introducing people to firearms

This is an important subject for me. If you have not ready my post on Gun Safety, I would definitely recommend doing that really quick. Any time you introduce someone to the world of firearms, you must first teach them safety.

I hate hearing the stories about the boyfriends who take their girlfriends shooting. The boyfriend is really into guns, and wants to show off. The girlfriend has never gone shooting before or even handled a firearm, so they think it would be a great date. They go out to some empty field some place, forget the ear protection, and hand their girlfriend a 357 magnum revolver to fire as her first gun. Girl takes the shot and drops the gun because the noise and recoil was too much and all she wants to do is cover her now bleeding ears. She decides that guns are awful, and never wants anything to do with them ever again.

This is the worst. I hate this. One of my least favorite stories ever.

Whether you are introducing a child, a woman, or a man to firearms, there are some things you just don't do. If you actually want them to like guns, there is a certain way you need to go about introducing them.

First things first, Any time you are taking someone shooting who has never been shooting, you always want to make sure they know the five basic rules of handling a firearm. Imagine how they are going to feel about guns if they accidentally shoot their foot off... The gun community seems to have this stigma of being drunk republican hill-billies, and that couldn't be further from the truth. Those people give us other gun owners a bad rap, just because they don't have a brain. Don't be THAT GUY!

Show newcomers that gun owners are responsible, safe individuals by starting off with the five rules. Make sure they understand them and enforce them while you are at the range.

Second, I recommend going to a range that you pay for. While we don't like paying money to be a range member, ranges you pay for will most likely be nicer and cleaner. If you go to a random field, or a free range, it is going to be dirty, messy, and informal. It does not lend well to the stigma that is already put on gun owners. Take newcomers to a nice range. They will feel safer, and it will make you look like you are more professional and like you know what you are talking about.

Communicate with the newcomer about how the trip is going. Check in with them and ask them if they are having a good time. Is there anything that is making them uncomfortable? How do they like the guns? Ask for their feedback. Every newcomer is going to be slightly different and we want to make sure they have a good time and get hooked on firearms, just like we did.

Always give them ear protection. The biggest thing that turns people away from firearms is the noise. more
than the recoil or anything, it is the noise. I like only having the "in-ear" ear protection, but for newcomers, double it up. give them in-ear and over-ear protection. They may feel dumb having both, but it will be a much better experience. They may even come back to you and say "I don't need this over-ear protection, I will be comfortable with just one" and that is perfectly okay. That means the noise doesn't bother them as much as others. Many people will like the double protection.

Don't give them the largest rifle or hand gun in your arsenal. Start them off with your smallest caliber, and work your way up throughout the day. Women and children will definitely appreciate this. I brought my younger brother and sister shooting recently, and did this. My sister is 100lbs soaking wet and we started with the .22s to get her started off. She looked at me after shooting and was like... "that was it?" Yes! That is the exact reaction you want. they were expecting a big bang and a massive kick. What they got was something that felt like an airgun. They were hooked right then. "If that is what guns are about, I could totally get into that."

We were able to move up to my AR and AK, which have pretty light recoil, but create a lot more noise. they loved them. We moved up to my polymer 9mm pistol and they loved that as well. My Cannik 55 TP-9 is a great gun, but has a lot of muzzle flip. If we had started with that, they would have hated it. If I had started with my 30-06, they wouldn't have wanted anything to do with guns at all. Start small to hook them into the fun. Any time you move up, explain to them what to expect from this new gun, in comparison to the last one.

The worst true story that I have heard so far is very similar to the example I gave you above. Boyfriend was into guns, and girlfriend had never shot a gun in her life. As a Christmas gift, he got her a hunting rifle. She has never shot a gun, and he gave her a hunting rifle. He doesn't even know if she is going to like guns, and he gave her a hunting rifle. He felt that she should know how to shoot her hunting rifle, so he took her out to a field, did not give her ear protection, and had her shoot her rifle.

The girl I know is about the most skittish person I have ever met. She gets nervous driving to work every day. She doesn't like loud noises or anything. This whole thing was a bad idea, because she decided that she hated guns after that.

Thankfully, I was able to convince her to go shooting with me. I followed all of the things above and took her

out to my range. She knew how to handle a gun safely, we gave her ear protection, we went to the range that I am a member of, we started small with the .22s. I wanted to make sure that she had a good time going shooting. Even if she decided she still didn't like guns, she at least saw that the entire gun world is not what her boyfriend showed her.

As law abiding Americans, we have the right to own firearms. This is a large part of the American culture and we have to do everything we can to preserve it. Allowing everyone to think that gun owners are the stereotypical dumbass who likes big booms and large beers is not is not going to get that done. Do it right, or don't do it at all. Not everyone needs to like guns, but if you are the reason someone doesn't like guns, then you should be ashamed of yourself. That is about all I have to say on that

Children and guns: When is the right time?

If you haven't already, I would recommend reading my previous post on Firearm safety. This post will rely heavily on the information I mentioned in that post.

When it comes to children and firearms, my opinion might vary from other people. That is great. Let me know in the comments if you agree or disagree.

I am going to start with the  bombshell, and work backwards from there.

I think you should expose children to guns as soon as it is safely possible, which may be different for every child, but should still be rather early.

bombshell, right?

"What? child + gun = bad! What are you talking about, crazy person?"

Stay with me here... One of the most heartbreaking things to hear on the news is that a child happened to get a hold of their parent's gun, and ended up killing themselves or someone else. We want to avoid that as much as possible, and despite your first reaction, that is my first concern with this.

