When my wife's parent's had a standard poodle that came with her when we got married.

A buddy of mine would tease the crap out of me for having a "foo foo" dog- until he got drunked up
and came strolling in my back door one evening. She went after him and had him backed up out the door
when she realized who it was and stopped.

He stopped teasing me after that.

I always want the lowest cost, most reliable tool for the job. Those Benellis look good, but I bet they aren't cheap.

For home protection shotguns, I recommend the "youth model" Mossburg 500 .410 pump. At $239, they are the best bargain in a reliable shotgun. They made a near identical model in a Home Defender line last year, but it seems to have been dropped from the lineup. I suspect it's because of the .410 that most gun nuts think is wimpy. I can tell you it doesn't sound wimpy, but it doesn't kick like a 12 gauge either.

Supposedly a .410 hits as hard as a handgun at shorter distances. I will tell you it will knock a pretty clean hole through a 2x4 at about 40 feet. The only downside is .410 shells cost more than 12 gauge.

Mossburg makes the same gun in 12 gauge, and it's the one issued to US marines - so you know it is reliable. If your really gotta have a 12, it's only a few dollars more.

I priced Benellis yesterday.
Thier Nova pump gun runs shy of $400, but the M4 is upwards of $1500.

I have found the Mossy 500 and Rem 870 to be great pump guns. You can get low velocity rounds that won't kick too bad.

The M4s are expensive. You can also pick up an M1 Super 90 or Beretta 1201FP for about half the cost of an M4S90. I have a Mossberg 500 and hope to get a chance to shoot it this week.
Big 5 is a great supplier for the Mossberg 500 and they can sometimes be had with two barrels in the event you might want to use it for sporting purposes.

The M4's ARE expensive, but the Ultralite will break the 1500 mark too when I order a slug barrel. While certainly not intended for home defense, I thought I'd through in my 2 cents on Benelli. VERY well built, balanced and simple.

I have a 1930's Remington Model 31 Sportsman 12 GA that was passed down to me 20 years ago that I used for hunting everything. That will get passed down too.

Another oldie shotgun that I like is the Ithaca 37. I may pick up one of those too, if I can find a "low mileage" one.

Sorry for the topic drift. Good story, 2Suns!

While we're drifting cny, my mom has a Ithaca M-37 20ga in the featherlite version....super nice bird gun that weighs next to nuthin'.

Also, regarding the "little" .410, if I remember corectly the impact energy of a 3" load at a close distance of 5 yards or so is about the same as a .44 Special...

with revolvers does anyone have preferences over ... moon clips, speed loaders, or just insert each individual round ?

Depends on the application. But generally, speed loaders IMO.

I have not posted in a while, but feel compelled to do so.

For anyone who decides upon a firearm in the home, I recommend you read a book by a gentleman named Massad F. Ayoob, entitled
"In the gravest extreme; The role of the firearm in personal protection". It is available at Amazon.com, and I am sure in other places, also.
The text, and especially pictures, are a bit dated, but the information is outstanding.
It talks about the choice of weapon, the moral dilemma imposed if you ever have to use it, what to expect from law enforcement, etc. It is mandatory reading for the gun owner.
He does not rely on any Macho crap or politics, just facts from many years of experience in Law Enforcement and firearms training.
Do yourself a favor, read the book!
By the way, I am a "Wheelgun" man. I like the tradition and unmatched reliability of a revolver. My weapon of choice is a vintage S&W Model 10-4 in .38 Special. Safe, reliable, and effective.

flriverrat, amen to your suggestion. I have been through two of Mas' classes and have read that book.

I also like your choice of guns. Nothing quite like the simplistic revolver in .38.

On the VERY few occasions when I ever carry a gun, this is my favorite of all the guns I own. It's an early S&W Model 60 in .38 Special. While I was doing the gunsmithing
for the police department I 'played around' with this one a bit.

It now sports a bobbed hammer (to make bringing it out of concealment easier), an orange front sight inlay (more for looks than a real purpose),
a polished trigger face (makes fast double action shooting more accurate), and a very nicely polished action.

The holster is an old Uncle Mike's Sidekick fabric holster with a belt clip on the opposite side.



I carried this gun for many years in an ankle holster and/or an "inside the pants" holster. It has probably 15,000 rounds through it and still is in top notch shape.

I spent some time in the 'Brown Water Navy'. The rest of the navy was carrying a 1911, and as I remember the gov't was experimenting with a 9MM Baretta as a sidearm. We carried a S&W or Ruger .38 revolver, the theory being it would be exposed to a harsh marine environment, and be easier to maintain and clean, and still fire after almost any calamity that may befall us.
We had all the cool stuff aboard, marine grade shotguns, M16's, M60's, .50 cal BMG's, Mk. 19 Grenade Launchers, 20 MM deck guns, miniguns from 5.56 to 20 milimeter. The 5.56 fired 6K rounds a minute! Our biggest weapon, aside from an 81 MM mortar, was a Gyro-compensated 40MM automatic cannon. All on a 65' boat! Fun times.
I miss the Cold War, turns out it was the good old days!