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The 12-gauge pump-action shotgun is an extremely versatile and reliable firearm, able to handle a very large variety of duties from big game hunting to drone demolition to door breaching to anti-personnel to vehicle disabling to anti-armor to skeet shooting. The biggest issue with it by far is simply the weight and size of the weapon and the ammo, but that's another topic for another time. Here, we will discuss the three specific kinds of 12-gauge shotgun ammo that should suit all purposes, more or less.
The list assumes a weapon with a cylinder bore (not choked) barrel of at least 18.5 inches in length. I'd also like to apologize in advance for all three of these being of the Federal brand. My reasoning for adding the brand to all three types will be explained below.
1. Federal Game-Shok Upland Heavy Field 1 1/8 oz #4 Shot (2 3/4")
Use Cases: Bird Hunting, Drone Destruction, Anti-Personnel at 10 Yards Maximum, Door Breaching (Not Optimal)
Price as of This Writing: ~$0.50/Round
While this type of shell doesn't actually require Federal at all, I decided to just keep things consistent. Federal is seen as kind of the standard for ammunition as well. Moving on then to why you would use this ammunition, this ammo is very optimal for taking down drones and birds of all kinds. It also can be used for anti-personnel purposes at a range of 10 yards maximum, though I might be underestimating its effective range somewhat.
Lastly, it can be used for door breaching THEORETICALLY in a pinch if you don't have breaching rounds. Now, I have looked online extensively about this in the past, and hearing people talk about firing #4 birdshot and even higher shot sizes at very close range without them being harmed whatsoever, and hearing about how birdshot has a huge tendency to just dump all its energy at any hard object it hits, it would SEEM that using #4 birdshot in EMERGENCY scenarios to breach any wooden door would work with no issues.
"Ok, so it's fine then to do this recreationally and for practice-" NO. This needs to be further tested with a shotgun being remotely fired at a door with gelatin on the ground near the door to see if any pellets could possibly bounce back with enough energy to penetrate skin. This also needs to be done several times before it would prove with any sort of validity that this is safe to do for normal breaching use. Until that happens, unless you're in an emergency situation, stick to breaching rounds for breaching at all times.
2. Federal Flite Control 00 Buckshot (2 3/4")
Use Cases: Drone Destruction (Not Optimal), Big Game Hunting, Anti-Personnel at 100 Yards Maximum, Lightly Anti-Armor (Decent Concussive Damage on 3A Armored Target) at 5 Yards Maximum
Price as of This Writing: ~$1.00/Round
These last two should be much more simple now that I don't have to clarify breaching safety at all. Federal was chosen here as it seemed to be the most consistent ammo with the tightest pattern. But yes, though you can perhaps use 00 buckshot for drone demolitions in a pinch, especially by rapidly firing off shells, this is not ideal of course as there are only 8 or 9 pellets in each 00 buckshot shell. All that power doesn't matter whatsoever if the pellets completely miss the intended target. Beyond that, you can hunt damn near any big game in North America with buckshot, if not all of them, and it will even give someone with 3A body armor a bad time with concussive damage if you're close enough. But one of the best uses for 00 buckshot by far is that it is amazing for dealing with one or a group of unarmored or inadequately armored personnel at range. 8 or 9 pellets flying down-range per shell fired gives great area coverage and also as a cheap way to provide decent cover fire. Some soldiers in Vietnam actually preferred using a shotgun over a rifle because of this strength.
3. Federal Premium Vital-Shok TruBall Deep Penetrator Rifled 1 oz Slug (2 3/4")
Use Cases: Anti-Personnel at 100 Yards Maximum, Medium Anti-Armor, Big Game Hunting, Short-Range Sniping, Light Anti-Vehicle Use
Price as of this Writing: ~1.13/Round
For this one, technically, this is not the most penetrating slug you can buy, but incredibly frustratingly, it DOES seem like best penetrating shotgun slug out there that is actually AVAILABLE TO BUY. Thankfully though, this particular shotgun slug still provides decent performance. This is for when you really absolutely need to take down a singular target, whether up close or at range, armored or not. Simple as that. Also works for basic anti-vehicle duties as well, although, of course, it's not a .50 BMG round. If anyone has a better suggestion for this type of shotgun shell, let me know.