Remember when you were a kid? no... probably not very well... well... I am young enough, let me clue you in... Basic psychology has many different theories about child development, but there are some  basic behaviors that prevalent. Children are curious, above all. They want to learn and they do this many different ways. Children will climb on things, pick up things, put things in their mouths, push buttons, pull ropes and generally do anything they are physically able to do. Children will get into your fridge, your laundry, your pots and pans, your liquor cabinet, and if you are not careful, your gun cabinet or safe as well.

"duh, children get into stuff, that's why you should keep the guns away from them as long as possible, right?"

No, not in my opinion. Stay with me a bit longer, because I am getting to the juice of it.

Children are curious because they want more information. If they don't know it, they will find out. Just like with the alcohol or with sex or drugs, children need to be taught about these things and the dangers of them as soon as they are able to understand, before they even start thinking about it. If they are curious, they will try it.

If you introduce children and teach them about guns early, then this won't be a topic that is shrouded in mystery.

You can't just hand some toddler a gun though, you still need to be safe with the firearms while you are
introducing them. Any time you are introducing children to guns, you want to start at home. Be sure to keep any live ammunition away from them and in the safe, but take out the gun, and show it to them. Tell them what it is, what it does, and what it is for. Show them how it works, let them hold it and use it. Start with something small. I recommend a .22 because you want to keep everything as simple and as consistent as possible. As you are showing them this gun, be sure you lay down the ground rules for any time they handle this firearm. This is how you are going to know if your children are old enough to handle the firearm safely. There are five basic rules to firearm safety as I mentioned in a post a few days ago (I added a sixth, but that was not for handling the firearm) and they need to be able to understand these and follow those basic instructions.

Once they show you they can follow those five rules, it is time for the range. If you are not a part of a range, I highly recommend it. No one likes to pay for it, but it makes for a better range experience. Anyhow, take your kid to the range. Before you fire a single round, you go through the rules again. Make sure, once more that they understand the dangers and the rules they need to follow. Run through how to use the firearm once more. Load the firearm and give them an example of how it should be used.

Remember that firearm safety is the most important. You are the boss here, and if you don't feel they can safely handle the firearm, DO NOT HAND IT TO THEM! If you hand it to them, and they break any of the five rules, take the firearm away, and explain to them why you did that. If you feel they understand after another explanation, give it back. talk to them the entire time they are using it. Give them tips and advice as well as encouragement and reminders.

Don't do this just once, either. Do this every time you go to the range with them. The whole process, at home

and at the range. Eventually they will say things like "yeah, yeah, I know, gosh!" and that's how you know you are doing it correctly! start quizzing them before you go and while you are at the range instead of teaching. The repetition will help them to remember it.

Eventually, Using the firearm is going to become almost like second nature to the. It is not new or exciting. it's not mysterious or anything, it is just another part of life.

Even though your child can safely use their firearms under your supervision, you still want to make sure that it stays locked up and unloaded. You don't want them to grab it and start showing their friends if their friends are asking about it.

Once they are old enough to be trusted with firearms, you should be able to gift them one. I plan to do this when my future child turns about 10-12 years old. I will do another post later about what a good first firearm might be. Keep it locked up with your own firearms. Keep the ammo with your ammo. It is still a firearm, and should be treated as such. Take it to the range and allow them to shoot it each time. Make sure they are familiar with how to use it, and always remind them of the five rules.

Well, there you have it. That is my take on the subject. What do you guys think?

Batman v. Superman: Just how bad was it?

In short... Really bad.. Spoilers are present, btw.

I know this blog has primarily been talking about firearms, but I was so frustrated by the movie I saw last night that I just had to vent here.

Batman v Superman was about as hyped as movies can get. It was supposed to be the next big superhero movie and rival anything Marvel has done so far. It has not lived up to that.

When you read the title "Batman v Superman" you immediately expect an epic battle between two of the
most popular super heros  in the world. What you got was force fed a bunch of crap about the upcoming justice league movie.

The movie had almost nothing to do with the battle between Superman and Batman and I don't even know where to begin to complain!


I guess I can start with Lex Luthor being played by Jessie Eisenberg. When I heard this actor was going to be a villain in the movie, and when I saw the trailer for it, I immediately assumed he would end up being the riddler. he would have made a perfect riddler, or a joker, but he made an aweful lex luthor! Lex is a genius, which they got right, but lex is also cool, calm and collected. This guy was freakin nuts! he was jittery, weird and overall just metally psychotic! Lex may be perceived as evil, but he always had a "greater good" mindset. he was maybe doing things the wrong way, but he did it for a good reason, to try and make the world better. This guy was just a bad guy to be bad. he
spent the entire movie trying to make Superman look like a bad guy. like they should put a leash on him because his power could destroy them all. he plants this so that batman would want to fight superman, and apparently it works, for some unknown reason. So he convinces them to fight each other, to distract them, so that he can create this cryptonian monstrosity from the dead body of general zod and like four drops of his own blood. This monster then attempts to punch lex who is about the size of this things pinky finger. and the only reason he survived was because superman stopped him. there was a massive battle where superman and batman were working together, and somehow, wonder woman felt like she needed to get involved.


TO WHAT END?!?!?!?!?


it almost seems like he wanted to destroy the world, just to do it! he gives no inclination as to why this must be done. there is talk of "we need to have a deterrent in case these things attack" but in his "master plan" he lets batman take the kryptonite, and he makes a spear out of it, which they use to kill the beast thing that lex creates. he already had the deterrent! he made it without anyone's permission! He is such a lunatic that it cannot possibly be lex. If you want to create a young lex, with long hair, then fine, whatever, but you have to stick to the basic character traits of the character you are portraying. it's like getting spongebob to play the hulk! it just doesn't work!


