With all this civil unrest have you considered making your car gun a carbine or SBR?

A handgun works for me in the car, I might upsize a bit. If i stumble into civil unrest, I'll exit stage right.

My residence is a different story.

Things are pretty quiet where I live. I am armed while I drive around town, but it is a handgun. I see no reason at this time to uprate my gun, but if things go sideways (which I do not expect to happen) I would consider a longarm.

IMHO I think the risk is a bit overblown, and even if "stuff happens" the best choice is to stay away from it, and if one thinks it will over-run your location, get out before you're over-run.
I am not John Rambo (or even a SWAT officer) and I really really like staying far away from, shall we say, "interesting situations."

No. First of all I don't normally carry a long-gun, and second: Where I am if somebody started a Baltimore style riot they won't last very long.

I always look at it as if I have to ditch the car and move on on foot.

I think it would have to be compact enough to be discreet and not attract unwanted attention.

A handgun makes more sense, especially this time of year. A few extra mags, and/or "happy sticks" with a small, unobtrusive get home bag with some essentials, would probably be easier.

I know for me, a normal 1 to 1.5 hour daily drive, would turn into a 1-3 day walk, depending where I was.

Where I am if somebody started a Baltimore style riot they won't last very long.

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Same here.

Although most of the time, I do have a 6920 and 150 rounds in the truck if I'm just commuting to and back from work.

ARIZONA MIKE - "With all this civil unrest have you considered maing your car gun a carbine or SBR? "

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No. My CCW Colt's Lightweight Commander .45 ACP and an extra magazine will just have to suffice.

Not too much chance of a Baltimore or Philly or Los Angeles or Seattle or New York etc. style riot happening around these parts. If one did occur, however, I'd make it a point to just not be there.

L.W.

I think increasing your awareness would be helpful in more scenarios than increased firepower.

I really don't like the idea of running away and leaving my property to thugs. I'm reminded of the Korean store owners during the Rodney King riots, perched atop their stores with a motley collection of arms, protecting what was theirs.

Of course, I picked my own remote paradise precisely because it is far, far away form urban centers.

No and no....

It surprises me how many people think; hey should I start packing a __ ?

Can you safely or quickly deploy a M4 or carbine in a occupied motor vehicle?
Do you realize the noise or things like muzzle blast, spent cases, glass, metal, plastic, etc that will be flying around?
Movies like Bad Boys 2 or The Transporter may make you think you can swing a rifle or large gun around but it's not that simple.

To carry a firearm or be ready for civil unrest/crime isn't a bad idea in today's climate but I'd say a flash mob or group attack like the motorcycle/SUV incident in New York City in 2014 is far more likely than a riot or civil disorder.

In my metro area(roughly 1,000,000 people daytime), it's common for beggars or street people to jump out at intersections or at traffic signals/under overpasses.
If you drive at night, night sights/lasers/white lights are a good add on. A street beggar that has a bright strobe or LED light blind them or disorient them will keep them away from your vehicle.

I'll admit I recently took the P220 out of my truck and replaced it with an AK pistol. A small part of that decision was all the current unrest. That was by no means the main reason, but I'd be lying if I said it was no factor at all. I also normally keep a long gun of some kind in the truck, it varies what kind depending on the game in season.

I live in the black belt, and tensions aren't very high around here to be honest. We learned how to coexist decades ago. I know that doesn't fit the stereotype, but watch the news and you may notice that the problemmed areas mentioned are rarely in the deep south.

I do consider carrying an SBR, but more because the SBR I wish to make is my glock 20, that I normally carry, with a shoulder stock. The stock is detachable and the pistol can be carried as normal the majority of the time. It really isn't because of the civil unrest, I've been considering it for a couple years now, just haven't been able to afford the stamp.

If I worried about riots I'd get a bunch of bear spray cans.

Deaf

I almost always have an AR in my truck, when I'm home it is readily accessible and I've killed more than a few varmints/predators right out the window so yes, a carbine is quite quick to put to use from inside a vehicle.
While I'm on the road it usually rides in a rather complicated tool box arrangement in either of my trucks that protects quite well from any snatch and grabs but would allows me to have some essentials items should I ever have to make a long hard thousand mile +- trip home after some unknown event.

nope. The last thing I would do if I found myself in such a situation would be to ditch the best tool for defense I had, the truck.
But the last thing I would do in the first place is let myself be in a place where that would happen.

The closest thing to "civil unrest" around here was a bear cub up a tree in the next town over

Yeah, I've got some armadillos causing unrest.

OP: no !

Situational awareness and a hand gun with a few mags.
Ditto the point that I live in an area where it would be counterproductive to start some mess.

I don't have a car (wife does).
I ride a motorcycle every day of the year, and my "car gun" is whatever is in my pocket or on my hip for the day.
That said...honestly, wearing full gear, accessing a gun will be a challenge. I'm better off using the bike's maneuverability and getting the Hell out of Dodge.

nope. The last thing I would do if I found myself in such a situation would be to ditch the best tool for defense I had, the truck.
But the last thing I would do in the first place is let myself be in a place where that would happen

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Your making many assumptions,
1: the truck will run, this isn't alwasy the case
2: you can drive off without running over people, this isn't always the case
3: you will be able to not go where the rioting is, this isn't always the case
4: the rioting will not come to you, this isn't always the case
5: you know where the rioting is, this isn't always the case
6: the rioting starts after you arrive, this isn't always the case

None of these are necessarily likely, but they are all very possible.

As a rule a handgun is a better option, but don't discount a long guns use in certain situations. I was 1000 miles and 5 states from home when the jury read the George Zimmerman verdict. I had to drive home 3-4 days later though several large population centers. I anticipated that would happen and possible problems after seeing what happened after the Rodney King verdict. I carried a rifle with a fair supply of ammo on the trip in addition to the normal G-19. There were no problems, but I felt somewhat better prepared.

No one is talking about deploying the weapon inside a moving car. When these things happen the roads are gridlocked and no one is moving. The best plan is to literally circle the wagons and make a show of force. Hopefully mobs will decide to go elsewhere. That was certainly the outcome in LA after the Rodney King situation.

civil unrest

Unless you are a trained police officer or a combat serviceman, you will not be able to react in a emergency conflict. It doesn't matter what weapon you have. You will not be calm, you will not be rational, and you will get hurt or killed. Stay away from a storm at all costs.

No.

My Charter Arms Bulldog with a few extra speedloaders would be convincing enough firepower around these parts.

Hard to argue with a big bore snubby revolver for inside a car. Low pressure round= less noise to protect hearing, yet still has plenty of power and is reliable as it gets. Capable of single action fire in the remote chance I'd need to take a longer shot from outside the vehicle, and reloads are surprisingly fast with speedloaders and practice. Tucks right into my waistband if I need to egress the car.

I feel it'd do very well indeed.