Pistol Considerations for Home Defense

When it comes to choosing equipment and weaponry for home protection, you have more alternatives than you have for personal defense. This is especially true when it comes to choosing a firearm and protective gear for your property. Here are some ideas for how to take use of this benefit.
Personal-defense guns, in the vast majority of circumstances, are restricted by the necessity to be concealed or at the very least undetectable. There are exceptions, such as uniformed law enforcement or military personnel, but the vast majority of people aren't carrying a Glock 34 in a Safariland ALS.

Let's speak about the most prevalent home-defense threats and then apply relevant remedies, as well as an honest look at the pistol's inherent strengths and shortcomings in a home-defense scenario, before we go into the specifics of the handgun. First, if you follow my golden rule of not doing foolish things, associating with stupid people, and not going to dumb locations, your chances of never needing to use a firearm in a home-defense situation are pretty good. That said, things do happen. Fire extinguishers, self-defense firearms, and anti-diarrhea drugs are all items we hope we never need, but they are all extreme need.

The portability of a firearm is more important than its effectiveness. When engaging a threat, it will be more difficult to get bullets on aim with a pistol than with a long gun, and its projectiles will have less terminal effect. The fundamental reason for this is that there is naturally less steadiness. A steady technique is required to shoot a pistol successfully. Gunfights are usually conducted in such a way that establishing a stable posture is not always achievable. It's just science when it comes to being less effective. The great majority of projectiles that travel at less than 1,000 feet per second (fps) will not be as effective as those that travel at 2,000 or even 1,500 fps. It's something to keep in mind when making decisions for  your firearm selection.

Please don't get mad at me, pistoleros! In a home-defense situation, the handgun has a lot going for it. Its portability is quite useful when traveling within the limits of a tiny space. Its one-handed capability is also useful when opening doors, transporting youngsters to safety, or using a handheld light in the support hand. While a weapon-mounted light is essential for advancing towards a known threat, having a handheld light that isn't attached to a weapon is ideal for situations when you don't know whether or not there is a threat. Shooting pistols is also less intimidating for many new shooters, so taking the kids or wife to the range to train with a handgun isn't a difficult endeavor.Pistol ammo is also lot more cost-effective to train with, so getting a good level of training won't be as expensive as some of the other options.

Let's speak about how to set up a pistol for home defense now that we've learned about its limitations and benefits. The requirement for an actual fighting caliber is the first point to discuss. I'm not going to get into the whole 9mm vs..45 ACP debate here, but the statistics I reviewed at work convinced me that there is no major difference in effectiveness between all of the fighting calibers. Everything else is secondary to shot placement. It's less expensive to practice with a 9mm, and I get more rounds on board, so that's the route I go. If you're set on the.45, that's excellent; just make sure you practice. The reputation of a caliber doesn't halt battles; good hits do.

The next item to consider is a reliable sighting system. If you have the financial means, a pistol-mounted optic offers benefits that other systems do not. I understand that they might be costly and that change can be difficult, but they are truly game-changing. A pistol-mounted red-dot sight (RDS) allows you to focus on the threat, making it easier to track if the threat is moving or in low or varying light. It also enables you to absorb more data, and more data leads to better conclusions. Finally, the RDS provides for a significantly faster or coarser sight image, allowing the shooter to get off a good shot much faster than with regular sights.

If the RDS isn't for you, invest in a good set of steel sights with plenty of light on both sides of your front sight post. I'm gradually transitioning from night sights to fiber-optic sights because, in low light, the tritium dot is losing its edge to ambient light, pistol-mounted light, and handheld weapon light, and the fiber optic is much faster for me across a wide spectrum.

A great trigger is something that a home-defense handgun and an everyday-carry (EDC) pistol must have in common. There is no reason to have a bad trigger on a gun that you or a loved one would use to defend themselves. It is possible to tidy up even stock components. Just make sure you're not going too light. The decision to shoot may take longer than pressing a trigger, and at least two people are walking around today because they stopped what they were doing as my trigger finger moved from one to three pounds.

Finally, let's discuss about the gun's size. In recoil, a larger gun is simpler to wield and operate under pressure. It might potentially be heavier, so each shooter will find their sweet spot. I prefer full-size firearms for home protection, but I can't say I blame shooters who want a midrange option. In this situation, I recommend avoiding small handguns since they value portability over effectiveness.