Then you get onto batman, who is also mentally scarred. He has long, complicated, vivid dreams of the night his parents died, and he sees bats as weird demon bug things in his dreams. Alfred specifically tells him that it is a bad idea to pick a fight with superman, and he ignores him! and where the fuck did he get that god damn suit?!?!? he seems to have done absolutely no R&D for this thing, and he just shows up and it is done and he is wearing it! and the whole premise of  "superman is all powerful and reckless and can destroy the world" basis for his want to fight him is ludacris!  Superman has always been a good guy. His only major flaw is that he fights really powerful enemies, and happens to make a big mess. some buildings may have been destroyed and some lives lost, but it was much less than if he wasn't there. I was also really annoyed at the the movie starting with the death of batman's parents. IT'S FUCKING BATMAN! I THINK WE KNOW THAT HIS PARENTS DIED! and! he is an old guy! he specifically mentions that he is older than his father ever lived to be! he has grey hair! He is also a drunk! Alfred mentions that he hopes the next generation of waynes doesn't inherit an empty wine cellar, which means he has drunk most of the wine! He is a sad, and pathetic depressing batman, and I am not a fan. It's almost like he is doing this because he has to. it is some kind of
big burden that only he can take on, and it is some sort of punishment. When the billionaire bruce wayne

goes to a social function, he is supposed to be a proper, polite business man! in this movie, when he goes to the book thing, he just walked around like he didn't want to be there. when he asked, he just looked like a drunk, and was like, oh yeah, we totally support... fuck... what is this shit...? books? yeah! books! we support books! and they have him branding criminals! I get that he is all into torture and stuff to get information, but branding them? that is a bit excessive. that's not batman!


And! holy shit, how many times do you have to hint at a justice league movie coming next? first, wonder woman shows up, but you don't know she is wonder woman. she some how knows exactly what bruce is up

to, and steals the little electronic server copying device he seemed to have left alone for ten or fifteen minutes. then she gives it back, because she can't crack the encryption... she tole it because it had a picture of her from like 50 years ago, or some shit. and there are four obvious folders there that almost blatantly say who they are about. there is the flash, cyborg, wonder woman, and aqua man.


I know what you are thinking... ooh! I love the flash! that tv show that I watched on Netflix is amazing! that is kind of exiting, right? wrong. they are using a different actor altogether. this means you can bet he will have

a totally different personality than the one we have become invested in with the show on Netflix! then in one of bruce's psychotic dreams about the demon bats, he gets a vision from cyborg telling him that he was right about superman all along. And the fact that wonder woman just decided that it would be a good idea to show up and fight the monstrosity that is destroying both cities (oh yeah, gotham and metropolis are about a lake's distance away from each other, if you didn't know). ya-know... since she is around... and batman didn't really do anything to fight the kryptonian monstrosity, because he was too busy running away from it. batman shows up after it is dead, and talks to supergirl and was like "you know how I thought that superman was like the worst person ever and I wanted him dead because he was too powerful? well I have had a change of heart. I think you and I should get together with the other three powered people I know about and fight together" Wonder woman thinks this is strange, and said something like "how do you know we are going to have to fight together?" batman responds with "I just have a feeling" which means ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! that is like a child saying "why can't I have ice cream before dinner?" and the dad saying "because I am your dad and I said so!" that is not an acceptable answer! and they did not give any hint in the movie about any looming threats that might require six super heros!

The only thing they got even close to getting right was superman, but even that was too wrong to ignore! loise lane was all like, they are saying you are a bad dude, dude! and he was just like "I don't care what they are saying, you almost died" instead of being like "I didn't kill those people, Peeps be trippin'!" and then lex blew up some capitol building with a ton of people inside, and superman just looked sad and he ran away, like a child! he could have stuck around and been like "did you see that shit?!?!? this is aweful! lex did this!"


and then, lex kidnapped supermans mom, but gave no inclination about how he knew supermans real identity. he told superman that he would kill his mom if he didn't bring him the head of the batman! and superman just crumbled... he flew to where batman was waiting (because apparently he knew that night was going to be the night... or maybe he would have waited there every night until superman came... ) superman didn't even want to go to gotham. he didn't want to fight the bat, but somehow the bat was ready to fight superman before superman even knew that it was going to happen. Then superman tried to get batman to help him with his mom problem, but batman wasn't going to hear his crap and attacked him anyway. superman gave up on asking for help way too easily and decided to fight back, which just reinforced
batmans need to beat up superman... the words he was saying was not portraying his need correctly! if he said something like "my mom's innocent life is in danger, and I can't save her on my own" then maybe batman would have listened, or if he refused to fight back, maybe batman would feel like too much of a dick to beat up a guy who refused to fight back, when he knows superman can squash him like a bug...


at least when marvel characters fought, it was clearly really petty. like when cops fight with feds. you are in
my jurisdiction, dick. I got this, and I don't need your help. I am better than you anyway. Superman and batman fought like children throwing a temper tantrum and they tried to hide it like it was some kind of noble cause vs noble cause. they didn't even try to tackle the fact that batman seems to hate superman because he has killed people (on accident, while saving the world from zod), but batman kills people too. they just say "those are criminals and they get what they deserve"

I also thought batman hated guns, but I could actually be wrong here. I thought he connected guns with the death of his parents and decided to protect the streets while not using guns. he uses his grappling hook, and his bat-erangs. but in this movie, he seemed to be all for guns. very pro-gun. I am pro gun too, but why would he go through all the trouble to learn like ten different forms of martial arts if he is just going to wimp out and shoot people with guns anyway?


Notice how I have so much shit to complain about, and I have only spoke about ten words about the actually superman vs batman fight. it was pretty predictable. it only lasted like five minutes of the movie. batman busted out with some kryptonite gas that he developed and superman was not smart enough to get out of the cloud of toxic green gas. batman was totally ready to kill superman in his weakened state, until
batman mentioned the name of his mom, Martha, which was totally the same name as batman's mom, Martha again. apparently, the fact that they have moms with the same name was the big thing that turned batman around onto superman's side. no more questions asked. they were just best friends after that...

