Curious which one you all would choose for home defense. Currently have a 29-5 5" loaded with hot 44 special loads. Recently purchased a 4" heavy barrel model 10-10, loaded with +p Critical Defense. I am thinking about switching my bedside gun to the model 10. What do you all think? Thanks for any comments.

That is just a matter of personal preference and the one you shoot the best and feel most comfortable with at bedside.

James

They both have pluses and ultimately I will have to make that choice. Just curious which one Others would choose.

What revolver does your "significant other" like to shoot? Pick the one that fits her hand the best... if it don't matter to you. I'd pick the 10-10 due to faster follow up shots over the heavier 29-5.

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"Life is short, hunt hard"

Bedside....3" Model 13 and wife has a 3" M65. Reason....we're both proficient with these tuned and well balanced revolvers and confident in our ability to handle them well and properly coming out of deep sleep.

If your comfort and accuracy with both guns are equal, I like the model 29 with 44 specials. That is an excellent defense round; a lot of lead will make a quick stop.

+1 also less muzzle flash. A real concern at night.

In my situation I would have the tendency to choose the 38 over the 44 special.The softer report,lighter recoil and lighter weight would make it my choice.I want some hearing left after I fire my pistol in a confined area, just in case there is more that one intruder or I need to use the phone.A 44 fired several times in a confined space, say a hallway, can and may blow your ear drums.
I feel the 44 special may have over penetration issues. With out any question the 44 is the better round but it maybe to hot, even loaded down to the 44 special level.If the lay out of your house is designed in a manner that would preclude shooting your wife, kids or your next door neighbor threw a wall or two use the 44.
Your best defense is a 12ga shotgun,using your pistol as a means of getting to it.

Penmon

Model 10 without a doubt - hits mean much more than misses or trade one on a 12 or 20 gauge if you are serious about home defense.

I love the Mdl 10. They are sweet shootin' guns. However, for self defense I would go for the M29. Someone said a hit is worth more than a lot of misses. Very true. Also, a hit from a .44 is worth more than several from a .38. If the thought of shooting a .44 indoors is intimidating, just think how it would feel being shot at with a .44.

In my opinion, the only thing better than a .44 is a .45.

My personal favorite is a model 10 3" loaded with Buffalo Bore 158 grain LSWCHP standard pressure as it has a lower flash level. I don't want to get night blinded after firing and not be able to see any other threats. But whatever works for your family in your situation.

You know you have to use the one that best fits your needs. I have a 65-3 3" in my dresser drawer. Yes in the drawer, I live very rural. My main problem is bears.I have a 870 with buckshot by the bedroom door. I have a 870 with slugs by the sliding glass door where the real threat is. And I have a 629 in the living room with my bear spray. I like to think I have all my bases covered. This is a seasonal issue.

But who knows where you live you might have Zombies roaming the neighborhood and the 44 special might be the better choice. I wouldn't know as I have never seen a Zombie or a Zombie movie. So use what ever one fits your needs. It is different for everyone.

John

Remington or Mossberg 12 or 20 gauge pump, with tactical, low flash/recoil, buckshot loads. You need an advantage, in a high stress half awake condition.

homes are made like their built out of cardboard paper, so I'd say if possibile go for a shotgun.

if its not possibile go for those Glaser Safety Slugs in either case, namely for the .44 as .38's in a revolver can be kind of iffy stopping power wise and they require good bullet placement to work as intended and as your not exactly going to be in a very calm state if something happens so your going to have to rely on a cartridge that can do the job even if your not exactly aiming in the ideal critical spots.


and with that point someone just made about the mussle flash I'd also go to the range under sunset conditions to see what kind of flash whatever your chosen load might have

either that or go to an indoor range with no one on it and turn the lights off around the shooting area to simulate a low light enviroment.

Choose the gun you shoot the best, but I would do some research on the Critical Defense stuff, the results are uninspiring. Speer Gold Dots and the Corbon DPX's among others are good rounds IMHO.

We choose .38 Specials loaded with either Critical Defense or the old standby 158 Gr. LSWC HP, though my 'go to' gun is an 18 inch barrel Mossberg 500 loaded with #4 shot and 6 more on a receiver carrier. Dumped the buckshot due to over penetration worries as one neighbor's house is very close.

