need some advice o home protection

[AnnieOakley]

Originally Posted by Old Grump

Penetration issue is why my 357, (bedside gun is loaded with 38 spcl 158 gr LSWC), back up revolver is my 44 mag loaded with 44 spcl 240 gr LFN. Accurate, easy to shoot and the mild recoil makes a fast accurate second shot easier to make if needed. Best is I don't have to worry about explaining to the neighbors why I just blew their flat screen TV off the wall. At 20' or less booger man won't be able to tell the difference unless he is wearing Level III body armor.

My choice of 20 gauge and #4 shot is based on the same concerns. Your situation may be different but these are loads I feel comfortable with in my house.

If shotguns are not your thing then a lever action in a pistol caliber may be more to your liking, 45 colt, 44 mag loaded with 44 spcl or 357 mag loaded with 38 spcl. with 16" - 20" barrel lengths available they will be more accurate than a handgun and a short barrel makes it handy.

MI Carbine gives you 357 punch, its a semi-auto with 15 and 30 round magazines available. If you need that many rounds you need a back up squad to watch your back because we are talking a really serious home invasion.

Obviously if you are facing end of the world rat packs trying to get whats yours and you are involved in a shoot out with them from 100 to 600 yards away you might want something a little more authoritative but just between you me and the neighbors dog the home invasion scenario by 1 - 3 men is more likely than having to fend off a raiding party.

Old Grump: I like your post- very helpful overview and options; I've been thinking lately on purchasing back my dad's .32 handgun from a neighbor for home use-- However, the contemplation of the contained percussion and possibility of its blast penetrating the adjoining wall of my duplex (albeit lath & plaster) casts a shadow over the idea; I've always felt comfortable with my .44 magum Ruger rifle but I know that wouldn't work out either. Off topic: Btw, I've been thinking on joining the GOA-- although NRA keeps beseeching me via snail-mail to join up, I haven't liked some of their recent politics. Thnx, AO.

--"No man in the wrong can stand up against a fellow that’s in the right and keeps on a-comin’” was the motto of Texas Ranger Bill McDonald (1852-1918). It later became a motto for the Texas Rangers themselves.

[carver]

Originally Posted by AnnieOakley

Old Grump: I like your post- very helpful overview and options; I've been thinking lately on purchasing back my dad's .32 handgun from a neighbor for home use-- However, the contemplation of the contained percussion and possibility of its blast penetrating the adjoining wall of my duplex (albeit lath & plaster) casts a shadow over the idea; I've always felt comfortable with my .44 magum Ruger rifle but I know that wouldn't work out either. Off topic: Btw, I've been thinking on joining the GOA-- although NRA keeps beseeching me via snail-mail to join up, I haven't liked some of their recent politics. Thnx, AO.

--"No man in the wrong can stand up against a fellow that’s in the right and keeps on a-comin’” was the motto of Texas Ranger Bill McDonald (1852-1918). It later became a motto for the Texas Rangers themselves.

Load that old .44 mag rifle up with some .44 special, if you can find some, it will do the job well.

[wpage]

Get a Rem 870 put a slug barrel on it...

[tcox4freedom]

Originally Posted by Alpo

So, you still think you should keep your double loaded and cocked with the safety off?

Because, otherwise I don't see the difference between having the pump loaded and cocked with the safety on, and having the double loaded and cocked with the safety on. You still have to take the safety off to shoot it.

I sense you're just trolling and I really don't have the time.

But, the main danger in operating a "pump" -vs- a double barrel for the"BEGINNER" or someone NOT practiced with a pump, is fumbling "follow-up" up shots; when under a HIGH level of stress such as a home invasion.

Surely a professed weapons expert like you can see: "That for a BEGINNER a dbl barrel is easier to operate under extreme stress than a pump."

AGAIN: "The fewer (operational) issues an un-trained person as to contend with (while under stress), the BETTER!"

[Alpo]

Must be nice to know everything.

Have a fine life.

