What is the Best Home Defense Gun? 8 Tactical Experts Share Their Take

[The_Quartermaster]

Eight high speed types who for all intents and purposes, were arguably issued the same type of weapons, and yet all eight had eight different answers.

It really is subjective and situation dependent, and not the narrative that it has to be this gun in this length with this caliber.

 

[defjon]

For whatever reason, I prefer to read text vs watching videos..what were the most popular takes?

 

[TarDevil]

And if there had been 20, you may have that many opinions.

I have my own system.

 

[The_Quartermaster]

For whatever reason, I prefer to read text vs watching videos..what were the most popular takes?

Situation dependent, concerns about overpenetration, lights for PID, use what you're best at using, hearing protection kept nearby.

 

[The_Quartermaster]

And if there had been 20, you may have that many opinions.

I have my own system.

True and that's what you should be doing. My only caveat is training, it's important.

 

[shafter]

In a nutshell, these guys all seem to favor an AR15 and/or a semiauto handgun with a weapon mounted light. Each of the guys in the video are highly trained individuals who have seen real action in some very elite units. To me they are the Bill Jordans and Jeff Coopers of modern times. I've trained with a few of them and they most certainly know their business.

 

[Old Dog]

Eight "experts" and eight different takes. Shocking.

Whatever you own, train with it.

And don't cheap out on flashlights or your weapon-mounted lights. Ever. Yes, CR-123 batteries are pricey. What price do you put on your life or the welfare of those in your house?

 

[MachIVshooter]

Wife and I keep two Remington RP9s and a 10.5" 5.56 AR, weapon lights and suppressors on all.

Why the RP9? 18+1 capacity, very ergonomic, and one of the most reliable striker fired pistols with a can. Sorry, Glock guys, but they're just not great suppressor hosts, and a lot of other popular models choke with a can as well. The RPs just run.

 

[The_Quartermaster]

Wife and I keep two Remington RP9s and a 10.5" 5.56 AR, weapon lights and suppressors on all.

Why the RP9? 18+1 capacity, very ergonomic, and one of the most reliable striker fired pistols with a can. Sorry, Glock guys, but they're just not great suppressor hosts, and a lot of other popular models choke with a can as well. The RPs just run.

Do you both train and taken classes together and things like teams of two? Just curious. And interesting choice of a secondary, which brings me ask, who handles warranty and spare parts since Remington went under and divvied up?

 

[MachIVshooter]

Do you both train and taken classes together and things like teams of two? Just curious.

Not as much as we should be, but yes. We have a private range on our property, just no time raising 4 kids and running a manufacturing company.

interesting choice of a secondary, which brings me ask, who handles warranty and spare parts since Remington went under and divvied up?

I have four RPs, two 9s and two 45s, none have needed anything. I bought a pile of magazines when big green went bankrupt, and grabbed some extra slides and barrels for the 9s when they were being liquidated for dirt, but those are just collecting dust.

Warranties and availability of parts also just aren't that much of a concern when you're a machinist and gunsmith who has a full machine shop with 3, 4 and 5 axis CNCs plus all the manual machines.

And that's how know which hosts tend to be the better option. We manufacture, repair and upgrade suppressors, and also provide barrel threading services and custom adapters for handguns that threaded barrels aren't available for, which includes the RPs.

 

[.455_Hunter]

When your viable home defense threat matrix includes fur-covered, four-legged perps weighing up to a few hundred pounds, your weapon selection varies a bit from the defensive "experts".

 

[The_Quartermaster]

When your viable home defense threat matrix includes fur-covered, four-legged perps weighing up to a few hundred pounds, your weapon selection varies a bit from the defensive "experts".

Why the quotation marks about them being called experts? Are they not SME? Pretty sure there's even video footage of Delta using K9's during a raid in Syria under Trump's tenure as POTUS. And weapon mounted lights to ID before choosing to shoot or not was very much being mentioned. Did they really have to explain why the lights were there to begin with as it was common sense to me at least.

 

[JeeperCreeper]

I always ignore new ideas, opinions, perspective, and information.

Because I'm grumpy.

 

[.455_Hunter]

Why the quotation marks about them being called experts?

My natural cynical response to nearly 35 years following the pronouncements of few generations of defensive talking heads. This includes many massive disconnects in the logic presented versus the real life experiences that I have either been a participant or witness/close-associate in inner-city, urban, semi-rural, rural and wilderness threat environments. They just don't blow up my skirt much anymore. Potentially interesting and useful?- Maybe. Gospel on how to plan for a defensive situation?- Not really. Your mileage may vary.

 

[pharmer]

Yeah, I guess my "operator level" is just not up to mastering a 10.5" 5.56 AR in my living room. I'll just keep the CZ P07 close by for now. Joe

 

[CDW4ME]

The gun I'll most likely use for HD is the one I'm carrying, a Glock 34 or 22; its on my belt all day and handy at night.
I have a AR and Shockwave which I've not shot in a few years; the Glocks get shot at least monthly, or more often.

 

[thirty-eight]

For whatever reason, I prefer to read text vs watching videos..

Me too.

 

[StrawHat]

My natural cynical response to nearly 35 years following the pronouncements of few generations of defensive talking heads. This includes many massive disconnects in the logic presented versus the real life experiences that I have either been a participant or witness/close-associate in inner-city, urban, semi-rural, rural and wilderness threat environments. They just don't blow up my skirt much anymore. Potentially interesting and useful?- Maybe. Gospel on how to plan for a defensive situation?- Not really. Your mileage may vary.

I agree. Many of these Special Operators have plenty of terrorist experience but no experience with in home invasions. There is a difference.

