first handgun

[00 Buck]

Lol @ AR dissing. Handguns freakin suck in effectiveness compared to long-guns.

And shotguns recoil a lot more, hold less rounds, harder to shoot, and can be short stroked under stress without proper training. It is not a good general purpose gun. If it was so great, an overwhelming number of cool guys would use it to clear rooms, etc, instead of using carbines and subguns. It isn't, so they don't.

A good round like the hornady 5.56 75grain TAP will fragment like crazy inside a target, and since there is massive fragmentation and the round is so light, it loses energy quickly after going through the BG, minimizing over-penetration. All in a super ergonomic and easy to shoot platform. Just about perfect for home defense imho.


Buy a good carbine, put an aimpoint and a decent light on it, and you'll be set.

 

[Symbiose**]

As a side note, I watched a show about using bird shot as a home defense round. It was interesting.

At close range, it doesn't matter if it's birdshot or buckshot because if it doesn't have enough distance to spread, it's basically one solid ball of lead coming out the barrel.

 

[Symbiose**]

A shotgun can be used very effectively for sure. But it is just not the be all, end all toll for the job of home defense.

You act like I said it was either a shotgun or nothing. I didn't say that.

I myself have a plan of action if someone breaks into my house. My wife gets on her cell to 911, I get the gunS. She gets the gauge and holds down the "fort" (our bedroom). I get my pistol and I go out of the bedroom and gather the kids and get them to our room.

Wouldn't it be much safer for you and your kids to stay with the kids in their bedroom? It's easy to guard a bedroom's door. It's also easy to get shot walking around from bedroom to bedroom.

 

[ChuckSteak]

You act like I said it was either a shotgun or nothing. I didn't say that.

You said a shotgun was the BEST hands down. Correct? I disagree because everyone has a different situation and a shotgun is not always the best choice. Do you disagree? Or is a shotgun ALWAYS the best for each and every person? I never said you implied it was a shotgun or nothing. I said you had your opinion that a shot gun is the best hands down and my opinion is that a shot gun isn't the best for every person and every situation.

Wouldn't it be much safer for you and your kids to stay with the kids in their bedroom? It's easy to guard a bedroom's door. It's also easy to get shot walking around from bedroom to bedroom.

I have 4 kids. That means 4 beedrooms to protect, not including the master bedroom with my wife in it. How do I cover all 4 bedrooms doors (since my wife is covering the master)? So, with the wife in the master bedroom and 4 kids/bedrooms to protect please expalin how you would deal with an intruder in a way that does not include walking from bedroom to bedroom?

 

[TeTe]

If your first gun is a .45 and you will quickly become accustomed to paying a lot for ammo, anything smaller in caliber will seem cheap. So I suppose that's a bonus.

Like many said, try out a few different guns and see what works best for you.

 

[TeTe]

Lol @ AR dissing. Handguns freakin suck in effectiveness compared to long-guns.

And shotguns recoil a lot more, hold less rounds, harder to shoot, and can be short stroked under stress without proper training. It is not a good general purpose gun. If it was so great, an overwhelming number of cool guys would use it to clear rooms, etc, instead of using carbines and subguns. It isn't, so they don't.

A good round like the hornady 5.56 75grain TAP will fragment like crazy inside a target, and since there is massive fragmentation and the round is so light, it loses energy quickly after going through the BG, minimizing over-penetration. All in a super ergonomic and easy to shoot platform. Just about perfect for home defense imho.


Buy a good carbine, put an aimpoint and a decent light on it, and you'll be set.

I love AR 15's and would recommend anyone buy one.

I own an AK, but I don't know if I'd use it for home defense, then again, I live in an apartment. If I shot at anyone with a 7.62 round, I'm sure it's 2400 fps velocity would push it through about three units next to me and kill not only the intruder but a couple neighbors as well.

 

[ChuckSteak]

At close range, it doesn't matter if it's birdshot or buckshot because if it doesn't have enough distance to spread, it's basically one solid ball of lead coming out the barrel.

I agree and the point of the TV show was mainly about penetration. 00 buck vs birdshot. And it was focusing on the penetration in walls, not people.

 

[Symbiose**]

I disagree because everyone has a different situation and a shotgun is not always the best choice. Do you disagree?.

