best home defense shotgun
(Warren Wilson for TTAG)
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By Tom Kubiniec

June’s gun sales statistics skyrocketed 136% percent over 2019 numbers. Over 2.1 million guns were sold in June alone. Notably, 40 percent of these sales are to first-time buyers. This record pace of firearms sales has been fueled first by COVID-19 and now by the rioting and civil unrest.

This surge is due to hundreds of thousands of Americans who, for the first time in their lives, are concerned about personal safety and home defense. They are turning to firearms and thinking about the use of deadly force, if necessary.

Until recently, most Americans felt safe in their day-to-day lives, and for good reason. America is, on the whole, a very safe place. There are three main reasons: We as citizens respect the Constitution, the rights of others, and the law. Problems occur when even one of these pillars breaks down. Current events indicate a breakdown of all three.

We see this unfolding right now in cities across the country. Rioting and violence has replaced peaceful protest. Many city officials are blaming the police. If not dealt with by the authorities, the result could be a prolonged period of escalating violence in America.

So what can you do to increase your safety and defensive capability?

The Outside of Your Home

Does your home look like an easy target? Bad guys always take the path of least resistance.

For example, who is the bigger target for a thief: the man standing tall and paying attention to his surroundings, or the guy with his head buried in his phone as he walks? It will always be the guy with his head buried in his phone.

You need to look at your home the same way, through the eyes of a criminal. Motion-activated lights, low shrubbery around windows, a solid door and a video doorbell put you a lot lower on the list of possible targets.

Inside Your Home

If bad guys break into your home, the best strategy is barricading in a defensible position, calling the police, and waiting. If you are forced to take action, your chances of success are better when you let the fight come to you. That’s how you stay in control. If your strategy is to move through your home to find and eliminate threats, you have hurt your odds of success. You are moving into unknown situations.

When considering defensible positions, look at room entry points and furniture. The bad guy(s) should have to enter through an exposed position to find you.

Take, for example, my master bedroom:

I am armed, kneeling beside the bed. The bed is between me and the door. My upper body is over the bed with my rifle pointed at the door. Right hand is on the grip. Left hand is on the fore-grip with a finger ready to push the button on the barrel-mounted Surefire light.

My wife is located in the bathroom behind me, outside the line of fire, calling 911. In this scenario, I am in control of the situation in the room. My wife stays on with 911 dispatch and we wait.

Decentralize Your Gun Storage

As it turns out, the best places to store firearms for home defense purposes are also the best places to store them in order to prevent theft.

If you own a single firearm and do not intend to carry it when you are at home, consider three small, fast-access gun safes or cabinets. Locate one in your master bedroom, one in the kitchen, and one in the den or living room.

When you get up in the morning, bring the firearm down and secure it in the kitchen safe for the day. If you are going to spend a significant amount of time in the den, move the firearm to the safe in the den. Your firearm is always secure and you will never be more than a few steps away from it in the case of an emergency.

If you own several firearms or a large collection, decentralized storage is far better than a big, heavy safe in the basement or on display in the living room.

Store one or two firearms in a single safe under your bed in the master bedroom. No more than that. The master bedroom is the prime target for thieves.

The kitchen pantry is a great location for a small cabinet. This is a room people spend a lot of time in during the day. In the event of a home invasion, if you are in the kitchen, you will have quick access to a firearm. From a security standpoint, kitchens are typically ignored by thieves.

A closet near the front door of your home is also a good location for a gun cabinet. Thieves tend to ignore closets like this. If someone you do not trust is at your front door and tries to force themselves in, you will have fast access to firearms.

In your home office or den, put a small fast-access handgun safe in a desk drawer, or in a cabinet or closet. Do not store a lot of guns in the den. This room is a prime target for thieves.

A guest room with a closet is a great location for a large collection. Thieves tend to ignore guest rooms. They look in, see a made bed, a bedside table with nothing on it and nothing else in the room, and move on. A guest bedroom, preferably at the end of a hallway, can also be a good safe room. In the event of a crisis, you and your family can meet in this room. You have access to firearms, and the hallway provides a tight shooting lane if the bad guys attempt to get to you.