[Teejay9]

Originally Posted by tcox4freedom

I sense you're just trolling and I really don't have the time.

But, the main danger in operating a "pump" -vs- a double barrel for the"BEGINNER" or someone NOT practiced with a pump, is fumbling "follow-up" up shots; when under a HIGH level of stress such as a home invasion.

Surely a professed weapons expert like you can see: "That for a BEGINNER a dbl barrel is easier to operate under extreme stress than a pump."

AGAIN: "The fewer (operational) issues an un-trained person as to contend with (while under stress), the BETTER!"

When some stranger has entered your home at night, up to no good, we're all beginners. Sound is going to be the least of your problems. If you have no firearms knowledge at all, you might be fumbling around with what ever you're using. I doubt very much that it would take more than one 12 ga. blast to deter the intruder. If he still kept coming, racking the slide on your shotgun wouldn't cause too much fumbling because your hand is already on the pump. BTW, Alpo is NOT a troller, he's a VERY knowledgeable gun man and I take his suggestions and opinions very seriously, as are many here. People ask questions to gain knowledge, not to waste time. TJ

[wpage]

Home invasion with a 12 ga is going to be a 1 shot deal.

[pinecone70]

With self defense and home defense, it is absolutely necessary to become proficient with whichever firearm(s) you choose to defend with. With the adrenaline pumping through your body during an attack/invasion, you lose coordination no matter how practiced you are, but you are obligated to know your weapon.

[Teejay9]

Originally Posted by wpage

Home invasion with a 12 ga is going to be a 1 shot deal.

Amen. TJ

[Crewchief]

I would go with a Mossberg 500(US Army issue shottie). I'm not sure about defense...but I know several people who swear by it for home assault LoL. I'm sure in a reverse role, it would stand up against most anything.

[Crewchief]

BTW, the price on the MB 500 is very good. I beleive somewhere in the neighborhood of 380? Maybe a little more? Its definitely no frills though, so if you're looking for that, you might look elsewhere.

[wpage]

Crewchief if you are looking for a Mossberg 500 12 ga you can find them for much less than that...

[Gun Geezer]

Bought my Mossberg 500 Home Defense, 6-shot w/ 18-1/2" barrel and optional pistol grip for $249.00.

[UncleFudd]

I am truly amazed and always a little dismayed at these posts. What follows is not meant to anger anyone only to give my opinion as everyone else has done. I'm just not able to be gentle when it comes to preparation for the most dangerous and damning thing that will ever happen in your life if and when it does. Begin by praying every night that it never does.

First, if all you have is the gun for your defense then you are woefully and truly unprepared to defend your home or your loved ones.
Surely you have done something to harden your perimeter so that the BGs will choose the other guys home and not yours. Then certainly you have installed motion lights and or pressure pads to keep them from being able to approach in the dark or to step onto key areas without making noise, or how about dogs to alert so that you have early warning of possible danger (outside) your home. If they gain entry then your chances of survival are at best a crap shoot.

Do any of you really believe you will be awakened by someone crashing through your door at two in the AM and you or your wife will jump alertly out of your warm bed to instantly and without addled brains and having crapped your pajamas and take them under fire. You are dreaming or smoking real good stuff and watching too many movies.

When bad guys do these things they usually know where they are going and what they are after when they get there and if you have not prepared yourself to have some early warning, you lose, period.

One more thing, do you really believe you will shoot someone and then calmly go on with your life as if nothing has happened! Please take some time to study what happens to LEOs when even though they have no other choice, they are forced to kill someone (in the line of duty). If God forbid, you ever have to take a life for any reason, even defending your home and loved ones, it will not be over when it is over. NOT EVEN CLOSE! Even if you and your loved ones should survive (uninjured) which is very doubtful, your living hell will have just begun in ways you cannot yet imagine.

