1)master the weapon and become a marksman, or
2)illegally convert it to full-auto, use the "spray and pray" method of (hopefully) hitting your target, and face a 10 year sentence and a $10,000 fine if you are caught.
Don't do it folks - it's not worth it. Full auto fire is like the "forbidden fruit" to folks that have not shot full-auto at all (or much) in the their lives. But once you have done a bit of it, you learn the value of well aimed shots. It is not that big of a deal once "the honeymoon is over." If you really, really have to shoot full-auto, go through a class 3 Federal Firearms Licensed dealer and get one the right way, or go rent one at a range and get the craving out of your system.
I only say these things because, for most of us, someone is counting on us to be there for them - a spouse, children, or maybe elderly parents. You can't be there for them if you are sitting in a jail cell somewhere.
Now that I've gotten that off of my chest, I am going to re-post something here that has been reposted previously. Not everyone has seen this, and I think it is important. With all of the purchases of guns and ammo as of late, it is important that we do not overlook other things. Here it is, again:
BEGIN POST:
Jittery Californians Buying Bullets And Safes
Wednesday, October 01, 2008 3:25:21 PM • 114 of 210
Raven6 to All
I'm glad that all of you are wanting to be prepared... But I want to offer something here that I hope you will all understand is offered as help, not criticism to anyone.
First, quit bragging about what you have in your weapons and ammo inventory. That is equivalent to flashing a big wad of cash while paying for your meal at a restaurant. Know your weapon and how to use it. 'Nuff said about that.
Now besides having a weapon and ammo, what else have you done? Eight days ago there was a post about civil unrest in cities in the event that Obama looses. A lot of posts about defending one's self... The author of the posted article wrote of "knowing the ranges down to the corner and across the street." Again, the same general tone as in this thread we now read. This was my post, please read it and think about it.
Posted by Raven6 on 23 SEP 08:
On the off-chance that you do have to defend your life and the lives of those you love during civil unrest, you had better know more than the yardage to targets within the field of fire. In fact, if you have your weapon properly zeroed (battle sight zero being 300 yards) you will not likely need to know yardages at all in the urban environment described in the article. A 300 yard battle sight zero is still going to provide a center mass hit inside of 300 yards, and the chance that you have a target beyond 300 yards in an urban environment is pretty slim unless you are shooting down the street from a position IN THE STREET. You shouldn't be in the street, remember?
More important than knowing yardage within your field of fire is knowing, as someone mentioned earlier in this thread, the most likely avenues of attack on your position, and knowing how best to counter that attack. If you don't know the topography of your area, learn it. If you don't have a map of your area, get one. If you don't have a good satellite image of your area, get one. Do yourself a favor and do all three. Walk around and drive around your area and study how you would assault your own position, looking for weaknesses. Figure out how to correct the weaknesses. Prepare for the worst. And remember, no battle plan survives contact with the enemy - so you had better have in mind more than a few scenarios.
But beyond shooting, what else? If the power goes off in your home, how well will you function? Eat? Drink? Get rid of waste? Communicate? Can you do all this without catching a round yourself? There is a lot to be said for having a disaster preparedness plan and the supplies to back it up. A disaster is a disaster whether natural or man-made. You have to think of everything (or at least try to.)
I work behind the tables at local gun shows for a FFL dealer - I'm a firearms instructor. It never ceases to amaze me the number of people that have the mentality of "I have a gun and plenty of ammunition, therefore I am okay." These same people have never looked at the position they intend to defend from the attackers' point of view. They have no means of sustaining themselves or their family for any period of time over (let's say) two days. And that is only because they just happen to have a two day supply of groceries in the cabinet. The majority of them follow the thinking of "I'm an American male, therefore I can shoot and defend myself and my family - it's just genetic." Overconfidence has killed many an otherwise smart person.
Another side of this unfortunate syndrome is that the same people that bring their pimped out AR-15 rifle (that is a 5.5 to 8 pound carbine or rifle with an additional 10 pounds of crap fastened on to it that usually turns out to be useless) to the gun show (so that others can see it and "OOOOHH! and AAAH!" over it - they enjoy the jealousy factor) couldn't run a half mile without having a massive coronary. Rambo wannabe's... That will get you nowhere WTSHTF.
