What Is Best For Home Defense?

[ArmyMP]

Best combination for home defense 12 gauge shot gun loaded with alternating buckshot and salt load.... pistol wise.... a 22 cal pistol that can fire te 22 shot shells.... talk about pain and agony

 

[snojet]

What about a Taurus Judge revolver? It has a .410 shotshell capability (I've seen an exclusive .410 HD round, it's a 4 shot round) and .45LC (LC=Long Colt) round too. In a house environment I think that firearm would be effective.
Like others here have said, check out a HD shotgun too.
And, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!!

 

[Jeremiah]

Many semi-autos are nearly as reliable. Springfield Armory XDs, Glocks, S&W M&Ps are the newer generation of combat handguns. All share basically equal records for reliability, though the Glock's record is longer. All are tough, all are light and easy to carry. They each feel different in the hand, which is one of the bigger choices to make. The XD and M&P are available with manual safeties. Any of the three is a superb defensive tool, and offer plenty of opportunities for sport shooting, as well. The Beretta 92FS, with it's long trigger and manual safety, offers some possible safety benefits, and has a proven track record of accuracy and reliability. Not to mention being gorgeous guns and smooth as butter. The 1911 models are wonderful choices, with a wide budget and gadget range to choose from.

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repped, this is the best way to describe modern defensive pistols I have come across, no bias, and shouldn't lead to a *****vs. ***** debate.

 

[greed]

I would say it depends on how comitted you are to shooting. I keep a 1911 by my bed, but a handgun is only good if you shoot regularly. Nothing says get out of my house like a good pump shotgun. I love my 870. A nice light load would not be deadly in the other room.

 

[hemicharger]

Best combination for home defense 12 gauge shot gun loaded with alternating buckshot and salt load.... pistol wise.... a 22 cal pistol that can fire te 22 shot shells.... talk about pain and agony

I really hope you are joking about using rock salt and .22 shot shells. Not only would that just **** soomeone off even more, it would not stop a determined attacker. Please do research before passing along bad advice.

 

[hemicharger]

What about a Taurus Judge revolver? It has a .410 shotshell capability (I've seen an exclusive .410 HD round, it's a 4 shot round) and .45LC (LC=Long Colt) round too. In a house environment I think that firearm would be effective.
Like others here have said, check out a HD shotgun too.
And, THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE!!

Check out theboxotruth.com They will show you what a poor choice for self defense the Judge really is. In theory is a good idea but it just doesnt work. Nothing can come close to a good ol 12ga with 00 through #4 shot.

 

[bw210]

Here are my zombie hunters:

Mossy 500A 20" "Trench Gun" 7+1+4 - "the work horse" that just keeps going. Loud, obnoxious, and smooth action. Bought new 25 years ago and still would trust my life to.

Escort Aimguard 18" 5+1 - This is technology catching up. A VERY NICE shotty with fast roller blow-back bolt cycle action & police issue in larger cities I believe. Perfect size for hallways, quick maneuvers, and my wife who stands all 5'4"

and then there's the FN tatical police issue 20" 7+1+6 - my favorite. Now THIS is a shotgun. SpeedPump with M16/AR15 style adjustable iron sights (aims like a rifle) with 22 port holes and chokes - I use a full mod ported choke. Combined with the ported barrel, "00" groups are the size of a golf ball up to 20 yards(longest tested). It's only purpose is to clear a room or building lighting fast. My only change (soon) would be a collapsable stock as all my other magazine feed semi-auto repeating rifles are fully extended, the m16 stock is about 1 1/2" out of comfort zone to long for me. Other than that it ranks supreme!

All shotty's have an empty chamber so I can rack the slide and let anybody who doesn't belong to LEAVE RIGHT NOW. If you don't, you deserve to get shot twice or even three time for stupidity while I would help cleanse the gene pool.

All shotty's are loaded with TAP/Ranger low recoil 2 3/4 rounds. At 1100 fps, low flash powder and recoil less than that of a 20 guage, I believe it is the only way to go for home defense. I live in city limits, so rifle and pistol rounds are last resort (but not out of question) for me, although my carry Springer and extra mags have HST's only(almost to much penetration) lay rest on the bed stand when not on me(only because she make me take it off for bed).

In case thing get worse, my safe has all rifles with loaded mags of heavy TAP rounds

I know, I know - shot placement! But if I have to act swiftly from a dead sleep, I think I would prefer my shotty - Hope I never have to find out!!

