Posted on 01/06/2013 9:42:01 PM PST by ru4liberty
The .38 is sufficient, provided she is trained and practiced in its use, and willing to use it without hesitation at the appropriate time.
It appears to me that the people with whom she has been talking have spent too much time thinking about Zombie attacks.
A .38 should be sufficient. Has been for 100 years.
Yes, it’s about indoors, hence my point: at distances where shotgun spread is enough to be relevant, you’re outdoors. Shot spread is only useful on delicate targets like birds; as we’ve seen, it has little effect even on lawyers.
The one good thing about a shotgun indoors is its the closest thing to a wieldable cannon, making a ragged three-quarter-inch hole - with the added benefit of little subsequent penetration.
Concur. Debate about whether or not it should be loaded with bird shot or buck shot, but a short barreled shotgun remains the best home protection weapon.
“It’s about time someone said that!!! Thank you!”
Welcome.
I had to think about this a lot when my wife’s kids were little. We lived in a large two story house with the master suite off of the living room. The kids were upstairs in 3 bedrooms. The stairs were on the other side of the living room from the master by the front door. The other entrance was through sliders in the kitchen to the pool. It wasn’t a bad neighborhood and we had good locks and a huge Doberman but still if someone broke in I had to go find him. When things went bump in the night I grabbed a Glock G22, Maglite, and the Doberman and went to check it out. Luckily it was never a bad guy.
But you trade it for stopping power. No one who has been hit with a shotgun blast indoors will ever return fire.
Despite what someone posted above, it is also useful for scaring off a prowler lurking in the yard who hasn't made contact with the house yet, be it a local kid, a lost drunk or a serious thug. Open a door or window a safe distance from the trespasser and give the 870 a firm, slow pump. An old man I met years ago who lived in a really bad inner city neighborhood told me that it has worked dozens of times for him and his neighbors.
Since you are getting so few replies....
Many good options have been suggested, but some excellent choices might not have been as prominently mentioned, so here goes:
1. Old reliable: Glock model 17. Light recoil, easy to use, 17+1 capacity with one magazine. Hang a small surefire light on the front rail, and it’s very hard to beat. Even better, they are widely available used, (or at least they were before everyone started buying everything in sight a few weeks ago). Super-reliable, and indifferent to neglect.
2. No, I’m not crazy with this. But the AR-15 platform (again with a light) can be an excellent choice for amyone, especially smaller-framed people. Very light felt recoil, 28+1 magazine capacity (yes, I never load 30, for reliability reasons). One great advantage over the 9mm is the terminal performance of most standard rounds: many tests show much less over-penetration using .223 ammunition vs. 9mm. IE, it’s bad for the bad guy, but safer for anyone who might be downrange (like maybe the dog).
If you have room ie, maneuvering space for a shotgun, you have room to deploy the AR.
Just my 2c
Not in my experience. Mrs. Hugin loves my old Charter Arms Undercover. Though she grew up around guns, she is not a big gun person. She wants something small, lightweight that she can slip in her pocket, and she doesn't have to worry about whether there's a round in the chamber or releasing the safety. Nor is she worried about accuracy or noise. Self-denfense in the home would be at point blank range, and who cares about noise and recoil (although it's a lot less than a 12 ga would be) when your life is on the line?
BTW, I didn’t see anything in the post to suggest “The gal obviously is NOT comfortable with the .38 snubby”. In fact, it doesn’t even say it’s a snub nose. Anyway, it sounds to me like she went to the range, and a bunch of gun guys convinced her a 38 spcl was inadequate, and she needs a shotgun. The drawbacks of relying on a long gun inside your home have been gone into enough. I’ll just say, a shotgun is unsurpassed for stopping someone who is trying to break into your home, but it’s not ideal if someone is already inside. And unlike a small handgun, it’s not really practical to carry around on your property (eg. going to the mailbox, answering your door, etc.).
Where does the op say anything like that? It only says that she owns a 38, and several people told her a shotgun would be the better. Obviously a lot of folks agree here, and a lot disagree, including me.
The op stated that "She has a .38 handgun but has been told by a few people (shooting range owner, RTC instructor's cousin, co-worker, etc.)that the best thing to have is a shotgun."
Why would they all state that if indeed the lady was a competent handgun shooter?
Not really, for reasons discussed copiously in this thread. Something you can slip in your pocket is a lot more likely to be on you. Honestly, do you carry a shotgun every time you answer the door, work around the yard, or go to the mailbox?
Just read this thread. At least half the people here advocate that a shotgun is the "best" home defense gun, and plenty dismiss the .38 as inadequate. I think it has more to do with their biases than her ability. Not that your average gun enthusiast is opinionated or anything. ;~)
Most home defense shootings are at point blank range, say less than 10 feet. If you can point at it, you can hit it.
Anything is better than nothing.
I am no expert, but here is my reasoning for suggesting a small handgun:
You got me thinking. A bigger size version of the same gun might have less recoil (because of the added mass) and would likely have more bullets. So you do have a really good point!
To your point of over penetration you might be right there might be a better choice regarding shot in certain situations. but good old 00 Buck works every time. :)
Regards.
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