Firearm Ownership

If you do not own a firearm, is buying one the right thing for you?

Simply owning a firearm does not make you safer. In some situations it can actually put you at greater risk. The ability to defend yourself and your loved ones depends more on proper training and practice than on the type of gun you buy. Handguns require the most training. If your opportunities to practice are limited, first-time buyers should consider a shotgun or semi-automatic rifle, as these are much easier to operate.

 

Tom Kubiniec is President and CEO of SecureIt Tactical, the primary supplier to the US military for weapons storage systems and armory design. SecureIt also specializes in lightweight, fast-access civilian gun storage solutions. How you store guns directly affects their performance, your safety, and the ability to defend yourself in a crisis situation.

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72 COMMENTS

  1. “Firearm ownership…is buying one right for you?” Is this a joke post?!? Isn’t this The Truth about GUNS? Yeah buy a gun. Lot’s of old folks use a gun ONCE. Bizarre as s l o w Joe Biden being elected president.

      • Speaking of safes:

        “If you own a single firearm and do not intend to carry it when you are at home, consider three small, fast-access gun safes or cabinets. Locate one in your master bedroom, one in the kitchen, and one in the den or living room.

        When you get up in the morning, bring the firearm down and secure it in the kitchen safe for the day. If you are going to spend a significant amount of time in the den, move the firearm to the safe in the den. Your firearm is always secure…”

        ****
        How many of us read that section and immediately thought “why rotate the darned thing into another safe every time you move around the house?…isn’t that why we have holsters?”

        And for those who have small children (as I once did), I fully agree that their safety is a concern. So remove the mystique from their young eyes and teach them about gun safety early.

        • Yes, Sir. A good holster is cheaper and handier than 3-4 safes!

          It’s a blessed miracle that my children survived, even thrived, living in a home where firearms were not rotated amongst 3-4 safes on an hourly basis…

          LOL, as I read the article I checked the By-line to see if it was a “Sponsored Content” submission.

        • A agree with having a concealed gun in every room. Not so sure about the gun-safe, however. If The Really Bad Thing happens, I was access to defensive firearms asap. Having to open a gun-safe just seems like a step too far.

        • You lost me at one gun, 3-4 safes. Before I bought a safe, I’d buy 3-4 more guns. This is just silly. Except for the dangerous part, spending all day, every day, dicking with a loaded gun. I put it on in the morning and take it off at night, otherwise dick with it at the range.

        • Lol, yes. If I’m going to be moving my loaded gun from one place to the next to the next all day I’m just going to holster carry. If I NEED to have access while in the den and then in the kitchen and then in the bedroom, then I need to not put it down.

        • Lots of hating on this post…but it isn’t wrong. It was written for new firearms owners. Many people falling into this category are still uncomfortable with and maybe even scared of the gun. The lack the experience and knowledge that people having been around guns for a while have accumulated. Many want a “safe” (lockbox) because it makes them feel safe. It may not be the right strategy for you…and multiple safes aren’t for me either, but it is still a valid strategy for people who want that feeling of safety.

          Personally, I don’t home carry (on body) because I wear athletic clothes around the house for comfort…not a lot of good options there. I basically use this strategy, except with no kids there isn’t a safe…I just have my G19 close to me. Typically not more than 10-15 feet away, especially with these work from home times. When I finish work and leave the office, it gets relocated. If I go read or watch TV at the end of the day, it comes and sits on the table next to me.

          I tend to disagree with the guest bedroom piece, but that is because I semi-frequently have guests and don’t want to have to move them when company comes. If you never have company that is a valid strategy.

          Also, I don’t like how the ownership bit is worded, but that isn’t wrong either. If you’re not comfortable with the implications of using a firearm for self defense, or not willing to invest in the training needed to be successful (even a modicum), it probably isn’t for you. It’s a personal choice, and not one that should be forced on people. I believe it is one that you SHOULD make, and I will explain that to you, but at the end of the day you need to be comfortable with it and what that means.

