Home Defense weapons

[Lee's Landing Billy]

Probably just me, but I have seen the damage first hand 00buck can do and if I broke into a house and heard "that sound" from down the hallway, or at the top of the stairs, or even in another room..........
I'm outta there...Exit stage right....

I assume you are not a life long felon. A completely different mindset.

 

[30-30remchester]

It is not as simple as the op stated for some of us. Two of my kids lived downstairs and one upstairs and all were on the opposite end of the house. I have never called the police it is not their problem, it is my problem. Found my door wide open and the lights on a year back. In this instance I had my wife take the car down the driveway and in position to leave the county if necessary. I grabbed my model 19 and checked the house. Nobody home and nothing missing. Still cant figure that one out. I always live in the countryside so things are different that urban dwellers. One night I heard what sounded like somebody trying to get in the kitchen window. My wife armed herself in bed and I crept out with my handgun to check out the problem. Just as I was reaching for the curtain to open it and confront the intruder, my foot got near one of my kids proximity toys, in this case a dog. For you that do not know what one of these is, they sit dormant till you get near then it lights up, starts yipping and scurries off. I dang near shot the coffee pot. The noise outside stopped but resumed in a minute or two. When the noise started again, I threw open the curtain and shown my light at the suspected intruded. What I saw was a mule deer buck scraping the velvet from his antlers on the side of my house. The joys of living in the woods.

 

[Ron M.]

Just a little Ruger Security six with .38 wad cutters. I hate cleaning up after "guests" arrive...and depart unexpectedly.

 

[Lee's Landing Billy]

It is not as simple as the op stated for some of us. Two of my kids lived downstairs and one upstairs and all were on the opposite end of the house. I have never called the police it is not their problem, it is my problem. Found my door wide open and the lights on a year back. In this instance I had my wife take the car down the driveway and in position to leave the county if necessary. I grabbed my model 19 and checked the house. Nobody home and nothing missing. Still cant figure that one out. I always live in the countryside so things are different that urban dwellers. One night I heard what sounded like somebody trying to get in the kitchen window. My wife armed herself in bed and I crept out with my handgun to check out the problem. Just as I was reaching for the curtain to open it and confront the intruder, my foot got near one of my kids proximity toys, in this case a dog. For you that do not know what one of these is, they sit dormant till you get near then it lights up, starts yipping and scurries off. I dang near shot the coffee pot. The noise outside stopped but resumed in a minute or two. When the noise started again, I threw open the curtain and shown my light at the suspected intruded. What I saw was a mule deer buck scraping the velvet from his antlers on the side of my house. The joys of living in the woods.

This post says it all. No one choice for everybody........

 

[ParadiseRoad]

...current line up of home defense shotguns...from top...12 gauge Stoeger Coach Gun...12 gauge Mossberg 500...12 gauge Winchester 1300 Defender...20 gauge H&R Pardner Pump...

 

[kwselke]

...current line up of home defense shotguns...from top...12 gauge Stoeger Coach Gun...12 gauge Mossberg 500...12 gauge Winchester 1300 Defender...20 gauge H&R Pardner Pump...

I hope each is choked and loaded appropriately for varying distances and toughness of potential targets.

What was that movie with the line... You broke into the wrong @#$% rec-room?

Oh, I remember a redhead cutting apart a Graboid with a 12 gauge.

 

[ExcitableBoy]

BAM-BAM:
Have you ever seen someone work-out with an 870 who knows what they're doing? Maybe only a hair slower cycling than a semi-auto. It takes a lot of shooting experience, though, I'll admit.

00 BUCK ADVOCATES:
As for the usage of 00 Buck inside the home: You get nine .33 cal balls per average load. At defensive distances (half-a-house length at the most, maybe), if you don't hit your target (the Bad Guy) with the full charge, if at all, you have those HEAVY balls of lead ripping through walls, etc., possibly into the adjacent apartment to do harm to innocents. Unlike in the movies, you just don't make gigantic four-foot holes in a door from ten feet away and the lead stops in it's tracks. You'd be lucky to wind up with a fist sized void, and the charge continues to travel a goodly way. The same pattern with almost any other load, too. But if your choice for a home defense weapon is a shotgun, it is more than prudent to try to mitigate peripheral damage with the usage of a more suitable load like #4 Buck, with 27-28 .24 cal. pellets, or BB, with 50+ .18 cal. pellets. Pretty much standard loadings for 12 ga. 2 3/4". (Side note: If #4 Buck was good enough for Seal Team 2 in Viet Nam, it's damn sure good enough for me!) They will do the job at the distances of which we're speaking and not demolish the neighborhood.

Personally, I use an old 870 beater with an 18 1/2" cylinder-bore barrel, loaded with #4 Buck (Along with home defense, it's also quite handy when it comes to four-legged varmints, too. Add a light and you've got a world-class raccoon eradicator.), plus a handgun and flashlight on the nightstand...

