Should Your Home Defense Weapon Be Loaded?

[leadcounsel]

Handguns on your personal control or arms reach, yes, loaded and chambered. This addresses the "I rounded the corner and he was standing there with a knife in the kitchen..." breakin and surprise situation.

Longgun (AK, pump shotgun, AR, etc.) parked in the home office corner or next to the bed, for the "I heard a crash and breaking window" scenario... Loaded magazine inserted, chamber empty. You can pick up and chamber the round in one motion instantly. And it gives you added safety assurances keeping it unchambered until necessary.

And if someone can sneak into your home and surprise you then you have serious home security issues that guns are not going to solve. All entry points should be shut and locked if not being immediately used. That includes front door, windows, and garage doors.

 

[Kruel J]

Can't defend yourself with an empty weapon. There's that.

 

[osprey]

I keep my sd pistol (g19) fully loaded. However, my best sd weapon is my mind. It works better when it is not loaded .

 

[HB of CJ]

Yes. Understand this is with NO KIDS in the house visiting. Then EVERYTHING gets locked up tight except my carry piece with also remains loaded.

Even the big professional set of nice SS kitchen chef knives get put up very high in an upper kitchen cabinet. All the wall plugs are already capped.

Both cats love the small kids but only for a few hours. Then they retreat up very high also in their get away cat nests and just look down and yawn.

 

[bbbass]

All entry points should be shut and locked if not being immediately used.

If I lived in the big city, I'd be doing the same. And that's another reason why I don't. Been there, done that... won't ever be living like that again!!

 

[sabasarge]

"Should your home defense weapon be loaded?"
I dunno.....seems like a question that answers itself.

 

[bbbass]

Can't defend yourself with an empty weapon. There's that.

An empty Glock 17 makes a fine club!!! Bit on the 'spensive side tho.

 

[11Charlie]

If your defense pistol isn't loaded you might as well put up a Hillary sign in your front yard!!

 

[Mooseman]

There is nothing that will get the attention of an Intruder faster than the Click Click of a 12 ga. pump shotgun being racked into Condition 1 !

 

[papersoldier]

There is nothing that will get the attention of an Intruder faster than the Click Click of a 12 ga. pump shotgun being racked into Condition 1 !

I think the ear shattering blast from the muzzle of my condition one 12ga. shotgun might get the attention of an intruder a bit faster than the sound of the action pumping.

 

[Kruel J]

There is nothing that will get the attention of an Intruder faster than the Click Click of a 12 ga. pump shotgun being racked into Condition 1 !

I disagree and I disagree with suggesting to people that the sound of a shotgun being pumped is a good deterrent.

 

[Mooseman]

I disagree and I disagree with suggesting to people that the sound of a shotgun being pumped is a good deterrent.

Well... tell that to the intruder that kicked in my front door years ago in Florida. My Model 12 went click click in the dark and he left out the door faster than he came in before I could lights on and get to the living room where he had been...worked for me !

 

[11Charlie]

Well... tell that to the intruder that kicked in my front door years ago in Florida. My Model 12 went click click in the dark and he left out the door faster than he came in before I could lights on and get to the living room where he had been...worked for me !

You got lucky!!

 

[Kruel J]

Well... tell that to the intruder that kicked in my front door years ago in Florida. My Model 12 went click click in the dark and he left out the door faster than he came in before I could lights on and get to the living room where he had been...worked for me !

That's good that it worked for you, but that doesn't mean it's good practice nor an effective deterrent.

 

[Mooseman]

You got lucky!!

No ... He did ! He could have been perforated with 12 -00 Buck pellets !

 

[Phred]

I agree with the 99 percent who keep HD or PD firearms in condition one. Pistol is on my person or at arms length at all times. HD rifle and shotgun are in the safe with a loaded mag inserted, with no round chambered. I hope everyone feels like a Boy Scout. It's our duty.

 

[Mooseman]

I've heard all the arguments about giving away your position etc. This isn't a Battlefield scenario slipping around like a Navy seal quietly to infiltrate a compound. It is My choice to keep my shotgun without a round in the chamber as a safety precaution in my home, but racking it to ready to fire is a necessary evil if my security is breached. My safeties make a click sound too albeit not as loud.
Most criminals are Dumb , but if they start shooting when I rack the slide , I will return fire faster than you can say Oh hell.
Unless they have been in my home they have no clue as to layout and I have the advantage.
As a side note , we group Hunted big Game in Alaska the same way...NO round in the chamber. safety off. If you couldn't work the Bolt fast and aim and fire you didn't hunt with us. Period. An accidental discharge from a Remington 700 that had the original trigger pack that went off when the safety was clicked off to unload the rifle got all of our attention, and the rule was made at that point.
Guns are mechanical and parts can fail. I will always err on the side of Safety first....

 

[bbbass]

I disagree and I disagree with suggesting to people that the sound of a shotgun being pumped is a good deterrent.

Works for Joe Biden! Or was Joe saying to put two rounds in the air? Or thru the door? IDK.

 

[papersoldier]

I've heard all the arguments about giving away your position etc. This isn't a Battlefield scenario slipping around like a Navy seal quietly to infiltrate a compound. It is My choice to keep my shotgun without a round in the chamber as a safety precaution in my home, but racking it to ready to fire is a necessary evil if my security is breached. My safeties make a click sound too albeit not as loud.
Most criminals are Dumb , but if they start shooting when I rack the slide , I will return fire faster than you can say Oh hell.
Unless they have been in my home they have no clue as to layout and I have the advantage.
As a side note , we group Hunted big Game in Alaska the same way...NO round in the chamber. safety off. If you couldn't work the Bolt fast and aim and fire you didn't hunt with us. Period. An accidental discharge from a Remington 700 that had the original trigger pack that went off when the safety was clicked off to unload the rifle got all of our attention, and the rule was made at that point.
Guns are mechanical and parts can fail. I will always err on the side of Safety first....

To each their own. I tend to lean towards the school of thought that says the fewer steps you need to take to be able to fire in a high stress situation the better. I find keeping my chosen home defense weapon in condition one to be an expedient choice with that in mind, much like how I tend to prefer carry guns without a manual safety. Having been in a few high stress situations involving firearms I can attest that a lot of the simpler things you think you'd remember (like flicking off a safety) go out the window, even with a good amount of training under your belt.

 

[jebediah]

I do keep a loaded 38sp. revolver handy. The dogs are likely to get to a intruder before me, I just hope I get there before the intruder expires