Main problem with shunt is simply giving up the main benefit of any shield, even bad ones - replenishing health. No amount of armor will compesate for this. There is a way to get health back, on Elite Combat Endurance, but even that is finite, in essence giving you an extra HP pool if you don't get bursted to death first. Lack of regen will always make Shield Shunt niche pick at best, for the few ships where +% armor bonus is noticeable, and useless everywhere else.
Now, if there was a way to truly regenerate armor or health, that would change things - but this is in the domain of mods.
This is true if you are trying to smash multiple ordos at once. But for most battles, a strong opening can mean a decisive victory.
Shield shunt acts a little like Safety overrides in practice; you have a high firepower ship that punches hard, burns bright and does not back down... For a little while.
It CAN be effective; But you need to keep a tighter control on your fleet- Only having your SS ships attack where you know they will overwhelm the enemy very quickly. Behaviour wise, it makes the AI fight much more aggressively. And unlike Safety overrides your ships have some range, so they can tagteam opponents more effectively.
It's not for everyone, but I do recommend you give it a try. It's a very fun, reckless style.
