Best firearm for home protection? I realize a lot is personal choice involved?

[groundcover]

I have a 9 shot .22 Ruger. Wih .22 birdshot, it's great for dealing with carpenter bees.

Reminds me of way back in high school , kid had a big farm that grew corn and soybeans. One day his mom found a rat behind the washing machine and dispatched it with a 10 gauge ! Has to be pretty hard on the house !

 

[two_bit_score]

The universal sound for get the F out of my house at midnight...The sound of a 12G racking.... I have a 45C S&W as well as a 380 in the house at the ready...But a 12G...with buck shot...you don't need to be particularly accurate in the dark should the situation present itself.

Don’t you think if the crook has a gun he’s going to shoot right at that sound as soon as he hears it?

 

[buck12]

I have had my M4 for about 10 years. Wifey bought it for me as a birthday gift and I think it was right at 2K. They are the Ultimate 12 gauge gun without a doubt. I don't think you will find one as any sort of deal, they have a reputation to protect.

I have a Benelli Super Black Eagle 2 that I have owned for 16 years. I know that because I remember the anniversary my wife bought it for me. It is my turkey gun and is one sweet gun. It is not so pretty anymore after 16 turkey seasons, lots of dirt and mud, many rainy mornings but I have no intention of changing guns.

It will cycle anything from the cheapest 2 3/4 bird shot to heavy 3.5 turkey loads without jamming. Very few semi autos that will handle 3.5 shells will also cycle low brass 2 3/4 loads.

 

[Thing]

Just my thoughts on home defense.... 3 main concerns. #1 Safety, in the event a child gets hold of it. #2 Stopping power. Something that will put an intruder down. #3 Residual damage. High powered rifles and pistols are out ! Too much residual damage, bullets penetrating walls etc. 20 gauge shotguns with buckshot are good choices except trying to keep them handy and loaded creates a safety issue. My choice is a revolver, 380, 38, 357 etc. My favorite is the Judge Defender revolver loaded with buck shot or the “home defense” rounds. My trick to safety with a revolver is simple.... leave the chamber on the rotating side of the barrel empty. If a child actually has the strength to pull the trigger the firing pin will land on an empty chamber. You know that but nobody else does. JMO

 

[rademamj1]

My favorite for home defense is 9mm Beretta 92FS and for concealed carry a Ruger LCP2 380 ACP.

 

[JethroB]

I have a 9 shot .22 Ruger. Wih .22 birdshot, it's great for dealing with carpenter bees.

Now that's good porch sitting entertainment.

 

[two_bit_score]

After thinking about it and reading the entire thread this suggestion (.22 long rifle) makes a lot of sense.

Some interesting points for home defense. Current state of affairs, whatever ammo you can find the get the delivery tools

 

[two_bit_score]

Just my thoughts on home defense.... 3 main concerns. #1 Safety, in the event a child gets hold of it. #2 Stopping power. Something that will put an intruder down. #3 Residual damage. High powered rifles and pistols are out ! Too much residual damage, bullets penetrating walls etc. 20 gauge shotguns with buckshot are good choices except trying to keep them handy and loaded creates a safety issue. My choice is a revolver, 380, 38, 357 etc. My favorite is the Judge Defender revolver loaded with buck shot or the “home defense” rounds. My trick to safety with a revolver is simple.... leave the chamber on the rotating side of the barrel empty. If a child actually has the strength to pull the trigger the firing pin will land on an empty chamber. You know that but nobody else does. JMO

I sure understand the idea of a revolver as well as the concept of the stopping power but I believe if you do some research you might find out that the most effective round in the Judge would be a .45 Colt.
Also keep in mind by leaving an open chamber you are now down to only 4 shots and to get to the first round you have to pull the trigger twice. So your home invader, who may also be armed, hears an empty ‘click’ first. You, scared, facing an armed intruder could be thrown off by that empty chamber long enough to allow him to get the first shot.

A Charter Bulldog in .44 Special might be even better.

 

[4570Man]

I sure understand the idea of a revolver as well as the concept of the stopping power but I believe if you do some research you might find out that the most effective round in the Judge would be a .45 Colt.
Also keep in mind by leaving an open chamber you are now down to only 4 shots and to get to the first round you have to pull the trigger twice. So your home invader, who may also be armed, hears an empty ‘click’ first. You, scared, facing an armed intruder could be thrown off by that empty chamber long enough to allow him to get the first shot.

A Charter Bulldog in .44 Special might be even better.

Why would you pull the trigger twice? Personally I wouldn’t leave a home defense revolver empty chambered but you’re supposed to leave the empty chamber under the hammer. The idea is if it was dropped and landed on the hammer it could go off. When you pull the trigger ( which there’s zero chance of doing accidentally on a double action revolver ) it rotates the cylinder to a live round and fires the first time.

 

[MossRoad]

Why would you pull the trigger twice? Personally I wouldn’t leave a home defense revolver empty chambered but you’re supposed to leave the empty chamber under the hammer. The idea is if it was dropped and landed on the hammer it could go off. When you pull the trigger ( which there’s zero chance of doing accidentally on a double action revolver ) it rotates the cylinder to a live round and fires the first time.

Someone earlier suggested leaving the NEXT chamber open so it wouldn't shoot on one pull in case a child picked it up and pulled the trigger.

Personally, I believe your gun should never be accessible by a child ever, but to each their own. There are numerous stories of small children shooting another household member. That's 100% on the gun owner. In a safe, trigger lock, or on your person... that's about it. Even up out of reach doesn't cut it. Kids are curious, and if they know it's there, they might want to touch it.