The list assumes a weapon with a cylinder bore (not choked) barrel of at least 18.5 inches in length. I'd also like to apologize in advance for all three of these being of the Federal brand. My reasoning for adding the brand to all three types will be explained below.
1. Federal Game-Shok Upland Heavy Field 1 1/8 oz #4 Shot (2 3/4")
Use Cases: Bird Hunting, Drone Destruction, Anti-Personnel at 10 Yards Maximum, Door Breaching (Not Optimal)
Price as of This Writing: ~$0.50/Round
While this type of shell doesn't actually require Federal at all, I decided to just keep things consistent. Federal is seen as kind of the standard for ammunition as well. Moving on then to why you would use this ammunition, this ammo is very optimal for taking down drones and birds of all kinds. It also can be used for anti-personnel purposes at a range of 10 yards maximum, though I might be underestimating its effective range somewhat.
Lastly, it can be used for door breaching THEORETICALLY in a pinch if you don't have breaching rounds. Now, I have looked online extensively about this in the past, and hearing people talk about firing #4 birdshot and even higher shot sizes at very close range without them being harmed whatsoever, and hearing about how birdshot has a huge tendency to just dump all its energy at any hard object it hits, it would SEEM that using #4 birdshot in EMERGENCY scenarios to breach any wooden door would work with no issues.
"Ok, so it's fine then to do this recreationally and for practice-" NO. This needs to be further tested with a shotgun being remotely fired at a door with gelatin on the ground near the door to see if any pellets could possibly bounce back with enough energy to penetrate skin. This also needs to be done several times before it would prove with any sort of validity that this is safe to do for normal breaching use. Until that happens, unless you're in an emergency situation, stick to breaching rounds for breaching at all times.
2. Federal Flite Control 00 Buckshot (2 3/4")
Use Cases: Drone Destruction (Not Optimal), Big Game Hunting, Anti-Personnel at 100 Yards Maximum, Lightly Anti-Armor (Decent Concussive Damage on 3A Armored Target) at 5 Yards Maximum
Price as of This Writing: ~$1.00/Round
These last two should be much more simple now that I don't have to clarify breaching safety at all. Federal was chosen here as it seemed to be the most consistent ammo with the tightest pattern. But yes, though you can perhaps use 00 buckshot for drone demolitions in a pinch, especially by rapidly firing off shells, this is not ideal of course as there are only 8 or 9 pellets in each 00 buckshot shell. All that power doesn't matter whatsoever if the pellets completely miss the intended target. Beyond that, you can hunt damn near any big game in North America with buckshot, if not all of them, and it will even give someone with 3A body armor a bad time with concussive damage if you're close enough. But one of the best uses for 00 buckshot by far is that it is amazing for dealing with one or a group of unarmored or inadequately armored personnel at range. 8 or 9 pellets flying down-range per shell fired gives great area coverage and also as a cheap way to provide decent cover fire. Some soldiers in Vietnam actually preferred using a shotgun over a rifle because of this strength.
3. Federal Premium Vital-Shok TruBall Deep Penetrator Rifled 1 oz Slug (2 3/4")
Use Cases: Anti-Personnel at 100 Yards Maximum, Medium Anti-Armor, Big Game Hunting, Short-Range Sniping, Light Anti-Vehicle Use
Price as of this Writing: ~1.13/Round
For this one, technically, this is not the most penetrating slug you can buy, but incredibly frustratingly, it DOES seem like best penetrating shotgun slug out there that is actually AVAILABLE TO BUY. Thankfully though, this particular shotgun slug still provides decent performance. This is for when you really absolutely need to take down a singular target, whether up close or at range, armored or not. Simple as that. Also works for basic anti-vehicle duties as well, although, of course, it's not a .50 BMG round. If anyone has a better suggestion for this type of shotgun shell, let me know.