 

[BAM-BAM]

BAM-BAM:
Have you ever seen someone work-out with an 870 who knows what they're doing? Maybe only a hair slower cycling than a semi-auto. It takes a lot of shooting experience, though, I'll admit.

LOL..... I was referring to ........ me.....not that guy on TV!!!

While I own a couple of 12&20 gauges.....shotguns are just not my thing!!!!

Given my skill level and experience ...... I'd grab my Beretta CX-4 9mm Carbine.......if faced with anything bigger than a pheasant!

 

[sigp220.45]

I have a free roaming Rottweiler. Here he is watching Top Gear with me. (The real Top Gear, not the current one. Now we watch The Grand Tour on Amazon.)



If someone breaks in, I'm not hiding in my bedroom while Randy deals with it until the cops come and shoot him.

I have my trusty 12 gauge pump. Randy and I will sort things out.

I think a 9mm carbine would also do a first rate job.

 

[shouldazagged]

I live in an apartment with a little rat terrier who is a first-rate early warning system. House guns are a .38 Special with the FBI load and an elderly 12ga. side-by-side sawed to twenty inches and loaded with #4 buck. I feel adequately protected, and except for the dog there's no one here but me.

 

[99savage308]

Claymores, barbed wire, Great Danes, and attack cats.

 

[hostler]

I've never been a fan of carbine, shotguns or any long gun for basic home defense. I don't like anything that requires two hands to operate or won't fit through a door or down a hall sideways.
I call the police to take the report. It seems like a bad idea to invite armed people, hopped up on adrenaline, to the party when they don't know the good guys from the bad guys.

 

[D Brown]

I have seen the 9MM carbine advocated in areas where handgun ownership is restricted. there was an article recently in American Rifleman by a retired SF E-9 on house defense and clearing with an AR-15. In a shotgun birdshot and skeet shot are not to be trifled with a close range. Wide spread, reduced penetration of walls, low recoil. And the shotgun-like a the submachine gun-requires a lot more training than most realize, the effectiveness of "point and pull" is "greatly exaggerated." What really counts is the combat mindset.
The guns are just tools. The mind is the weapon.

Personally, I think BIRDSHOT is a horrendously BAD IDEA for self defense inside a home. If you happen to miss with any of the shot cloud, and any of that shot hits a hard surface, it's liable to ricochet right back into the shooters eyes. STICK WITH BUCK SHOT PEOPLE.

 

[Whitwabit]

Kids are grown and gone .. just me and the wife and a 90 pound German Shepherd named Eko .. she would be raising the dead if someone tried to come in .. really think they would turn and run ..

But think one could use any firearm as long as the appropriate self defense ammo is used so over penetration was eliminated ..

 

[ParadiseRoad]

Personally, I think BIRDSHOT is a horrendously BAD IDEA for self defense inside a home. If you happen to miss with any of the shot cloud, and any of that shot hits a hard surface, it's liable to ricochet right back into the shooters eyes. STICK WITH BUCK SHOT PEOPLE.

...video below pretty well proves that at across the room distances...shotgun loads...even birdshot... are still in the shot cup when they impact...basically a frangible slug...

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gq3RVvL9ZjU[/ame]

 

[D Brown]

...video below pretty well proves that at across the room distances...shotgun loads...even birdshot... are still in the shot cup when they impact...basically a frangible slug...

Shotgun Ammo for Home Defense - Gunblast.com - YouTube

I've shot bowling pins (at 10 yards) in a match setting with #6 shot and had the shot come right back at me. Video or no video, your choice, I'll stick with personal experience.

 

[ParadiseRoad]

I've shot bowling pins (at 10 yards) in a match setting with #6 shot and had the shot come right back at me. Video or no video, your choice, I'll stick with personal experience.

...I guess if the perp is wearing a vest made out of bowling pins...you may have a point...

 

[A10]

I'd probably discount leverguns and single-action revolvers, though.

Why? 10 rounds in a handgun caliber lever gun could be pretty darn effective. Single action revolvers have been used for self defense for a long time. Ever watch a cowboy match? Some of those folks are downright scary good.

IMHO, use what you have, and practice!

 

[bushmaster1313]

The late Dave McCraken once suggested to me that I take my cylinder bore 18.5" 870 Wingmaster to the trap range and shoot from the 16 yard line with birdshot.

If you shoot fast you can break the birds and it is great practice

 

[Wise_A]

Why? 10 rounds in a handgun caliber lever gun could be pretty darn effective. Single action revolvers have been used for self defense for a long time. Ever watch a cowboy match? Some of those folks are downright scary good.

IMHO, use what you have, and practice!

What does a single-action revolver or levergun do, that a double-action revolver or semiautomatic carbine cannot?

Now, what do DA revolvers and semiautomatics do that SAs and levers cannot? Fire more than once in a row.