If your bedside table is big enough, keep both of them there. But personally I'd pick up the model 10 first. It won't blind you, make you totally deaf and follow up shots are much easier.

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Jhawk412
Tulsa, Ok.

My only comment is this,

You need to night fire both. Without hearing protection.
(I'll probably take some flak for this) Just one round from each.

It's the only way you will truly know how your going to be able to withstand the muzzle blast, flash and report in the dark.

Outdoors is a good test. Then figure in a enclosed room what that is going to be like.

Oh, and btw remember to speak softly for a bit after you do this. Everyone will wonder why your talking so loud.

I say this from actual expierence. My partner and I were investigating a possible burg in progress early in my career when we came under fire from two perps in an auto parts warehouse. They were armed with a .22 rifle and a .32 auto pistol.

I fired a total of four rounds, he fired 3 from about 15 feet away from me. They thankfully surrendered. I couldn't hear a train if it was coming at me for about 2 hours.

This occured in a metal roofed warehouse with a concrete floor. And we were using .38 +p 158 gr rounds.

For what it's worth. It's not like the movies.

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Take your time..quickly.

I'd choose:

One that makes the biggest hole...
One that makes the biggest bang...
One that makes the biggest muzzle flash...
One that levels the intruder with one shot...

If I have to fire the gun in my own home I'm not going to worry about recoil, muzzle flash or want to concern myself with needing or thinking ahead to a second shot... Adrenaline supersedes and negates all those concerns if we feel truly life threatened...

Well sighted laser gun sights in the dark are probably your best ally no matter what you choose...

JMHO

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Terry

The words of experience are hard to beat. Well said oldafsp.

John

Bigger is always better, go with the .44. You won't regret it!

well I'd make sure you dont use any ammo that goes above 1100 fps to prevent the supersonic crack from happening with your ammo of choice as to preserve your hearing as best you can.

and you can really hear that crack here at 5:46 from it going supersonic vs the subsonic at 7:45

300 AAC Blackout Suppressed - YouTube

and with a .44 special theres really no need to go with a + or high velocity round unlike with a .38 for it to do its job


however as the bugatti veyron proved from the other thread bigger is not always better, not by a long shot in that case although given the choice of a cartridge thats known for not having the best track record in the world and one that does its an obivious choice, the .44 special wins although ammo might be abit on the hard side to come by.

and in the case of the 44 a heavier bullet at low velocity is what does the job, namely 230 at 850, not 158 at 1120

If there is enough light that an intruder can see it, the 29 is going to look about 4 times bigger than a Model 10.

There's something to be said for that...

If you need to shoot, a 29 with factory level 44SP loads (e.g. Win Silvertips are good) is pretty tame for recoil and not all that loud or flashy compared to some 38SP+P loads. I'd think a quick recovery/follow up would be no problem if you are well practiced with it.

Then again, the Model 10 being a more common and less expensive gun to leave out for the intended purpose, I'd be inclined to choose it since it is adequate for the task.

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" I said, good DAY! "

Don't over think this...Either gun will do.

Good point. Exactly what I have been doing!

Many think the shotgun is best and I tend to agree, especially since I live in a townhouse and a likely shot would be towards the adjacent unit. With that thought in mind and Rangerpat's comment about what the wife would be able to handle better, here is my current thinking:

Browing BPS 20 ga with #4 shot in the bedroom (possible Mossberg 12 ga as future purchase). Model 10 .38 spl in safe under the bed. Model 29 in the car.

Now I have to figure out how to keep the 20 ga safe. No kids at home but occassionally have visitors with kids. Hide it behind the bed? Keep it unloaded with shells in the drawer? Up high on a shelf in the closet?

Thanks so much for all the previous comments. They were very helpful.

Just my .02; I'd go with the model 10. I'm not a fan of the flash and roar of anything bigger than .38 spec without hearing protection and daylight.

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But then, what do I know?

Load the M29 with Win. Silvertips or a similar round and then compare how well you shoot the M29 as opposed to the M10.

Find the longest distance you could have to shoot in your home, probably a hallway opening onto a room. That is your max distance to shoot at. Shoot from right there to the longest distance. See which one you shoot better.

Along the same lines, try shooting without looking at the rear sight. Front sight on the target and run both revolvers fast. Do you do better with one than the other.

