Which gun for home defense?

L

Lisa Roberts

Inactive
Hi everyone! My name is Lisa and I work for Hansons Windows. A co-worker and I were chatting at lunch last week and I was telling her the story of how my house got broken into. She then suggested that I should get a gun for the house. I have never fired a gun much lest held one in my hand. But she did get me thinking and I am leaning towards purchasing one of my own for safety.

I just wanted to know what kind of gun would be a good choice for the home and also safe enough. If any one could give me some ideas I would greatly appreciate it.
 
Hello, Lisa.

You're probably going to be deluged with advice in no time at all, most of which will be pretty good.

I'll lead off by directing you to a website run by a forum member which you may find very useful:

http://corneredcat.com/

Good luck, and welcome,

M
 
MLeake's advice on the cornered cat site is right on. Go there before you get deluged by tons of other advice. It's an excellent place to start.

Good luck.
 
I would recommend finding a firearms instructor that will take you out to a firing range and see what fits your best. May have to spend some money to make this happen but I think it would be a good investment.
 
I just wanted to know what kind of gun would be a good choice for the home and also safe enough.
Click to expand...

Safe enough? None. Guns are neither safe nor dangerous. Even the "worst" designed piece of potmetal out there won't set off a round when sitting alone in the sock drawer or on the nightstand.

Safety (or lack thereof) is a function of the user.

Some guns have no deliberate safety switch on them... Glock pistols and just about every revolver out on the market are like this. If you pull the trigger (or a pen in your purse pulls the trigger), it WILL go bang. To some people, the lack of a deliberate safety is a benefit. To others, it is a drawback. It depends on your philosophy towards safe gun handling.

You develop that philosophy from safe mentored firearms training.

The best thing you can probably do is visit that cornered cat website, and in the meanwhile also find a training class in your immediate area for introduction to handguns... one that can provide a handgun for you for the class. I wouldn't suggest buying one until you get some instruction from someone, and you get exposed to the "how" of how different types of guns operate.
 
The "best" gun is the one YOU like, not anyone else. It will be a compromise of:

1. Fit - It should fit in your hand like you were born with it there.
2. Reliability - It should go BANG about 99.8% of the time you pull the trigger.
3. Accuracy - In YOUR hand. It's how well YOU shoot it.
4. Concealability - It should be comfortable enough to wear and easy enough to conceal so you won't leave it laying on the dresser at home.
5. Cost - You don't want to scrimp on your "life protector" weapon, but you probably don't need a $1,000 Kimber, either.

For your purpose, omit #4.
 
For a first gun, I'd recomend a Smith and Wesson Model 15 .38 Special. See if it fits your hand, or find some grips so that it fits comfortably.

1. It's fairly easy to opperate and handle.
2. Trigger pull isn't that bad, and you can always cock the hammer first, making the trigger pull fairly easy, until you can control the gun in double action mode (pull trigger cocks and releases hammer).
3. Very reliable.
4. Very accurate.
5. sufficient stopping power
6. Not a lot of moving parts.

Training is a different story, but you asked about a gun, so that's my recomendation on a gun for you.
 
For home defense a lot of people suggest a shotgun. They do come in different sizes and types, and their benefit is they can send a larger pattern of shot out than a pistol or rifle. You have a better chance of hitting something.

A lot of guys tend to like handguns. It all depends on what you learn and feel comfortable with. If you don't have one, get a nice big dog first.
 
Get a good dog. Then move up to a small .22 learn it then move up to a larger caliber like a .38. A dog will do you better than a gun tho until you can learn to shoot and all that goes with that.
 
congrats on your decision

It's probably that not only will you find that it provides safety and peace of mind, but you'll really enjoy shooting it.

Might even become a new hobby.
 
I just wanted to know what kind of gun would be a good choice for the home and also safe enough

I know what you mean by that statement, and I won't deliver a lecture.:rolleyes:

There is no gun that combines safety, simplicity of operation, and reliability like a Smith & Wesson double action revolver. Someone already suggested a Model-15. That is an excellent choice. I was going to suggest a Model-10. Both of these are traditional American made revolvers that served police officers well for just about the first 75 years of the 20th century. You can buy one in excellent condition for three to four hundred dollars.

I will say it again; there is no handgun as safe, simple, reliable, and effective as a Smith & Wesson double action revolver. No magazine to lose. No safety lever to fumble with. No slide to pull back. Just point and shoot.

What ever you finally get, you need to spend a little time with a knowledgeable instructor.

Here are a couple of examples of the Model 10. The one on the bottom was manufactured the year of my birth, 1948.:eek: The one on top was manufactured around 30 years later, 1977 as I recall. I would bet my life on either of them.

Remember--safe, simple, reliable, and effective.