      • They are getting a lot more clever in their posts from sponsors shilling their products.

        I almost overlooked it on this one but did think it was weird that an article about planning self defense spent most of its time repeating that you should buy more safes and where to put them, and only one paragraph about what the guy would actually do during a break in.

        Used to be a lot easier to spot… bravo TTAG, all the good writers left so I guess you gotta keep the lights on somehow.

  2. You got it backwards about who’s going to be in the bathroom. Prostate trouble. I’ll be out in a bit.

    • LOL!

      I don’t spend an unusual amount of time in the bathroom (the wife would tell you I should spend more), but it’s uncanny how many outside incidents that require immediate response have happened during the few minutes I’m in there. I’m 99% convinced that if there’s ever a home invasion attempt at my house, I’ll be in the john. Should probably just permanently mount a holster next to the TP dispenser.

      • Right, weather alert goes off. Go to window see tornado mile away. Tell wife wake up, go to basement. She got and decide that NOW would be a good time to have a BM upstairs. I’m dying.Unlicensed Bozo

  3. This was a fairly decent article for people who have never thought about nor trained for self-defense in their home.

    I recommend readers take something that is monumentally important to heart:

    1) During good and quiet times (such as Summer of 2017) police could easily take as long as 10 minutes to arrive at your home and begin rendering assistance AFTER you finish reporting all the details of your home invasion to a 911 dispatcher. (And that process could easily add one additional minute to police response time.)

    2) Right now police could easily take as long as 45 minutes to arrive at your home and begin rendering assistance after reporting all the details to a 911 dispatcher. This long response time could be due to personnel shortages or police purposely dragging their feet in response to the cries to defund police.

    Note that I am referring to locales where police are generally close and can readily drive to your home in a few minutes. Response times could be considerably longer in more remote locations.

    Plan your home-defense strategies accordingly.

    • Exactly. “If bad guys break into your home, the best strategy is barricading in a defensible position, calling the police, and waiting.” or you could just rack a pump shotgun and scare them all away. KMAGYOYO. Kiss my ass guys. Your are on your own. Got news for you. You have always been on your on. I dont have the statistics but I’ll bet most situations at home where you might wanna call the police, happen in the middle of the night. I have called 911 in the middle of the night before on a couple of occasions and this was 20 yrs ago and it took 20+ minutes for a response. I live in the burbs right off a major highway. The thin blue line is getting thinner all the time. Take Kyle Lambs advice. Have 180 rnds of 223/556 ready to feed your favorite MSR and have it within arms reach. Beyond that. Fire and maneuver.

      • Haven’t watched Kyle Lamb in years…since we downgraded cable and lost whatever gun channel he was on. But I have some 230 rounds of 62gr 193 & greentip up & ready. Sure came in handy during recent protes er riots & looting. My local cop’s FAILED. I’m on my own…no safe’s. That & other goodies are ready. Strategically hid when away.

    • I have a good example of response times. This happened to me today.

      I went to my girlfriend’s house this morning to deliver a few items. She was at work and I forgot to check the alarm system app on my phone to see if it was armed (I am an authorized user). I unlocked the basement door and the alarm started going off so I took my phone out and shut it off. I had inadvertently set the alarm off before but it was always the main door into the house and apparently that makes a difference.

      I went about my business carrying stuff into the basement and when I got done I looked at my phone and there was a voice mail. I listened to it and it was the security company calling. The voicemail was 10 minutes old. By the time I listened to the message, called them back, waded through the computer menu, and gave them the password to confirm it was an accident, at least 15 minutes had passed. The operator said they would contact dispatch to cancel and no police ever showed up.

      In an actual violent break in 15+ minutes for a police response is about 15 minutes too long.

