But for the average person, it’s just a pipe dream to ever imagine owning one. You probably already know what a gauge is (if not, we have a quick primer here), but selecting the right gauge for your intended shotgun use is really just the beginning.There are two other factors at play: choke and shot size. A 12 gauge shotgun with a cylinder bore 18 inch barrel and a stout load of #4`s is an excellent choice for home defense. How often does one need to shoot down a door in a home defense scenario? Shotguns are terrifically versatile firearms, suitable for everything from shattering clay pigeons, to putting food on your table, to protecting your home. Does Your Home Defense Shotgun Need a Choke? One gun you may want to look at is he Hawk 982. Don't think you need to change it unless you want to hunt or shoot trap (the skeet choke is obviously good for skeet … Self defense does not only exist inside the four walls of the largest room in the house. An improved cylinder is most effective from 20 to 35 yards. If yours was threaded to accept a choke, shooting the gun with no choke would likely destroy the threads, necessitating a new barrel. this is why i advocate testing out a SD shotgun to see exactly what it does at different ranges and especially at the ranges it would be used at. Whether a single projectile can be passed through a choke designed for tightening birdshot patterns. The pattern at 20 feet with a load of 4`s is devastating. As shotguns are also used for firing singular projectiles, a natural question arises. Shotguns have many uses. From sporting clays to home defense has varied purposes. The choke is open cylinder, well suited for home defense but not for hunting at anything past 20 yards with birdshot. Enter the Mossberg Maverick 88 Shotgun: essentially the same gun, but at an affordable price. Shotgun barrels come with either fixed (non-removable) chokes or today's more popular interchangeable screw-in choke tubes that let hunters quickly and easily change chokes to match changing shooting conditions. and different ammo can pattern differently. 2 1. eferrell01. HKguns - “If you're looking for confirmation you need a breaching choke it looks like you're not going to get it from many here. this is strictly my opinion, but most SD uses of a HD shotgun are usually acted at very short ranges is why most are not fitted with screw-in choke tubes. That said, slugs or either 00 or 000 buckshot are better choices. We are speaking here of a meat getter, predator eliminator and home defense gun. If a person wanted to consider a less lethal option, a rubber slug is less likely to kill a person — though a headshot would likely be able to turn the trick — but will hurt a lot. So no, your shotgun doesn't need a choke. Winchester’s #3 buckshot load offers a formidable choice for home defense . Common lore suggests that a shotgun’s pattern spreads 1 inch per yard of distance traveled from a cylinder bore, but, true to form, I’ve seen plenty of 00-buck loads hold tighter. Chokes are used by those wanting either tighter or more spread patterns to their shot. For instance, a full choke is most effective at 40 to 50 yards. I am not willing to restrict myself to "I will only fire inside my house" or "Only at a threat in the same room" either. Have one and its a lot of gun for the money. Shoot some buck through a full choke at 10 yards and then a cylinder choke and decide for yourself. The skeet choke sit between a cylinder bore and improved cylinder. Most of the shells fired have been Winchester’s 7½ birdshot. It has a fixed cylinder bore, which means that it does not constrict the shot at the muzzle. GarrettJ, Nov 14, 2015 #18. As would be a load of smaller buckshot. Your 18" shotgun is intended to be used for home defense. The choke you have would be great for a home defense shotgun. Typically you will carefully make a box or two of ammo last for as long a time as possible, especially if your ammo re-supply is a great distance away. Instead, you take what you need for the day and to get you back home. I have to chuckle when I see an ad for a "home defense" shotgun, featuring a breaching attachment.