wacked him because all you wanted to do was protect yourself. tough to sue somebody for letting you live
232947
Are you handloading or is this commercial ammo? Generally when the brass gets stuck in the chamber it's because your ammo is too hot. If you're handloading, back down on your powder charge 10% or so. If it's commercial ammo, find another brand.
755380
Bound's hubby here:\n\nFirst and foremost ... DO NOT SHOOT IT!\n\nDamascus trwist barrels are not safe to shoot with modern smokeless gunpowder shells!\n\nNow, looking for your hammer ... try Numrich Arms at the link below!
419750
Guns in the home - for WHAT?\n<\nGuns for hunting or target shooting?\nSure - what's the problem? Learn to use them responsibly. If you're worried that they'll fall into unauthorized hands, keep them disassembled and locked in a safe.\n<\nGuns for personal protection? Well now, that requires that they be accessible. There are still ways to keep them safe, such as quick-acccess keypad vaults. A household with children or irresponsible adults might indicate the use of such a vault. I liken keeping a defense gun to keeping a fire extinguisher. You fervently hope that you'll never need to use it, but if you DO need it you're gonna need it  REAL BAD and RIGHT NOW.  Proper application may well keep a small problem from turning into a major disaster.\nOnly you can decide if you'd rather have the means to protect your family from aggresive criminals or would prefer to grovel and beg for mercy. It seems an easy choice to me.\n<\nGuns as a hedge against tyranny?\nYou've heard the cycnical version of the "Golden Rule" that says "The people with the gold make the rules" haven't you?\nWell, the old curmudgeon's rule is "The people with the GUNS make the rules." If we intend to remain a free people - the people who make the rules - we must remain armed. If we avoid that responsibility we'll inevitably end up being RULED by our government instead of served by it.\nIn the end, it's an easy question - Do you value your freedom?
708475
In a word, Yes and No.  Slugs are designed to be shot out of a smooth bore shotgun and folks have been doing it for years.  The steel barrels are much harder than the soft lead used in the slug so the slug will deform when pushed down the barrel, not the other way around.  You will get better accuracy with a more open barrel due to less deformity of the slug but it can not hurt the barrel. However, Winchester does not recommend shooting slugs through a full choke but does recommend using a modified choke.  I suspect that this is more about accuracy than damage to the gun.
464629
First get some firearms training.  DO NOT use bullets for shotguns would be dangerous.  Shotguns use shell\n\nWall Mart has some affordable shotgun shells
427792
I disagree to some extent with the previous answers to your question.  They fact that the shell will be left with identifying marks from the firing pin or shell extractor are correct and will be found regardless of the type of shotgun used - single shot, pump, semi-auto.  How ever there are other traceable factors related directly to the projectile or "bullet".  \n\nFirst, virtually any projectile(s) shot from the gun will be encased in a "wad" or sabot which will come into direct contact with the inside of the barrel.  Each barrel has marks and scratches unique to that individual gun.  While a shotgun barrel may look shiny and smooth, it is full of micro scratches and ridges that leave a pattern on anything coming into contact with it as the projectile is shot though. These scratches and marks will transfer to the wad, shot cup or sabot and can be compared to the barrel for a definitive match.  You do not have to have any rifling in a barrel to make this identification, the tiny scratches and ridges are the same as used to trace a projectile to a rifled barrel.\n\nSecondly, a plain slug shot through ha shotgun barrel will have these traceable markings imprinted on the slug itself and any gas checks or wadding behind it.  While the sabot, wadding or shot cup normally separate from the projectile before impact with the target, the imprinted slug will found at or near the target itself.  Even so, the wads, shot cups and sabots are routinely recovered and used to identify the shotgun that fired them and in criminal cases to convict the shooter.  I have been involved in many case where this was enough evidence to convict a defendant charged with anything from poaching to murder.  \n\nAlso certain characteristics of a barrel left on objects fired from it can lead investigators to determine what brand, type  or even age of gun they probably came from.  The myth that a shotgun barrel leaves little or no traces on a projectile is simply not at all true.
35805
With all due respect to bobo, guns fire just fine underwater - just make sure the entire barrel is flooded with water and that your bullets aren't hollowpoint so they don't expand in the barrel.\n\nDoing that will really screw up your gun, but the cartridge will fire unless it has water inside. Metallic cartridges make their own oxygen as they combust; they'd work just fine in outer space minus the loud noise.
474430
heat from your chamber wall
844199
It's only dangerous if you're over pressuring the shotgun, some shotgun slugs are high pressure( magnum) and some shotguns aren;t capable of handling the extra pressure, if you have a newer, good condition shotgun that can handle 3" shells, then yes, slugs should be fine in it, as long as you have the correct barrel and/or choke to shoot slugs with, the action of the gun shouldn't dictate what type of ammo(slug v/s shot) you can safely fire.
547772
yes \nit is good one/almost all [38];s are good and reliable.\n when was the last time you shot it? did you zero it in?.\n     if so you have a good weapon and if i were you i would keep it.
1141618
I have found for my gun which is a mossberg 500 slugster that rifled federals work the best.  I have had problems with winchesters. they jammed up my gun.  Don't use sabots unless you have a rifled barrel
873416
what is your point (Loudest)?? I am under the impression that a 12 gauge shot sound would be the same if you fired a slug or buckshot..or bird shot for that matter..Wouldn't the sound be determined by the amount/weight of the load..and commerically I think they are all the same for the type of round you get..Good question..maybe I'll got out today and see which of the 3 types of shots are the loudest..Good Luck
378773
Great Question!!!!\nits a good sting if the ball doesn't break. If it does break you barely notice it. It all depends on what PSI the guns will be shooting at. If your at a commercial location they usually regulate that stuff. I always go with a long sleeve shirt and jeans. Just make sure you have a mask, and if not a mask, at least eye protection.
496751
Well, if you spin the barrel again then the odds of my brains being splattered on the opposite wall are at 1 in 3.  (2 bullets in 6 chambers)\n\nBut if you don't spin the barrel, I'm feeling a bit better because my chances of survival rise to 75%.  Why?  Well, since the bullets are in adjacent chambers, there's only one bullet that I have to worry about - the one that might (or might not) be in the next chamber.  However, since there are four empty chambers, and since only one of those empty chambers is followed by a chamber with a bullet in it, there is only a 1 in 4 chance that the wall gets a fresh coat of paint.\n\nI say, don't spin it - I'll press my luck.
346881
Around 20 to 30 pounds, based upon my understanding of declassified nuclear weapons design.\n\nLet's use an implosion design, not a gun design, as implosion is smaller.\n\nSo, use about a pound or two of uranium, about 10 pounds of high explosive, about 10 pounds of shielding & guts, and there you are!\n\nA suitcase nuke (yield of about 50kt) would fit into a small suitcase. It has been documented that the Soviets kept one in their embassy in DC for detonitation in case of a nuclear WWIII.
598571
i use CB caps for what you are doing.  it's a regular long rifle case with just primer and a smaller bullet.  CCI makes them, and i bought a brick from cabelas.  it shoots a 20 grain bullet at about 900 fps, no noise either.  i can hear the hammer fall.