      • That’s sad.
        I had a police visit from three Fairfax County cops one night one hour after I got back from an overseas deployment. The house silent alarm had been set by someone else in the house who had no idea I’d be there. I took one officer on a tour of the house and convinced him I was a resident, not a burglar, but only after showing some ID.
        After the cops left without filling me or the dog full of holes my landlady called up and said she’d gotten a notification on her phone the alarm had been tripped. I admitted it was me but hadn’t been aware the alarm was set.
        Good times, good times.

  4. Good that you advise a division of tasks. Even in normal times, calling 911 usually serves no useful purpose except to enhance your chances of not getting prosecuted or convicted for defending yourself. Some of us old Fudds remember how LAPD Chief of police Darryl Gates exploited the mythology that police are outgunned by criminals armed with Assault Weapons as an excuse to bravely run away. The average citizens around the intersection of Florence and Normandy, including Reginald Denny were just Shit Out of Luck. (Never forget that it was for Black gentle men who rescued Denny and drove his truck to the hospital.)

    Given the political situation today, calling 911 is an even greater exercise in futility. If you live way out in the country and own a backhoe and plenty of dirt, shoot, shovel and shut up might be a smarter response.

  5. Historically, most of our population could count on police arriving in a reasonable time span to assist home occupants with a home invasion. The prevailing wisdom was, “Set yourself up in a good defensive position at a pinch-point and wait for the cavalry (police) to arrive and clear your home.” As I stated in my comment above, at this time in our nation, I do not believe that most of our population can count on police arriving in a timely fashion. Police might very well be very quick at any given locale. And they might very well NOT be quick.

    Given that sea change, I believe home owners should formulate a different strategy in anticipation of far more frequent arson attempts of occupied homes. If a violent attacker sets your home on fire, sitting in a nice defensive position and waiting 45 minutes for police to arrive will ensure that your entire family dies in the blaze. Thus, I believe homeowners have to begin formulating offensive strategies to drive home-invaders out and away from the home.

    And before anyone poo-poos my opinion that arson attempts will increase dramatically, here is why:

    1) Police frequently standing down WILL embolden criminals to escalate their tactics and anticipate far greater scores. What used to be simple “smash and grab” objectives will advance to more thorough searches for more valuables and attempted sexual assaults. And those violent home invaders will be seriously pi$$ed off when you deny their anticipated big score of valuables and sexual assault. Doing nothing more than repelling them at your defensive pinch point leaves them to casually go to a different part of your home (or just outside your home) and set your home on fire in revenge for denying their expected score. At that point they can wait for you to come out and kill/rape you then and there or simply leave knowing that you will lose your entire home and belongings at best or die in the fire at worst.

    2) Violent mobs may choose your home. It goes without saying that violent mobs have a propensity to advance on a structure, vandalize it, and then set it on fire. Police frequently standing down guarantees that violent mobs will strike more often and with greater destruction. Thus, staying at a good defensive position inside your home until police arrive 45 minutes later — while a violent mob operates with impunity — leads to a very high likelihood that the violent mob torches your home and kills your entire family long before police (much less the fire department) arrives.

    • You are confusing a mob bent on destruction with someone who wants your stuff. The stuff grabber isn’t going to set your house on fire because it will burn the stuff up that he wants. If you are in your citidel the stuff guy is going to be happy to grab your stuff and go.

      The mob is a different animal that requires forward defense. If you are defending your home from your home you might as well abandon the house because you have already lost.

    • I have a 3-story house with people I love on all 3 floors. I will not be remaining hidden away safe, that’s a ridiculous idea.

      • You don’t have a home defense plan? That is a big fail. Depending on the age of the people in your house you can have multiple citidels and communicate with hand held radios. You could even coordinate a response. Going out to confront the bad guy gives up your advantage and turns it into a fair fight. You never want to be in a fair fight.

  6. Some decent planning information presented here…

    HOWEVER…

    3 – 4 scattered safes / lockboxes that you secure your one firearm in as you move around your home…???

