Do those of you who own the mossberg 500, have a preference of ammo for it? I know some people say every individual gun likes what it likes but if I get a general consensus, then it would be a good start for me. Thanks
Stoke a shottie with whatever YOU like for YOUR defensive purposes. They don't seem to care what they eat unless you are getting finicky at (say) trap or skeet where it might make a difference. You are going to get a spread of advice regarding defensive loads, too. A search on this site will dig a lot of opinions out. My choice will not be your choice, my situation is probably dramatically different than yours. (Gotta admit I don't know your situation, so can't advise. My choice is not a shottie, by the way.) The general statement about a given gun liking a particular load is applicable to rifles and pistols, not necessarily for general use, but for particular needs as in target or game shooting. Rifles can be really picky when you are looking for quarter MOA groups. That said, unless you are handloading it won't be a big deal unless the rifle in question just won't hit a piece of paper.
I am a big double 00 fan but something you might want to try and our Sheriff Dept switched to is #4 buck. Works real well for indoor scatter. I load mine first #4 then slug then #4 then slug and so on. We call it combat load incase you have to do battle with a vehicle or wall. As far as it being and indoor defense weapon it's a 12 ga and just about anything is going to mess up the intruders weekend.
I would look no further than Federal with flight control LE132...there are other options, but that's the one I use and it prints the tightest pattern I've ever shot with 12ga...plus it's recoil reduced loads...this is IMO the very best 12ga ammo.
I read different; however, I also read the 9mm is inadequate for combat. My shotguns are still filled with #4; nor for that matter have I sold any 9s either. The disadvantage of a shotgun is reloading in a "firefight;" it is too slow. On the other hand not too many firefights in my future.
Uh, when I had one, flechettes were nice, gotta reload your own. Mine would, as reported eat anything even fishing weights attached to piano wire...spaced about 3 inches apart,,,nasty that. Indoors I used 6 shot or less, won't go through the dry wall and nail a person on the other side..
My Mossberg 500 Cruiser don't seem to care as long as I feed it the appropriate gauge shells. I keep a slug in the chamber followed by 3" Magnum Express 15 pellet 00 buck with the last shell to be fired being another slug. Sidesaddle holds 5 shells, 3 00bk & 2 more slugs. If I have to use it, I'll worry about fixing the drywall afterwards. Cuz if I'm using it, I want a hole in the BG big enough to see daylight thru in a hurry!!! By the way, Dragon's Breath isn't quite as good as you'd expect it to be, but is more that you thought you'd get. LoL Hmmmm.............just had a thought, seen tracers for dang near every other caliber there is, even .22LR. Wonder if there is any 12 Gauge Tracer Slugs!!!
Specialized Shotshell Ammunition Looks like these folks have anything you can dream up....including tracer rounds. $9 for 3 of them but it would be fun to see in flight.
No matter what you end up feeding it (except for the slugs) you should pattern it. Different loads in different barrel lengths and chokes will make a significant difference in how the shot is distributed...sometimes surprisingly so.
Everytime I see that "specialized ammo" I always picture what a prosecutor/lawyer would do with that in court.
My first thought when reading the initial post was, "what barrel and choke?" This makes a difference. Furthermore, each type of slug will likely fly a bit different. My Moss500 12g with 18.5" smooth bored, cylinder bore, is a used by multiple people in my family. My wifey is a dainty little thing and because of her overall strength and ability to control it, I use the 12 Gauge Centurion Mini 00 Buckshot 2". My stock magazine holds 6+1. The longest shot inside my home is 15 yards and that is a corner to corner shot, nothing behind it, so I'm not too worried about the pattern opening up a little too far. However, the pattern is about 1.5 Mom (Minute of man). The more likely full length shot is from outside my bedroom to garage door is 11 yards (again with nothing behind that door) and I can just about keep it all on a man sized torso. I keep three winchester rifled slugs and two 2.75" winchester 00 buck. As far as the comment about reloads with a pump gun. While there is not nearly as much bang for your buck compared to an ar mag change, a little practice goes a long ways with combat reloads on a pump gun. I don't want to sound like a magpul fanboy here, but Chris Costa makes some great points about it in the magpul dynamics video series on tactical shotgunning. Its definately worth a look. I took a lot away from that series.
I was mugged in Lowell Ma in 1993, I was shot 3 times from about 20 yards away with a 9mm. they hit hard and shattered my femur the other 2 went straight through me. Anyone who says 9mm isn't good enough is full of ****! I prefer 45ACP for the heavier round and stopping power, but the 9mm is great and you get more rounds... If you shoot a 9mm hollow point at a critical organ they are dying! As for shotgun ammo, I run with a Remington 870 super magnum, I really like the Federal brand. For my Glock 30 sub compact I use whatever I can get my hands on because in NH, 45ACP is always out of stock... My Ruger 22LR Semi, I just use the 333 round box of Winchester from Wally World.
Also there are advantages to a Shotgun too, here in NH you have to announce you have a gun to the Perp! Tell them you have a shotgun and will use it, then usually the perp will get scared.... You start across the house and he hears that Cha Cha of the loading a round usually they will bolt. Shotguns also with 00 buck can take out door knobs, walls, and hit multiple targets. Problem with Shottie is manueverability within the house without cramping your self into a corner or needing to hold the firearm up to turn corners.