What's a good gun?
 

...

shotgun

For at home a 12ga shotgun cant be beat. Even if you miss, the noise will have them running.

Ditto
Don't know if they still make it, but the Mossberg "Home Defender" was a .410 pump gun with a laser sight. Perfect for home defense. Nothin like the sound of somebody rackin'a round in a pump gun....

A lot of SWAT and infil. guys will tell stories about the sound of just racking a pump-action shotgun will convince many hardened guys to give up.

Handgun-wise. A good .45 cal. is what you want. No need for some .50 Desert Eagle or other hand cannon. My personal pref -- H&K USP .45. The Glock .45s are nice, and I know a number of 1911 fans hereon will extol their virtues. But if our special forces guys carry H&K .45's (slightly modified from the USP you can get in your local gun shop) it should be good enough for you. :D

JP

clarify--do you want a handgun or any gun? And when you say protection do you mean just to keep in the house or for carrying?

a 12 GA shotgun semi-auto is good for the home.

handguns--well all kinds of options. I would suggest going to a range and trying various types(revolvers/semi's) and calibers and settle on one that both you and your wife are comfortable with.

I keep shotguns in the home and have a Sig-Sauer P22s to carry--.380--small caliber, but I also use hollow-points.

Gotta disagree with the semi-auto. High-stress home defense purposes make it a twitchy choice. Manual pump. Deliberate action on the part of the user, and less chance of malfunction.
JMHO.

1911 .45 had it for years, my dad gave it to me..love it, still shoot it often.

Wayne C.
83 SC

Re: What's a good gun?
 

Get two, a shotgun (I have a Fabrique Nationale Special Police Model - 8 shot, rifle sights, short barrel, looks the biz, but a Remington 870 is a great choice, too) and a pistol of respectable caliber - .357, .40, .45.

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE. If you NEED this gun, you better know how to use it. I can recommend some ranges and instruction in the area. Check out The Grant Boys on the corner of Newport and Rochester.

JCM

This actually requires a bit more thought. First off forget using a pistol. Most people can't hit squat with a pistol when they are dealing with a live target. This includes cops. The recommendations for a 12 gauge shotgun are right on. Keep in mind, a home defense gun is for killing and not for scaring people. Forget that "racking the shotgun" noise. You want a round in the chamber. In a high stress situation, you may very well forget to round a chamber and when you pull the trigger at that critical moment the last thing you want to be hearing is a "click." For that reason, I recommend getting an automatic shotgun. Costs more, but less to think about when the adrenaline is running.

As for which round to go with, I recommend double ought buckshot. If someone is on the other side of your bedroom door you can just shoot through the door.

Good point--wasn't thinking about the "average person" with no gun experience.

:)

All good points. FWIW I have had more than one "moment of adrenaline" and have never forgotten to rack one home:)

I would second the 12 guage, I prefer pump, but auto is great too. Second, load medium buck/slug/medium buck/slug........... even your wife can't miss in a home environment with the buckshot, then slug em into the next room with #2:)

Go as short as legal with the barrel and pistol grip if allowed.

This is what I have gleaned from "experts" over the years.

Sorry, it needs to be a hand gun.

Not for Newport.... Don't want to hit other people in the house next to you. Number 4 is the way to go, more pellets, less penetration of non-soft targets. Just my opinion.

Do you want the wife to be trained with it as well?

Is this for home or for away as well? I can give you some tips on the OC CCW process if that would be helpful.

Now I guess I have to ask, is this for home or away?

Remington 870 Express, leave dear slug barrel on and get buckshot. Practice (if you can practice shooting someone I guess) with those snap cap things that you keep in your barrel. I can't explain what they are real well, they are dummy slugs that I think protect firing pins. I keep them in my over and under.

joe 68 L

All of us cowboys would prefer the 12, but consider this....
.410 with 00 will not penetrate 2 sheets of 1/2" drywall with enough residual energy to harm anyone. Important fact to consider if there are others sleeping in the room next to you.
Better to have the assailant flee than put him down. If he lives, you will have legal battles to fight, although you would probably win. If he dies, you have to live with yourself. Not saying that's a bad thing, just something to consider. I've made my choice.
Oh, and you really don't want to 'blast through the door'. That's for the movie stars...Identify your target.

As always, YMMV...
:)

Since it has to be a handgun,

Glock.
- Extremely reliable
- Extremely simple - no cocking, no manual safety, none of that "condition 1, condition 2" stuff.
- Available in practically any caliber, barrel length, frame size you want
- Can get high-capacity magazines (even in CA, can prob find one)
- Easily fitted with aux sights, e.g. laser