    I find it a whole lot easier to carry my daily firearm ON me while at home rather than locking and unlocking it and trying to remember which of 3 – 4 safes it may be in (carrying it on me dramatically cuts down on the access time in every scenario that the author portrayed…including bedtime where it’s not “on” me, but, it’s conveniently on the nightstand)

  7. If some scumbag breaks into my home. There’s a better than good chance I won’t bother the police. I’ll call the coroner. let him call the police if he wants to.

  8. My grandmother hid coins under the broiler in the kitchen. The thief found them. He searched every drawer in both bedrooms and the closets. The only thing he missed that was safe to steal was the cash in her nylons roll up. But he had handled it. IN Grandma’s case, the thief had a specially shaped crowbar that he used to rip the lock out of the front door. The police figured he went through the door in less than thirty seconds.

    Although a home invader going for drugs and/or cash may be sloppy, a professional thief will not miss much of anything. The pros already know where people tend to hide things. How much they get will largely depend upon how much time they have.

    Here’s a clue that my in-laws learned the hard way. Do NOT leave as message on your own home phone answering machine telling your significant other that you are out and when you will be back. It will be listened to and used for the thief’s benefit.

      • Shoot, does anyone still have a home phone? I maintained one for about 10 years after we stopped using it, for power outages and calling 911 because it told the operator where we were. Then all that was covered except the power outages, but we had never had one, so finally kissed it off.

  9. The safest place for a firearm(pistol) to be throughout the day is on your person. Quick access safes are neat options for long guns if you have little ones around. A true safe(not rsc) is the best option for a collection if you have both the money and a floor that can support one.

  10. Adding to my comment above where I encourage people to begin formulating offensive strategies for their homes, I immediately see one practical solution: coordinate with close neighbors for mutual aid where all of you can call on each other if violent attackers choose one of your homes.

    Suppose violent attackers target your home. You set up at your ideal defensive position inside while another family member calls your close neighbor/s for immediate support/reinforcement. Close neighbor/s show up lightning fast and announce their reinforcement. At that point, you begin pushing your violent home-invaders outside and your neighbors push those violent home-invaders to promptly leave the neighborhood. If all goes well, neither you nor your neighbors sustain any serious injuries and the violent home-invaders do not have enough time to torch your home. (Or, at the very least, perhaps the violent home-invaders — feeling the pressure to vacate quickly — do a poor enough job torching your home that you can extinguish the fire before it gets too involved.)

    Of course there is risk involved when you are attempting to push the home-invaders out. And there is risk for your close neighbor/s who come to your aid, whether they also help clear your home or provide the necessary incentive outside for the violent home-invaders to leave your neighborhood before successfully torching your home. There is also substantial risk in doing nothing more than holding-up in your defensive position.

    I also thought of a second offensive strategy if you happen to know ahead of time that violent mobs of “protesters” are likely to target your neighborhood (and therefore your home): one family member sleeps outside the home somewhere else on their property (e.g. in a camper in the back yard or a detached garage/shed) or at a close neighbor’s home. If the violent mob shows up as anticipated, the second family member outside the home can surprise the violent mob and provide the necessary incentive for the mob to move along.

    • Depends where you live. I am nearly 1 1/2 miles down a dead end street, if I ever suspected mobs of criminals were headed for my house, I would be hidden outside waiting for them, and 3-4 would already be dead before they realized this would not be a picnic, and then I would be shooting them in the back until they were out of sight/range.

  11. Fair article , just starter for first time weapon owner , yep think it out have a plan , have start some where , then of course always the unexpected , thought through and walked through different scenarios in my house
    how to shoot with left and right hand , using one or both . using various rooms in the house and make use of the furniture , surroundings to my benefit . stay safe and alert , best ya can .

  12. I know it’s a gun blog but a discussion about personal defense in the home should also consider hardening your home itself. A lot of houses have barely any security hardware. I can pick many home locks in less than five minutes and I’m no spy- it’s because houses are often built on a budget and people don’t see the inside of a lock so it seems unimportant.