I'm not trying to be ugly towards obese people or people that want to pimp out their weapon - what I'm trying to reiterate is this: HAVE A PLAN BEYOND A WEAPON AND PLENTY OF AMMO! If you can't run, you'd better be able to defend your position until the end. And in order to do so, you need to be able to outlast a siege.
Were I a betting man, I would wager that we will see lots of posts of "BLOAT!" (buy lots of ammo today!) in threads over the oncoming weeks. And while my philosophy is that you can never have too much ammo, you can not eat or drink ammo, or use it to patch a wound... You have to think things through...
END OF POST
Now, beyond what I had posted above... I've done more than just my current career in firearms instruction. I have been under fire, and know a thing or two about defending positions. I don't offer this long post for my amusement, for I don't particularly care to type and format posts of this size. I offer it for the sole purpose of making people think. One person can not successfully defend a structure against huge mobs or even small groups if, while that person is shooting from a position on one side of the structure, the other side of the structure is left undefended. Unless the defender has CCTV monitoring devices and Claymores properly dispersed so that he can "fight by wire." They will otherwise enter and kill you. You don't win by dying, so discretion can be the better part of valor. Live to fight another day. As my grandfather, a WWI Argonne Forrest infantry veteran, once told me: Always have plan that will allow you to eat, drink, sleep, fight, and run - and know when to execute each part of the plan.
Again, I'm not out to flame anyone - if so I would have posted to specified individuals. I just want us to think realistically. What good is all the ammo in the world if you starve to death or die of dehydration? Can you apply first aid to yourself with nothing but ammo?
Regards,
Raven6
END OF POST
Okay, so there it is again. Since I have posted this a couple of times already, I worry that some may think I am doing so just to attract attention. Nothing could be further from the truth. I just want folks to be prepared. Actually, I sometimes feel like I am walking a fine line between trying to help others be prepared and perhaps drawing too much attention to myself - I don't want someone knocking on my door with trumped up charges.
And since this is a gun thread, I'll say it again:
DON'T FEED STEEL CASED AMMO TO YOUR AR-15!!!
Regards,
Raven6
If riot and mayhem do arise following the election, preparing to put donw any one or more deciding to enter your home despite you being home requires a plan to slow perps down so you can drop them, preferrably with a 12 or 20 gage pump loaded with 1 and 3 duplex or 00 buck.
It is a cheap investment to buy and teach all in the family how to use a 'door jammer', for making forced entry to a room much more difficult and slowing the perp(s) down. The better models slip under the door hamdle and rest against the floor app. 12 to 18 inches from the botton of the door, thus just turning the door knob will not open the door. Oh, and if you have a kid who wants to be a smarty and use the jammer to keep the parent out, bust the door down ... it is a great learning tool and worth the $70 bucks to replace the pre-hung door and jam.
I suspect the good pump shotgun should be stored loaded and one up the spout, so you don't give your position away by jacking the first round home. If perps are bold enough to enter knowing you're likely there, they need to be killed, instead of trying to 'scare' them.
For a handgun, I reccommend a .357 w/3 or 4inch barrel, loaded with .38 Spcl Jacketed hollowpoint +P ammo. The gun weighs more than a typical .38 special, the rounds are traveling fast enough to spread the lead on impact for greatest damage rather than just whizzing right through the perp. I can also reccommend a .22 w/ longrifle hollowpoints, but shoot for the head or the bladder region and don't shoot once shoot two or three rounds then evaluate and make an aimed headshot if needed.
Final note, practice, practice, practice, at distances of the max you might encounter a perp in your home. Teach kids to shoot, and make them practice with a .22 in small rifle or revolver ... and teach them that bullets kill and any bullet they shoot is their responsibility for where it goes and what damage it does. A criminal entry deserves killin'. Period.
Every pistol or rifle is loaded until proven other wise, but still check it to be sure.