They may be effective, but they are obsolete. There's no objective reason to select one.

Good morning to you, sir.
Everyone has their own personal preferences, but I don't think there's much to be puzzled about. The shotgun is and has always been one of the most devastating close-quarters anti-personnel firearms available; used by police and military everywhere when trouble is to be expected.

While trying to be condescending, you've missed the point. Which is that that shotgun, contrary to popular thinking, is far from a one-size-fits all solution. Its weaknesses are glossed over, its strengths are overestimated, and folks tend to ignore the fact that they can't remember the last time they actually used their shotgun.

Is it good? Yes, if you're an avid shotgunner. If it's been a few years since you've used one, but you practice weekly with a handgun, a pistol or revolver is a much better bet.

Also, isn't complaining about hearing damage after a defensive shooting a bit like pissing and moaning that your seat belt gave you a bruise?

 

[fredg19]

I have a free roaming Rottweiler. Here he is watching Top Gear with me. (The real Top Gear, not the current one. Now we watch The Grand Tour on Amazon.)

Off topic a little.... Beautiful dog!! I love Rottweilers! I have had two in the past (at different times) plan on getting one when I retire in a few years. Best dogs ever!!

Thank you for your service sig! Both military and with the PD.

 

[diegobxr]

While trying to be condescending, you've missed the point. Which is that that shotgun, contrary to popular thinking, is far from a one-size-fits all solution. Its weaknesses are glossed over, its strengths are overestimated, and folks tend to ignore the fact that they can't remember the last time they actually used their shotgun.

Is it good? Yes, if you're an avid shotgunner. If it's been a few years since you've used one, but you practice weekly with a handgun, a pistol or revolver is a much better bet.

Also, isn't complaining about hearing damage after a defensive shooting a bit like pissing and moaning that your seat belt gave you a bruise?

I wasn't at the least being condescending, sir.
I am sorry you understood it that way.
I disagree with your points but will just leave it at that.

 

[JcMack]

We'll see what happens here.

https://gma.yahoo.com/killing-3-tee...oklahoma-010103618--abc-news-topstories.html#

 

[HoleCarder]

I own two large working-line German Shepherd dogs. They roam the house at night. They'd love to meet an intruder that visits my home. I'll probably just remain in bed, asleep.

 

[hostler]

We'll see what happens here.

Killing of 3 teens during burglary may test Oklahoma 'stand your ground' law - Yahoo

I don't understand why this is a "test" or "challenge" of the Stand-Your-Ground law. This is exactly why the law exists.

 

[Old cop]

I was a cop for 30 years, the SWAT commander (extensive training & experience) and a gunfight survivor but now I'm a 70 y/o who walks w/a cane and I WOULD NOT "clear" my house in an emergency. I'd call 911 and wait in the locked bedroom w/my wife (just the two of us now) until the real cops showed up. My home protection weapon is a Glock 17.

 

[S42N8]

Also, isn't complaining about hearing damage after a defensive shooting a bit like pissing and moaning that your seat belt gave you a bruise?

I agree with you on the shotgun pros and cons, but the hearing problem is avoidable, and the solution can be used to advantage.

The hearing muffs I use for clays now sit on the nightstand. They are the type with electronic hearing attenuation (Howard Leight Impact Sport) - the kind that amplify conversation, but cut off high decibel sounds. Inside, when you max out the volume, you'd be amazed how much more you hear. They give me better hearing (useful in the dark, that) and if used under fire, I've got a much better chance to hear the sound of bad people either coming at me or departing.

 

[A10]

What does a single-action revolver or levergun do, that a double-action revolver or semiautomatic carbine cannot?

Now, what do DA revolvers and semiautomatics do that SAs and levers cannot? Fire more than once in a row.

They may be effective, but they are obsolete. There's no objective reason to select one.

Your first point is valid. Neither is better than the other. Your second point is inaccurate. The firearms just operate differently. Your comment on obsolescence is questionable. The ones most often used are modern firearms. Archaic, maybe anachronistic, but I would argue no less effective. As far as objectivity, I would argue that personal firearm choice is purely subjective. To each, their own.

 

[T2C]

There is nothing wrong with a 9mm carbine. There is nothing wrong with a good handgun, M1 Carbine or shotgun. Choose a firearm based on your experience, your family situation and your willingness to practice with it.

The choice of a home defense firearm is a small part of the big plan required to properly defend yourself and your family in the home.

 

[Wise_A]

Your first point is valid. Neither is better than the other. Your second point is inaccurate. The firearms just operate differently. Your comment on obsolescence is questionable. The ones most often used are modern firearms. Archaic, maybe anachronistic, but I would argue no less effective. As far as objectivity, I would argue that personal firearm choice is purely subjective. To each, their own.

So a single-action .38 Spl is as effective as a DA? Can they be reloaded and fired as quickly?