Home Protection/Firearms Thread

[lemon boy]

So as not to totally hijack Grizz's fucking heroic thread with talk of firearms how about folks chuck their questions recco's here instead? Prolly need to talk about safety and use and blah blah at some point but: I don't have tooo much time today but will try to check in occasionally.

Basically, for home protection IMVHO it is hard to beat a 12ga shotgun (20ga is fine too, especially if your wife/gf may be too scared of a 12er).

Both mossberg and remington make some very fine (and inexpensive) shotguns for this task but most any shotgun could be pressed into this service. For just home defense it is hard to beat:

http://www.remington.com/firearms/sh...70expsyn18.htm

or the 500/590 special purpose mossbergs:

http://www.mossberg.com/pcatalog/Specpurp.htm

basically a regular (or short) stocked shotgun (I'm not big on pistol grip only = hard to control, pgrip and stock = not bad) pump gun, with a 18.5" - 20" barrel and a cylinder choke, extended mag's nice but not necessary. Plenty of hunting guns can be pressed into this service too (mine's just my regular 12 ga 870).

Both are simple, reliable, easy to hit targets.

What load you shoot is dependant on where you live, if you have kids etc... etc... Anything from 00 Buck through 5s should do you though.

Check with your local (state/county/city) laws for further restrictions.

Practice practice practice practice

locking or not, loaded or not is gonna have to be a personal decision as to how it is stored.

BATF requires background checks on all firearm purchases, IIRC must be over 18 for longguns (shotguns/rifles) and over 21 for handguns. Check out www.packing.org for more info.

http://www.atf.treas.gov/

[lemon boy]

Oh, and a firearm is NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR USING YOUR BRAIN!

Brain = Better than a firearm.

[EPSkis]

As far as the Mossberg goes, you can pick up a 500A with both a 24" slug barrel & a 28" bird barrel. (That's a 12ga pump)

edit: For under $250.

Keeping a 24" on it with some bird shot available nearby would be a good idea.

Although I have to disagree withyou on 1 point, LB - I've got kids, so it's not even a question as to whether I lock my weapons or ammo, however - I'd strongly recommend keeping trigger locks or cable locks on ANY weapon.

Likewise for the ammo - always, ALWAYS keep ammo in a safe (& preferably locked) place.

Never - under ANY circumstances - keep a weapon loaded in your home.

edit: #2 - Unless you have the type of handgun safe TD refers to below.

Keep everything close enough that you can get to it in a hurry if you need it, but remember that a loaded & unlocked weapon can always be used on YOU.

Just my .02

[teledave]

Kids throw some different variables into the equation, I use a finger touch activated safe (must hit three keys in the right sequence) to access a loaded handgun. It's the best compromise between accessability and safety that I've been able to find.

Also, deterrence is better than confrontation. If your place of residence affords it, get a dog, a big mean looking one that barks, one that barks a hell of a lot. I also have an electric eye alarm across my driveway, if you pull in I know about it. BEFORE you get to the door.

911 is no way to safeguard your family.

[Jumper Bones]

in case people are concerned about storing guns loaded, a number of firearms have impressive safeties...that once the safety is engaged, the firing pin is no longer in place and that there is NO WAY that the gun could "go off" without the safety being moved back to "shoot".

plus if you're concerned I believe you can lengthen or definitely shorten the trigger pull necessary for the weapon to shoot.

[Cornholio]

My great-great- somethingorother was the Sherriff in a small town in Western Arkensas in about 1900. He carried a 45, but also carried a colt sawed-off 10 gauge. My guess is it would be tough to find a more trusty hole-maker than that thing.

It's in our basement, but it's at least 100 years old. It's only use would be to scare the shit out of someone, which isn't a very useful use for a gun.

Sawed-offs and fully automatic weapons are lumped in the same category by the BATF, so they might be banging down our door as I speak.

[The Reverend Floater]

Another bonus about shotguns is that you're less likely to shoot through your house, into the neighbor's children's room. A bullet, on the other hand....

[subtle plague]

i got me an AK74 and a few grenade lauchners in case the neighbours want some trouble.
but i have to keep them hidden because of our hippy gouvernment. they don't see the logic in trying to keep your family safe by hoarding a few assault rifles.....

[cmsummit]

I got me one of them double barrel 16 ga. It's an antique model that was my grandpappies and is worth about $1200. Works great, but be carefull of the "hairpin double-trigger". Put in some #6 bird shot and Yeeeehaaaw!!!!

Never keep a loaded weapon in the house. Period.

[phUnk]

Another bonus about shotguns is that you're less likely to shoot through your house, into the neighbor's children's room. A bullet, on the other hand....

Don't forget the deterent effect of the very recognizable shick-SHICK! (Followed by the sound of a would-be thief pooping his pants.)

[13]

What's wrong with a brain, intimate knowledge of your house, and an aluminum bat under the bed?

