What do you do?

[Hobie1]

We have a farm store here in town that has a nice assortment of guns and ammo. The prices are fair, pretty much, so I wander through once in a while.
Awhile back I was in there listening to the counter person tell a family not to spend more than a hundred or two on a home defense gun because if you ever had to use it, it would be confiscated and they'd lose the gun to the police.
They left without buying anything. Okay 'esplain this one to me lucy.....You buy a junk gun to protect yourself just in case the cops take it. Meanwhile said junk gun fails to protect you because it's junk!!!! But at least it isn't worth much in the evidence locker even though you're DEAD!
Today, said counter professional was asked about the difference between .223 and 5.56 compatibility, by me. I was looking at factory ammo prices and inquired about the difference. He said that they weren't interchangeable(.223 vs. 5.56). I said that as far as I've found out is that you can safely chamber .223's all day long in a 5.56 set-up but not necessarily the other way around as there could be a pressure problem with a tight chambered .223.
"Nope" he said, he had had 3 different people tell him otherwise as well as a manufacturer.(wouldn't tell me who the manf. was)
What do you do with someone who is interacting with folks everyday with erroneous info?
Oh well.

Hobie

 

[NKJ nut]

What do you do with someone who is interacting with folks everyday with erroneous info?
Oh well.

Hobie

You don't do anything with him, because it's America and people have the right to be wrong and to talk BS. But if you like, you could buy his stuff when he has something you want at a decent price.

Forget about looking to him for gun information. It wont be any better than what you could get in the local bar.

 

[Sebago Son]

What do you do with someone who is interacting with folks everyday with erroneous info? Hobie

When I was younger I used to try to solve all of the world's problems. I have found since that this is a worthless pursuit. Today, I just let them die ignorant.

 

[Armyphotog]

In any shooting, the police will usually confiscate the weapon, but if it turns out you were in the right, I have never heard of a weapon not being returned, unless you had it illegally in the first place. Now, you might have to do some paperwork, but it should be no problem.

 

[NKJ nut]

When I was younger I used to try to solve all of the world's problems. I have found since that this is a worthless pursuit. Today, I just let them die ignorant.

Yep, that's me. I fought ignorance for years. Won a skirmish here and there but for the most part ignorance prevailed because people preferred it.

 

[David LaPell]

As far as buying a "cheap" defensive firearm because of it sitting in the evidence locker, I can tell you of a case back a ways where it took nearly two years to go to trial. I know there are guns in my safe I wouldn't want in the locker for that long. I would not hesitate to recommend a $300 Model 10 to anyone for personal defense so I can understand that. As far as other info from gun counter guys, well, I have seen enough of the BS before and heard it, but I like to do my own research, or buy something I know something about.

 

[diamonback68]

Years ago my ex-wife hid my loaded Model 36 and wouldn't tell where it was. I'm a little edgey about someone else have my gun in my house that could be used against me and I don't know where it is. I called the police, told them the story, requested they confiscate it and they made her hand it over. After all the dust settled and about six lapsed, they sent be a letter and said I could come with proper ID and pick it up. Still have it, not a nick on it.

 

[Onomea]

I think worrying about the police confiscating your gun in the event that you have to shoot someone silly. If you have to shoot someone in self-defense -- which I think for most of us is extremely unlikely, perhaps the odds of that happening in a gun owners lifetime are less than 1%, I'd wager -- what happens to the gun will be the least of our worries... I've read that even few LEOs need to shoot someone during their entire careers.

I think it is like worrying about being struck by lightning, with the odds of it happening about the same.

 

[The Big D]

Thanks, Onomea, for putting this ridiculous statement in its proper place.

Be safe.

I think worrying about the police confiscating your gun in the event that you have to shoot someone silly. If you have to shoot someone in self-defense -- which I think for most of us is extremely unlikely, perhaps the odds of that happening in a gun owners lifetime are less than 1%, I'd wager -- what happens to the gun will be the least of our worries... I've read that even few LEOs need to shoot someone during their entire careers.

I think it is like worrying about being struck by lightning, with the odds of it happening about the same.

 

[The Last Standing Knight]

You don't do anything with him, because it's America and people have the right to be wrong and to talk BS. But if you like, you could buy his stuff when he has something you want at a decent price.

Forget about looking to him for gun information. It wont be any better than what you could get in the local bar.

EVERY gun show I have ever been to has had folks just like this. Someone who is willing to sell you the very AR-15 that Davy Crockett used at The Alamo to fight off invading space aliens.

Best ignored or not bought from. BTW, I must agree about losing the firearm if you have to use it in a self defense situation. That is a 50/50 proposition and depends on many factors. Suffice to say you don't use a safe queen or an heirloom for CCW or self defense. You get a more common weapon if at all possible that is more economical...like a used police trade in revolver and not something made by Clerke, Rohm, etc.

