What is Preferred for Home Defense?

[LMIB]

I keep a Smith and Wesson 625 45acp revolver on the bed table along with my glasses and flashlight.  On top of the dresser two steps away I keep a Stoeger 12 gauge coach gun loaded with 00 and the action broke open.  I'm becoming a deep sleeper so I've taken to putting noisey things in front of the doors when I hit the sack.  I need a few seconds to get my brain out of neutral.

[USSA-1]

Since the question seems to be what is preferred and not what do you recommend, I prefer the AR.  I keep mine with 29 rounds of 75 gr. Black Hills Red box ammunition.  It's a standard M4 configuration with a SureFire M500 light.  It works for me as I spend more time with the AR platform training, practicing, and competing, than I do anything else.

Penetration issues?  Relatively few.  In general, all pistol calibers between 9mm and 45 acp penetrate more than any 5.56 loading (except for black-tip armor piercing)

Noise issues?  None.  The first thing I do when I roll out of bed is put on a set of Pro-Ears.  Not only will they protect my hearing if I need to shoot, I can also turn them up and amplify small sounds which gives me an advantage when I'm trying to determine whether what I just heard was a creaking house or a stalking intruder.

Additional benefits?  The abilitiy to punch body armor if needed combined with a general increase in precision compared to a pistol.

Disadvantages?  Larger size can present some challanges manuvering in tight quarters.  Good close quarters training with the rifle is essential.  Fortunately, I know a good training school!

[flash5]

why home defence, my state(massachusetts) tells us that they will protect you, we dont need guns just run away and the police will come to your aid, now that you belive that i have a bridge........ 

[Artful]

As for being unwieldy, Ok, I'll buy that, but I ain't stupid enough to go wandering around looking for a bad guy in the dark of the night, I pay taxes for cops to handle that. I keep my cell-phone in the bedroom with me in case the phones go out (with my cable-system phone service, no power=no phone). I'm just going to hunker down in the bedroom doorway with the ol' M-37 Ithaca 12 gauge and wait for yon evildoer to poke his head around the corner or the sound of sirens, whichever comes first. Here in Detroit the scum run in packs and only butt-crack Rambo's go runnin' around the house thinking it's the O.K. Corral!

1st, get a weapon you like and which works well

2nd, learn your house (weak points, zones of fire, construction etc.) and make it work for you. Get alarms, bars on the windows, good locks, whatever you can afford to make your home a better castle.

3rd, keep emergency supplies in the bedroom. Gun, cell phone, flashlights, BATTERIES, first-aid kit etc. Adjust according to your needs, if the cops are hours away (if you live in the real boonies) have water and snacks and meds in there, you might need them.

4th, get good training and advice, gun mags and websites are great, they are also full of mall-ninjas and chuckleheads (though not around here, of course). Use your brain, you were issued it for a reason.

Lastly, practice emergencies, from fire to intruders. Practice lets you screw up for free, waiting for the real thing can be awful expensive.

Hope this helps.   

Very good advise - I don't keep a single weapon for home defense - I do keep Remington 870 with extended mag with buck & slug's in the bedroom and handguns and carbine as well - carbine due to back of the house face's a park with 200+ meter shooting possibilty so no shotgun is going to have enough accuracy for it - handgun if I do decide to go thru the house, Shotgun for wife to barracade in the bed room - and if your expecting this much trouble get a VEST as well.  Join a gun club - do IPSC, USPSA, 3-gun shooting to see what works best for you.

[ellis4538]

Hey noskilz...If you get "Outdoor Channel" where Down Range TV is aired check out "Personal Defense TV".  Good people, good show, good advise.  Check your local listings or have someone you know record it for you.  Check out the web site too.  Might be able to get Season 1 shows.  This is 2nd season and I don't think they have started re-runs yet.  It's worth a shot (PI).

[Sponsor]

[SlickRob]

   I always recommend a revolver to anyone who asks.  But it's my XD-45 that's in reach from my bed.

  Kitchen light on all the time.   Excellent idea!

[BakCompat]

I keep a pistol grip, pistol pump 12 gauge loaded with 00 buck handy in the closet, but for nightstand next to bed, i would obviously recommend a pistol. The argument for revolver vs. semi is a dead horse as far as i am concerned, but i would require that whichever you choose, you be proficient with it.

[vetts1911]

I have felt safe with a pump 12 ga. loaded with #6. I have lived in the back woods and in town and either way didn't want to have the rounds leave more than one room.

[DDMac]

As it appears this thread has breathed new life, and there may be some new shooters looking to develop new skills with that special Christmas present, let me belatedly give important advice. Greatly experienced shooters have detailed all the forgoing pages with hardware and preferences. But also critical to your long term social and economic survival is a VERY clear understanding of the laws on deadly (gun) force in your State. Those laws, and your adherence to them, will determine how you get to live the rest of your life after a deadly encounter. You must know what you are permitted to do, when you can do it and what to say to whom when its over. If it happens, you may find that the actual shooting is the easy part. My point, get training. You don't have to spend a fortune and go off to some exotic facility. If you live in a concealed handgun carry State, that course will provide what you need to know, provided by licensed instructors, who prepare you for the aftermath. Where I am, in NC, it is just 12 hours, and worth every minute. Good training creates good luck.  Mac.

[Michael Bane]

I second DDMack's comments. Whenever I've moved, one of the first things I do is HIRE A LOCAL ATTORNEY to explain the state's CCW and deadly force laws to me. Has costs me at most $200, but I come away with an understanding of what the local laws actually mean. Ditto on getting training...if you state has a CCW class available, take it.

As you might expect, I get a lot of email, and I'm often stunned at how much misinformation remains out there. About once a month I get a "I'll kill 'em all and take my chances with the legal system." My response is always the same — you'll love jail! I once did a trial simulation with Massad Ayoob where I was a defendant charged in legitimate civilian self-defense shooting. The scenario was that a high-speed district attorney wanted to "make his bones" on me. It was a DARN SCARY EXPERIENCE! I was "on the stand" for more than four hours, and I had my entire life dissected...

Michael B