Kevin

 

[jar]

On lights.

These days weapon mounted lights for home defense seem, at least to me, to be absolutely the wrong choice.

Today it is relatively cheap and easy to have intelligent house lighting that can be voice or cell phone controlled and allow the homeowner to determine which areas are lighted (and recorded) and which areas are in the dark. For example entryway lights can be motion detecting and also IOT with voice and cell phone control.

The weapon mounted light is both directional and lights a limited area. It also has to be in the same room as the potential target and does pinpoint where the threat to the target is located.

Having smart lights and smart cameras seems to me to be better than a weapon mounted light for several reasons. First, I do not intend to go to the threat but rather move to where I might have an advantage. I only want to protect people, and that's best done by preparation and training (growing up we had fire drills at night at home as well as exist drills for storms with set rendezvous points).

 

[Remington1911]

Eight SO CALLED "experts" and eight different takes. Shocking.

Whatever you own, train with it.

And don't cheap out on flashlights or your weapon-mounted lights. Ever. Yes, CR-123 batteries are pricey. What price do you put on your life or the welfare of those in your house?

Let me fix that for you.....

I made it to the first guy and stopped knowing how it would go.

So you are a seal, what in that position will qualify you to say anything valid about a "home defense" gun? Answer not one single thing.

Oh he was a "seal", or this guy was a green beret, or that guy was an "operator".....really like dial zero?

Your thoughts and views carry as much weight as mine do and are just as valid. Hay Mr. Seal you have any experience with a wigged out tweeker on your door step, or half in half out of your window. Or that guy that just comes up behind you and sucker punches you in the back of the head, don't care how much of an "operator" you are, hit you in the back of the head out of the blue with a brick all your training and experience goes right out the window.

But they are at least making a good living being "internet experts".

 

[Buzznrose]

Let me fix that for you.....

I made it to the first guy and stopped knowing how it would go.

So you are a seal, what in that position will qualify you to say anything valid about a "home defense" gun? Answer not one single thing.

Oh he was a "seal", or this guy was a green beret, or that guy was an "operator".....really like dial zero?

Your thoughts and views carry as much weight as mine do and are just as valid. Hay Mr. Seal you have any experience with a wigged out tweeker on your door step, or half in half out of your window. Or that guy that just comes up behind you and sucker punches you in the back of the head, don't care how much of an "operator" you are, hit you in the back of the head out of the blue with a brick all your training and experience goes right out the window.

But they are at least making a good living being "internet experts".

I have to disagree…

These folks you question have all had many hundreds, if not thousands of hours of training to clear rooms, hunt for threats, and identify bad guys in split seconds. They are the ones who went into the life or death situations.

Their level of situational awareness is pretty high considering you live it for many years, it just becomes a part of your world. Could they get sucker punched? Yes…but not nearly as easily as most folks…and chances are they already identified the person as a
potential threat before any action took place.

They are also way more skilled in weapons handling, manipulation, and marksmanship than 95% of the planet. They have been “on the two way range”
and lived to tell the tales, so they have real world experience. They have also participated in many after action briefs where shooting and missions were debriefed to identify mistakes made and lessons to learn from.

these guys train the folks who go carry guns to protect us, as well as the citizens who participate in their own protection.

they are not 20 something air soft internet warriors…they are seasoned professionals.

Edited to bring my post to THR standards.

 

[FlyBri]

Just wondering who would a home defense expert be if not a spec ops guy? IMO these guys are the experts based on their experience and training. To me it's not only about their experience with different weapons platforms and hours of training. It's also about their observation skills and level of preparedness.

 

[FL-NC]

I agree. Many of these Special Operators have plenty of terrorist experience but no experience with in home invasions. There is a difference.

Kevin

Which type of fight do you think is more difficult to win? Based on my experience, the defender(s) with the right training, equipment, and planning who are executing that rehearsed plan with a home field advantage will be better off than the aggressor who probably has none of those things, and who will likely be forced to maneuver.

 

[bearcreek]

I agree. Many of these Special Operators have plenty of terrorist experience but no experience with in home invasions. There is a difference.

Kevin

Pretty tough to find anyone who has extensive experience (on the defense side) with home invasions specifically.

 

[FL-NC]

These days weapon mounted lights for home defense seem, at least to me, to be absolutely the wrong choice.

They have been a standard accessory on LE handguns for a while and on handguns in the SOF community for even longer. The advantages can't be understated, and since the time and circumstances of an incident aren't determined by the defender but by the aggressor, they can never hurt.

Today it is relatively cheap and easy to have intelligent house lighting that can be voice or cell phone controlled and allow the homeowner to determine which areas are lighted (and recorded) and which areas are in the dark

That is a lot of technology to rely on- tech that may not be there in the wake of a disaster, not to mention multi-tasking the use of that tech under less than optimal conditions and a whole bunch of stress. People in these times of chaos rarely rise to the occasion- they almost always fall to their level of training.

The weapon mounted light is both directional and lights a limited area. It also has to be in the same room as the potential target and does pinpoint where the threat to the target is located.

If the weapon/light is in the same area as the threat, then the threat is in the same room as YOU. That is the time for rapid target ID and engagement. The light is a tool that must be trained PROPERLY with in order to be used correctly. Hint- you probably need professional training in order to do this.

First, I do not intend to go to the threat but rather move to where I might have an advantage.

Just about every fight of every kind I have ever been in, at some point I had to make a decision and do something that I didn't want to do, or that wasn't ideal, but was done as the best bad choice. Trying to choreograph what a fight might look like as a plan will almost always end in that plan being a list of things that didn't happen.