What do YOU think is the #1 requirement of a HD gun?

I think a 20 ga. would be well suited to most home defense uses, but it's hard to find a good one that's made for defense.

Yeah, it doesn't have as much power as a 12, but it has less recoil which would allow quicker follow ups, and it would be more useful to smaller members of the family (e.g. wife). Just my thoughts.

Reliability is the #1, 2 & 3 priority for any firearm/ammo combination I carry, whether for home or personal defense. If it doesn't shoot when you need it too, it won't matter how accurate it is, how much stopping power it has, etc., etc.
 
To paraphrase Clint Smith of Thunder Ranch when he is asked about the perfect defensive handgun...."One that goes bang EVERY SINGLE TIME THE TRIGGER IS PULLED!" :)

That said, I also believe one must have ABSOLUTE confidence that one can put the round exactly where one wants when the merde hits the occilator. So I keep the one on the night stand that I KNOW will go bang and that I am SURE I can hit with under extream stress and adverse low light conditions. All that says for me, its my Baer Thunder Ranch Special and my Surefire. :) And practice like the dickens with it.

Bubba
 
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by RAE:
Reading the names of the people that answered something other than reliable, I can pick out a couple that use what can be considered a reliable arm, and If I had to guess, I would say they take it on faith as well as experience that reliable is a given. Yeah, like a couple others, I'm trying to put together "the perfect HD gun" for myself.[/quote]

Face it, RAE. No matter what, you ALWAYS take it on faith that just about ANYTHING is going to work.

Your car.

Your smoke detectors.

Your computer.

Your fire extinguisher.

Your gun.

But there's always that slight chance that something might go wrong, and leave you up the creek.

That's why lots of practice with the ammo you intend to use for HD, and good maintenance, are so important.

I generally use a revolver for my home defense gun. Why? Because I'm primarily a revolver shooter. Even though I have semi-autos, and know that most of them are HIGHLY reliable, I know my revolvers are even more so.

Right now the gun that is in the night stand is my Model 1917 S&W in .45 ACP.

If it had the old spring sets in it I probably wouldn't use it, but I've replaced all of the springs with new ones.

I'll probably, though, in the next day or two, replace that gun with either the Model 19 S&W, or one the semi-auto I put the most trust in, my HK P7M13.



------------------
Beware the man with the S&W .357 Mag.
Chances are he knows how to use it.
 
I don't think there is any one #1 criterion for a HD gun. It has to be reliable. It has to be accessible, yet stored in a safe manner (depending on home occupants...so that little hands won't get a hold of it, etc.). It has to be able to be usable by those people who have access to it. This includes the physcial requirements of the shooters to be able to manipulate the mechanism, to have knowledge of how the firearm works, and be of a the largest caliber the least experience person with access can handle and fire safely and accurately.

Obviously, the choice of a HD gun depends on a lot of individual factors and should be taken into consideration given the circumstances of each home.
 
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