The cinematography was great though. I hated superman's bedazzled super suit, but the action scenes were very actiony.

overall, I hated it. Don't go see it. it was bad.

all photos I used were generic ones I found from google.

Gun safety always comes first

I think we can all agree that guns are dangerous. There is a tiny explosion that happens inches away from your hand that has enough power to launch a tiny projectile at thousands of feet per second. If that isn't dangerous, I don't know what is.

Firearms are dangerous, but so is just about everything else in this world. There is always an associated risk when doing any sort of activity that we all accept. When you get in your car, you are driving a way in a death trap. When you play a sport, you are vulnerable to injury and in very rare cases, death.  You cannot let these deadly things control who you are, and what you want to do. In every one of these cases, however, there are many ways to decrease the likelihood of death or injury, and with guns, it is no different.

If you are new to guns, or thinking about getting a gun for the first time, it is imperative that you learn how to safely handle these tools prior to using them. The most helpful thing for you to do is to find a hunter's safety or a gun safety class at your local gun range and take that immediately. It doesn't matter if you are actually hunting or not, 100% of the information provided in those classes can be used every single day you are handling firearms. Don't get discouraged if the class is full of 13 year old kids or if you are the oldest one there. The hands-on experience you get is going to much much better than reading some stuff online.

While you are here though, I can provide you with some safety tips. The information I will be giving though should reflect exactly what you find elsewhere. The gun community as a whole are one of the safest groups of people I have ever been around.

Always point the firearm in a generally safe direction.  

Any time you handle a firearm, it is important that you treat it with the care and respect it deserves. Whenever a firearm is loaded, is has the ability, in the right hands, to almost instantly take a life. Just like if you are holding a rattle snake, you need to hold it so that you don't hurt yourself or others. 

Point the muzzle of the gun, or the end where the bullet comes out, in a generally safe direction. Strait up in the air, down at the ground, down range, or just generally away from any people. Don't point it at people, or animals or in the direction of traffic. Failing to do this is called "sweeping" someone with your muzzle. 

Sweeping other gun owners with your muzzle is a good way to get a gun pointed at you as well, and can ruin a good day at the range for anyone. If you see any one violating this rule, whoever they are, you need to IMMEDIATELY bring it up. There should be very swift and severe comments in that person's direction, if not physical intervention. Seriously, take the gun away from them if that is what is needed. 

All gun rules are created equall, but if you break every other rule, following this rule will at least keep everyone alive.

Never point a gun at anything you don't intend to kill or destroy.

This is an offshoot of the first rule. The purpose of a firearm is to fire a projectile. Not doing that with the gun is like not having a gun in the first place. Basically, you are going to need to point the gun at something and fire it, but you need to ask yourself if you are willing to lose whatever it is you are pointing at.

If you are hunting, pointing your gun at the deer, or hog, or duck you intend to kill is a necessity.
Pointing your gun at the target downrange is required if you are going to shoot it. pointing the gun at the intruder you are defending yourself from is an important part to your survival in that situation.

Don't point your gun at your dog. don't point your gun at your brand new 55" flat screen on your wall. Don't point your gun at people who mean you no harm. this is a good way to lose your precious items, or even worse, a good way to kill someone important to you. 

Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire.

Guns are designed to be held with your finger on the trigger so you can fire it comfortably. The ergonomics push your finger to it. It will feel awkward for you to keep your finger off the trigger, but do it anyway. 

You know you are ready to fire when you have the gun up, pointed at your target, and when you are
aiming down the sights. Just as above, know your target and be sure it is something that you are okay with shooting.

At that point only, can you put your finger on the trigger, and pull.

Train your mind to never touch the trigger until you are ready. Don't even think about it. Some people don't even like putting their finger over the trigger guard. Keep your finger above the trigger, lying against the frame of the gun.

Many many negligent discharges happen because someone is is being careless and they have their finger on the trigger. Put just a little too much pressure on it, and the gun will do what it is told and fire.

I have never heard of a single instance of a gun, even a poorly made gun, "just going off." Guns don't "just go off." Guns are inanimate objects and they do not have a mind of their own. They cannot fire themselves. In cases where an inexperienced gunman claims "the gun just went off," that gunman has always had their finger resting on the trigger. 

Always treat a gun as if it is loaded, even if it is not.

I don't care if you have checked that gun ten times to make sure it was unloaded. You could have a chamber flag in, and I still wouldn't care. At this point, it is not about whether it is safe or not, it is about creating a lifestyle and a habit of safety.

You might argue with me til you're blue in the face about how your gun is not loaded and how it is
safe, and the moment you forget that you left a round in the chamber, you are going to shoot your foot, or worse. 

Always pretend like there is a round in the  chamber. check it ten times, please, but even after you check it, get into the habit of continuing to treat it as if there is a round in the chamber. Guns are dangerous, and many people find them scary. You might be comfortable in knowing your gun is unloaded, but 

Know your target and what is behind it.

The bullets that guns fire vary wildly in size, weight and velocity when fired. each one reacts to a surface differently. Some rounds are designed to dispense all of its energy as quickly as possible, but some other rounds are just for fun, and do not have so much though put into them. 

A bullet can easily pass through a target and land some place far away. You could easily miss your target, which definitely send the bullet toward a location at a further distance than you intended. If you are shooting steel targets, and you happen to hit one, the bullet will shatter into a billion pieces and fly in just about every direction, sending lethal scraps of shrapnel hurtling in an unintended direction.Bullets will bounce off the ground, off trees, off steel, and especially off water. 

