New HD shotgun round from Remington

Remington has announced a new shotgun load featuring a tungsten-bronze pellet load, which is being marketed for home defense.  Remington’s Press release:

Madison, NC – For nearly sixty years, law enforcement agencies and judicious gun owners around the world have relied on the Remington Model 870™ shotgun as their defensive firearm of choice. For 2009, Remington announces a new ammunition product designed to enhance the effectiveness of your shotgun in a home defense scenario – Remington HD Ultimate Home Defense.

Remington HD Ultimate Home Defense shotgun ammunition features the same pellet material as the popular Wingmaster HD™ tungsten-bronze hunting ammunition and is offered in two loadings. Consumers can choose from a load of BB’s for the highest terminal energy or a duplex mixture of #2 and #4 pellets for excellent pattern density and outstanding stopping power with a reduced chance of over-penetration. Both loads are 12 gauge, 2 ¾-inch with 1 1/4 ounces of shot at 1250 feet per second. At the most commonly encountered home defense distances, Remington HD Ultimate Home Defense produces very tight patterns for one-shot confidence.

HD Ultimate Home Defense ammunition is the perfect complement to Remington’s recently expanded line of tactical shotguns. Recent additions to the line include the Model 870 Express® Tactical with XS® Ghost Ring Sights and the Model 870 Express Tactical with Gray Powder Coat Finish. Both shotguns are 12 gauge and feature 3-inch chambered 18 ½-inch barrels which are threaded for the included Tactical Extended Rem™ Choke. Average weight for both models is 7 ½-pounds, overall length is 38 ½-inches and both guns are equipped with a black synthetic stock and fore-end.

The Model 870 Express Tactical with XS Ghost Ring Sights is optimized for rapid target acquisition and precise shot placement with a front XS blade sight and a receiver-mounted picatinny rail with an integrated XS Ghost Ring rear sight. This “Remington exclusive” sighting system is fully adjustable for windage and elevation.

The Model 870 Express Tactical with Gray Powder Coat Finish has a bead-sighted barrel and the receiver and barrel are finished with a gun metal gray powder coat for increased durability and reduced glare.

Regardless of which shotgun you employ in defense of your family, a magazine full of HD Ultimate Home Defense will have things that go bump in the night fearing you for a change.

Ballistics:

12 gauge – 23/4 inches, 1250 fps at the muzzle, 1.25 ounces of BB shot.
12 gauge – 23/3 inches, 1250 fps at the muzzle, 1.25 ounces of a duplex load of number 2 and number 4 shot.

I am somewhat skeptical of BB shot for home defense, as the .177 caliber pellets often lack the individual weight to cause significant penetration. That being said, the tungsten-bronze shot is heavier than lead shot, so you may see better penetration in tissue out of this round than you would with a traditional shotgun round loaded with BB shot.