In order to get an idea of the suitability of shotguns (using the optimum load on bare gelatin, #1 buck) for usage against targets utilizing hard cover, I conducted this test against FBI fixture #5. This test consists of a 3/4" fir plywood panel placed 18" in front of a gelatin block, sporting 'light clothing'. The material called for in the original specifications are usually very difficult to obtain, so: the light clothing consisted of two layers of 10 oz. denim fabric and the plywood panel was 3/4" thick Birch wood. Additionally, the 18" offset was reduced to 6", due to a lack of space on the test bench. Cartridge : Winchester 3" magnum #1 unplated buckshot (Part # XB1231) Firearm : Pump shotgun with 20" barrel and smooth bore. Cylinder choke. Block calibration : 11.1cm @ 605 ft/sec Single shot fired at 10' distance. Shot impacted at '875 ft/sec' (chronograph malfunction) - Winchester lists the muzzle velocity of this load at 1040 ft/sec. The 24 0.3" shot pellets penetrated the wood panel and light clothing, with an average penetration depth of 7.7", with the deepest pellet going to 11.0" and the shallowest penetrating to 3.8". Wood pulp and fragments were present in the wound track until 6.5" depth. The suction caused by the passage of the pellets had drawn in the wood chips/pulp such that the majority of the permanent cavity was filled with wood at the end of the penetration event. 23 of the 24 pellets were moderate to severely out-of-round.