Know whatever it is you are shooting at, and try to understand how the bullet will react when hitting it. Look past the target to make sure there is nothing behind it you might accidentally hit. Look around the target to make sure any shrapnel will not damage anything precious or hurt anyone you do not intend to hurt.

Store all firearms out of reach of unintended users.

Unintended users could be almost anyone, and the length that you go when storing your guns could change depending on your situation.

I am married, but I have no children. I do not need to worry (right now) about children picking up my

guns, because there are no children around. I have a simple gun cabinet to keep my guns in, and I even keep a gun on my headboard. The unintended users in my situation are any intruders who might want to steal the most valuable things in my house... which are my guns...

If you live with children, you have to be much more careful. Do not store guns and ammo in the same place. Do not keep a gun loaded. Keep a gun in a locked container that only you can have access to. They make safes that use a fingerprint scanner, and if you think that is going overboard for just a few kids, then you don't know how crafty kids can be. 

You can't just treat guns like you would the alcohol. "Just put it on the top shelf, they won't be able to get to it! they are like two feet tall!" well when your kids get into the booze, they just get a bit drunk. when kids get into the guns, they get a bit dead. The most heartbreaking stories on the news are ones where the ten year old kid finds dad's gun under his pillow and ends up shooting himself. Save yourself the heartbreak. Get something impenetrable. 

If you have a code to get into your safe, never tell them the code. If you have a key, always keep that key on you. If you feel the need to have a gun near your bed, get one of those pistol safes that are specifically built for it, and then never let them see you use it. I will voice my opinion about kids and guns at a later date, but no matter what your opinion, it is common sense to keep guns out of the hands of anyone who is not responsible enough to use them.

Last word.

I hope that I have done this subject some justice. There is nothing more important when getting into firearms than safety. It is everyone's responsibility to make sure that they follow these rules and no one is exempt from them. If you are at the range and you see Jerry Miculek, and he is breaking any one of these rules, you are obligated to yell at this world record holder. Don't worry, he is very safe with his firearms, so you won't have to, but the point remains. I don't care who it is, or how long they have been using firearms. These rules stand for everyone.

Home Defense Weapons

Hello possible readers!

as you can tell by the title, we are going to be talking about Home Defense weapons.

I feel like I need a disclaimer on this post as well, because sometimes the subject of home defense with guns gets a bit touchy.

My home has never been broken into. I really really hope no one decides to break into my home. Although I am prepared for the possibility, I have no idea how I would react in such a high pressure situation. Even if someone were to break into my home, I don't know if I will even need to shoot them, or if I even have the mental constitution to do so. I do not fantasize about someone breaking into my house, I just want to be prepared just in case. Just like I have never had my car start on fire, but I have a fire extinguisher just in case it ever does.

SO! with that out of the way, we will move on!

We are talking about the best firearms one might use to protect themselves from a home invasion.

If you think about the situation of a normal home invasion or break in, you are probably going to be caught by surprise. There are some cases where the invader knocks first, but if that happens, it is because they are looking for a house with no one home. It makes for an easy target. so if someone is stupid enough to just break in, you are going to be very surprised.

In this situation, literally grabbing anything to defend yourself will be helpful. If all you have is a Mosin Nagant, grab it. something is better than nothing. Just because I don't mention it here, doesn't mean it wont work, or its a bad idea. There may be better options, but it doesn't make your gun "the wrong" gun.

I have thought a bit about this and have discussed this with some people. The first gun that always comes to mind when you talk about home defense is a pump action shotgun.

Gun #1

Pump Action Shotgun

This is the most common, because this freakin works.

It is said that the scariest noise intruders can here is the pumping action of a shotgun. Sometimes you wont even need to say anything. just rack the gun, load a round in the chamber (as a plan "B") and most of the time the bad guy will just turn around and walk out. 

What if he doesn't though? What if the sound triggers the fight response, rather than the flight response? No problem! shotguns are easy to aim and shoot a spread of small BBs that can pack quite the punch. The effective range for a shotgun is out to about 50 yards, which is normally much further than any distance inside a house. 

The biggest issue that may come up with a shotgun is the recoil. If you are a person of slightly smaller stature, and are afraid of the recoil that comes with a big 12 gauge shotgun, do not feel embarrassed about getting a 20 gauge and some lighter ammo. As I said above, anything is better than nothing, and getting shot with anything is not going to be fun for any intruder. 

The pump action shotgun also holds multiple rounds, in case followup shots are needed. this is another advantage over the break action double barreled shotgun. 

Gun #2

Handguns

I have grouped this up, because there are many many many handguns on the market, and most of them will work perfectly fine. I will be more specific about pros and cons, and what I think makes a good handgun for home defense.

Many gun owners will say something along the lines of "you need a 1911 in .45 because the .45 caliber round has a ton of knockdown power" and while that is not wrong, it is a bit narrow minded.

I love the 1911. The design, the history, the performance the caliber, the feel. Everything about it makes it a great gun, but it may not be the best gun for the job. The .45 caliber round has a lot of recoil, and unless you are a strong, confidant, experienced shooter, this will likely be too much for you to handle. 

Keep in mind as well that you will be in a high stress situation. Your heart is going to be pounding out of your chest. Your adrenaline is going to be pumping more than if you jumped off a cliff! I can guarantee you will be shaking. You don't need to have a gun you can't control to defend yourself. 

Whatever gun you end up choosing, make sure you are familiar with it, and that you are comfortable with it. Practice at the range as much as possible. Take it apart. clean it regularly. load it and unload it. Practice your draw. go through possible worst case scenarios in your mind and work on making that gun part of your instincts. 

I recommend a smaller caliber striker fire pistol. Probably a 9mm or a .380 or something. Depending on the one you select, it can hold up to about 18 rounds in the magazine before needing to be reloaded, and reloading is fast and easy. They normally come with a second magazine standard. 