But more importantly if the BG comes through your door with a gun and a shootout begins, EVERYONE is in danger as bullets have no conscience and always seem to find the innocent in such times. Meaning if this is all you have then everyone in your family is in grave danger from the attack. I know we are the good guys and this is our home, but there is no guarantee we and all our loved ones are going to survive this attack.

There is so much more to defending your home and or your person on the streets than just choosing the gun. I am not preaching nor am I trying to say don't get the gun and or not to be prepared to shoot if necessary.
I have had to and I survived and as a result I know first hand what happens during and after. Please do not wish for it, do everything in your power to AVOID ever having to deal with something like this, EVER.

It is not and never will be enough to be very good with the gun no matter which gun it is and I for one will not trust my life to luck alone. Take the time to learn how to make your home very difficult to approach and for yourself to be so aware that you are never caught by surprise, along with being very good with the gun you choose and very determined to live and to never quit.

More to it than you think and it is very obvious that some here have not yet prepared themselves to take the test.

Don't wait until it is too late.

UF

[tcox4freedom]

^^^ Well Said UF ^^^

[oscarmayer]

UncleFudd, great post ... well said , and i said this here before anyone who thinks they might have to use a gun to defend your life, needs to read the book "IN THE GRAVEST EXTREME"

[UncleFudd]

Thank you and I wish that some of our good friends here and elsewhere on the forums would take the time to read about so many of our great young law enforcement officers who are forced to take a life in the line of duty and what happens to so many of them as a result.
Broken homes and marriages and drug and alcohol abuse and this even with the peer group help and the medical help they have available to them immediately after it happens.
They even have the peer group people who go to be with their family members to help them to help their loved one and still they suffer horribly and not just a few.

It is truly a hell beyond description to face an armed individual and to realize in an instant you will either die or stop him. But so few realize what awaites them when the dust has settled and they have survived and then have to live with the only decision they had.

But anyway I digress and do not want ever to get on a soap box, just to try to help people to be prepared ahead of time.

UF

[mcw120566]

I have an old Mossberg 835 leaning by the door jamb in my room; the tube has 4 rounds of 00 buck ready for any one that might want some.

For what it’s worth, my theory on it is, if a bad guy comes in the house, and I grab the shot gun by my door, the first thing that I am going to do is “rack” the action as loudly as I can. There is no mistaking the sound of a pump shot gun being loaded, and no other sound like it. That is going to let them know, I am armed and I know that they are there. In most cases their intent is to rob and run, not to do harm, and certainly not to be harmed.

If the noise of the action isn’t enough to get them out of the house, then they deserve what is coming next!

By the way, love the quote “Do you believe in Jesus…………”

[carver]

Originally Posted by UncleFudd

Thank you and I wish that some of our good friends here and elsewhere on the forums would take the time to read about so many of our great young law enforcement officers who are forced to take a life in the line of duty and what happens to so many of them as a result.
Broken homes and marriages and drug and alcohol abuse and this even with the peer group help and the medical help they have available to them immediately after it happens.
They even have the peer group people who go to be with their family members to help them to help their loved one and still they suffer horribly and not just a few.

It is truly a hell beyond description to face an armed individual and to realize in an instant you will either die or stop him. But so few realize what awaites them when the dust has settled and they have survived and then have to live with the only decision they had.

But anyway I digress and do not want ever to get on a soap box, just to try to help people to be prepared ahead of time.

UF

I'm with you all the way on this one! We sometimes think that we can handle such a situation. The dope head thinks he can handle the dope, just as the alcoholic thinks he can handle the alcohol. But what is the reality? Motion sensor lights, cameras, dogs, alarm system, hardened entery doors. I have done all of this, but I still pray to God that I never have to pull a gun on another human being! My next step is install a hardend door to the master bedroom!

[wpage]

Agree...

Originally Posted by Alpo

So, you still think you should keep your double loaded and cocked with the safety off?

Because, otherwise I don't see the difference between having the pump loaded and cocked with the safety on, and having the double loaded and cocked with the safety on. You still have to take the safety off to shoot it.