The best weapon for home defense is a small, pump-action, 12-guage shotgun.
You don’t want to use a handgun for home defense. If you have to use it, your adrenaline will be pumping, you’ll be shaking, you will miss your target.
To stop an intruder, you’ll need a powerful handgun, such as a .44 or .45 ACP. Mel Tappan thought a .357 is not powerful enough. I think a .357 would work, but I’ll defer to his expertise.
The problem with those powerful handguns is that they’ll penetrate wall board, which means a family member somewhere else in the house or a neighbor could get shot accidentally not only if you miss but if the bullet passes through your intruder.
A 12 gauge with bird shot (#5 or #6) at about 5 yards (typical shot distance inside a home) will create a wide enough pattern that, if you’re pointing your barrel at the intruder and fire, you’ll hit. The pattern will be tight enough to put the intruder down. If you miss, the pattern will disperse and that light shot, even if it gets through some wall board, will not be as lethal as a solid bullet.
The pump action gives you follow-up shots. Intruders are also scared to death of hearing any “racking” sound, so studies have showed.
What you want to look for is any of the tactical shotguns.
A favorite is the Remington 870, such as this one:
http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shooting/Shotguns/Pump-Action|/pc/104792580/c/105537780/sc/104803380/Remington174-8708482-Express174-TacticalHome-Defense-Shotguns/709955.uts?destination=%2Fcatalog%2Fbrowse%2Fshooting-shotguns-pump-action%2F_%2FN-1102348%2FNs-CATEGORY_SEQ_104803380%3FWTz_l%3DSBC%253BMMcat104792580%253Bcat105537780&WTz_l=SBC%3BMMcat104792580%3Bcat105537780%3Bcat104803380
I can’t emphasize this enough, YOU MUST GET PROPER, CERTIFIED TRAINING.
A firearm is a tool. It is dangerous if used incorrectly. And it only works as well as the person using it.
Good training will teach you how to use it safely and competently and THAT will give you confidence.
The best weapon for home defense is a small, pump-action, 12-guage shotgun. You don’t want to use a handgun for home defense. If you have to use it, your adrenaline will be pumping, you’ll be shaking, you will miss your target.
***Perhaps the Judge .410 is a good compromise between handheld rounds and spreading rounds. For inside use, would it have similar stopping power & chance to hit target as a shotgun? For that matter, what about a .38 with snakeshot? Where does one go to see the difference in effect?
Also, isn’t the Judge the only handgun that allows washer rounds? Seems like a great compromise gun.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5kIuI3heYMQ
The Judge is a pretty impressive and versatile self-defense handgun. It appears to be unique.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgnwO0o2ClQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4H5GepjBRsM
5, 10, 15 feet with 000 buck, 4 pellets/ round
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnrDMJvlL4M
Demo gave up on shotgun, went with Judge
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tY3YYDgDUXs
female shooter
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7by3UcLP-M