Striker fire pistols often lack an external safety, which is a plus in my mind. The real safety when handling a gun should be the one between your ears. All striker fire pistols also come with a bunch of internal safeties in case you end up dropping it. They will never go off on their own. You must specifically pull the trigger to fire it. The reason I do not like an external safety on a home defense gun is because that is just one extra thing to try and remember in a high stress situation. If your intruder decides that they don't think you are serious about shooting them, and you forget to take the safety off your gun, you could end up in big trouble. 

There are many options for this, but the three biggest brands are glocks, Smith and Wesson M&Ps and Springfield XD series pistols. I personally own a turkish striker fire pistol that I trust with my
life (see photo to the right), so don't think that I am just touting the brand name products. There are many many good gun companies out there who make a great product who don't fall under one of those names. 

Gun #3

AR-15

There are some issues with pistols that can be addressed with the AR-15, and there are some limitations with the AR-15 that might make you want to use a pistol instead, but neither is a bad choice for home defense.

The AR has detachable 30 round magazines, which is a lot of ammo without having to reload, and a quick reload if you ever do. Most shoot a .223/5.56 caliber round, which is a small, but quick cartridge. The AR is shoulder fired, so that increases accuracy, and reduces muzzle movement from all of the adrenaline shaking that is happening. The gun has low recoil and yet the round hits pretty hard. 

The biggest issue with the AR, in my opinion is size of it. Without going through the ATF paperwork, as a civilian, you are required to have at least a 16" barrel when you add on any flash hider, and the rest of the gun behind that barrel, it can be pretty cumbersome to get around a doorway.

It can be a bit complicated to get going too. Lets pretend you are like me, and you do not feel comfortable with a round in the chamber while the gun is just sitting near your bed. You hear a bump in the night, and you grab the gun and the full mag which is kept near it. Insert the mag in the gun, then either pull back the charging handle or press the bolt release button (depending on the state that your gun sits at rest), click the safety over, and now you are ready to go. 

If you practice your routine, this won't be any issue to you. The gun will perform perfectly for self defense in this situation. I like to reduce the number of things to remember and reduce my movement as much as possible, but anyone can get good at any motion if you practice enough.

Item #4

Suppressor

No, there were not three other items before this one. This isn't a gun, but is an excellent addition to any home defense gun. It needed to be mentioned in this list.

Many people think that suppressors are illegal, and that is not true. Much like the SBRs I mentioned in my last post, suppressors are a class 3 item and you must go through ATF paperwork and 6-8 weeks before you are allowed to get one, but after that they are perfectly legal. Laws on this change throughout the country and almost every year it seems, so be sure to brush up on your local suppressor laws before attempting to get one.

Suppressors, or silencers, are not quite like the movies would make them out to be. They are not just used by assassins to kill someone in the middle of a crowd without anyone knowing. They do not work quite that well, but they do reduce the noise of a firearm to the point that you do not need to wear ear protection when you fire it.

Most suppressors reduce the noise between 20 and 50 decibels and you can still hear an audible "BANG" but you won't damage your ears. If you have ever fired a gun indoors (my range has a shooting shack for shooting in the winter) you understand that the walls seem to amplify the noise. the moment you pull the trigger indoors without ear protection on, your vision will get blurry, you will hear a ringing in your ears, and possibly some sharp pain. 

How does this relate to home defense? When you wake up in the middle of the night, and you need to fire a gun at an intruder, do you really think you are going to ask him to wait while you find ear protection? Nope. You won't have time to cover your ears, and when that gun goes off, you are going to feel like you have just been punched in the ear. You better hope you hit the guy and he has decided to leave you alone, because if you missed, and they are still coming after you, you are now vulnerable. 

I know I made it sound like this is a must-have item for everyone, however, very few people have suppressors, and I will tell you why.

To get a suppressor, you must submit paperwork and a $200 tax stamp to the ATF along with a ton of personal information. You wait 6-8 weeks for approval and after that, you pay the suppressor manufacturer $800 or more for the item itself. 

Why would you pay $1000 or more for this item? Your house will probably never get broken into. If it does, you probably won't have to fire your gun, and if you do, you could save $1000 by just making sure you don't miss. You might only fire one or two shots anyhow, so the risk of permanent hearing damage is pretty low. 

You need to make the best decision for you and your situation. Getting a suppressor is not going to be the best choice for everyone, but if time and money are not an issue, or if you live in an area where your risk is higher, this may be some thing to look into.

Gun #5

My perfect choice

Kriss Vector, SBR, Suppressor

If money, and time were no issue, and you wanted to make sure you had the best possible choice for your home security at any cost, in my opinion it is the Kriss Vector.

The Kriss Vector was designed to be a Sub-Machine Gun (SMG) which is a shoulder fired rifle that shoots a pistol caliber round on Fully-Automatic. Kriss Vector also makes civilian legal, Semi-Automatic versions of their SMG that just about anyone can buy for around $1500.

What makes this gun so cool? It has a revolutionary recoil mitigation system. It reduces felt recoil by 60% and reduces muzzle flip by 90% according to their website. This is especially important when you are launching a big, fat, slow, hard hitting round like the .45 caliber round. 

What? didn't you just say earlier that the .45 caliber might not be the best round for home defense? well... sort of...

The round itself is not bad, by any means. It is exactly what you want, as long as you can hit something with it. It is a large round that moves slow and packs a big hit. This will put down just

about anything you hit with it, especially a man. It is also great because it will disperse a lot of it's energy very quickly. This means that if you miss, the bullet will not travel through four walls and kill the neighbors dog, or worse.

