Rifles usually have a much greater ammunition capacity than shotguns. Rifles are more reliable generally than shotguns, though a high-quality self-defense shotgun will usually be quite reliable when well-maintained and loaded with cartridges it likes. Thus, your varmint rifle or fun gun might also be a top choice for a home defense firearm. This effect has been shown even when using standard FMJ (full metal jacket) ammunition in the ubiquitous caliber of 5.56 Nato/.223 Remington common to most “modern sporting rifles” or home-defense oriented AR-15 clones. Rifles have the advantage of very high speed projectiles, which cause “hydrostatic shock” and temporary wound stretch cavities in soft tissue which can disrupt organ and muscle tissue well away from the bullet’s path. Experts disagree on which platform is technically the most effective at “one-shot stops” against aggressors, but with proper ammunition and shot placement, both will likely do the job better than just about any typical home-defense handgun. rifles for home defenseīoth shotguns and rifles can be exceptionally effective in a home-defense role.

Hopefully the discussion below will help shed some light on these firearms so you might make a more informed decision. However, we can address the question of which of these two firearms types might be better for home defense. For precise target shooting or plinking at longer ranges, or for hunting larger game, the rifle is the clear winner. For bird hunting or shooting aerial targets, a shotgun is vastly superior. As with many questions about “which X is better than what Y,” the proper response to this question is really another question: “Better for what?” Shotguns and rifles were developed for very different uses and excel in very different tasks.

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