Best Self-Defense Firearm

[g00b]

And I hope you never have to deal with the fact that you killed another human. You equate the lack of a gun with helplessness, I don't need a gun to incapacitate an armed criminal. You are incapacitating yourself if you think like that.

A bunch of theoretical what-if's. Whooptie!

I'm done.

g00b

[FBBone]

Originally posted by AdmRose
Title says it all, any suggestions for a first timer?

 Well, this is a sticky one....I've read some good suggestions, and some bad ones.  One thing you'd better ask yourself though, are you mentally prepared to take another persons life?  Once you display a weapon, your very next move had better be to discharge the firearm, otherwise you run the risk of having it taken from and used on YOU.  If you don’t think you could live with someone’s blood on your hands (and everywhere else) then may I suggest a TASER?  Not cheap and COULD potentially cause death, but far less likely to than any handgun.  I don’t believe you need special permits to carry one concealed, but I'd check local and state laws first.  Another option is good old-fashioned pepper spray.  Not lethal and will even repel the occasional wayward bear!!  

As for me?  I carry a 4" .357 w/158 gr. JHPs.

[Sandman]

"God created man, Sam Colt made them equal."

[Martlet]

"A pit bull had mauled a 3-year-old boy and was biting the youngster's mother when a passing motorist stopped to see what was going on. Corey Kelley said that at first he thought Shonda Busby was playing with the dog in the family's rural yard in Chatom, Ala. He turned his truck around for another look and saw blood. "The closer I got to her, I could see the blood and bite marks on her arms. I pulled up and said, Are you alive?' She said, 'Yes, get this dog off me. He's biting me; he's killing me.'" Kelley quickly drove home, called 911 and grabbed his .22caliber rifle. Unaware that Busby was shielding her 3-year-old, her rescuer said he drove as close as he could, about 8 feet away. From his truck, he aimed at the dog and told Busby to lie as still as she could. "Shoot!" she told him. Kelly's mortal shot hit the animal between the eyes. When Busby sat up, Kelley saw the little boy; his scalp was torn and there were bite marks all over his body. Following the tragedy, the child was treated at Children's Hospital and was in fair condition. His mother required surgery. Kelley said he did not feel like a hero. "I'd do it again in a heartbeat," he said. "I'm just an old country boy. Helping people is just something I like doing."


State: TX
     American Rifleman Issue: 1/1/2005
     Early one morning, three men forced their way into a Houston, Tex., house and opened fire on the family. The husband raced to the bedroom, retrieved his own gun, and returned fire. One of the intruders was critically wounded, and the other two fled the scene.


    State: NC
     American Rifleman Issue: 6/1/2004
     Paul Ham and his son, Jimmy, entered a mobile home on their property to repair a water leak for tenant Kevin Clark. As they walked in, the Hams encountered a couple staying with Clark, William and Kristina Tuell. William Tuell immediately began shooting at the Hams, hitting the elder Ham in the head and shooting Jimmy Ham in the face. Both Hams then ran for their house, with Tuell and his wife on their heels. The attack continued in the Hams' home as Tuell and his wife attempted to shoot the entire Ham family. Kristina Tuell was wrestled to the ground by Ham's daughter, Sherry, but managed to escape. Though wounded, Jimmy Ham finally managed to secure a gun and kill Tuell with one shot. Kristina Tuell was later arrested after a massive manhunt and faces multiple charges, including attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon.

The stories are endless.  It's a good thing you have elite Bruce Lee moves to protect your family from an armed intruder.

Like I said.  I hope I'm never proven right.

[beet1e]

Originally posted by Martlet
Like I said......I hope someday you don't have to look back and realize if you'd taken the steps to protect your family, they may be alive.

LOL - talk about paranoia!

[Sandman]

Originally posted by Martlet
The stories are endless.

They sure are...

The 2002 edition of Injury Facts from the National Safety Council reports the following statistics [ 1 ] :

In 1999, 3,385 kids ages 0-19 years were killed with a gun. This includes homicides, suicides, and unintentional injuries.
This is equivalent to about 9 deaths per day, a figure commonly used by journalists.
The 3,385 firearms-related deaths for age group 0-19 years breaks down to:
214 unintentional
1,078 suicides
1,990 homicides
83 for which the intent could not be determined
20 due to legal intervention
Of the total firearms-related deaths:
73 were of children under five years old
416 were children 5-14 years old
2,896 were 15-19 years old

source

[Martlet]

Originally posted by Sandman
They sure are...



source

Yep...  they sure are.

[Sandman]

...simply endless.

Gun in Home Hikes Gunshot Death Probability
Study confirms what many people already believe


(HealthDay is the new name for HealthScoutNews.)