How's your eyesight? I can see the front sight on my 629 4" better than I can see the smaller fixed sight on the M65 3" that I traded off a while back. If you wear glasses, can you see one set of sights better without your glasses than the other.

Try to shoot at the same pace with both pistols. Can you run the 29 as fast as you run the 10? When you run them fast is there one or the other that you are most accurate with.

Go out to a range that will let you shoot some rounds after it gets dark. Check the muzzle flashes on both rounds. While you might think the fireball would scare the heck out of the bad guy, it makes it hard for you to shoot a 2nd round.

I'm not too worried about the noise comparatively between the two. Both will be loud without hearing protection.

Is the cost of practice ammo or something similar a factor? For instance, gee I can get inexpensive .38 Spec so I shoot my M10 all the time but .44 Spec ammo is expensive so I don't shoot my M29 that often. Do you like one revolver better than another for whatever reason so that you'll practice more with it?

Both revolvers will do you well if you do well in working them. I'm sure that there might be other factors to consider but the above is where I'd start my analysis.

Good luck,
Jim

I would use the gun that you (and others in the house that might use it) shoot the best.

Issues like flash and blast are a distant second and third. Low pressure rounds like .38 and .44 Special are not that loud indoors and just about all of the quality self defense ammo has flash suppressed powder.

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Centennial Every Day

Having a gun and being proficient with it is so much more important than which gun you have. What ever you choose, practice with it until getting good, consistent hits is second nature.

Dave

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RSVN '69-'71
PCSD (Ret)

Go with the 44spl. Don't buy into the ammo gimmicks, wasted money. But if you're serious about home defense, get a shotgun with buckshot.

Both revolvers are fine but I would also consider a 12ga pump in the corner. If you have time to can get to the shotgun it is far better in a low light situation and far more incapacitating than a pistol round.

My revolver inventory consists of two calibers. Several .44 in both magnum and Spl and several .38's in both .357 magnum and .38 Spl. If I had to pick one gun to have for a possible home defense life saving event, it would be one of the .44 Spl's. Big bullet, acceptable recoil.

We all hope that such an event never happens. But in the event it does I'd want to stop the threat as fast as possible. I believe the .44 superior for this task.

Adrenaline will cancel out all concerns about noise and muzzle flash. Tunnel vision and auditory exclusion will rule.

Without hearing protection, I'd rather shoot the model 10. I made this same choice myself after having heard someone shoot off a round of .38 special (not +P!) in an enclosed space without hearing protection. No permanent damage but I couldn't hear too well for hours and my ears rang quite a bit for a while. (I no longer shoot with people I don't know so well.)

Also, although I'd rather hit an intruder with a bigger round, given my level of skill and training, I know that I can make faster and more accurate followup shots with the .38 special than with a more powerful round.

All that said, I agree with everyone who suggested a shotgun. FWIW, my hidden go-to handguns are old Ruger Speed Sixes (I wouldn't want to lose a S&W to an evidence locker for goodness knows how long) loaded with .38 special and a very inexpensive Winchester 120 pump loaded with 00 buck.

A number of folks have said they prefer the 38 Special over the 44 Special for reasons of hearing damage potential, and yet some of them then recommend a 12 Ga shotgun. Have any of you heard a 12 Ga fired indoors, in a confined space like a bedroom?

Just asking',
Dave

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RSVN '69-'71
PCSD (Ret)

What is all this talk of hearing loss? I would rather be alive with permanent hearing damage than permenantly dead. Maybe you should ask the intruder to hold still till you get your earplugs in.

I don't know if the muzzle blast with a reasonable .44 Special round is any worse than with a .38 Special. I'm down to one ear working because of a brain tumor years ago so I am not really interested in actual testing with either. I'm sure that there is someone here who has shot both without hearing protection under comparable circumstances. Is the muzzle blast of a .44 Special any worse than of a .38 Special? Answer anyone? Just so it throws my favorite into the mix what about .45 Colt with factory ammo like Federals 225 grain LSWC HP or Winchester Silvertips (not cowboy loads)?

Thanks,
Jim

In my opinion, no. Those are all low pressure rounds and I don't find any of them to be significantly different report wise. All of the standard pressure rounds like the .38 Special, .44 Special, .45 Colt and .45 ACP will be similar. One thing to think about is, barrel length will make a difference in report. A 2" barrel will be louder than a 6" barrel given the same ammo.

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Centennial Every Day