Remember that recoil mitigation system I told you about? and the fact that it is shoulder fired? having the gun rest on your shoulder creates another point of contact, making the gun more stable in your hands. recoil going through your shoulder is going to be taken a bit easier than recoil you feel straight through your hands. On top of

that, the Kriss throws all of the energy for the shot straight down using a weighted bolt.

Less recoil in your shoulder means more accuracy right off the bat. reduced muzzle flip means faster followup shots if you need them. 

So why an SBR? The big problem with shoulder fired weapons is their length. A normal civilian version Vector also comes with a 16" barrel and that can really get in the way when you are moving through doors, especially with a suppressor on the end of the barrel. The gun normally comes with a 4" or 5" barrel, which is all you need to get the round going in the right direction and hit your target. The suppressor on the end would add a bit more length, but it will be much more manageable. 

The Vector also uses standard Glock magazines, of which you can find 30 round capacity mags. It comes standard with iron sights, a top accessory rail if you want to add a red dot, and a bottom accessory rail if you want to add a laser, or a forward vertical grip. 

This platform, in my opinion, has the most upside and the fewest downsides. The biggest downside is the ATF paperwork, and 2 $200 tax stamps you have to do, and the 6-8 weeks you have to wait for your SBR and your suppressor. The gun costs $1500, which is about normal for this type of gun, and the suppressor can cost just as much depending on the one you get. This means you are dumping almost $3000 on something that may never get put to practical use... That is a really really expensive fire extinguisher...

Closing thoughts

As I have said, multiple times, it doesn't matter what gun you choose to protect yourself with. If all you can afford is a Hightpoint, then use it. Something is better than nothing. The information I provided above is meant to be entertaining, helpful and hopefully it evokes a discussion. 

Let me know what you think.

Bug-Out Guns. Guns I don't own.

Last article, I talked about guns that I owned that I would grab if ever there was an almost-world-ending emergency.

The same disclaimer stands as before. This discussion is for entertainment purposes only, and does not immediately assume that the world is actually ending.

This article, we are going to be talking about guns that perfectly fit the bill, but that I do not currently own.

I feel like I should first lay out the requirements for this to be a gun on the list. It's not like I am just pulling this out of my ass, all willy nilly...

So lets start with the scene... There is a disaster that happens, The whole world is freaking out. There are looters and murderers out there and they are going around being bad in whatever town or city you are in. You need to get out of the house/apartment/condo and survive.

We are talking about this in a "pre-hypothetical-disaster" standpoint, so we have no idea what the disaster will be, and there are many theories on how the world will eventually end or how civilization may fall, but we have to "be prepared" for any and all of them if possible.

While there are many other supplies that a person might take with them on this journey, we are specifically talking about the gun.

You have to be able to hunt with this gun. My requirements are that it be able to reach out to about 200 yards, comfortably, but still be able to take down game at close range if needed. I want to be able to hunt a variety of game with this gun as well. too small of a caliber, and it will be hard to take down larger game. too big of a caliber and there will be nothing of the small game left after I shoot it.

You must also be able to protect yourself from all of the bad guys using this gun. I would take into account the magazine size and reload time of each weapon as well as ease of use. As I mentioned in my last post, it is not about the bullet as much as it is about the shot placement.

This gun must also be rugged. I have no idea where I am going to be at. I may be in the city, the country, the mountains, the forest, or any of these combined. This gun could get wet, dirty, dry, or dusty. I would need to stake my life on this gun, and I cannot risk it breaking or jamming. I also will probably not have time to clean it, so I can take that into account.

The weight is also very important. This is going to have to be slung on my back while I carry it around. I am also going to have to carry as much ammunition as I possibly can, so the lighter, the better.

And... I think... That's about it... OKAY! to the fun stuff!

Gun #1:

AK-47 SBR with folding Stock.

oofdah! starting off strong here!

Let me get to explaining one thing before I go into this much. 

SBR stands for Short Barreled Rifle. The ATF felt like they needed something to do, so they are attempting to enforce a law that says any rifle must have at least a 16" barrel. you can request the ATF approve a rifle with a shorter barrel, but it takes about 6-8 weeks, and there is a bunch of paperwork and a $200 tax stamp. but after that, it is perfectly legal! 

SBRs have their upsides and their downsides. upside is that they are shorter overall. They will get hung up on things a lot less, and it is easier to clear an area or a house with a shorter overall length. The down side is increased noise, a slight decrease in accuracy and velocity of the projectile. In AR-15s, there is also a decrease in reliability. With AKs, that is reduced quite a bit. ARs have a direct impingement gas system, where as the AK has a piston driven gas system. While piston systems are not perfect, they are more reliable than DI.

If you ever think of rugged guns, the first gun that comes to mind HAS to be the AK-47. One of my favorite movie quotes is from the movie Lord of War:

"An elegantly simple 9 pound amalgamation of forged steel and plywood. It doesn't break, jam, or overheat. It'll shoot whether it's covered in mud or filled with sand. It's so easy, even a child can use it; and they do."

This is what the AK is all about. It is the bad guy's weapon. It is sloppy and crude and ugly, yet, is one of the most beautifully designed rifles in history. Easy to manufacture for the Russians, effective for anyone using it, and it just works. It always works.

The secret is in the loose design. The gun was designed with loose manufacturing

tolerances, and the gun always works because of it. You never need to clean it. You never need to care what you drag it though. In fact, I have friends that had cleaned their AKs after about 5 years of owning it, and it ran worse than in the five years prior to its first cleaning. Yes... You read that correctly... The AK will run better when it is dirty...

So why the folding stock? Size again. If you fold the stock, you can stuff it in a bag. you can also get a sling on it and throw it on your back too, but the folding stock is so cool. why not get it?

In terms of optics, I would put a lower power scope on it. maybe a fixed 5x scope or something. I would put it on the side scope mount that is raised just enough to see the iron sights below them.