 

[mod34]

I actually support and applaud the store owner's position related to how much to spend on a home defense weapon. Imagine the flack he would have gotten from the OP if he would have tried to upsell the customer way more gun ($$$$) than necessary. I think I've got a whopping $150 in my current "sock drawer" piece and drift off to sleep every night feeling very well protected.

 

[old bear]

When I was younger I used to try to solve all of the world's problems.

I spent too many years riding off to fight windmills and all I got for it more than my share of lumps. Most folks are happy to believe what they want to believe, and really aren't interested in hearing anything else.

 

[bitstream]

I'd suggest you have enough gun to be comfortable that it will work flawlessly if you need it.

But, that doesn't mean you need to go investigating a bump in the night with a $2000 custom either.

 

[writerinmo]

This is why you need more than one handgun, right? That way IF you were involved in a shooting and the officers took the firearm involved you can just go to the safe and get another!

 

[Fishslayer]

This is why you need more than one handgun, right? That way IF you were involved in a shooting and the officers took the firearm involved you can just go to the safe and get another!

...and in some cases around here...

another....and

another... and

another... and

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

As I go along I have learned not take legal advice from someone unless they have JD or LLB after their name nor to take medical advice from anyone who does not have MD or RN after their name. Also we do have 50 states plus a federal government, often there is little uniformity of procedure even in the same state or county and in many cases it's merely
"that's the way we've always done it" rather than what's mandated by law. And as a long time habitue of gun shops I have learned not to take too seriously much of what I have heard in them.
As someone who is not into custom or modified guns I would feel quite safe using a basic plain vanilla model that I have practiced with-and whose loss, even temporary, would not cause too much anguish.

 

[CelticSire]

My daddy used to tell me, "Son, arguing with a fool is like trying to teach a pig to sing. It's a waste of time, and pigs can't tell time. So the only one who loses is you."

 

[Rule 303]

Never argue with a fool or an idiot, just makes you look stupid.

Rule 303

 

[oldman45]

I would not use a cheap gun for self defense in the home unless I had to do so.

However I would not hesitate to buy a cheap gun just for such a purpose. Cheap guns go bad with repeated use. They work the first few times just fine. Even a broken clock is right twice a day. All you need in a cheap home defense gun is for it to work the one time you need it.

That said, I would use my pricey S&W 1911 in self defense and not even consider how long I would be without it. I have others and the company still makes them. The gun being impounded would be the least of my worries at the time.

 

[wbraswell]

I'd consider a Mossberg 500 a cheap gun and I'd trust it as much as any 870, Model 12, or 37.

 

[H Richard]

If it was my store I would transfer that employee to another dept. and hire someone that knows what he is talking about. "And" pay them more than minimum wage to respect the knowledge.

 

[BearBio]

In any shooting, the police will usually confiscate the weapon, but if it turns out you were in the right, I have never heard of a weapon not being returned, unless you had it illegally in the first place. Now, you might have to do some paperwork, but it should be no problem.

It wasn't involved in a shooting, actually. There were shots fired at an apartment complex and my brother's friend ran outside with my brother's .41 blackhawk. Police searched him and confiscated it. Afterward, my brother went to get his gun back. Despite having receipt from the gun store, receipt from the police, they denied it was taken. The friend went in and ID'd the cop, who said he turned it in. One duty sergeant said yes, it's here, another said they couldn't find it. Went on for several months. We finally enlisted a Sheriff's Captain who was a friend from Boy Scouts. He got the gun back for us. We heard UNOFFICIALLY that is was found under some stuff in a sergeant's desk.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

As I go along I have learned not take legal advice from someone unless they have JD or LLB after their name nor to take medical advice from anyone who does not have MD or RN after their name. Also we do have 50 states plus a federal government, often there is little uniformity of procedure even in the same state or county and in many cases it's merely
"that's the way we've always done it" rather than what's mandated by law. And as a long time habitue of gun shops I have learned not to take too seriously much of what I have heard in them.
As someone who is not into custom or modified guns I would feel quite safe using a basic plain vanilla model that I have practiced with-and whose loss, even temporary, would not cause too much anguish.

Don't forget though, that legal and medical advice that is on the internet is safe to follow since it is a well known fact that anything on the internet must be true or it's not supposed to be posted

 

[Hobie1]

I think that what got me wasn't so much the price range but the inference that $100 will get you something you can bet your life on, such as a Raven .25. A fine little pistol...that you can't hit a wall with at 50 feet away. High quality mag. spring to reliably feed after sitting in your hide spot for a year or two.
I agree that if you take your time and shop around, you can get a lightly used gun that you could trust for not alot of money.

I don't keep a loaded gun in my house because we are fortunate to live in a fairly free of violent crime area and I don't go to sleep at night wondering when we're going to be assaulted. If and when it becomes necessary, I've got a 686+ I'd sacrifice in the name of defense. "Make my day"

I've got a magnum ball bat right at hand just in case the zombies come.

Hobie