Another bump in the night question: Ammo Capacity Vs Caliber

Kevin Rohrer said:
...After you get the gun, get some quality training with it.
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An excellent idea. And something you might get from training is an understanding that going to investigate a "bump in the night" might not always be the best idea and that sometimes there are better ways to deal with the situation.
 
For a bump in the night I cannot imagine needing more than 6-8 rounds. I have never heard of an extended gunfight inside a house that was occupied. I guess a drug house might be an exception, but when shooting started I am persuaded the BG would want to put distance between himself and the house.
Jerry
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That may be so, but you never know how many intruders/BG's are trying to enter your residence. it could be one, or 3. Most of your typical shooters, including myself are not experts so the more rounds the better. You would have to consider the possibility of missing the first 2-3 shots depending on the situation.

If you live in Miami, Atlanta, Philly, or LA, you better rethink on the ammo capacity more than caliber IMO. Yes there are gangs and druggies that work in groups. My ex's house was robbed by at least 2 people in broad daylight. Good thing she was at work.
 
In TX, after the fires, gangs of looters came to some houses. I posted a story about it. No shots fired as the teenage girl's true grit scared them off. However, the point is that you can get multiple bad guys.

The average crime doesn't mean that YOU will always be faced with the average crime.
 
The average crime doesn't mean that YOU will always be faced with the average crime.
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And 'average' means 50 percent were ABOVE that stat.

I'm not a cop or anything like that but I've held one guy at gun point for breaking into my parents house, with another guy chased down a purse snatcher in the Virgin Islands, twice have given first aid to car wreck victims, seen car roll overs right in front of me, a broadside collision right in front of me, two cars run off the road (one hitting a tree), drove several peoples cars out of a flood that was above the floorboards of their cars, and other such oddities.

Now is that average for a geek programmer?

Guys don't plan on 'average', ever. Carry a REAL good first aid kit in your cars, good fire extinguisher, as well as your favorite roscoe or two. And then get some CPR/first aid training besides self defense training (I'm in my companies ERT Hazmat team just so I could get alot of free training.)

Skip this .45 .vs. 9mm or ammo capacity vs. Caliber or whatever debates.

Prepare for interesting times and if they are no so interesting, well that's ok, but just don't assume your life will be 'average' or the problems you face will be 'average'.

Deaf
 
The bump in the night scenario is different from natural disasters.

I think it's really challenging when someone has a very limited budget and they need 1 firearm to do everything. Night-stand, carry, truck gun, everything gun.

But I still think a shotgun is a better tool to fend off looters after a natural disaster than a high-cap pistol. But even so - I would want nine rounds not five.

A rifle of some kind may be better yet... but probably not the best first choice for when something goes bump (or crash) in the night.
 
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For my B.I.T.N. gun its a single shot h&r pardoner 12g sawn to 18 3/4 inches and has a limb saver recoil pad. and ammo is number 4 3 in mag buckshot. best 140 bucks ever spent for HD gun.
 
The key to winning is
1) planning. Have a plan and execute it.
2) practice the plan.
3) Train with your weapons
4) Have a will to survive.
5) Plan for the aftermath. (Good Lawyer)

These points are not in order of importance.
 
Those are all valid keys, ltc444.

Mindset is most important, I am inclined to agree.

However, mindset, tactics, and awareness will only help so much when you have a 5 shot revolver and multiple, armed intruders break in.

Hardware may be the least important consideration, but that does not make it an unimportant consideration.
 
One thing that I was curious about concerning Sarah McKinley shooting a home invader in Oklahoma recently is that she had to sell off most of her deceased husbands guns to pay for his funeral, she kept a shotgun and one pistol.

She had trained with the pistol and according to her, she knew how to shoot it. She had only fired the shotgun once and it was a number of years before the incident. She claimed that she wasn't even sure that the shotgun would fire but when Martin began pounding on the door - she got her shotgun and held it at the ready (the pistol was beside her because as she said she wasn't even sure the shotgun would fire).

