How to defend your home defense

Status
Not open for further replies.
I have a safe that I bought 25 years ago for about $1000. I figure that if someone breaks in and doesn't know I have a safe, they may not mess with it but if they do know I have a safe and come with a sawzall.. its toast. I put it in the closet and put the hardwood door jambs around it with a metal door. If they get in there, they wont have room to really put a prybar to it or lay it down. All you can really do is use a little common sense and just not worry about it. I have 2 large dogs, a security system and hardened doors and windows. Its all I can do.

The house gun sits in the nightstand (always)
 
wow. locked your house up, set the alarm, and if some criminal breaks in, ransacks the place, finds a hidden gun and uses it a month later you are responsible?

what about cars that are locked up and keys are secured, but a criminal steals it and hurts somebody else, negligence on the car owner too huh?
 
JERRYS. said:
...what about cars that are locked up and keys are secured, but a criminal steals it and hurts somebody else, negligence on the car owner too huh?
Click to expand...
If you're unlucky a jury will be deciding that.
 
Frank Ettin said:
If you're unlucky a jury will be deciding that.
Click to expand...

You could also be unlucky enough to be killed by a meteorite while typing on your computer. Both that and the jury trial you describe are equally likely.

Personally, I don't worry about either.
 
45_auto said:
You could also be unlucky enough to be killed by a meteorite while typing on your computer. Both that and the jury trial you describe are equally likely....
Click to expand...

How would you know? Obviously you're just guessing.

The open issue in JERRYS.'post would be his statement, "...keys are secured... But what does he consider secure, and where is the car parked? If the key is in a magnetic key box in a wheel well, and the car is parked out on the street (and especially if there's a history of car theft in the area), the keys arguably aren't "secure."

It might be different if the car is parked in a locked garage.

But we're also discussing this thread something you can easily pick up, and walk away with.
 
I utilized the teachings of Massad Ayoob in his classic "Gun Proof Your Kids". My child was exposed over and over in a positive manner to my firearms, and lost the desire to "look" for them when he realized he could ask and see them under my direct supervision. It seemed to work, but I also use traditional methods of properly securing/storing unused firearms/ammo/etc.
 
Hidden in plain sight

The safe I use is hidden in plain sight. It sits in my living room next to my recliner. I have it covered with a linen cloth to look like a table and on it I have a lamp and a small space heater with some general reading books (Stupid crooks are not interested in books). To the naked eye it is just a covered end table. I keep important papers, extra cash, ammo and a couple of guns in it. Maybe it is a bit bulky, but it works. I also have some of those cheap, China made, eBay bowie knives hanging on my wall as eye candy for potential home invaders. Something that will steer their attention away from the safe. I also do not use an electronic safe as they can be compromised as seen in this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZohdXRYaWWY
 
Last edited:
"my "HD" gun is what ever handgun(s) im carrying.

it's either in the holster or on the night stand."



Most of us are lucky enough to own more than one gun. I am not forced to use a small concealable gun around the house.
 
My truck is loaded, whether I am in it or not. I want the redundancy, and back up in case I forget. I know some people are perfect and never forget to leave home with a gun. Plus I like a big gun, and a little gun.


I don't leave my favorite gun in the truck. If someone smashed the window, I feel no ethical responsibility. That type of person was going to keep going until they got a gun. A kid stealing CDs, may take it, but they are not killers. If they were killers, they would have a gun.
 
However I'm asking more specifically if you put the shotgun that's at your bedside in the safe every morning?
Click to expand...

Mine stays there. The others on display stay where they are too as does the 4 wheeler shot gun. I don't lock up my TV's when I go to work and one of them is worth more than a beater shotgun, I suppose a pretty nice one too.
 
Good point. I got tools, I don't luck them up. TV was 1k new, 400 maybe now. 42" is small now. I got cheap laptop, but it is not locked

I have more than one gun, so not with me at all times.
 
Most of us are lucky enough to own more than one gun. I am not forced to use a small concealable gun around the house.
Click to expand...
My primary carry gun is a Taurus 99, so it's a full size service pistol.

Even if I had something smaller on me instead I wouldn't bother getting something bigger out and changing holsters at home.

I don't like to leave a bunch of loaded guns laying around so I find the on me or next to me strategy to be the most comfortable from a piece of mind stand point..

I prefer pistols for home defense and always image the worse possible "kick the door in" type scenario where I won't have time to go fetch something that I don't already have on me.
 
I prefer to carry a gun I can conceal, or just light outside of the house. Something bigger around house. As do 99% of gun owners that have a carry permit and actually carry it.
 
As do 99% of gun owners that have a carry permit and actually carry it.
Click to expand...

If you are saying that 99% of people with concealed weapons permits have different pistols for carry and for home defense, I have to doubt your statement. I imagine that there are quite a larger proportion who use the same pistol for both purposes.
 
99 may be high. But a lot of people own more than one handgun.


Anyone, that is into guns, and can afford it, has big hand gun and little handgun



Anyone who says I carry a gun all the time, but only have one, is in the minority.

I find that statement odd. I carry a gun. The gun 8 carry on me, is not the one I would choose for around house.

I am lucky, good job. I am not limited to using a pocket gun in the house.

I really have to wonder how many people that join a gun forum only have 1 handgun. Though I know lots of guys into hunting rifles. Many don't have permit.
 
Do you know any women carriers? I know a few and have met many others and while I personally don't recommend off body carry purse carry is actually quite popular with ladies.

Really easy to carry just 1 gun when you carry it around in a glorified bag.
.. again I really don't recommend off body carry but it's popular method none the less.

I actually prescribe to the "fear the man with one gun" theory.
As the saying goes on.. "they probably know how to use it".
 
99 may be high. But a lot of people own more than one handgun.
Click to expand...

I think a high percentage keep a dedicated home defense gun that is separate from what they carry. Personally, I have always done that. I keep a full size for HD that is always there and ready, but secured. I carry a subcompact version of the same and always have a pocket gun on me, especially when at home.

At night, the subcompact CCW lays in the bottom of the quick access safe. If I open the safe and grab the primary gun, the CCW is there for my wife to arm herself too.

uc
 
Anyone, that is into guns, and can afford it, has big hand gun and little handgun
Click to expand...

I completely agree with your statement, but I added the emphasis because we need to consider that the number of people who consider handguns a hobby is a subset of handgun owners. There are a number of people who own one handgun for defensive purposes. I don't have enough data to even hazard a guess as to the proportion, but it is not rare. We have evidence that the number is significant in the number of times that folks come to boards like these to ask about a pistol that would do double duty.

The context of this discussion is securing firearms not in use. Those of us with multiples need to think about securing them when we are not present, but even those with only one need to think about what risks are present when we are sleeping, occupied with household tasks, in the bathroom, and such. For those folks, a quick-access device may be completely adequate.
 
I expect those with guns as hobbies have a fairly large floor mounted gun safes or other appropriate means of securing a quantity of firearms. I don't think discussion of this was intended to be discussion of that.

Your home defense weapon needs to be both secure and quickly accessible and that is the quandary this discussion seeks to examine.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top