I'm sure that if you look hard enough, you'll be able to find a situation where the best gun is the one that can shoot the best underwater. Of course there is no gun that is the best in ALL situations.

I have 4 kids. That means 4 beedrooms to protect

Wow, that's a very interesting problem you have there. I can't picture myself going to pick up 4 kids one by one in 4 differents rooms with dangerous intruders in the house. With all due respect, your solution doesn't seems appropriate at all and is extremely risky for you and your kids.

How far are the kids rooms from the masters bedroom?
Is there a place in the house where you can hide that have:
1- a quick access from your bedroom
2- a good view on all the doors of your kids bedrooms?

 

[Ralff]

The best home defense firearm is the one you feel comfortable shooting, can put rounds on target, and has the stopping power to neutralize the threat. It will vary from person to person and is also highly situational depending on others in the home, over penetration issues, layout of the house, etc.

For example, my wife and I have no kids and live in a detached home. So if someone breaks in, the only thing I have to do is keep my sights trained on the bedroom door while she calls 911. My choice is obvious: a quality shotgun with 00 buck.

 

[ChuckSteak]

I'm sure that if you look hard enough, you'll be able to find a situation where the best gun is the one that can shoot the best underwater. Of course there is no gun that is the best in ALL situations.

But.....

nothing beats a shotgun for home defense, period.

This is what I am replying to. That's your quote above. And my point is a shotgun might be the best for you, but it's not for everyone. Would you agree?

Wow, that's a very interesting problem you have there. I can't picture myself going to pick up 4 kids one by one in 4 differents rooms with dangerous intruders in the house. With all due respect, your solution doesn't seems appropriate at all and is extremely risky for you and your kids.

How far are the kids rooms from the masters bedroom?
Is there a place in the house where you can hide that have:
1- a quick access from your bedroom
2- a good view on all the doors of your kids bedrooms?

All bedrooms are upstairs. When you come up the stairs the master is to the left and all the other bedrooms are to the right. From the master bedroom door I can see all 4 of the kids bedroom doors.

My current plan is to move to the side of the second floor that has the kids rooms. Then gather them all into the bedroom closest to the master. From there it depends on the situation. I'll either stay there with all the kids or move everyone to the master. It really depends on where the intruder(s) are in the house at that time. I've thought about and still consider having my wife move with me and she stays in the closest kids room and I gather the other 3 kids and move to the room with my wife so we are all in one of the kids room. It just far easier to defend the master then it is any of the other bedrooms. Better hiding places for the kids that would be completely out of the line of fire. It has been suggested to me that I should just stay in the master and watch my kids rooms and deal with any issues as they present themselves. My problem with that is if I have to loose rounds the back stop behind the baddy will be the walls that make up my kids rooms. Secondly it would really put a monkey wrentch in the whole plan if the noises the baddy makes wakes up one of my kids and they walk out of their room and make noise (which they WILL do) and that alerts the intruder.

 

[Symbiose**]

...

 

[Symbiose**]

My current plan is to move to the side of the second floor that has the kids rooms. Then gather them all into the bedroom closest to the master. From there it depends on the situation. I'll either stay there with all the kids or move everyone to the master. It really depends on where the intruder(s) are in the house at that time. I've thought about and still consider having my wife move with me and she stays in the closest kids room and I gather the other 3 kids and move to the room with my wife so we are all in one of the kids room. It just far easier to defend the master then it is any of the other bedrooms. Better hiding places for the kids that would be completely out of the line of fire. It has been suggested to me that I should just stay in the master and watch my kids rooms and deal with any issues as they present themselves. My problem with that is if I have to loose rounds the back stop behind the baddy will be the walls that make up my kids rooms. Secondly it would really put a monkey wrentch in the whole plan if the noises the baddy makes wakes up one of my kids and they walk out of their room and make noise (which they WILL do) and that alerts the intruder.

The biggest problem here is the intruders WILL hear you walk/run and open doors and talk to the kids.

So either they will GTFO of the house, or follow the noise and find you real quick, leaving you no time to do anything while giving away your position. Plus you will have the kids with you when they find you, which isn't good.

Here's what I'd do: Go on the right side of the stairs, facing your own bedroom (so no one is in the line of fire). Bring your wife with you and while she's gathering all the kids and bring them in a single bedroom, you watch the stairs with the 12 gauge.

