Gun Help Please?

Question

Ok, I made my decision to go with the Remington 870 12 gauge pump shotgun for hunting and home defense. (I live in Kansas)

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=4665590

Is the 20" barrel good for home defense and hunting? I am going hunting with my friends and not exactly sure what they will be hunting, most likely a mix of different animals. Anyway, I thought that I could just use a barrel for home defense, and when I go hunting I can purchase a seperate barrel and just change them accordingly. What would be a good size barrel if the 20" is too short for hunting? What would be a good size barrel if the 20" is too long for home defense? And finally what other home defense/hunting accessories/ammo should I purchase while buying the gun? Thanks!

**EDIT**

I can get an 870 20" for $229 and by the 28" barrel seperate, or I can get the 870 28" for $199 and get the 20" barrel (or shorter) seperate. Which should I do?

Answer 1

an 18" barrel is ideal for home defense. limiting the bumping the gun into walls in the dark. the longer the better for hunting. 00 buckshot for home defence as well unless you live in an apartment, so that you wont shoo through the walls id recomend #7 birdshot if you do live in an apartment.

Answer 2

the 20" barrel is a good trade off for both home defense and hunting. The barrel is short enough that if used properly, and if you understand the limitations in close quarters, it works for home defense. I tuck mine at waist level with the stock more to the rear of me when moving around corners or tight spaces. I can shoot from there just fine, and with the addition of a forend mounted light, it works great for clearing rooms at night. As I enter a room, I bring it up to my shoulder in a ready position. Some people switch over to a pistol grip for home defense and a standard stock for hunting. If that works for you, great, it makes the gun more compact, I don't, I've fired it with a pistol grip and magnum shells on a cold day, it hurts like heck!! The 20" barrel is also just long enough to be OK for hunting. I use it for my home defense gun for just those reasons, plus, with the 20" barrel, you can have a longer mag extension and hold an extra round over the 18" barrel. It also works out well because I carry it when setting out the bait for bear hunting, nothing stops a bad bear faster than a shotgun slug at close range. I have taken deer, grouse, bear,ducks,pheasant and quail, all with the same shotgun, just plug off the mag tube so it only holds 2 rounds, plus one in the chamber for bird hunting to be legal. In my state, there is no restriction on how many rounds a weapon holds for big game hunting, but some states do. So check you regs.

Answer 3

The suggestion (by Randkl) to cut down an extra 28" barrel for home defense is actually a good idea. Just don't have it cut down to a length that would render your shotgun illegal. You would want to reduce it by 8 to 10 inches only; an 18 n 1/2" barrel, to be safe.

Best.

H

Thanks Randkl! I'll probably be doing this myself!

H

Answer 4

Either of the combinations you listed will be just FINE! The 20" barrel is good for Deer and Home Defense, and the other barrel for Hunting...You have all the bases covered by buying either one with an extra barrel.GREAT CHOICE by the way! You will not be sorry.........

Answer 5

Yes, the 20" barrel is excellent for home defense. You could also do well with it hunting . Try hunting with the 20" barrel before you go out and spend the money. You may surprise yourself on what that barrel can actually do out in the field.

Answer 6

If that is the case, buy the shotgun w/a 28" barrel and then buy a 18" barrel separately for home defense.

Answer 7

Buy the longer barrelled gun....guns with longer barrels tend to go quite a bit less than shotguns with shorties. Then, buy another longer barrel and have it cut short.

A 28" plain barrel will cost you half what a shorty will and, once cut down, will leave you with a thicker, stronger barrel. There's enough extra steel there that you can even have it cut for a choke....makes a terrific turkey gun!

A cut down 28" beats a factory 20" any day!

Answer 8

It should be ok for hunting(see link below) . As for home defense it might be a little long. If you wanted to fix that you could get a folding stock. Try cabelas for a few good ones or maybe a pistol grip (i wouldn't recommend the pistol grip for hunting). As for ammo probably 00 buck for home defense and then whatever shells would be best for the game your hunting. Changing barrels might be a solution, but will probably become a pain in the @ss.

Folding stock:

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0031398227336a&type=product&cmCat=search&returnPage=search-results1.jsp&QueryText=folding+stock&N=4887&Ntk=Products&Ntx=mode+matchall&Nty=1&Ntt=folding+stock&noImage=0
(this stock will fit your gun)

This is a good site for different barrel length and ammo:

http://www.internetarmory.com/shotgun_hunting.htm

See if any of your friends have a 20" in barrel and/or a 28" and see which you like. If not buy the 20 and see if you like it for hunting. if not buy a new 28 for hunting.

Answer 9

Why even buy another barrel?* We are only talking about 8 to 10" difference here.* It doesn't make any sense to buy another barrel.*

Answer 10

28" for hunting
depends on what you are hunting. 71/2 in for birds Buckshot and slugs for Deer.

Home defense. 20" is fine. Buckshot for defense.