Deer hunters use a slug barrel. Street legal short and has sights built in. Recognized as a sporting gun. A semi auto shotgun doesn't short stroke. Reliability is superb, and you can use slugs, buck, or heavy bird shot effectively at close range. The wood stock makes for smooth head strokes. Most shotguns wounds are messy. Lots of blood and chewed up tissue, hard to heal and leaves a descent blood trail.DamnYankee wrote:It occurs to me that a short barreled shotgun would be an ideal hd weapon. Find an older 870 Wingmaster in decent shape for $200-300. Replace springs and such for $25 if inclined. Tax stamp for $200. Cut the barrel off near the end of the magazine.Viola! Have a gunsmith put a high viz sight or a simple post sight and paint it with siteglow or similar product if you like. Lots of cheap aftermarket support for various sling mounts and rails for flashlights.
Drawbacks? Still have the potential short stroke possibility? Get some 12 ga snap caps and rack them 5 gagillion times in a row. Makes the action that much smoother and builds muscle memory.
I suppose the NFA related legal shenanigans would ensue were you to kill or injure an assailant, but perhaps that is a secondary concern?
In an emergency, you are not going to notice recoil and will probably empty the weapon faster than you planned. Police would probably react better to hearing that you used your deer gun to defend the house, rather than a semi auto pistol cartridge carbine that looks like a war weapon and has a 10 pound magazine.
An added advantage is that practice on sporting clays is lots of fun and has a moving target. I do like shotguns.