Thread: Best carry weapon/ home defense pistol

What is the best carry home defense pistol? Which would you suggest? Any reasons why one is better than any other? Give me your best!!!!

I think the best would be a Barrett M82 cut down to about 18" with a pistol grip and a 12 gauge shotgun mounted to the rail underneath. Maybe some sort of backpack flame thrower setup to go with it.

24AR - this is such a vague question (either questions; best carry weapon, or best home defense pistol - are going to raise so many opinions in itself), that you will get so many different answers because of so many different opinions. There's the semi vs. revolver, 9mm vs. .45, 1911 vs. Glock, etc. It's going to come down to personal choice, what feels the best in your hand, and what shoots the best for each individual.

IstDFMP- the purpose of the question was for people to just answer the question or questions in any way that would enjoyable for them. But I do understand what you are saying. Purchasing a firearm just based on an opinion would be stupid, but to get feedback on a certain handgun could help someone with no knowledge about firearms as a whole. Most new firearm owners, they typically buy a weapon after they are told by friends which one they think would be the best for them personally.....

I personally would prefer the Glock 22 (40 cal) as my primary carry and a Kimber or Colt 1911 as my home defense pistol.

I don`t think a pistol is best for home defence thats what a 12 ga. is for, just my 2 cents

The one that you have in your hand when you need it!

That being said. I would not recommend anything smaller than a 9mm for pistols.

Kahr CW45 or a glock 23.

Yes a handgun is the best for home defence on average for the typical person. With a handgun you can open doors, carry your child, and hold a flashlight. With a pump shotgun you need two hands to make it work. That's a no go if you are moving your kids to a safer location in the house.

Originally Posted by oldbrass

I don`t think a pistol is best for home defence thats what a 12 ga. is for, just my 2 cents

I would NEVER have a shotgun for home defense for these reasons:

1. It takes two hands to operate & fire a shotgun...I need one hand free to open doors, turn on/off lights, push-off an attacker.

2. A shotgun, or any long gun, is pretty easy to have taken-away from you or deflected, especially as you "round a corner with the barrel".

3. A shotgun is not very usefull in very close quarter combat, as the length gets in the way.

Originally Posted by 24ARTucker

What is the best carry home defense pistol? Which would you suggest? Any reasons why one is better than any other? Give me your best!!!!

The best home defense pistol is one you will like and can afford to shoot and practice with. What works for one person or for all people may not work for you. This is an endless debate and no one can give you the right answer, people can suggest where to start looking, what to start looking at and what caliber. When it comes down to it, the gun you choose is your life and your life depends on it, so like I said before, get something you will enjoy shooting and can afford to shoot. Being intimately familiar with the gun you are defending yourself is step one.

Also, what is your experience with firearms? Do you have any training? Have you fired a pistol before and if so which one? Are you going to be the only one using it? Are you a "form follow function" minded person?

Originally Posted by glockman99

I would NEVER have a shotgun for home defense for these reasons:

1. It takes two hands to operate & fire a shotgun...I need one hand free to open doors, turn on/off lights, push-off an attacker.

2. A shotgun, or any long gun, is pretty easy to have taken-away from you or deflected, especially as you "round a corner with the barrel".

3. A shotgun is not very usefull in very close quarter combat, as the length gets in the way.

I laughed.

A shot gun is probably thee best home defense weapon you can have.

You should have your children and rooms configured as to not need to move around when it's dark. And if you have to shove off an attacker in your home you have already failed to defend your home.If you are that close to an attacker,you should be standing over his body.

Why would you make a move as to be in a position that the invader could take your weapon?
If you have children,I would ASSume you would stay next to them and just call the police,instaed of playing Rambo or SWAT and go clear the house.That's just me though

And how does a shotguns length get in the way if you have a police sized shotgun?

The good points are they are very effective at close range,well out to about 40 yards with the right loads.
Pistols aren't that effective,go look at all the tests out there.Some say pistol calibers suck,but you just can't carry a rifle everywhere.
They hold up to 8 rounds and some much more.You don't need to really aim as much as send multiple rounds down the hallway. You will hit the target.Even a 410 can be used effectively for home defense (My dad fed us with one when I was a kid.Lots of venison) so smaller stature people can handle them easily.
No muzzle flash to blind you.
Scares the livin' piss out of most when you rack the slide ( but don't count on this.

I'm sure I have missed something and told lies too.

HD: Taurus Judge (2ea 410 00 Buck/3ea 45lc)
CC: Taurus Millennium Pro PT-145 (10+1 .45+p)
Stuff is going south: Saiga S-12 (20rd drum 00 Buck )
That's how I roll.

