Options for a home defense pistol...

[mpperales]

So I have a nice Sig Pro 2340 with standard Sig contrast sights = NO night sights...love the pistol and it will become my primary home defense pistol. I have NO intention of carrying this pistol due to it being rather large..so I was wondering a few things - and keep in mind in a SHTF or home invasion situation it has to be something my wife can use/manipulate easily. She is getting more trigger time so we are thinking if she h ad to use the 2340 in lieu of the Security Six in her nightstand...we also have a child so being able to move and use arms hands etc are required...:huh:

1) Pistol and Maglite or other hand held light

2) Buy the Streamlight MR10 adapter and attach a Streamlight M3 or similar

3) Use same adapter and use a attach a laser (not really a fan....but open to options. I like this least with not having a light to identify objects/people with)

4) Buy night sights and use any of the options above

I am leaning towards #2 as it keeps the hands free, is very brights, and I believe, although I cannot confirm, an advantage gained with nights sights in a panic or defensive situation are gone after the first shot.

The floor is yours...

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[mpperales]

Lots of people read the post....but no opinions...?!?

 

[redbos99]

I hav options #2 and #4 on my Glock 17 house gun. I like the idea of night sites and a nice, bright light. Of course, awesome ammo also.......

 

[saxon]

while i now have a taurus PT1911 with rail and a lazer light combo, i still have a plain jane 1911 and this flash light
Ozark Trail 200L Flashlight: Camping : Walmart.com
•200 lumens
•Run time: 3 hours, 45 minutes
•169m beam distance

and a colman max
Coleman Max High-Power Flashlight - Walmart.com
•150 lumens
•Beam distance: over 400 feet (134 meters)
•Run time: 3 hours


the thing i dont care for on rail lights or other tac lights is run time if you use it off and on most are 60 min and POP lights out

 

[fyrediver]

I am of the separate light for handguns school. I like being able to shine the light where ever I want without sweeping my muzzle in the same place. Of course, I'm not an expert, just a guy with a gun.

I had a "prowler" in my yard and shone the light on him but my muzzle was down in a ready position. Had the light been mounted the only way I could light him would be to cover him with the muzzle at the same time, something I don't feel was justified. He was walking around with a flashlight and wasn't posing an imminent threat. Had I muzzled him I could have been charged with brandishing. Had it been a cop searching for someone I would probably been shot. By the way he said he was looking for his dog -- I didn't believe him and 2 days later I saw him walking a dog. May still have been a story but still didn't justify covering him with the sights.

My ceilings are white and I shine the light upwards which illuminates the entire room not just the spot the light's on. I do have night sights on my pistols and shotgun (and mounted light on the shotgun). Additionally, my Glock does have a light, but my primary is still hand held separately.

Just my humble opinion.

 

[hermannr]

So I have a nice Sig Pro 2340 with standard Sig contrast sights = NO night sights...love the pistol and it will become my primary home defense pistol. I have NO intention of carrying this pistol due to it being rather large..so I was wondering a few things - and keep in mind in a SHTF or home invasion situation it has to be something my wife can use/manipulate easily. She is getting more trigger time so we are thinking if she h ad to use the 2340 in lieu of the Security Six in her nightstand...we also have a child so being able to move and use arms hands etc are required...:huh:

1) Pistol and Maglite or other hand held light

2) Buy the Streamlight MR10 adapter and attach a Streamlight M3 or similar

3) Use same adapter and use a attach a laser (not really a fan....but open to options. I like this least with not having a light to identify objects/people with)

4) Buy night sights and use any of the options above

I am leaning towards #2 as it keeps the hands free, is very brights, and I believe, although I cannot confirm, an advantage gained with nights sights in a panic or defensive situation are gone after the first shot.

The floor is yours...

IMHO: The chances you will actually "aim" a pistol in an emergency situation is very slim. You want to practice identify and point, both eyes open. When you see how accurately you can "point" will give you a clearer picture on what you might want for assistance. I have many guns, but my bedside weapon is a 90 year old Colt Officers model Colt 38. Why? I've owned it for 46 years, and intimately familiar with where a shot would go should I not have time to aim.

Caution with the child! Gun fire can be very destructive to their ability to hear later in life. Having a separate room for the child will help protect it's hearing should a night time emergency occur.

 

[hermannr]

Question: How can you own a 90 year old Colt Officers model for 46 years if Colt did not introduce its Colt Officers model until 1985?

If you have access to a time machine I want in...

1985 you say? Interesting... Mine was manufactured in Jan 1926, (it does not have the 1926 patent dates on it) and it is a SECOND edition>>> I think you better do a bit more research. I have owned this pistol for 45 years... (gift from my FIL in 1967, and he had INHERITED it from a Cop that purchased it NEW in 1927..I have the paperwork.)