It's easier to aim a bat, if you ask me.

[EPSkis]

What's wrong with a brain, intimate knowledge of your house, and an aluminum bat under the bed?

It's easier to aim a bat, if you ask me.

Nothing wrong with that at all.

It's even better when the people breaking into your house are using baseballs as weapons. Heck, you catch one on the seams, that boy better duck.

[cmsummit]

What's wrong with a brain, intimate knowledge of your house, and an aluminum bat under the bed?

It's easier to aim a bat, if you ask me.

Bats are not very useful from 30 feet away.

[The Reverend Floater]

What's wrong with a brain, intimate knowledge of your house, and an aluminum bat under the bed?

It's easier to aim a bat, if you ask me.

a) Hellen Keller could hit a pop can from 20 feet with a short barrell 12.
b) Try that bat thing against a thief with a handgun or a bowstaff.

[mildbill.]

b) Try that bat thing against a thief with a bowstaff.

is he pretty good with it?

[phUnk]

is he pretty good with it?

to pay the billz

[Buzzworthy]

Following Teledaves post, now that we have decided to keep the handgun we have, I need to look into a safe at some point. With only a 3 week old daughter, that gives me some time.

I do however keep a trigger lock on it in a hard case. Yes, it takes a few more seconds to get at, but since I keep it loaded, I want that protection. And Jumper is correct, I have some very nice safety features on my 9mm in regards to the firing pin.

Those extra seconds to get at my gun if needed (hope not ever again) will be taken up by my 165 pound Great Dane working on taking off an appendage.


The best defense is using your brain, like Grizzle did, and very well. In my story in that thread, I acted. Not the best way sometimes.


Do we all need to go out and buy a gun now, no. Some people IMO should not be allowed to have access to a gun.



Both my wife and myself have been through a gun safety course, with our OWN gun. I highly recommend it. You local shooting range usually provides classes. Ours was $5 per person for a 2 hour course on Sat and 2 hours on Sunday. Well worth the info we learned on laws, proper use, proper cleaning techniques, and much more.

[Luke Warmwater]

Im not totally sure the exact model, not really a gun freak-->but I bought a Winchester Defender 12 gague for this exact reasion. Has a speed pump, holds 7-8 shells? I dunno I never fill it.

[Viva]

i got me an AK74 and a few grenade lauchners in case the neighbours want some trouble.

If you ask me, nothing screams DETERENT better than a good old fashion flame thrower...'cept maybe a 20mm gatling gun.

[watersnowdirt]

This is not meant as a judgement, so please do not take it that way....

I'm just wondering if anyone else is as surprised as I am to learn how many of you keep guns in your homes. Again, I'm not saying it's good or bad, I just had no idea how common it was. As far as I know, none of my friends keep guns in their homes. Chalk this one up to yet another thing I've learned from the board...

(and with two very large, very loud dogs, I would feel comfortable leaving my door wide open. It's a great deterrant.)

[Dr. Send]

Once again, I love Canada.

[Luke Warmwater]

..'cept maybe a 20mm gatling gun.

my friends dad has one of thoes. Old crank style one. Dude is a bit of a nut; a registered pyro, he dug a pond on thier property with fertilizer and desiel fuel.

[MacDaddy]

I had some questions I posted in the other thread. for instance;

what about a bad ass guard dog? I heard of people getting sued by the perp for house dog attacking the burglar ?

I've also heard of some horror stories that shooting a burglar could put you in jail? I wanna know before I kill some one. Heaven forbid I get thrown in the clink and get butt raped all nite!

In HS I shot alot of guns, had fun shooting varmit, but with kids I just dont know about owning a gun.
Besides how would the family feel about the fact that daddy shot the bad guy and his blood, brains, and face are all over the front hall, porch and glass storm door. shit you could find bone and grissle weeks if not months after I blew that sumbitch away! and knowing me I prolly would have to explain why I unloaded the whole clip into his head torso and one shot in the crotch for good measure! then I prolly start kicking the body....ahw christ it would be a bloody mess....

After reading Grizzle6 post I'm not so sure my hood will stay as safe as it is
now.

[The Reverend Floater]

WSD--I have two shotguns for hunting and I don't live anywhere that would make me buy a weapon for home defense. BUT--having said that--neither do you, correct?

What if Grizzle hadn't woken up last night and Cracky McMethface busts in with his "big ass knife"? What if Mr. S in my post hadn't had a weapon when those speed freaks busted in with a knife? I grew up in a pretty decent neighborhood in Portland and when I was 6, a reverend who lived down the street got his head beat in with a baseball bat by burglars in his own home. This is not meant to scare you, but it is an unfortunate reality. Having said that, I'm not a proponent of assault weapons nor fully automatics nor rifles that hold 50 bullets.

[Keoni]

If someone were to make it past my dog (which I doubt)
















they will be met by the fondue forks!