Off-topic: Something for home defense?

[TexasSP]

Just so everyone understands my guns don't sit in the open where anyone can just grab hold. They are secured and I will leave it at that. No one should leave their guns unsecured period.

PBO, my issue is constant legislation. We have people trying to have laws passed where the government can take their kids if they're over weight. People are trying to constantly lobby to have laws passed to control actions of others. It has gotten out of control. I am a person that wants less government no matter which side is in charge. I don't trust anyone with ultimate power and control.

[Finnster]

Originally Posted by BIG-block

Firstly I respect everyone's opinion be it pro or against guns. Bellow is just my opinion and how I think on the subject.

I love guns but would never have one loaded under my pillow or carry on me as protection. In fact if someone broke into my house to rob me or mugg me in the street with a gun, first thing I would say is "Take what ever you want man. Here is my wallet too". I think that pulling a gun on someone who has a gun already in their hands would not play out well. Thats why I don't think of guns as much of a defense.....{snip}...

Your post mirrors my thoughts precisely.

Originally Posted by TexasSP

Just so everyone understands my guns don't sit in the open where anyone can just grab hold. They are secured and I will leave it at that. No one should leave their guns unsecured period.

PBO, my issue is constant legislation. We have people trying to have laws passed where the government can take their kids if they're over weight. People are trying to constantly lobby to have laws passed to control actions of others. It has gotten out of control. I am a person that wants less government no matter which side is in charge. I don't trust anyone with ultimate power and control.

I wouldn't get too worked up in here about legislation. I don't think anyone was proposing any public policy measures, and like it would matter anyway as I don't think anyone in here is a member of Congress. (Being there is a general lack of shirtless photos and gay date trolling)

Besides, all the gun control fights were done in the 90's. There hasn't been any serious federal legislation in a long time. No one is really pushing to reinstate the assault weapons ban, we've had a lot of high profile mass shootings and no action as come out of it. Even a member of Congress was shot in the head and nobody really pushed for any new laws. There were some grumblings about limiting the size of handgun clips, but even that was pretty well squashed by the Democratic leadership and no bills were ever even crafted for a vote. Fighting about gun control and who got blown where were luxuries of another era where such trivialities were the biggest problems we had. Times are different, and I know the D's want no part of starting the fight again with the R's.

I think we can point to extremists on both sides who want to pass all sorts of Big Brother laws, but no one is really listening to them nor have a credible plan to get something passed. But that's really beside the matter...

And just so everyone understands, I didn't get the guns out a bunch of times. (Well maybe the BB guns quite a bit...) It was still one or two more times than I'd ever want my kids getting into them, no matter their training. Our training just taught us how to do stupid stuff more safely.

Point was me and most my friends got into all sorts of trouble doing things we knew damn well we shouldn't have been doing and most of the time our parents had no clue. I don't think I was exceptionally sneaky or clever about it. I fully expect my kids to be in all sorts of stuff they'll try to get away with as they get older.

For me, the cost/benefit just doesn't add up, but everyone's got to make thier own choice

Originally Posted by TexasSP

Just so everyone understands my guns don't sit in the open where anyone can just grab hold. They are secured and I will leave it at that. No one should leave their guns unsecured period.

PBO, my issue is constant legislation. We have people trying to have laws passed where the government can take their kids if they're over weight. People are trying to constantly lobby to have laws passed to control actions of others. It has gotten out of control. I am a person that wants less government no matter which side is in charge. I don't trust anyone with ultimate power and control.

Tex I hope you weren't thinking that my post was labeling you as an irresponsible gun owner. Couldn't be further from the truth. Just saying that people should be given a bit more freedom to do what they want in their own house and raise their kids the way they want. I think we more than agree on that point.
I live in Australia's wonderful state of Victoria which is know as being a "Nanny state". There is always some public servant or politician trying to tell us how we should live. It really pisses me off beyond words sometimes so I know where you are coming from. Also just like you mentioned about overweight kids, we had a similar thing happen here. There was a lot of talk about it and even talk of charging parents with child neglect. WTF? If they brought something in like that when I was a kid they would have locked my parents up and thrown away the key. I was almost as wide as I was tall and my head was almost always inside the fridge. LOL.

