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guns for self defense
.357 Mag (Colt Python or S&W Model 27 Revolver; 4" barrel)
12 gage Pump Shotgun (Remington 870)
Rifles are of marginal use in home defense, IMHO. The same money can be used to buy a second shotgun. But if you insist on a rifle, I would recommend a Winchester 94 or Marlin lever action rifle in 30-30.
I load my shotgun with #4 bird shot for the first two rounds in the magazine then there are two rounds of #1 buck followed by a rifled slug.
The .357 should use 125 gr HP ammo.
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guns for self defense
I agree with Billy that there are less expensive .357s that will work fine for you. I always like to recommend high quality guns but just about anything from any of the major manufacturers will shoot straight and will not wear out for the average homeowner.
I also like Glocks if you want an automatic. There are others that are equally good and perhaps better in some ways. The argument will always be how much quality do you need and how much are you willing to pay for it. If you don't shoot a lot, a full size Glock in 9mm or .40SW will fit most hands and doesn't recoil badly.
You do have to aim shotguns. Their main advantage is that they are a huge deterent even before the trigger is pulled. I recommend bird shot because you are less likely to accidently shoot your neighbor through your walls and it will destroy just about anything across the average room. You can then progressively advance to longer range and more lethal shells if you have to shoot more shots.
Rifle bullets will not be reliably stopped by drywall, plaster, or most sheathing on a house. This might not matter if you hit your target, but then again it might.
There is another thing to think about. The time to come to grips with the consequences of pointing a gun and pulling the trigger is now, not when you need it for the first time. When you need to use a gun, hesitation can kill you.
I can almost guarantee that this will be a long thread, because these opinions are almost religious in nature. Everyone has their favorite solutions and for the most part good reasons why they made their selections.
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I have been away for a few days, so there are lots of posts on this topic.
I wanted to address the shotgun issue, just a bit. Shotguns certainly take two hands to operate, well. For some that is a good thing. I taught shooting sports at a state university and I also taught the NRA hunter safety course for years and I have had this question about guns for home defense posed to me several dozen times. (I also shot on the pistol team.)
Those that refer to practicing and developing a high level of skill are on target. For me, I do like a pistol for home defense as well as a shotgun. In a quick situation, I get the pistol that is ready to go from the bedside. If I have a little more time, the first gun that I get is the shotgun.
The statistics are not good for inexperienced users and pistols. Hitting the target is an anomoly rather than the rule, and the chances of having the gun taken away by an intruder are significant. Shotguns have the advantage of a long sight radius making "pointing" more practical. In addition, it is very difficult to grab the business end of a shotgun and take it away from someone holding it in two hands.
Fortunately, the mere presence of a firearm results in the end of the confrontation in many cases. The larger and more destructive looking the gun is, the less likely it is that you will have to use it, but if you do, that is exactly what you want.
So, my stock answer when someone will little or no gun experience says to me, "I am worried about crime and I think that I want to buy a gun; what should I get?" I always tell them a 12 ga pump riot gun. For the most part, these users are not going to be gun enthusiasts and will not practice. They probably will stick the gun in the corner of the closet, never oil it or dust it off. But, short of having a mud dauber wasp build a nest in the end of the barrel, that 12 ga is going to work when and if they need it.
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No smoker yet. No hurry here. Going with the Cabela's unit.
When it comes to gun recommendations all situations vary. Factoring kids into the equation makes securing the gun much more important. I agree with you 100% about the sidearm lockboxes. There are conflicting safety concerns and a compromise is required. Pilots say that there is nothing more useless than altitude above you. A self defense gun is equally useless if you cannot get to it or cannot use it properly.
I just know, however, that if someone has it in their head to buy a gun, I have my number one pick and that is the 12 gage pump. I realize that most of these people are going to buy something with or without my recommendation. If someone is willing to practice and learn how to properly and safely operate and own a handgun, then there is no doubt in my mind that this is the best option for them.
I said near the start of this post that this is almost a religious argument for many. Most opinions are going to be based on some life experience. There are no wrong answers, only levels of optimization for a specific situation.
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guns for self defense
Homedad...
A shotgun with a bbl of less than 18" just isn't worth the trouble. I think that it must be registered as a Destructive Device. The license is only $5 (could be wrong) compared to $200 for other Class III guns. DD permits require fingerprinting and photos for ATF as well as approval from local law enforcement. (These will cost more than the DD fee) You may also be restricted for state to state travel with such a gun. These are restrictions required for the private ownership of items deemed by legal decree to be so destructive as to have no useful purpose within the realm of normal gun ownership. These restrictions have also been applied to certain spring powered knives and other items where there has been political pressure to restrict but no other statute to use.
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De Twang...
A lot of people decided to buy guns during the LA riots only to find out that CA had a two week waiting period on any gun. When did that happen? Quietly and progressively in the state legislature. I was living there at the time, but have since moved. You know things are getting bad when your friends ask if they can store their guns with you (outside of CA) because they are no longer legal in the state where they live.
I have a friend that is a fireman in Long Beach. He tells me that if they get a fire call for a house with a "Registered Assault Weapon" (includes AR15, FAL, etc) that they have to wait for the SWAT team to arrive to secure the area before they will attend to the fire. The last time I checked, the Brady law was supposed to keep a criminal from buying a gun in the first place. Go figure!
Did someone mention paranoia??
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Homedad...Given the way that the legal system works, you really don't want to be using anything very exotic for home defense. If you ever have to use it, a lawyer will make a big deal out of an unconventioal gun, modifications that might have been made, and even cartridges that are not commercial manufacture. Somehow, doing any of these legal and legitimate actions implies more than just the intent to defend one's self.
My point is that in 34 states (I think) it is legal to own a registered machine gun. But, if it is used in self defense, it opens a number of questions about motive and fair play that a .357 Mag or 12 gage using factory ammo won't.
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Billy...there are lots of things that can be legally owned with the right credentials and BATF paperwork. I see no useful purpose for me to have a shotgun shorter than 18", but until I can find a specific prohibition, I have to assume that it is covered by the other DD regulations that include the USAS and Streetsweeper shotguns. The only reason that I mentioned it is that a 14" short shotgun was mentioned previously. I think that such a short shotgun qualifies as a very close quarters offensive weapon, not a weapon that is good for self defense.
Doc...I think that the Brady law is due to expire sometime soon. I mentioned it sort of tongue in cheek. You would think that if a criminal fills out a sacred federal firearms form and lies on said form that he should be prosecuted. If the data doesn't lie, then that would be the "number of firearms kept out of criminal hands" that is touted by the Brady advocates. But, unfortunately, the amount of prosecutions for such offenses is almost non-existent.
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