Buffered 12 pellet is my favorite. If it's cheap, I might use something else for practice.

 

The higher pellet capacity is equal to the amount of sheetrock you will need to repair. Choose wisely Grasshopper !

 

.....and door frames.

 

I use 4 Buck in and around the house. Have you tried 4 Buck? Pellets are .24cal nominal. 25 or so pellets depending on who’s making them.

 

I was in the 12 gauge #4 Buck shot camp for 12 gauge HD before but for longer distances in the home (20’ +) , experts recommend #1 Buck shot as being the preferred all around shot size to insure adequate penetration of 12” to 13” minimum . The .30 cal size of #1 Buck shot will accomplish that while .24 cal #4 Buck shot becomes “iffy” on the minimum penetration depth for longer shots. Interesting to note that volumetriclly speaking , #1 Buck shot has a 30% greater payload than that of 00 (.33 cal) Buck shot *while still providing the important minimum penetration of 12” or greater . That is why you are seeing more and more of a push to promote #1 Buck shot versus the historical gold standard of 00 Buck shot for HD now as the best all around shot size for HD .

 

Doesn’t matter that much at HD ranges. I generally like #1, 2 or 4 depending on gauge. But if I’m not sure I go with standard 00.

And whatever recoil I can control well in what I’m shooting. Meaning that I usually avoid the heavy magnum loads unless I’m envisioning an outdoor situation and some type of dangerous 4-legged animal. In which case I want some type of 00 or 000.

I’d suggest you pattern your shotgun with the load you intend on using. Might find this surprising. In that at typical HD ranges you’re not looking at that much pellet spread — perhaps a large saucer to dinner plate size. And as you go to 25 yards some 00 really spreads out such that it’s greater than a standard man size target. Some doesn’t — notably the federal LE 00 tends to pattern tight in my guns.

 

00 buck for me.

 

What brand is that foregrip and handgrip? Does this company make buttstocks as well?

 

Pellet count for number 1 buck in a 2.75” shell is 16. Are you talking about mini shells?

Jim

 

No, but I have seen them loaded with 16 pellets. S&B has #1 Buck in 12 and 9 pellet counts, respectively. But I haven't seen any #1 Buck for sale with 16 pellets.

Free Shipping on Cheap & In-Stock 12 Gauge Ammo

 

This works well in my 590A1.

 

If I am going smaller than OO I want more pellets.

I like #4 27 pellet loads for indoors.

 

If I am going smaller than OO I want more pellets.

I like #4 27 pellet loads for indoors.

This is my choice indoors too but what ever you choose, pattern it at say 21ft. If taking it outdoors, 25y. Most riot chokes spread about 1” per yard. Some loads will center, some high, low left or right. The couple of #1 loads i patterned were not well centered & larger spreads. I also like #00 low recoil loads. Very tight uniform patterns.

 

Some of my shotguns seem to have tubes barely long enough to hold full capacity, so I'm always watching shell OAL. If the 9 pellet is shorter than the 12 pellet, I'm going with 9.
I have some s&b 12 pellet. I like it for range fun, but it's a little longer than average, and decreases my capacity by one round.

 

Federal, Winchester and others make 16 pellet 1 buck.

Jim

 

Federal, Winchester and others make 16 pellet 1 buck.

View attachment 1349346

Remington does too. I run Win or Rem. I stocked up when it was available and fairly cheap and just grab which is in reach. Winchester and Remington both use buffered shot which really helps patterning. I'd love for Federal to do another run of the #1 Fight Control buck.

 

I bought a case of Rio #1 buck in October at about 1/3 the price of US ammo. For home defense, I would go with an American brand.

This one has 16 pellets rated at 1325 fps:

Federal 12 Gauge F1271B Power-Shok Max Buck 2.75" 1 Buck Shot

Best price for Federal 12 Gauge F1271B Power-Shok Max Buck 2.75" 1 Buck Shot at Ammo Hero. 12 Gauge shells In stock & free shipping over $250.

ammohero.com

 

Available at local Walmart…
Check my previous thread in the forum.

 

16 pellet

 

Don’t suggest any Buckshot for home defense as ranges are very short measured in feet .
Suggest BB for home defense

 

#00 is the gold standard, if the military, police thought something was better they'd be running it. My gun and chokes at max. distance I would shoot in my house, all 8 pellets are inside a "standard" paper plate.

 

00B is the * Traditional * Standard .

4B is the * Traditional * next most common / recommend.

00B definitely doesn't suck . 4B has a couple Astrix behind it , but within its parameters is also good .