 

[.45's and .38's]

My HD weapon does not have night sights but does have a compact TLR-3 light, I can draw & reholster one handed & use the light one handed.

 

[hermannr]

Question: How can you own a 90 year old Colt Officers model for 46 years if Colt did not introduce its Colt Officers model until 1985?

If you have access to a time machine I want in...

FYI: Here is a photo of the patent dates, (top of barrel) and *Officers Model 38* (front side of Barrel)

 

[Bon Sauvage]

Good choice hermannr. I've always been fond of that revolver myself.

 

[hermannr]

Good choice hermannr. I've always been fond of that revolver myself.

Would you believe it was a wedding present from my FIL? It was. I had mentioned how I admired the pistol, and low and behold.... there it was. Best wedding present ever! It will go to our oldest daughter when I go. She just drools when she sees it (it's probably 90% even though it has had thousands of rounds through it.) Bluing is getting a bit light on the tip and the cylinders, holster wear.

 

[hermannr]

OK now I got you. The OP was talking about pistols and when I read Colt Officers I pictured the sub-compact 1911 not a revolver. Apologies for my confusion.

Darn it, I was really hoping for that time machine, too.

To be a 1911 it would have to be 38 Super, which is a very nice cartridge, but sorry, this one is only a 38 Special. Sorry I didn't specify. If I had it would have been obvious that I was talking about a revolver. (with one of the nicest triggers you have ever shot)

 

[revjen45]

Steyr M9a1

 

[Ironbar]

Lots of people read the post....but no opinions...?!?

The reason I didn't comment before is because I cannot fathom for the LIFE of me why in the world you would ask complete strangers what they THINK is the best gun for your wife. You obviously know guns, you know how they function, so why are you asking us? It's a deeply personal choice, so have her try a bunch out at the range or LGS and then buy what she feels most comfortable with.

 

[jbett98]

Johnny Seven OMA.

Chuck Norris ultimate weapon.

 

[mpperales]

The reason I didn't comment before is because I cannot fathom for the LIFE of me why in the world you would ask complete strangers what they THINK is the best gun for your wife. You obviously know guns, you know how they function, so why are you asking us? It's a deeply personal choice, so have her try a bunch out at the range or LGS and then buy what she feels most comfortable with.

I can't figure out for the LIFE of me how you MISREAD the post. I did not ask about specific pistols. That had been established as a Sig Pro 2340 as back up to the Security Six she already has. I simply asked about the options and use of lights / laser / hand held lights. REREAD the post before posting what you "thought" I was asking...

 

[Netspirit]

I have taken all the crap off my HD pistol.

In home defense situations, pistols are for kid-searching, room-cleaning - basically, they are for "mobile armed reconnaissance". I do not want to be pointing my pistol at everything I want to see - because of how I might react, and because of how the target might react.

I would use a handheld flashlight, or simply turn the room lights on (like police officers do, contrary to the popular Hollywood-inspired belief).

Shotguns are different. They are for "stationary artillery" - when the family barricades behind a locked door, points the shotgun at the door and calls 911. With a long gun, it is difficult to operate a separate flashlight or search for lights switches. I have a Fenix TK22 - not Surefire by any means, but still functioning perfectly after a thousand slugs shot at the range.

No flashlights on concealed carry guns, obviously. Those are lighter, smaller and less accurate, shot from awkward positions and situations, so we do have lasers on our M&P Shields. However, I do admit that most gun fights with carry pistols are "point and shoot", with no time to find that red dot on the target, so my Lasermax'es are just cool and inexpensive gizmos mostly for dry-fire practice.

 

[RBid]

Pistol with weapon mounted light PLUS hand held light.

Why WML?

- it's easier to control the weapon with two hands

- it frees up your off hand for cell phone, light switches, door knobs, etc.

- if you dig in, it lets you put two hands
on the gun while you cover the door

- it doesn't have to be used, when the hand held option is better for a particular task

- lights are not lasers. They have splash. You don't have to muzzle what you want to illuminate.

- "bad guys will shoot at the light" is over stated. To shoot at a light with any accuracy, you have to look toward it. Looking toward a 150+ lumen light sucks-- especially when your eyes are adapted to dim light.

 

[aznbala]

My home defense handgun is a Glock 17 with a Streamlight TRL-4 w/laser and light and Warren Tactical night sights. I love the night sights for normal shooting. For ammo, I use Federal HST 124+p

 

[Whaler]

Mine is a CZ 75 P-07 Duty in 9mm.