The shotgun did it's job, as did she in aiming it. I wish I knew what model shotgun, single shot break open? auto-loader? I don't know. I also don't know what size shot she was using but the shot hit Martin just behind and above the ear.

I wish I could find out why she chose the shotgun as the primary instead of the pistol.

Using a weapon you're not sure of is certainly questionable tactics but it almost seemed like she intuitively knew that the shotgun was the most powerful thing she had at her disposal and that's what she gravitated to.
 
Beside my bed is my 870 12 gauge with 7 slugs in the tube and six on the side, 2 bright flashlights. On the head board is either my Glock 40 or My Kimber 45.

After 32 years of LE/Military I want the guns I know will work, will stop anything I need to worry about.

I live in the country alone with my wife and critters, over penetration is not a concern.
 
Get some range time in for yourself. Learn to shoot 2 to the chest and 1 to the head. This is an excellent shooting strategy called The Mozambique Shooting Scenario. No matter what caliber of gun you have, 2 in the chest and 1 to the head ruins the bad guy's day. Spread out the chest shots about a hand's width apart and remember to allow for time for shock to set into place just to be safe. Repeat as needed until the bad guy stops what he is doing.
 
Against my better judgement I will jump into this with both feet. The OP asked which way to go, caliber or capacity. My HD gun is a Glock 22 with a Streamlight TLR-3. IMHO, the weapon you choose should be one you are the most familiar with and can shoot well. Bells and whistles are great on the range, but when the moment comes, that is not the time to remember, do I grab my .45 or my 9MM------
In the middle of a crisis is not the time to grab a handgun you need to remember which one you have and fumble with a safety that may or not be there. Keep it simple and settle one ONE. Take that one and practice until the handling is second nature.
If you mount a weapon light, like I have, shoot it with the light. It does change the balance some, but once you understand the reason for the light, it too will become second nature.
Mindset and tactics are far more important than capacity or even caliber.
 
No one likes to think about the legal aftermath of these things. Let me summarize a few of my beliefs:

-If you go sweeping your house, you are in a weaker legal position than if you get behind cover in the bedroom and call 911. If you have kids to secure, have a plan where you all meet in the same place, then get behind cover and call 911. Let the police do the sweeping and shooting, you shooting is a last resort.
-Shotguns are less legally taboo than handguns. Anyone can buy a shotgun without a permit. I'd rather defend shotgun use than handgun use (but would certainly use whatever was a better tactical choice, regardless of legal outcomes). This is just an opinion, I feel like a DA would be less likely to take a questionable lethal force case if a long arm was used vs. a politically scary handgun.
-Firing one shot is better than firing many. Fire until the threat is neutralized, but techniques such as "two to the chest and one to the head" suggest intent to kill and not intent to neutralize the threat. For all you know, the threat would have been neutralized but not dead after one, or two shots.
-Use a flashlight. There's no reason not to (you can mount it on your handgun OR shotgun, or use it independently of a handgun). It is negligent to not identify your target before opening fire.
-Calling 911 should be your TOP priority unless your life is in immediate danger. The first person to call 911 wins a huge battle; you don't want the intruder who you just shot to be the one calling 911 on YOU. If you call 911 before you shoot anyone, you demonstrate that you did not want to use lethal force and did everything you could to avoid doing so (the police weren't here yet). Be sure to identify yourself so when the police come in guns hot they know which guy with a gun is the good guy.

Kathy Jackson (pax) said in her book (and I'm paraphrasing), the only real victory here is if you escape with your entire life intact, and that is not achieved if you spend it in prison or even a large part of it in court.
 
I have a cz 75 19 rd cap and a para-ordnance 14-45. So either would do. But i would go for hi capacity every time. A lot on the forum in debates about carrying in con 1 say that the second it takes to put a round in the chamber could cost you your life. So they would have to agree that the second or a lot more in most cases, it takes to load another mag could cost your life.
 
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Tactical light to blind and the first two laser shots of 9mm Horady Critical Defence or above. 'Nuf Said. 17 rounds is for a street fight. I thought you said home defense.
 
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