What would be a good gun for home defense?

Jerry H

The choice of a personal firearm is a very personal decision. It has to fit in with your build, clothing, life style, local laws and intended use, among other things.

My recommendation is that you treat this as you would any other major purchase. Do your homework. Research what's available to you. Then go to an indoor range where you can rent guns and try out the ones you think might do. A good quality firearm, properly maintained, will last a lifetime, so amortize the cost over several decades to minimize sticker shock. Avoid cheap junk and off brands.

Minimum handgun calibers for self-defense are 9x19mm for semiautomatics and .38 Special for revolvers. (If you can't handle 9x19mm for some reason, consider 9x17mm, aka .380, but certainly nothing less.) Anything bigger than .45 ACP for a semiauto or .357 Magnum for a revolver will likely overpenetrate the target, wasting some of its energy and endangering whatever is behind it. Within those ranges, pick something you can afford and shoot comfortably, so you can practice with it.

I usually recommend against revolvers for self-defense, these days. They're too restrictive in capacity and too slow to reload. While it's true they have fewer stoppage modes than semiautos, most semiauto stoppages can be cleared in a couple of seconds with a little training. When a revolver jams, it's out of the fight and may need a gunsmith to get it going again.

If you can't decide, you probably won't go far wrong with a Glock, but some people just don't like them.

Tritium night sights are worth the extra money. Most other bells and whistles aren't.

Most important, above all else, get training in safe gun handling and defensive use of firearms. This is absolutely critical. Without training, you're only kidding yourself and endangering those around you. . Don't let it slide .

james p

I would go for a 40. cal smith & Wesson or Glock. I like the 40. cause it holds a bit more ammo than the 45. and doesnt have as much kick.

StealthBeast

A shotg- oh =(

Well yeah, .45 cal jericho/baby eagle/whatever u wanna call it sounds fine. Unless you intend on carrying it, feel free to get a big barrel, and attach a bunch of guady accessories like lasers, flashlights, and oversized magazines on it =P. That's the beautiful thing about home defense guns... unlike selecting a carry pistol, you can get as crazy as you want... and I suggest you do (Don't literally attach a scopes, handgrips, and night vision to it.. I mean something appropriate for home defense.. A light or something.)

That's why the Shotgun is recommended so much.. It's perfect for the job.

Jerry H above me gave you some great advice.

chuck b

Besides a shotgun? I wouldn't rely on a 9mm for personal defense. Perhaps if it were a submachinegun. I like the low bore axis of a Glock but have had many reliability issues. Four different Glocks with four different problems from the factory. Maybe just bad luck. They are good pistols but not the best. I recommend a Sig Sauer P220 .45 ACP. I have three P220's in .38 Super,9mm and .45 ACP. Not one malfunction after thousands of rounds through each. I have used them all in IDPA competition. I prefer these single stack guns but would recommend any Sig Sauer variant in .45 ACP.

Brandi C

I use a .40 cal Smith & Wesson Sigma. I like it. Obviously, the bigger the caliber, the more stopping power. I would not recommend something small like a .22, a 9mm may do OK, but a .40 or .45 would be better. You should also look at the make of the gun, pick something reliable and well made. You don't want it to jam when you need it most. I like S&W, Glock or Sig Sauer.

George W. B

How about a dog?
Where do you live where you need to have a gun pointing at your door?

I'd suggest moving to a better section of town.

Scitech05

Vulcan 20mm rotary cannon.

Spock (rhp)

a .45 is too much gun. Takes a lot of strength and training to hold it on target.

if i may suggest, what you want is simple and reliable, neither so small that it won't be effective, nor so large that you'll not be able to effectively use it. That describes a .38 revolver. Snub barrel is ok. either five or six chambers is fine.

***
should you ever feel that you need to use it, I suggest putting the first round through the biggest window in the room. The resulting noise will prove to nearly anyone that the next round will be fired and might well kill them.

if your intruder doesn't flee immediately, or moves to use his own weapon, then I recommend two rounds to the head. no sense fooling around, and you want to still have ammo left for the second guy.

Let's hope you never need it.

Andrew S

it depends on what state you live in. i have kids in my house so i only keep a knife. its hidden in our pool shed under the refrigerator lol so if there is a robbery, i cant get it but anywhere else, my kids would find it. anyways if you want a gun, i recommend a colt or mac10 (if its not illegal in your state) if i did not have kids i would probably get some form of shotgun.

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