The 7.62x39 caliber round is small enough to take down rabbit sized game without destroying it, and large enough to take down a deer. The whole round is on the small size so you can carry a lot of it. The mag is easily changed and holds 30-40 rounds.

This would probably be my number 1 choice for a survival gun.

Gun #2

AR-15 in .223

WHAT??!? didn't you just spend the gun above talking about how much better the AK was than the AR?!?!?!?

yes... sort of...except I still love the AR!

Many of the pros you get with the AK above are applicable to this AR as well, except I would not do an SBR for it. the decrease in reliability is just too much for me to handle.

The AR is still a super reliable weapon. It needs a bit more tender loving care, because it should be cleaned every once in a while, but will still continue to work through thick and thin. The round is smaller than the AK but still large enough to kill a deer. still is mag fed, with 30 round mags. I would still do the same optics. a lower power fixed scope with iron sights, but these would need to be canted. 

.223 is also readily available and if I am scavenging, I should be able to find it at just about any sporting goods stores.

That pretty much sums that up...

Gun #3

Ruger 10/22

If you read my last article, this may sound familiar.

I am a massive fan of the Ruger 10/22 and the .22 round in general. They are relatively inexpensive, Semi-Auto, and you can buy BX-25 mags, which allow you to shoot 25 rounds off in a row! There are few rifles more reliable than the Ruger 10/22 and it is usable by everyone from the age of 10 to the age of 95 (assuming they are mentally capable of safely handling the rifle).

Some people might dismiss the .22 caliber round because of it's size and lack of knockdown power, but keep in mind, this is a survival rifle. You will have no problem tracking that deer for a mile if it means food on the table tomorrow. Not the quickest death, but it will keep you alive. and there are many other animals that you can eat that are much smaller than deer. It can reach out to 200 yards if you have a good optic and a calm day but the reason you pick up the 10/22 is because of the weight of the ammo. 

You can carry thousands of rounds of .22 and use your rifle for a very very very long time before needing to fill up. yes. Thousands of rounds.... As in... More than 1000 or 2000 rounds. They sell boxes of 550 and I can easily fit four of those in a bag to sling on my back. easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Most 10/22s come with iron sights which are not bad. You can put scopes and red dots on them if you like as well. There are also different stocks you can put the gun in to give it more attachment spots
and to look like other guns. No one needs to know that you don't actually have a PS-90...

Gun #4

Any Bullpup .223 rifle

I am mushing these guns together for a few different reasons,

Firstly, there are a lot of them. Just about every company is making a bullpup rifle in .223. Secondly, I have never fired any of these, so I have no idea about the differences or about triggers or anything. 

I have heard a lot of good things about these rifles, however. As an example, the IWI Tavor is made by a company who is based out of Israel. I do not know much about Israel, but I do know it is dusty there. Any weapon the Israelite's manufacture is going to be required to be as reliable as possible. 

Bullpup rifles are basically the same as other rifles, except the bolt and action of the rifle are located behind the trigger and fire controls. This allows the rifle to be an overall shorter length while keeping a longer barrel. This means you can have a short rifle, without waiting 6-8 weeks for the ATF to get back to you!

They normally use normal AR-15 mags, and have the same caliber as AR-15s.

Gun #5

Henry Survival Rifle in .22

This may seem a bit obvious. because it is.

Henry makes a really cool rifle that is inexpensive and really really portable. 

What makes the Henry rifle different from the 10/22 is the overall portability. The entire rifle can be taken apart and stuffed in the specially made slots in the butt of the stock. the stock then seals up and becomes completely waterproof. 

The entire rifle is super light and as I mentioned with the 10/22, the .22 round is an excellent survival round. 

The downside to the Henry is that you cannot put a scope on it, unless you no longer want to put everything away in the stock. You are also limited to three ten round magazines that will fit in the stock. Otherwise, almost identical to the 10/22

Gun #6 (last gun, I promise)

Any pump action shotgun in either 12 or 20 gauge

This is another one that I am grouping up because there are a lot of pump action shotguns out there.

My personal favorite is the Benelli Super Nova, because that was my first shotgun and it has treated me well, but there are many many many other guns and everyone has a different opinion about which one they like best. No answer is the wrong answer here. Shotguns are fantastic survival guns and pump shotguns give you that added durability.

I have had someone dunk my shotgun down to the bottom of the swamp and pull it up and it was fine. A bit stiff, but it still fired and cycled. 

Shotguns are unique when it comes to ammunition consumption. They have many many different kinds of shots you can shoot out of a shotgun from bird shot to slugs. This allows you to hunt one of the most prevalent creatures in the world, birds! you can kill small game with bird shot as well. You
can kill deer with buck shot. You can defend yourself with the shotgun. 

There are two massive cons with shot guns, however. The first is distance. You are probably only good to about 50-75 yards with a shotgun. even with slugs. This makes it harder to kill your dinner if you cannot get close enough. It also puts you at a disadvantage if your attackers have rifles like the ones I stated above. 

The next is mag size and reloading. at best, your mag holds... maybe nine rounds? and to reload, unless you walk around like a competition shooter with a speed loader, you have to do it one by one, and it may take you a while. On top of that, the ammo is pretty big, and it may be cumbersome to carry around.

however, due to the variation in ammo a shotgun can shoot, it is pretty hard not to put it on this list. On top of that, shotgun ammo may be the most prevalent ammo in the country. Even if you live in a state that doesn't like guns, you can probably get a hold of a pump action shot gun, assuming you are in good standing with the law.

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Well, that is pretty much it...

In my opinion, these would be some of the best Bug-out Guns if you have them. While I did my favorite at the beginning and my least favorite at the end, the four in the middle are pretty interchangeable for me.

What do you think? agree? disagree?