    You could go around changing all your locks to pick-resistant expensive units… or you could set up interior-only deadbolts that can’t be picked at all. Just one example of a relatively minor and inexpensive way to increase security for when you are in the house. Maybe get a good lock on one door so you can use that one for access and keep the others bolted when not in use?

    Also: “As it turns out, the best places to store firearms for home defense purposes are also the best places to store them in order to prevent theft.”

    What? Most thefts are not mission-impossible style capers. Smash and grabs are common. You don’t think thieves of opportunity will find that small pistol safe? They will and can probably crowbar it out and toss it their trunk, unlike an actual gun safe they will have to break into. A good one will prevent access unless they have specialized tools that your average burglar doesn’t carry. Those little biometric safes are easy pickings.

    Doesn’t mean they don’t have a use… great for ease of access if you don’t want to home carry. But having guns spread around in them doesn’t help with theft.

    • In my part of the world, free standing gun safes were just loaded on to trolley and wheeled out. 300lb + safes do not have to be bolted to a floor or wall. My safe is dynabolted to rebar concrete floor. It does move a millimeter.

      • My safe is 600 lbs before loading all the guns in it, still bolted to the rebar floor, not the most expensive safe, but in a spot hard to find and cost me around $1100 installed and bolted down. It’s worked for years!

      • They knew what they were looking for. That is why OPSEC is important. Your average burglarer is not coming equipped to walk off with a safe and pro can get into your bolted down safe with the right tools. The best method of at least neutralizing the threat is to store black powder in your safe. A spark from a cutting tool will set the powder off destroying the contents and giving the thief shrapnel in the face.

  13. The one thing many people forget is that you are the one responsible for your safety, even at home. You should carry a gun on you at all times unless in the shower or sleeping., and then the gun should be in arms reach This is especially true for families with only one gun and or young children. The police will show up eventually, and I am not faulting the police here. But distance and location matter, even if the police officer is 2 blocks away, whatever happen, most likely is all over before he gets to your home. The police rarely end the situation, they come in a draw chalk lines around the body(s). Hopefully you or a loved one are not one and the perp is the one they draw a line around. Also a defensible home is important, and if your home is not easily defensible, make it defensible, or move.

    • You should carry a gun on you at all times unless in the shower or sleeping

      Defenseless in the shower? Slacker!

  14. The author’s suggestions for home defense are basic, but sound. However, if the threat is not just a home invasion, but civil unrest you may be better advised to go outside where you can fire and maneuver. Depending on circumstances. Fire is a favorite tactic of the government. ANTIFA and the rest of their ilk have learned it well. While I live in a small municipality the city block I live on is heavily wooded. Not unusual to see deer in the yard. Including the odd rack buck. I own half the block and know it well. They don’t. Also, arson of a dwelling justifies lethal force in FL.

  15. My wife and I spend a lot of time at home, even moreso now because of the hoax virus, so the following recommendations reflect that.

    1) Carry at home and on your property. It’ll provide you the quickest access to a firearm when the Burners, Looters, and Murderers arrive. I carry a 4″ barrel .357 revolver at home. I feel naked without it. My wife carries an S&W Shield 9mm.

    2) Have multiple firearms stashed around the house in case you need a backup. An unused fireplace is a great location, as are table lamps, stereo speakers, and the inside top of closets above the door (with suitable modifications, of course).

    3) Steel safety doors will probably not stop a determined criminal, but it may give you enough time to formulate a suitable defense.

    4) Get a dog that barks. Or two. Or three. It may be annoying to live with, but the pooch(es) will give you warning. Little dogs are great for this.

    5) Have a rifle or shotgun handy. Not in a closed and locked safe. In the corner of the front hall closet, the master bedroom, etc. When I’m driving about my property I keep one handy in the pickup or the ATV.

    6) Know your neighbors and plan with them. Keep their speed dial handy. I’m calling my neighbors before I call 911. I know they’re competent, and they give far more of a sh*t about the people in the area than the highly pensioned police.

