Shotguns for Personal Defense: Pump vs Semi-Auto

When Paul Harrell decides to compare a pump shotgun with a semi-auto, he just can’t go the traditional route. So although the pump gun he uses is more or less “run-of-the-mill,” the automagic is pure tactical all the way, and looks like an overgrown AR15. It’s a Mossberg 590A1 vs. Rock Island VR60 with detachable magazine. There’s nothing like shooting two guns side by side on an equal footing to see how things really compare.

Rate of fire, when placing rounds on more than one target, is pretty much the same in Paul’s hands… but reloading is, of course, much faster when you can simply dump an empty box mag and replace it with a full one.

Tubular mags are great for topping off during a lull in the action, or for slipping in a slug as the need arises. Box mags, not so much.

He does a side-by-side slug accuracy test, and the results may surprise you.

And as usual, there’s an informative recap to help educate folks.

The verdict? Well… you be the judge.

Russ Chastain

Editor & Contributing Writer Russ Chastain is a lifelong hunter and shooter who has spent his life learning about hunting, shooting, guns, ammunition, gunsmithing, reloading, and bullet casting. He started toting his own gun in the woods at age nine and he's pursued deer with rifles since 1982, so his hunting knowledge has been growing for more than three and a half decades. His desire and ability to share this knowledge with others has also grown, and Russ has been professionally writing and editing original hunting & shooting content since 1998. Russ Chastain has a passion for sharing accurate, honest, interesting hunting & shooting knowledge and stories with people of all skill levels.