[2ndDivisionVet]

Comments?

[driftdiver]

Comments on one of these threads is guaranteed.

[driftdiver]

The best gun is the one you have when you need it. As long as it goes bang then it will be a game changer. Nobody wants to be shot with even a .22

For the home I prefer a 12 guage or a .45 but I found some tests which found the 5.56 round had the least penetration through sheetrock walls. It only went through 3 simulated walls.

[SVTCobra03]

I am interested in the Hi Point carbine in .45 cal. I would appreciate any range reports from current owners.

[MeneMeneTekelUpharsin]

I don’t have anything with which to defend myself. Come on in...

[umgud]

The second point I’d like to make is on handguns for home defense. Shoot the biggest cartridge you can handle.

[smokingfrog]

454 Casull = too much recoil

HiPoint carbine - I’d go with the 45ACP

AR - be sure to have something like Hornady TAP ammo or maybe some frangible ammo for inside the house.

And please tell me where I can get an AR for $650.

[OKSooner]

I think I’d opt for an old, honestly-used lever gun in .44 or .357 rather than a highpoint. JMO.

[PMAS]

*

[Goldsborough]

The section on handguns was ignorant. There are many valid reasons that a SHTF handgun should be a 9mm, such as weight of the ammo, ubiquity of the ammo, cost of training with the round, etc. An invalid reason to knock the 9mm would be its non-performance in the hands of gang bangers using FMJ ammo from Wal*Mart.

Most unabashed fans of bigger bore handguns have likely never shot at a target trying to avoid being hit. They also likely never have seen how hard it is to achieve solid hits in a two way shooting range.

If higher capacity carbines trump the shotgun's low capacity but generally more powerful ammunition, for ease firing and time of firing without reloading, and ease of other family members being able to achieve hits with it, etc,, the double stack 9mm holds the same type of advantages over the single stack .45ACP or 6-8 shot .357 Magnum revolver.

[Azeem]

If I know someone is in the house, I’m with the Saiga 12 at the top of the stairs as wife calls 911 holding her 870. If I have to investigate, I’m taking my M&P .45 and light. A rifle and shotgun can’t corner/quarter as well and are easier to grab by bad guy hiding.

[Baynative]

Thanks for the post. I carry a .38 and my wife has a .22 mag for her purse and wants something bigger. (She fired a .357 mag at the range and loved it.) All we really have for home defense is a Winchester Defender 1300 and I’m rethinking what will be needed when times get weird(er).

[Lancey Howard]

Good post, and good advice.

I’ve got a double-barrel 20 gauge shotgun (w/ two triggers), a 30.06 with scope, a Russian AK (semi), a 22 squirrel rifle, a 357 S&W, and some other miscellaneous handguns. Everybody in the family can be shooting away at any invading Obama Democrat locusts who venture onto my property when the SHTF.

I would like to get a couple more high-powered rifles w/ scopes, though, just to be sure.

[Terry L Smith]

Carbine for the house? OH GOSH YES! I suggest a Rossi, not a Puma, for the money value. The Puma line are near Browning Hi Power cost, whereas, a Rossi will not break you. They make them in most revolver calibers, and even .44-40. I read a report, that stated a carbine in 16-inch barrel lentgth, (I believe it was on CHUCKHAWKS.COM), is the optimal length of a barrel for a .357 Magnum chambering. Any longer a barrel, and the ‘law of diminishing returns’ kicks in, and we don’t need that. Yes, folks do suggest mostly 158-grain loads, but for home defense, for me, I employ 125-grain loads. Remember, too, a 16-inch .357 magnum carbine weighs less than five pounds. That read-about .357 magnum ‘oomph’ has to go somewhere when that bullet leaves the barrel, and your shoulder is where it is going. You will feel the difference in the grain weight loads.

Here is what my 20th Century ‘jaeger rifle’ looks like, complete with John Wayne large lever loop:

http://www.rossiusa.com/product-details.cfm?id=174&category=8&toggle=&breadcrumbseries=

No scopes, no hooded sights. I have ordered, and emplaced a leather ‘butt cuff’ like this one:

http://www.diamonddcustomleather.com/Rifle_Butt_Cuff.php

(Won’t the liberals have fun with trying to regulate a handmade piece of leather, huh?)

And like the author, yes - the rifle can chamber both .357 Magnum and .38 Special, in that order, I prefer to feed this little beastie only factory 125-grain .357 Magnum loads. I was told that particular round is good on all things, feral.

So, enjoy life, get one of these little beasties, get the other leather to go with it - someone out there makes a muzzle cap, too - and for the full experience, get a pair of ‘mechanics’ style gloves at your hardware dealer in desert tan. (Shooting a lever action with a good set of gloves will save your hand.)

http://www.mechanix.com/tactical/the-original-coyote-glove

Have fun, learning how to guard hearth and home, like our pioneering forefathers did in The Great West. Besides, this particular carbine is in no way shape or fashion anything close to an “Evil Battle Rifle”, or E.B.R!!!

Happy New Year to all the Freepers!

Long live the Republic!

[Terry L Smith]

I forgot one thing .... everything the author recommends, except the lever action, is A SEMI-AUTOMATIC OPERATING RIFLE!!! Duh!

[Georgia Girl 2]

For clearing the house we rely on Mr. Mossberg 500 tactical.

[Georgia Girl 2]

For clearing the house we rely on Mr. Mossberg 500 tactical.

[43north]

Ruger 10/22 with a Ruger brand 25 round magazine, er, I mean clip, and a 2-7x or 4x quality rimfire scope. Want to carry 500 rds of something other than .22LR? Not me thanks.

[Okieshooter]

Mine is one of these in .45 ACP.

http://www.justrightcarbines.com/

[ICCtheWay]

The article is wrong about needing the largest caliber pistol to stop an assialant... Serious studies of real shootings have show that an accurate shot with a lower caliber is just as likely to take down the bad guy. And - as the author pointed out with shotguns - a 20 ga. shotgun would be better handled of many people (smaller stature, less strong, etc.) and yet not lose much knock down at relatively close range versus a 12 ga....

The best defense caliber is one that does not cause the shooter to close their eyes, flinch or hesitate... Few people are accurate shooters in a sudden unexpected terrifying situation - adrenaling pumping, frightened, etc. So having many smaller caliber rounds - means in case of 9mm up to 14 rounds in a Browning HighPower... vs about 1/2 in a powerful .45 ir 357. I think any gun that hits where it is pointed by an average person because the recoil did not knock his/her arm and head back is the best most reliable defense. There is power in numbers... Note: .22 cal. killed Robert Kennedy and nearly killed Reagan ...

[BunnySlippers]

*