i know there a lot of brands out there like mossberg, remington, fn & benelli.  which semi-auto shotgun to get for home defense?  pros and cons?  should i go cheap or save up for the benelli? 

None.  Get a pump.

None.  Get a pump.

Ditto that. For reliability, I'd get a pump.

Not to pimp my wares, but my benelli is still up for sale....
 

http://2ahawaii.com/index.php?topic=2230.0

i already have a pump.  ok what semi-auto. shotgun to have just incase zombies invade this world.

If zombies are your worry, you need to go belt fed...

!

Too many jams with belt fed

OK I tell this to everyone who cheaps out on SD or HD.  If this is truly to defense yourself and your family, why are you cheaping out?  Get the most dependable firearm..........PERIOD.

Anywho...........GZ isn't a real shotgun guy, so I dunno.

I've got a Rossi Coach Gun; SXS, exposed hammers, 2 triggers.  Tres cool, and if there's something that just doesn't want to go down, I can pull both triggers at the same time.

I've got a Rossi Coach Gun; SXS, exposed hammers, 2 triggers.  Tres cool, and if there's something that just doesn't want to go down, I can pull both triggers at the same time.

There's a lot to be said about a coach gun for HD.  The exposed hammers mean you can cock it when you mean business, and decock it otherwise.  No possibility of spring fatigue, ever.  Pick one in 20 gauge or even 16 gauge, and you have something that the recoil is light enough for small-framed people to manage effectively.  Operation couldn't be simpler.

Sure, you only have 2 shots.  But, statistically, that's 1 more than you're going to need in a home invasion.  Honestly, bad guys do not stick around to indulge in firefights. 

That being said, I have a Browning semi-auto in 20 gauge.  I do not use it for HD, just for clays.  But it has never, and I literally mean never, malfunctioned on me in 30 years of use.  I have had a couple of ammo malfunctions, and one time I put the recoil system together wrong, but that was user error, not a malfunction on the gun's part. 

Are you looking for box mag or tube?

I'm with Tom on this one.

Semi auto shotguns are reliable.

I have 2 11-87's that have never failed to go boom whenever I pull the trigger. One of them I've had for 20+ years.

I'll have one of the 11-87's at the range this weekend.   

I'm with Tom on this one.

Semi auto shotguns are reliable.

Yeah, I get a little twitchy when people say that pumps are preferable to semis because of reliability, at least when speaking of shotguns.  I've been into competitive clays in the past, and followed the careers of some of the world's top shotgunners.  Not avidly, you understand, but in passing.  People who break thousands upon thousands of clays without a miss.  People who throw 10 clays in the air 1-handed, and hit them all.  People whose reputation and livelihood depend on a combination of reliable equipment and finely-honed skills.

And you know what?  They don't shoot pumps. 

Sure, some of the trick shooters, like Tom Knapp, will use pumps for part of their show.  But for the jaw-droppingly impressive feats, the semi is always in their hands.

I don't say this to disparage pumps.  I like pumps, and were I to use a shotgun for HD, it would either be a coach gun or a pump.  But I would make that choice because I can keep a coach gun condition 2, or a pump condition 3, indefinitely.  And I can unload either without having to run ammo through the chamber.  For a semi (at least, for a spring-recoil semi), that last part isn't really practical.

Of course, the Saiga changes everything.  That would also be a strong, strong contender for me, were I to contemplate the home shotgun approach.

Like Tom, I have used Remington 1100s in 12 and 20 ga for skeet and 3 gun matches.  Never had a problem, except when fed

crappy reloads.  Use factory Ammo = no problems.

If for the Wife, get her a 20 ga Youth model with recoil reduction.   It has a shorter stock.

Get her a spare 18 in plain barrel with BIG bead front sight.

She doesn't Have to shoot 00 or 000 buck.  She will be turned off by the sharp recoil.  Anything larger than BB would be OK for in house use.

Standard turkey loads maybe better for her to shoot when practicing and for Home use. 

Remember, the shot column wil Not spread that much given the distances INside the average home.

Also, unless you have shot pumps ALOT, it is easy under stress to Short Stroke a pump and have a malfunction that may lock up the gun

Having said that, I do recall a bad batch of WW skeet loads which kept loosing the base brass under extraction.  But, that happened to Both semi and pumps.

We had a pallet load to that to use up.......

I have a SPAS-12 (semi and pump) LAW-12 (semi) and SAS-12 (pump) so any will do so long as they're loaded. I do have a Saiga 12 but I'm still not used to loading that thing with the magazine full; I know it's an often mentioned complaint on the Saiga forums and there are the magwell adapters but I'll get to used to it eventually.

Just watched Impossible Shots on the Outdoor channel.(Oceanic 212) and other shooting spoerts

Semi auto shotguns are the way to go in Serious 3 gun matches.  If they weren't 100% reliable, no one would use them.

Just saw Jerry Miculek unload 22 rounds in 7+ seconds on 22 plates and 4 poppers.

Or 23 rounds in 4+ seconds on a steel plate.

That's just shy of an entire Box of shells....

Jerry is using this:  https://www.xrailbyrci.com/  Pricey, but worth it. 

Seems to be made for every major shotgun maker of any note.

And it will work on pump shotguns.

I guess if I were still shooting seriously and could afford it, I'd have  several Xrails on my shotties.

Definately worth looking at.

Pumps are good for HD. the racking of a pump gun should scare off most...

Rem. 870 for the win!

Mossberg also great!

H&R is cheap and based off the rem 870. bought one long barrel last week. Fired several shots. nice gun for the price. Short barrels for HD available.