I rotate around, but the FN is by far, my choice home weapon in the bedroom with my carry springer as a back-up.

just my

 

[Rattlesnake46319]

Some of these points may have already been made, I haven't read all the posts:

For HD, a 12ga shotgun is your best bet. Folks have already mentioned the Mossberg 500, Mossberg 590a1 (bayonet lugs are wonderful things), and the Remington 870. All three are pump guns and very reliable. If you prefer a semi-auto shotgun, I recommend the Mossberg 930SPX. It's designed as a "combat" shotgun and will feed reliably, provided you feed it correctly. I've had stovepipes on mine when using low power shells. Which brings me to my next point. I've seen a lot of suggestions to use birdshot. Birdshot is for birds. Use buckshot for HD.I understand the concern for over-penetration, but bear in mind that if your rounds won't penetrate walls, they won't penetrate your target. Ol' Painless over at The Box O' Truth demonstrates this pretty well. The Box O' Truth #3 - The Shotgun Meets the Box O' Truth - Page 1

As far as handguns are concerned, I personally don't rely on any caliber that doesn't start with ".4"....exception being .357 Magnum. Striker-fired pistols are good, no worries about fumbling for a safety when you're coming out of sleep and adrenaline is flowing. S&W M&P, Springfield XD, and (yes, I'll admit it) Glock are all great examples. For pure reliability, I recommend a revolver. If you have a failure to fire (pop and no kick), the solution is as easy as pull the trigger again. If you're planning on your wife using a handgun for HD, I would steer you away from the striker-fired pistols. It's been my experience that most striker-fired pistols are polymer framed, which can lead to less control. Most women that I have taken out shooting have preferred my 1911 to my XD because the added weight makes it easier to control. Obviously, if your wife is familiar with shooting and is comfortable with a polymer frame, disregard that.

The Box O' Truth (see above link) has plenty of good info on penetration and HD choices for rifle, handgun, and shotgun. I suggest checking 'em out.

Welcome home, Marine! Just ETS'd from the Army myself.

 

[henry0reilly]

I keep a 20 gauge pump, 20" ported barrel and reamed forcing cone, loaded with #6 shot. The porting and reaming were to reduce recoil for the little woman but we split up and she left the gun behind. I also keep my carry gun, S&W model 37 handy at home.

 

[Jay]

I'll be so bold as to suggest that if you haven't already done so, go to your local range and pattern your shotgun. You may find that at distances you might shoot at inside your home for self defense, your shotgun's pattern doesn't cover the area you thought it would.

Just sayin'

 

[bw210]

I'll be so bold as to suggest that if you haven't already done so, go to your local range and pattern your shotgun. You may find that at distances you might shoot at inside your home for self defense, your shotgun's pattern doesn't cover the area you thought it would.

Just sayin'

Exactly - the old sayin "just aim at the wall and fire" is probably the worst thing you could do. Shotguns, even with short 18-20 inch barrels are still intended for ONE target. Know your arms and ammo's capability!

 

[Big Ed]

My wife and I have a Mossberg 500 persuader (12guage pump shotgun with an 18 inch barrel). She has a S&W 357 and I have a S&W 5906 9mm. She is good with shotgun and incredible with her S&W. The mossberg was bought new for $230.

 

[mk2ja]

For Home Defense, Get a Handgun

Massad Ayoob (link to Wikipedia) is one of the most renowned authors and instructors on the use of firearms for personal and home defense. His best known book is probably In the Gravest Extreme: The Role of the Firearm in Personal Protection (link to Amazon), which was first published in 1980. The principles Ayoob presents in that book have maintained their relevancy over the years. If you have not read this book yet, I highly recommend that you do. It is only $13 on Amazon, but you may find it cheaper at a local bookstore. After you read it once, you'll want to read it again because there is just so much good information that you can't soak it all up in just one read.

One key point Ayoob makes about home defense is that a handgun is preferable to a shotgun. While we typically talk about the fear instilled in somebody by the sound a shotgun makes as a round is pumped into the chamber, a handgun holds several advantages. Primarily, the handgun is easier to handle as you maneuver around your house; and a close second is the fact that it is more difficult for an intruder who fights back to disarm you of a handgun than of a shotgun.

I'll let you read the book to see Ayoob's full reasoning and recommendations, but that is what he advises. He also gives some great advice about how to pick out a first gun, which you may find useful in your quest.


Kind regards.

 

[techres]

Ah! The eternal balance between power and handiness. The handgun is easier to retain, control, maneuver and conceal. These are all very, very important capabilities in a home self defense weapon.

Then again, the shotgun is the embodiment of power and fast stopping:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWpd7pgIQpA]YouTube - 12 Gauge Shotgun Blast Hits Watermelon at 15 yards[/ame]

Not to mention, a good and reliable shotgun can be found for under $200.

 

[Shep79]

If strictly home defense...Rem 870 with 00. Pump, squeeze, bang...every time!

 

[kingnereli]

i agree with those that said if you are only going to have on gun it should be a handgun. I also agree that a handgun and get the job done in a home defense situation. However, for home defense, you don't need the attributes for which a handgun excels. That is, concealability and compactness. To gain those qualities a handgun sacrifices power and practical accuracy. Power being the important factor here as in the home distances are no problem in terms of accuracy. In a home defense situation we have the unique opportunity to go to a long gun first. We are used to a handgun as our primary for general carry purposed, but we don't have to be that limited when we are inside our own home.