Shotgun for home defense

Question
I'm heading back to Iraq.  Want to leave me wife with simple home defense
option without buying another gun.  I have a Weatherby Orion sporting gun.  Is it
safe to shoot a #1 leadshot in a gun like this?  It has adjustable choke.  For
home defense, what type of choke should I have in it?

Answer
Ellsworth,

Your shotgun should be fine.  Really nice gun by the way...

The only issue I see is that the longer barrel will make maneuvering in tight quarters a little awkward, but otherwise there is no issue.  #1 lead shot will be fine.  I'd adjust the choke down to full to keep the pattern tight in case she needs to shoot inside the house.   Steel chokes are actually larger than lead chokes.   The result is that the choke functionally is one less than if you were shooting steel.  In other words, lead shot through a steel choke at full will actually be the same as a modified lead choke.

Help her understand that even #1 shot will penetrate through a couple of layers of drywall, so if there are others in the house, she needs to keep that in mind.

Good luck over in the 'sandbox'.  Stay safe...you guys are all important to us.

Regards,

Doug