  16. “We as citizens respect the Constitution, the rights of others, and the law.”

    The Constitution is dead, the law is a joke, and the rights of others to swing their fists end two feet from my jaw.

    Sorry, but respect once lost can almost never be regained.

    • Exactly.

      We have now returned back into the era of Might Makes Right.

      You want your right to life/liberty ect? You better be prepared to kill for them.

      The “rules” are out the window. Do what you have to do to survive.

  17. Neighbors you can trust can increase your defense. If they are close enough they can observe and report. Perimeter cameras in a complete perimeter with at least one other camera looking towards another is prudent. A shared system with a neighbor that overlaps your perimeters and at least two separate ways to communicate. A planned response with them for any contingency. And keep your elderly neighbors and others who are unable to effectively care for themselves in your planning.

    The hope is you never need to act on the plan. But if you don’t plan you increase your chances of failure.

  18. “…a video doorbell put you a lot lower on the list of possible targets.”

    Maybe, but it moves you up on some other lists. I’d go with a DIY IR camera system, but I’m biased since that’s what I did.

    • Well, that’s ok too. After all, the constitution says we have the right to bear arms. I’m sure it’s legs and teeth are part of the deal…

  19. I like how this guy suggests to place some metal lockboxs in the closets in every room where a firearm can be stored, which provides little security and are pretty expensive too. It would be easier and cheaper to just install some keyed doorknobs on all interior doors and closets. Kiwkset makes them where you can change the keys yourself. That way you can change the key to match the other doors in the house. Want to secure the firearm, then just lock the closet door. Want to add additional security, then lock the bedroom door and the closet door too. Simple.

  20. Most houses have little to no yard to act as a distance buffer. If you are in a townhome or apartment you’re a sitting duck for sure.

    These people prefer fire to anything else. Have an escape plan and be prepared to shoot your way out.

  21. The bedroom defense is pretty pathetic. A bed won’t be cover unless it’s a waterbed. It’s not concealment either if you’re over it in the first place the bad guy is going to see through the door. The only thing it’s good for is delaying a melee. Assuming firing up is clear, it seems like being by the lower right corner makes the bad guy turn 90 to the left to see our hero. There’s still room to fire without hitting the wife, but it would be better if she was in the left closet. Better yet, get her a gun too and be together.

    • Indeed. Shooting around is preferable to shooting over since shooting over increases the risk that the other person(s) turn your head into a canoe.

  22. The notion of having a safe in every room of your house from which you transfer one single firearm from safe to safe as you relocate in the house throughout the day is quite possibly the single worst piece of home defense advice that I have ever heard.

  23. Read the article. Disagree. If a mob is breaking into my home, I’m not hiding behind my bed waiting for them to breach the door.

    My weapon of choice is a fast cycling Kalashnikov platform shotgun (US or Russian, not Chinese) that will take down a home invader or several in less than a second, and a boxcarload of the MF’s in less than two.

    Make no mistake, US Civilians have legal arms of the radical left have no concept.

    Want to invade my home, kill my family, me, burn down my neighborhood, neighbors, my business, my American institutions for your phony Marxist insurgency? Maybe you’ll succeed, maybe you won’t.

    I can guarantee you one thing. They’ll be hauling you motherfuckers off in front loaders and dry box trailers a hundred times every law abiding, gun owning American patriot in this country.

    For your edification, read the US Constitution and the Declaration of independence. You Marxist trouser lily, shitstains want revolution? Well, we fucking invented it.

    • Agree! My wee Mossberg holds 9 of those teensy 12 ga 00s, 10 if I load the chamber. But that ruins the fun of hearing all the pants being shit when you rack the slide.

  24. Deter, detect, delay and respond, from the outside in, early and often. There is your home defense plan in a nutshell. Extend your response time as much as possibly with as much delay as possible. Standard AT/FP protocol works here as well.

    Have an external security protocol as well as an inner security protocol, i.e. ISERT and ESERT.