TUESDAY, June 10 (HealthDayNews) -- At least one statistical study now confirms a popular belief: Keeping a gun in your home greatly increases the likelihood that you'll die from a gunshot wound. a study in the June issue of the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.

The study by the Violence Prevention Research Group at the University of California at Los Angeles appears in the June issue of the journal Annals of Internal Medicine .

It found that people who have guns in their homes were almost twice as likely to die in a gun-related homicide and 16 times more likely to use a gun to commit suicide than people who don't have guns in their homes.

Handguns accounted for 40 per cent of all domestic homicides and a third of all suicides, the study found.

The study compared 1,720 homicide victims and 1,959 suicide victims over age 18 with other American adults.

"Keeping guns at home is dangerous for adults regardless of age, sex, orrace," study author Douglas J. Wiebe says in a news release.

"Our findings suggest that, when violence occurs and a gun is accessible,the gun may be selected for use over a weapon that is less lethal. That is particularly significant in terms of suicide and domestic violence,"Wiebesays.

This study supports widely-debated studies published a decade ago in the New England Journal of Medicine that also linked the presence ofa gun in the home to higher rates of suicide and murder.

The U.S. National Institute of Justice says that there are firearm sin 1 in every 3 households in the U.S., which works out to a total of nearly 200 million guns. In any 24-hour period, more than 160 people are treated for gunshot wounds at U.S. hospital emergency rooms.

source

[Pooface]

Originally posted by beet1e
LOL - out walking - and you have to carry a gun??? sad - but funny.

#

lol, its the american way when i went to vegas i went to a shooting range, and some crackpot told me that he would constantly carry atleast two guns on him at all times since 9/11.

i wish i could get guns over here.ive got crossbows, swords, rifles, shotguns, but handguns are just lost to english law

anyway, my advice would definitely be for a .357 revolver. cheap, common ammo type, stopping power, and size. you will likely never use it, and keep it hidden, so there's no need for a fancy expensive gun, and a revolver you can keep loaded for years, without worrying about the gun failing, as is common with auto's.

get a short barrel chrome gun, it looks mean. most places will let you try it out on a range, so give it a go. feel for balance, weight, ease of use, accuracy, and noise. you want something loud as a deterrent, but if its too loud, a lot of people will hear, and if you hit the guy bad, that noise will get you noticed.

and one last thing, aim for arms, mid shoulder on their right side (your left as they look at you), and bottom of legs. a shot to the shoulder will knock a guy down, especially if you go with something .357 or bigger, but if you hit the wrong side, and hit him in the heart, ure boned. never shoot anyone in the thigh, it can kill from nerve shock, bleeding or gangrene.

i hope you never need to use that advice, but there may be times.

people will ask how i know this all at the age of 16, and my answer is americans

good luck with finding the right one bud

[Martlet]

More than two out of every three gun deaths are either suicides or drug-related murders.
Source: Centers For Disease Control - Deaths 1998 (625KB document!) and U.S. Department Of Justice - Bureau of Justice Statistics

[Maverick]

AdmRose,

For someone who has little experiance in firearms I always recomend a revolver. For anything that may mean your life on the line a minimum caliber for revolver is .38 in an auto, 9mm.

Go to a range that will allow you to rent a variety of handguns and shoot a selection find one that you are comfortable shooting because you need to practice. Once you are comfortable shooting it make sure you can hit with it.If you can hit reliably with it then it is a good one for you. If you cannot hit the target reliably then you aren't doing yourself any good.

Once you find a weapon that peforms in that manner I strongly suggest you take a concealed weapon course. Even if you never intend to carry concealed. They will teach you some good info including when to shoot and even more important most of the time, when not to shoot.

[Martlet]

Originally posted by Maverick


Go to a range that will allow you to rent a variety of handguns and shoot a selection find one that you are comfortable shooting because you need to practice.

That's the best advice someone can give.  As you can see, if you ask 50 people which weapon is best, you'll get 50 answers.  Find one that you're comfortable with.  If it doesn't become second nature, then it does you no good when you need it.

[FBBone]

Originally posted by Sandman
...simply endless.



source

AND.................Owning a car greatly increases the risk that you'll die in an auto accident.  Go figure.

[rpm]

Originally posted by Martlet
I just pray you never let a 15 year old punk walk because you thought he was just going to steal your tv then watch while he kills your family.

Once a person has illegally entered my home they have waived the right to live and walk away. Armed or unarmed they are in the killing zone.

[Martlet]

Originally posted by rpm
Once a person has illegally entered my home they have waived the right to live and walk away. Armed or unarmed they are in the killing zone.

I agree, however killing someone would be a last resort for me.  That said, my safety and that of my family comes before any punk wanting my tv.