IMG_2388.jpg
 
Great advice and lots of it here. :)

If you can, find a friend who will take you shooting. Any kind of shooting - handgun, rifle, shotgun. Get a feel for what it's all about. Any of these will work for home defense, but each has it's good and bad points.

The more you can shoot any of these, the better.

Take some self-defense classes - which will likely involve handgun training (sometimes shotgun). Figure out some sort of competition to improve your skills and have fun. I have found that trap shooting blows away golf in terms of fun, time commitment, expense and useful skill-building.

Just buying a gun and forgetting about it in a sock drawer is not good for anybody. Either get some training (preferred) or train yourself by shooting a lot.

As mentioned above -- It is YOU who is either safe or unsafe, not the gun.

Good luck! Be safe and welcome to the great world of shooting!
 
The average use is within 12 ft. so it's not like you're target shooting.

Scattered around the house are;
S&W 9mm. auto.
Erma .25 auto.
1911 Colt auto.
A few Luger 9 mm's. and broom handled Mausers.
Ruger Super Blackhawk
Some .22's that I shoot well.

One or the other is always within easy reach.

BTW, My kids are long gone and these are not in the open. I just understand that hard times can make for desperate measures for some people. Being a victim is not on my agenda.
 
I just wanted to know what kind of gun would be a good choice for the home and also safe enough. If any one could give me some ideas I would greatly appreciate it.
Click to expand...

I'm not going to suggest a gun, as I don't feel that now is the proper time to do so.

First I'm going to recommend a book. This book should give you pause, and make you really consider your decision. "In The Gravest Extreme", by Massad Ayoob.

Second, as already posted, go to the Cornered Cat website and read and learn. There is a lot of good information there that will help you in your future decision making process.

http://www.corneredcat.com/

Third, I suggest that after working your way through the information that is available to you that you enroll in and take a Basic Handgun Safety Course. You can ask around at your local Ranges or Gunshops and they can generally steer you in the right direction. Make sure it's a Basic Safety Class and not a CCW Class at this time. I say that, not so that you have to spend more money with various trainers, but rather to help give you a good foundation to build upon.

Then you will be armed with knowledge to make a decision that is right for you at that time. The various handguns available have their pros and cons. You need to learn what those are, and how to properly function with them safely. Then you will be able to come back here and ask about comparing Gun X with Gun Y and be able to understand the difference.

Take care and stay safe,

Biker
 
Last edited:
S&W is having a promotion on the "trusty" Sigma 9mm SW9VE. It's a light poly (Plastic) frame Semi automatic that comes with two 16 round mags from the factory. The recoil isn't to bad with good knockdown power.

The gun has a good reputation for quality and reliability especially for the price. It fits most peoples hand very well, and is easy to point naturally.

As far as safely, the trigger is part of the safety. It a little longer firm trigger pull, so it is hard to have an unintentional discharge. Some people will tell you the trigger sucks, but those people either have weak hands, or never owned one.

The gun is $249 after a $50 factory mail in rebate delivered. Just find an FFL dealer that will do a transfer for a $20-$30 fee, and you have a good gun for under $300 out the door. www.Budsgunshop.com has them for $299 "delivered" to an FFL dealer for transfer, before the $50 rebate.

TBS, then instead of buying one gun for $500-$600, you could afford a 22cal handgun for cheap affordable target practice which you will need to do from time to time. Trust me, the 22 will pay for it self in ammo savings over 9MM ammo, and .38cal's are even more than 9MMs which is also a good round if you get a revolver.

But if you have weak hands, you either need to get them stronger for pulling the trigger or get a gun with a soft trigger pull, but any gun can be worked on to make the trigger easier to pull.

And if you didn't like the gun, you could sell it for just as much or more than you paid for it all day long.
 
One of the most important things in a HD gun is storage. It is no good if it is in a box in the back of the closet or some other deep inaccessible spot. It's also no good to have it sitting out where an untrained visitor or child can get at it. There are gun "safes" that are made for handguns that you open by pressing buttons with one hand quick or even with a fingerprint. Ain't technology grand?


Then you need to practice (unloaded) getting the gun out quick just as much as you practice shooting it.


Last bit of advice is that shooting the floor will often scare the pee out of a criminal and cause them to leave.


And don't forget, practice every shot like your life depends on it. Because it does!
 
Hands down a shotgun.

Get an alarm or a dog to warn you and give you time to grab your weapon. I have a red dot sight on my Moss 500(a shotgun) to assist in aiming.

My wife loves the 12 gauge and does not have a problem with the recoil. If the recoil is too much, add a Knoxx recoil reducing stock.
 
I would disagree with shooting the floor to scare the bad guy. If you need to use a gun, use it to stop the threat. Torso and head shots. In a gun fight, only hits count and the first one to hit the target usually wins. Don't give the bad guy the advantage by intentionally missing and hoping he won't shoot back.

I think there is a thread about a guy shot in the face after he shot a warning shot.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top