**

Generally speaking :

The goal of buckshot is to put the most pellets on target , in tight group , with appropriate penetration from each pellet .

In modern Era analysis , I could make a strong case of 1B actually being the best balance of maintaining 12 inch penetration out to maximum distance of keeping Torso ( or deer chest ) size patterns .

BUT , Modern Tactical Buckshot loads with hardened pellets , buffered , wads designed for tight patterns , are overwhelmingly offered in 00B . ( Federal catalogues an LE Flite Control in 1B . But I have Never seen any in the wild .)

I would prefer an 00B of the above type than a standard technology 1B .

 

With Buckshot at room distance you are shooting huge holes no dispersion of load ….. penetration thru Sheetrock into next room could be dangerous for beloved occupants.
Never liked Buckshot for tactical use because at longer distances as dispersion happens there is a lawyer behind each pellet in that 1 load.
Cylinder Choke was always the Gold Standard for Slugs and Fed Flight Control BS in Rem 870 18.5”. On Duty always used Slugs ! So for home use Penetration is a concern BB or Turkey / Coyote loads recommended.

 

The chance of getting into a shooing is pretty slim. I seriously doubt that using 00 of #1 or even #4 buck makes any difference

 

You really need to buy a couple boxes of each and go pattern them out of your shotgun to make the proper choice.

 

^^^
This !

Try some of each and see how YOUR gun patterns at the ranges YOU anticipate.

As long as it’s 12 gauge buckshot, at typical HD ranges, you’re not going to have a bad choice between 00, 1, 2 or 4. I’d stay away from birdshot. I’m a fan of the intermediate shot sizes (1,2) because these pattern well in both my 12 and 20. And either at shorter ranges has plenty of oomph.

If you’re anticipating longer range shots I’d have a look at the lower numbers - 00. But be careful which loadings you pick because there’s wide variation between brands and you need to see what this looks like in your gun.

 

I’ve always preferred 9 pellet 00, Federal Power Shok in particular…

 

This ^^^
The standard 2-3/4" OO Buckshot load.
Anything that gets in the way of that gets machine-gunned with .33 caliber pellets.

 

Remember we are talking room distances. Buckshot are Turkey shot we are taking large holes with wads still attached not enough of distance for dispersing. It’s like shooting a slug at 10 to 15 yard or less.

 

But for some reason a rifle round or even some pistol rounds are OK, even though they penetrate more…

 

But he read it on the Internet, so now a self proclaimed expert who has never even fired a shotgun inside a structure. 😜

 

Inside my place the longest distance is 16 feet. That turns my 590A1 SPX into a rifle in terms of spread.

 

PSA MidwayUSA has Federal FC 20g Buckshot in stock.

Federal Premium Personal Defense 20 Ga Ammo 2-3/4 #2 Buckshot 10

Make the threat scatter, not the pellets. Federal Premium buckshot loads featuring the rear-braking FLITECONTROL wad provide superior patterns to better...

www.midwayusa.com

 

Payload mostly dictates recoil. E.g. 9 pellets is equivalent to a 7/8oz trap load. 12 pellets is equivalent to a 1 1/8oz trap load. Manufacturers of the cheaper shells don't run the velocity very high because the pellets deform and fly crazy.

9 pellets is a good 20ga load if you could buy it. 12 pellets is a good 12ga load, but it seems deer hunters really like the 16 pellet load here in the US.

For reasons I don't really understand, #1 buck responds well to a choke whereas 00 buck does not. "Well" means that I've been able to tune cheap #1 buck loads to my M500 to give me 7" patterns at 20 yards - the longest distance I need to call "self-defense". If I could get cheap 00 or 000 buck to pattern that good I would use it. Yes I realize that at any moment I could simply buy Federal Flight Control 00 buck and get easy 25yd tight patterns - but that stuff is not cheap and I wouldn't practice with it.
I've been able to buy import 12 pellet #1 buck for <$.50/shell.

#1 buck gel testing shows consistent 14+ inch penetration. #4 buck does not.

 

A full power load of #1 buck is pretty equivalent to a full mag (full size 13rd) of .30 Super Carry out of a M&P Shield Plus.

A full power 00 or 000 buck load is almost a full mag out of a G26.

And those are 2.75" shells. 3" 00 buck shells are basically a full double stack pistol mag rolled up in a single shell. Sure, the pellets are lighter but diameter is comparable and velocity is going to be higher with the shotgun. That lighter weight is less prone to over penetration in an urban environment. It's hard to justify an AR inside the house with this in mind but they do work, so there's that I guess.