At this point, with the noise, it will be obvious that if anyone is walking upstairs, it's because he wants to hurt you. So blast him/them as soon as they set a foot on the 2nd floor. Meanwhile, the wife is guarding a bedroom with a handgun and all the kids.

Once the wife and the kids are safe in one bedroom, you can go with them.

 

[ChuckSteak]

The biggest problem here is the intruders WILL hear you walk/run and open doors and talk to the kids.

So either they will GTFO of the house, or follow the noise and find you real quick, leaving you no time to do anything while giving away your position. Plus you will have the kids with you when they find you, which isn't good.

Here's what I'd do: Go on the right side of the stairs, facing your own bedroom (so no one is in the line of fire). Bring your wife with you and while she's gathering all the kids and bring them in a single bedroom, you watch the stairs with the 12 gauge.

At this point, with the noise, it will be obvious that if anyone is walking upstairs, it's because he wants to hurt you. So blast him/them as soon as they set a foot on the 2nd floor. Meanwhile, the wife is guarding a bedroom with a handgun and all the kids.

Once the wife and the kids are safe in one bedroom, you can go with them.

You know what? That is pretty much the layout of my house. No Shit. The master has an L shape to it, but the rest is pretty much it.

I can walk all over the second floor and no one will hear me from the first floor. Running is a bit different. I don't walk with heavy feet ever, and if I'm trying to be quite in my house, on carpet....they wouldn't hear me walking. Waking up the kids could be a different story though. As I said I have played with the idea of using the plan you describe and will definately reconsider. I've practiced the drill of getting my kids into the master, even in the middle of the night while they slept and it went pretty smoothly. Had a friend downstairs and they didn't hear a thing. My wife is very heavy footed and when she walks, even when trying to be quiet, she can be heard. I've tried so many times to get her to walk softly, but for some reason she can't. On the first floor it's not a big deal, but on the second floor it's definately noticable. So if she went with me to the otehr side of the house the baddies would know we were up no matter what. This is a main reason as to why I plan to bring the kids to the master. Al am planning to eventually build a deck off of the master with stairs down to the back yard as this will be an escape route. But until then...

However, to be a dick (keeping it real you know), in your plan you have my wife with a handgun. Really? I thought a shotgun is the best for home defense.....PERIOD!!!! :icon_chee Why would you pick a handgun for my wife and not another shotgun?

 

[Symbiose**]

However, to be a dick (keeping it real you know), in your plan you have my wife with a handgun. Really? I thought a shotgun is the best for home defense.....PERIOD!!!! :icon_chee Why would you pick a handgun for my wife and not another shotgun?

Well, from your previous posts, I assumed you only had one shotgun. Of course, if you have 2, she should have her shotgun too (unless the kids are really young and she needs to pick them up).

 

[FREAK656]

 

[jjrasley]

I love my Glock .40. But get what you want.

 

[ghost scribble]

i'd like to keep things in teh $500 dollar range, but i haven't been in a shop in years, and more the things i really want i suspect the law would object too...lol seriously i wish i could get an old semi auto colt ar15 with all the toys, i heard that when you add a flash supressor or a big mag they get in the banned territory which i feel is foolish. i can understand the full auto ban but an ar 15 minus the flash is ugly.i like a .45's power but stay away from the big magnums as they are loud, expensive and just kick too much for my taste.

Well that rules out my suggestions.

 

[CarloSpcyWeiner]

The biggest problem here is the intruders WILL hear you walk/run and open doors and talk to the kids.

So either they will GTFO of the house, or follow the noise and find you real quick, leaving you no time to do anything while giving away your position. Plus you will have the kids with you when they find you, which isn't good.

Here's what I'd do: Go on the right side of the stairs, facing your own bedroom (so no one is in the line of fire). Bring your wife with you and while she's gathering all the kids and bring them in a single bedroom, you watch the stairs with the 12 gauge.

At this point, with the noise, it will be obvious that if anyone is walking upstairs, it's because he wants to hurt you. So blast him/them as soon as they set a foot on the 2nd floor. Meanwhile, the wife is guarding a bedroom with a handgun and all the kids.

Once the wife and the kids are safe in one bedroom, you can go with them.

That's kind of an odd floor plan