Nightstand gun question

When I was a kid I worked for a farmer. He had a front door that was hinged on the right. When he got unwanted visitors he would open the door far enough to lean against the right wall, that was door open about 90 degrees. While he was leaning there he had a syfer lock mailbox easily in reach and hiden by the door which contained a loaded revolver. It was the only loaded gun in his house. He had one other gun in the night stand and four loaded mags all over the house.

His comment on home defense was “I have nothing worth steeling unless you have nothing to loss” he had a dog in the house and three in the yard. If the dogs were aroused he went for a Harington and Richards breach action single shot shotgun loaded with #9 shot for non lethal and 45 long colt for lethal.

Gives me pause every time I walk up to a house with dogs barking, or am talking with someone at their door or mine. All my guns are unloaded just like his.

Joe
 
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I keep a Smith and Wesson M&P 40 within arms reach, loaded with a full magazine, and one in the chamber.
 
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There is a .45 on the night stand.

Locked, loaded, ready, . . . magazines beside it.

Long gun is about 10 inches further out, . . . JIC.

Which one? Depends on what and how I am awakened.

In a lethal confrontation, . . . the only warning the BG may get, . . . is a safety clicking off, . . . and my guns are old enough that his hearing better be really good.

May God bless,
Dwight
 
You right though. Home invaders are dangerous people. To go in someones house when you know someone is home is odd and like an act of war against you/family. I will not let anyone hurt me or my family. I would just put the 5906 on single action by cocking the hammer and get ready. If I had to I would drop him, it would suck but better him than me.
 
Mag loaded, slide locked back, inside the nightstand drawer.

In an incident i can operate the weapon one handed. I sweep the safety and the slide catch in one motion and its hammer back, chamber loaded, safety off. flick the safety down (decock) its DA safety off, flick it up its SA safety on. Three different conditions for different situations. But mainly i would sweep it low and release the slide and put it in DA, reduce the chance of a AD, and still able to discharge at any time without worry. Im comfortable with the DA first pull.

if anyone gets nosy they'd have to be a damn fool to not see it was a loaded weapon, and that accounts for the adults. for any children around, if im not in the house i cable lock it before i go. i keep my keys stuck in the cable lock to remind myself to lock it before i leave. im not worried about children getting in there while im home.

Different strokes for different folks. Im a light sleeper and dont wake up groggy, and my weapon has never had an issue chambering or cycling, and im very comfortable putting rounds on target at 25 feet with a DA pull, and the DA/SA transition doesn't bother me. To each their own, I would have no problem or complaint replacing it with a traditional revolver or a glock style pistol, chambered and ready to rock, no manual safety. This is just what works for me.
 
HK Compact 9mm with light, locked and loaded, safety on, sticking out between mattresses on my side; bulldog .44 special on my wifes side. Also locked and loaded Taurus 24-7 .45 ACP on top of the grandfather clock at the front door. I don't open the door without it in my hand and behind my back, safety off, unless I can see through the cut glass that it's a neighbor that I know. Period... Also an alert and loud barking Golden Retriever who usually backs strangers away from the door considerably before I even open it... Works for me...:D
 
My nightstand gun is the same as my personal defense gun, and it is kept in a small quick-access safe (due to having a toddler in the house) beside my bed in Condition 0, with a full magazine inserted and +1 in the chamber--ready to fire simply by aiming and squeezing the trigger. The safe also contains two additional loaded magazines, two "tactical" (i.e. high-output) flashlights, and a loaded revolver for backup or somebody else in my household to use at the same time. I used to keep a can of OC spray in there, as well, since that is customarily my first option, but I figure that given the kind of emergency I could expect at home and the conditions I'd be under--probably in the dark at first and with the assumption of an immediate deadly threat (that's what Castle laws address)--it would be best to limit the number of items packed in there, especially since I'm not going to be reaching for certain items anyway; if I need to temporarily blind somebody, then I'll use a flashlight instead.

GregInAtl said:
Where can I get a safe like this with a push button lock? How many guns does it hold? How much are they?
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I use this one and like it a lot:

http://www.ftknox.com/redesign/pistolboxes/

I got it for about $50 cheaper, though, during a long-running promotion last year. I don't know whether or when they'll do that again, but I think that even the regular price is pretty fair when considering its design and construction versus other pistol safes that are currently on the market. The lock is a five-button all-mechanical Simplex, which I trust over electronic locks both in terms of reliability and sturdiness--some of the most popular ones have rather fragile mechanisms and more potential points of failure (including batteries), requiring you to keep a manual key handy for backup. This safe, while still fairly compact, also has just enough room for multiple handguns if desired (depending on their size), as well as any other small items you may consider useful in an emergency (I keep my emergency flashlights in there too so that I can be assured that nobody has moved them elsewhere).

By the way, for those who rely on children being unable to operate a handgun, please don't do that or else you may be unpleasantly surprised at what they're capable of. :eek: Nothing can be completely safe, but I'd rather rely on a decent lock than just the force of a spring.

