To sling or not to sling?..that is the question

[Kevinf2349]

I have a Mossberg 500 (18.5" barrel) and I am in two minds whether to put a sling on it or not.

I have heard that having a sling on what is essentially a HD shotty isn't a good idea in the event of having to use it. My initial thoughts were to take the sling off when it is at home in a state of readiness and only use the sling for going to the range with.

What is the conventional wisdom on this? Do I go with a sling or just leave well enough alone?

All thoughts welcome.

[boomerang]

There are advantages and disadvantages either way. For me it comes down to what I plan to do if I need both hands for something else.

[Kevinf2349]

There are advantages and disadvantages either way. For me it comes down to what I plan to do if I need both hands for something else.

I think I know where you are coming from but my thinking is that in an emergency I probably wouldn't even think of throwing the sling around me.

The shotgun is located on the way to the pistols and so I would probably just grab the long gun and leave the pistols for the wife to take her pick of.

[mgood]

I have no training in using a sling tactically.
Slings were on my hunting firearms growing up. The were convenient for getting from the vehicle to wherever I was going to shoot. While actually in use, they were, if noticed at all, sort of in the way. So I don't bother with them since I've not been hiking afield in search of game in many years.
But lots of people see them differently.

[KD5NRH]

I think I know where you are coming from but my thinking is that in an emergency I probably wouldn't even think of throwing the sling around me.

If you adjust it to just a bit of slack, you can easily run it under your left arm where it will help a bit with recoil and keeping the gun in place when you need your right hand to reload.

[joe817]

For HD? No sling - there's no advantage to it.

Slings are for convenience in carrying your guns while trekking through the boonies for extended periods of time or distances. And as such they are life savers(figure of speech not to be taken literally). For H.D. ? They serve no useful purpose.

[Estand]

I have a Rem 870 12 ga, pistol grip rear and fore-end with a sling + enough slack to go around the opposite shoulder to hold it up level with ease. BUT the sling is there because this is my wife's defensive firearm for when I am not home and it is quite heavy for her with the extension tube + surefire light + 9 shot shells. This made it much easier for her to carry and steady the whole thing with the flash light on. I will say the sling does not get in the way if you do not want to use it and I would not use the sling if I had to wield the weapon myself. There is more than one way to attach the sling on these things too.

[big 54r]

For HD? No sling - there's no advantage to it.

Slings are for convenience in carrying your guns while trekking through the boonies for extended periods of time or distances. And as such they are life savers(figure of speech not to be taken literally). For H.D. ? They serve no useful purpose.

I agree for HD a sling is not needed...but it is a good thing to actually know how to use a sling for marksmanship.

[Chuck TX]

I only have one hunting shotgun with a sling. For HD it's not really necessary, unless you have a gigantic mansion perhaps.

[juggernaut]

I like a carry strap on a long gun for the same reasons I like a holster for a hand gun. Even a home defense gun.

[ELB]

I vote no sling for a shotgun used only in the house for home defense. You are not standing guard with it, and the sling can get hung up on stuff, or be used as a handhold to disarm you. If you empty the gun by firing it, or it jams, just drop it and go to pistol.

For outside the home purposes tho, a sling is good. As indicated above, it is the equivalent of your holster -- holds the gun relatively safely, yet within reach, while you do other things. But as a bedside blaster, no sling.

[Kevinf2349]

Thanks everyone.

I think I will get a sling just for transportation to/from range and go without when in the house.

I appeciate all y'alls input.

[Skiprr]

I think a sling on an HD shotgun serves an important purpose. Mine have 'em.

Shotguns and handguns have different purposes, and the general rule of thumb is that, in defensive scenarios, any time you carry a longarm you should also carry a sidearm...if nothing else, it's an important part of your longarm retention system.

A shotgun is an ideal weapon if you can hunker down in your safe room, have called 911, and don't need to go anywhere. Or if you hear the glass break or the door crash open and can respond before the threat is fully in your house. Or if you need to breach a door or shoot through a barrier with a slug. Or if you get in a moderate-distance firefight and need to lay down suppresive fire.

But a shotgun is not a good room-clearing implement in the tight quarters of a typical home. Angles and barrel-length work against it. If the alarm goes off at oh-dark-thirty and I have family members in other rooms I need to get to and secure, especially on more than one floor, I want a trusty pistol to perform room-clearing.

If I have a shotgun handy, though, I can't think of any good reason to leave it behind (assuming my spouse was also adequately armed). A shotgun equipped with a good two-point sling is generally carried over and behind the strong-arm shoulder, muzzle down. It doesn't take a lot of practice to bring the shotgun into point-fire position from there; in fact, it can be done so rapidly it can rival the speed of a handgun draw. Muzzle-up carry is typically slower to present, but still a viable option.

If I have an unknown number of bad guys trying to get in my home, or suspected to be already in there, I'd like a solid, tactical shotgun, a trusty, high-cap pistol, a quality tactical flashlight, and my cell phone. Anytime I don't have my shotgun in my hands, I want both those hands free for other things.

The few PDs I'm familiar with put two-point slings on their officers' shotguns. I can't comment if that's typical practice. And if you ask Paul Howe, I'll bet he says all the shotguns he handled in combat had slings.

YMMV