More 1301

As mentioned before, the 1301 is perhaps the softest shooting, most ergonomic shotgun out there. That doesn’t mean that full power slugs are easy to shoot all day, or that doing so is smart. When I was younger, I could shoot about 100 full power loads in a training session. This was mostly through 870s and Benelli M2s. What allowed me to do this was the Push-Pull technique, combined with the strength (read: stupidity) of being an invincible male. The problem comes not at the shoulder but at the head, which takes a fair bit of acceleration and deceleration while shooting our most potent defensive weapon. All that speeding up and abrupt slowing down leads to a headache, which I’m told by medical friends is a minor concussion. The shoulder, on the other hand, feels no discomfort at all, and no marks are left.

To avoid brain damage then, it is better to shoot a limited number of full power loads and restrict most of your practice to the reduced recoil options that are out there. My carry loads are mostly the lower velocity Federal Flight Control, either 8 or 9 pellets and 1 oz Brenneke slugs. I have a lot of 1.25-ounce Brennekes, but I only buy the 1 oz version these days, to replace the heavier ones as I shoot them up. My practice loads usually consist of low brass birdshot and low recoil slugs, with a limited number of Flight Control and Brennekes thrown in for zero and control purposes.

As long as you have a large supply of low-recoil slugs, all is well. It’s the only load I would buy for training. But what if you have a large supply of full power slugs and buck, just waiting to be used in practice? You can either shoot a few each session or find a way to make the gun move slower in recoil. Enter the 1301 Comp. My Comp is a 21″ version, and I added the Magpul stock and Briley forend, to add some weight while keeping the balance I prefer. With the 8-round magazine, a Vang Comp side saddle, and a Briley Stage Saver, the gun weighs a fair bit. It is probably the softest shooting shotgun I have ever used. This setup allows me to shoot a fair number of full power loads in comfort. Even so, I try to limit myself to 25 full power loads and will adjust that number based on how I feel that day.

Before we get to the shooting, a word about the setup and employment. I am unaware of any high-volume shotgun fights. A gun that holds 5 or more rounds in the magazine is probably sufficient for anything realistic. On the other hand, no one wants to run dry just as the fight ends, let alone before the fight ends. If most shotgun uses in America require one or two shots, I am perfectly happy to have 3 to 5 times that amount of ammo available. Again, this is in the context of home defense. Were I carrying a shotgun for manhunts or law enforcement use, I would carry a little more ammo, though not a ton more. Most of the shotgun ammo vests commercially available are ridiculous for CONUS use.

If your home defense plan involves using the shotgun from a barricaded position (a very good idea), then the length and weight are likely not very important. If you intend to search with a shotgun, I prefer a shorter, lighter, well-balanced gun, and I will not sacrifice balance for a few extra rounds. My original, Gen One 1301 has a five-shot magazine tube. I load it fully then put an additional round on the carrier for six in the gun. I have a five-round side saddle and that’s it. It handles like a proper shotgun, fast and nimble.

My Gen 3 1301T is only slightly heavier and less agile than the original and is what I would take if I had my choice of shotguns for work. As a compromise weapon, it nicely splits the difference between my Gen 1 and my Comp. The Comp reloads very easily with its larger receiver, and if you don’t want to put an optic on it, the rib and bead system works very well. On the other hand, knowing how to use a ghost ring makes that still my number one choice for irons on a long gun.

The factory ghost ring set up on the 1301Ts is not ideal. The front post is a little thick for me, though usable. The rear ring is a horrible design that negates the proper use of the “ghost”. One of my guns has the CROM mount on it, and that ghost ring is good. My newer gun has a Tac-Ord mount for the Acro on it, and the ring will get replaced with either a proper thin ring or possibly the Haught modified ring. Either is perfectly usable.

The Tac-Ord mount is a true co-witness, as far as I can tell. The CROM does not appear to be. Though cheekweld issues are always a concern, I never prefer a true co-witness, but rather a lower third or so. Anything higher than actual co-witness is good, and the CROM irons seem to be slightly lower than my dot. Given that modern shooters can’t seem to figure out what co-witness means, and the industry likewise seems to be definition fluid, it can sometimes be hard to know what you are getting.

A true co-witness sometimes called an absolute co-witness, is when the irons and the dot are in the same plane. A lower third co-witness means that the irons sit in the lower third of the window of your optic, and your dot is above them in the middle. This used to be commonly accepted, but it seems that everyone uses these terms to mean whatever they want at the time. Anyway…

A barricaded home defense position is best, but a heavy gun can be very hard to use one-handed if it comes to that. Though one-handed shotgun use is unlikely, being shot in a fight is certainly a possibility. When in your PJs, you may not have a sidearm to fall back on if wounded. A lighter gun is more usable overall and may be worth considering when you are looking at size and weight. My current home defense 1301 is still my original lightweight T. I’m in the process of setting up and vetting my comp and 3rd gen T, and it looks like it will likely get the nod.

I had planned to add a video to this week’s post, but other commitments kept me off the range the last few days, so I hope to have it ready for next week. We will also look at some of the accepted shotgun training, advice, and setup, and see if we are training and employing these guns realistically.