    One big safe is fine, I have no little ones running around, those that come to visit understand I generally have a firearm strategically place about every 21 feet in my house, as well as generally carry in my house. No need for 15 safes. I live in the stix, so sheriff response time unless they happen to be around busting methheads is about 15-20 mikes. Dogs are essential, perimeter and driveway alarms are essential, property fence with lots of bi-lingual signs are essential. Clear line of site with minimal obstacles for at at least 75 meters around house. Barriers near the house that can double as cover are concrete filled planters filled with dirt, 2″ thick. Steel reinforced screen doors work well and are pretty cheap at Lowes. Motion sensors outside, cameras inside and out as well as game cameras around the property in hidden areas work well to see if anyone has been sneaking around. Its a large property so, no this isn’t a half acre in town I have to protect.

    As my fall back is the master bedroom, i have added a steel mesh door that creates delay to the master bedroom. Ive been thinking of reinforcing two sides of the closet with 2″ -3″ thick sheets of HDPE. Or more depending on when I test what is needed to achieve lvl III protection. Its affordable, do able and would only need a 3-4’x6′ area, possibly with a swing out piece like a door that would give cover to fire from. Or, maybe do the entire closet.

  25. Why would you put your bed so close to the bathroom door? What if the Mrs. goes to pinch a loaf at 0300? You’re going to have to lay there and smell it till you have to go to work. It’s less tactical but move it to the other side, Tom.

    • Ermagerd, really?
      Use an exhaust fan and a portion of a pool chlorine tablet in the upper tank … and don’t forget to flush.

    • Meh. If I have to extinguish a bunch of jackasses, being deaf afterwards may be the best plan. Don’t have to listen to the bleeding hearts about why I didn’t just use my karate skills so those poor babies could still rob and kill.

  26. This article was written by a person whose experience with firearms comes from watching movies.
    You think that bed is going to protect you?
    You think the wall is going to protect you? The door? A table?

    There are two options here. One is to cower in a closet and hope they dont want what you have while you wait for your local PD to show up, your time may vary.
    The other is to get out there and take the fight to them. Be fast and aggressive. Might you get shot, sure. Might happen to you anyways ,might not. But at least you did something, otherwise whats the firearm for?

  27. Frequently moving a single firearm between storage locations increases the probability of a negligent discharge. All that handling – unloading, clearing, chamber checks, loading, whatever – provides more opportunities for distractions and mistakes. Frequently repeated routine activities don’t just build muscle memory, they build complacency.

    This is the same reason “gun-free” zones increase the risk to armed individuals and everyone around them (including those who choose to go unarmed): All that drawing, storing, removing from lockboxes, checking the chamber or reloading, and reholstering becomes routine and leads to complacency. Negligent discharges will inevitably follow.

  28. The “no ballz” militia talks tough but isn’t. ANTIFA brotherhood are street tough and street smart. When we March down your piddly ass neighborhood you’ll know real fast that we can take care of ourselves.
    Here’s a message to all you veteran military jar head types. If you point a gun at me and my peeps I’m gonna run up to you before you can pull the trigger and rip that gun from your cold bare hands. Then I’m gonna smash your head with your gun and beat you down in front of your family, your friends, and your piddly small town. I won’t let up until you crawl on your hands and knees and kiss my feet! After that me and the brothers will torch your house and spray paint your truck just to show you whose in charge. You think about that before you put your panties on tonight.

  29. Well, Residents in the Socialist People’s Republic of M-assachusetts DON’T have worry about this. Since, A MA residents 2nd Amendment rights gave been taken away from THEM and turned into a “local/state police *may-issue privilege* ” through STASI controlled, Police/State .Gov issued FID/LTC privilege card licensing Ponzi scheme…Where self-defense ISN’T or just having a *supposed RIGHT * ISN’T enough for issuance…(re: No MA resident can handle/touch/purchase/possess/transport, any firearm WITHOUT a *MA police issued privilege card…*

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