Glock 9mm for me. The G17 is my favorite Glock, but the 19 is better all around concealment/HD/OC gun simply because the size is a tad handier. It'll accept the G17 mags if you gotta have them (or just add +2 bases to the stock 15 rounders, and add G17 mag springs and you've got yourself 17 round mags that don't look/feel as wonky).

2nd favorite for the roll of hd/carry pistol to the 9mm Glocks are the .45ACP Glocks. My preference (being a bit on the tall/fat side) is the G21, but a G30SF would be fine too.

3rd choice would be a long arm - 12ga pump gun. An AR would be fine for less urban settings. Don't think an AR would be choice if I lived in an apartment, townhouse, or tract house where the homes are 5' apart.

Plasma gun in a 40 watt range.

jj

Originally Posted by FORKLIFT252

HD: Taurus Judge (2ea 410 00 Buck/3ea 45lc)
CC: Taurus Millennium Pro PT-145 (10+1 .45+p)
Stuff is going south: Saiga S-12 (20rd drum 00 Buck )
That's how I roll.

That's the most Taurus'nst puttogether I've ever heard of! Good luck to you sir!

just jim... lol, a plasma gun; how about a light saber? Cuts n cauterises and you can see your target too!

This thread will have a number of opinions, in the end it's your home and defense.

Whatever you choose, look at courses and practice for all weather and light conditions.
Teach the family what they need to know and how to operate as one.

My opinion - a shotgun is not the best home defense gun, more the last line of defense.
As stated in the above threads, a handgun is going to be the better choice; better freedom of movement.
Your are also more likely to retain the weapon if it comes to that. If the attacker won't let go, well ...

The gun should not discharge with a brilliant flash or be over loud in what will likely be a confined space.
The gun should be an easy pointer, in a caliber you can easily control for when the andrenaline flows.

Where/how will you keep the gun to hand for that unexpected early morning, rude awakening.

Torches and pepper spray shouldn't be overlooked either; something to consider for family members to have.

The other aspects of home defense that are overlooked relate to safety, use of deadly force and post trauma.

In the end, as stated here and in the above threads (and those to follow), it's your decision.
Whatever it is, practice with the gun and get familiar.

My current choice for home defense (changes like the weather!) is a Walther P99; with Federal Hydra-Shok 147gr JHP.
And a SureFire 200 lumens flashlight.

But that is one man's choice.

More will chime in for sure!

chris

12 GA Win 1300 with Aguila MiniShells, 11 of them in the tube, enough to take out a BG
Taurus Judge Public Defender with 2-410's and three 45LC's
Kahr P45 IWB even working in the yard
KelTech P3AT in the bathrobe pocket

Originally Posted by oasis618

That's the most Taurus'nst puttogether I've ever heard of! Good luck to you sir!

Not really: I have a Taurus Judge Public Defender and three PT-145's, plus a couple more .22 pistols and a rifle or two.

There is no correct answer for this question.
This is stricktly person-to-person dependant.

Originally Posted by mjbskwim

I laughed.

A shot gun is probably thee best home defense weapon you can have.

You should have your children and rooms configured as to not need to move around when it's dark. And if you have to shove off an attacker in your home you have already failed to defend your home.If you are that close to an attacker,you should be standing over his body.

Why would you make a move as to be in a position that the invader could take your weapon?
If you have children,I would ASSume you would stay next to them and just call the police,instaed of playing Rambo or SWAT and go clear the house.That's just me though

And how does a shotguns length get in the way if you have a police sized shotgun?

The good points are they are very effective at close range,well out to about 40 yards with the right loads.
Pistols aren't that effective,go look at all the tests out there.Some say pistol calibers suck,but you just can't carry a rifle everywhere.
They hold up to 8 rounds and some much more.You don't need to really aim as much as send multiple rounds down the hallway. You will hit the target.Even a 410 can be used effectively for home defense (My dad fed us with one when I was a kid.Lots of venison) so smaller stature people can handle them easily.
No muzzle flash to blind you.
Scares the livin' piss out of most when you rack the slide ( but don't count on this.

I'm sure I have missed something and told lies too.

As did i. I have a old stevens side by side sawed off to 18". You only need one hand to operate that. Id take that over any pistol in my house.

Matt

Why would one think that the "best" carry weapon would also make the "best" home defense weapon? The two are vastly different circumstances.

My "best" carry weapon is the one that conceals well, functions reliably and that I am confident both 'with' and 'in'.

My "best" home defense weapon is the telephone inside my hardened bedroom with a video display of the hall outside the door / throughout the house and the 12 ga. in my hands...