C0untZer0 said:
Shotguns are a little different aren't they?

I guess each one has different safety setups but I remember someone saying they would have a Mossberg 930 with one in the chamber because of the possibility of a bump fire (I really don't know if that's valid)
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It is generally true that shotguns are not as safe as handguns when dropped or otherwise subjected to impacts, even with their manual safeties engaged, which is why most people keep their chambers empty.

C0untZer0 said:
A 12 ga would be the first thing I arm myself with if my house got broken into - pistol would be second only after I'd expended 9 rounds of #1 Buck (experts pick it as the best HD load despite the TFL poll which shows most people use #00 Buck for their HD Shotguns).
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While #1 buck does appear to offer an optimal combination of penetration and number of pellets, #00 buck is generally easier to find and there is a greater variety of loads to choose from for enhanced patterning, reduced recoil, and such. Additionally, a few people may actually prefer #00 buck for its greater penetration margin anyway. If #1 buck works well for you, then I think it's a great choice (perhaps the best overall), but there are reasons #00 buck is so popular.
 
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Do you have the magazine in your gun and a round in the chamber while you sleep or do you keep the magazine outside the gun until you need it?
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Mag in gun, round in chamber. Extra loaded mag next to gun.

Surefire light mounted on gun. Extra Surefire light next to spare mag.


I like to be able to do a lot of shooting and I like to see what I am shooting at.
 
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Originally Posted by 10Ringmagic
I have one of those little handgun safes that hold just one pistol sitting on my dresser, the lock is operated by a five button Simplex lock. I have had this for over twenty years.

Whatever gun resides in that box is fully loaded, if it is a semi auto then it has a full magazine and one chambered, revolver have a cylinder full.
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I like this idea. Where can I get a safe like this with a push button lock? How many guns does it hold? How much are they?
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My pistol vault was made by a firm called "Palmer Eng" it holds one pistol, and was called a "Pistol Pal". They are long out of business, but as others have posted, there are similar vaults available.

It was really just to keep my step kids hands off it, but after twenty years, it is an old well ingrained habit, to be able to get out of bed, open it in the dark, in less than two seconds. Insures that the fog of sleep is flushed out of my head, before my pistol is in my hand.
 
9mm with HPs in the top drawer and a big, scary .357 in the bottom drawer with two speedloaders. Both fully loaded. Other end of the room, loaded 12 gauge pump with one in the pipe. Another, if I remember to put it out while I'm around the house, a loaded single action semi with extra mag in a case under the bathroom sink. I feel that it would be nice to have some sort back talk with my pants around my ankles!
 
No others in my home as of right now to mess with my guns. If someone else is here, they only get the business end. By the bed right now I have a loaded S&W 38 spl, and two glocks with loaded mags & one in each chamber. Oh yeah, my little ruger LCP is setting here ready too. So, four guns with a total of 31 rounds at the ready.
 
Loaded, +1, and extra magazine right next to it. Also, another loaded +1 in a separate location. IMHO, that's the only way to have a "nightstand" gun setup.
 
DAO S&W .380, round chambered, full mag in, safety engaged, sitting on the clock radio. Girlfriend's SAO .25 Phoenix, full mag in, round chambered, hammer down. No kids in the house. That's 13 rounds: my 6+1, her 6. My gat has a laser sight: great for dark shooting.
 
DAO S&W .380, round chambered, full mag in, safety engaged, sitting on the clock radio. Girlfriend's SAO .25 Phoenix, full mag in, round chambered, hammer down. No kids in the house. That's 18 rounds: my 6+1, her 10+1. My gat has a laser sight: great for dark shooting.
 
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Um... No nightstand. Sword rack with my katana, my Hissatsu is usually next to the bed with my phone. Yes, I know I am talking swords and knives, so I will be ragged on for it but...

I live alone so the shotgun remains next to the bed, empty, but with 6 on the side. If I'm alone for the night, I still don't load it. I also live in an apartment. It's just my setting that calls for specific safeties. I have to expect one or two people coming in at any time certain nights.
 
xd .45 on the night stand right now, one in the chamber. MK9 AR-15 chambered in 9mm with mag full of hollowpoints but no round in chamber. the xd is for when i dont have time to get ready, just point and shoot. the MK9 is for when i have a chance to prepare, even just 5 seconds. Any scum bag that awards me that chance better be ready to play WW2 in my hallways if they want any chance of walking out alive.
 
I keep a 1911 in my nightstand, fully loaded, cocked and locked, with a spare mag nearby ... every second counts, I'm not going to be fumbling with loose mags and racking the slide under those circumstances ... I'm one of those lucky folks who wakes up instantly, I'm not groggy for an hour until I have a cup of coffee, so no worries about making a mistake in the dark ... it makes no sense to me to put yourself a few seconds behind the curve trying to load your gun when all (I) have to do is click off the safety and I'm good to go ...
 
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