[hemicuda11]

Glad I don't have kids, bought the wife a walther p22 a couple years ago, she loves it. Great pistol for a beginner, now she wants a ppk.

[crazyjr]

Originally Posted by whitrzac

IRRC there are laws in place in most states that you can only use "lethal force" when someone's life is in danger... so if this burglar turns out to be unarmed, or you shoot them in the back, you go to prison for a loooong time...

My parents were told by the investigating officer on our break in in Washington State, Put a gas can and a lighter in his hand, Self defence, possible arsonist. Just be sure he's in the house when police is called, if he gets out and is seen, lawsuit

[cmac]

Originally Posted by crazyjr

My parents were told by the investigating officer on our break in in Washington State, Put a gas can and a lighter in his hand, Self defence, possible arsonist. Just be sure he's in the house when police is called, if he gets out and is seen, lawsuit

That is just plain wrong. Yes you are correct in saying that if your life (or the life of your family members) is/are in danger you can use deadly force, but they definitely don't have to be inside your house. When I carry my concealed handgun and someone want's to jack me for my car at the mall I will drop his ass right there. I won't at that point drag him to my house and put him inside. It does not matter where you are or where he or she is if your life is in danger you can defend your self. Putting a lighter and a gas can is tampering with the crime scene, and that will most likely get you in trouble or at least when his family tries to sue you it will be in the family's favor.

[J57ltr]

Originally Posted by BrianG

So I went to a local store (Scheels) and took a look around. They have a pretty decent selection and even have a "home defense" shotgun section. My two favorites for simplicity and price was a Remington 870 Express (http://www.remington.com/products/fi...c-7-round.aspx) and a similar Mossberg. Personally, the Remington had an overall better feel and had less play in the mechanisms.

But then I started thinking; if I have a gun in the house for defense, it obviously has to be readily accessible during emergencies, but it also should not be accessible to curious kids. Those two criteria are mutually exclusive, are they not? How can I have the firearm ready to use quickly, yet safely put away? This is probably the biggest argument my wife has against firearms in general. If I can answer this question, I think she'd be much more apt to allow it. I could put the proverbial foot down and say I'm getting one and that's that, but I have to live with her, so I'd like to find a more persuasive argument. Until then, I'm stuck potentially bringing a bat to a gunfight if an armed intruder does break in.

To answer your question Brian of keeping a loaded gun safe and have easy access. There is a lock that mounts the firearm to the wall and is push button combo. It keeps the action locked and the stock and barrel are visible. I am looking for the manufacturer and a pic I took when I was at the gunshow last month. Here it is.

http://www.shotlock.com/Gallery.asp

[J57ltr]

One of the things I see in this thread is a bunch of misinformation. About half of you don't know what the rules are for your state and the other half doesn’t know what is legal and what is not. Do your research and then make an informed decision. NFA laws are Federal make sure that ha rifle has a minimum of a 16” barrel and a shotgun has at least an 18” barrel, If you want a barrel length shorter than 18” you have to pay the $5 tax stamp and classify it as an AOW (any other weapon). Short barreled rifles are a $200 tax stamp and a same with suppressors (if you can own them in your state). Paperwork on these things take a minimum of 3-4 months so it’s better to go with an 18” barrel shotty. Rifles are too powerful background becomes a problem.

Jeff

This is what you need:

http://autoweapons.com/photosv/supershorty.html

[ssspconcepts]

Saiga 12 from Lonestararms.com

[gtxracer]

Originally Posted by BrianG

I've been looking for some kind of weapon for home defense. First, I was going to get a handgun, but after reading a bit about this topic, many people prefer a shorter shotgun instead. Makes sense really; not as much potential for overpenetration, ammo is pretty cheap, gun is pretty simple/basic and relatively inexpensive.

So, my question is; out of all the shotguns out there, does anyone have any personal experience? Off the top of my head, I'd want a shorter shotgun for some maneuverability, able to hold as many shells as possible, be reliable, and inexpensive. Any thoughts?

In my experience, your time behind the trigger matters more than what firearm you're holding. Might wanna look into some bean bag shells if you're not too keen on sluggin a dude in your hallway.