Tweet
Geez,, no one mentioned a Ruger 10-22 yet.
That is the second gun to get after the 12 gauge.
I am a strong proponent of the Remington 870 with a 28" or 26" vent rib with Remchoke and a shorter barrel rifle site with Remchoke. Mine is a 21" but would get a 18.5" (that matches the +2 mag length better than the 18").
Amazing as it sounds with the Rifled Remchoke and 1oz slugs I can freehand stand shoot and hit a 8" 90% of the time at 150 yards, +50% at 200 yards, and can hit a 12" gong at 300 yards about a third of the time (takes some practice to figure out how high to aim up).
That makes the shotgun a fairly decent long range weapon in a pinch so for the first rifle, so to speak, get the combo barrel kit. Big 5 sells these with the Mossberg, but be careful as they also sell a cheaper version without the removable chokes.
As an aside there are now removable chokes with flash/muzzle brakes and one specially designed to use with a door breaching round to make it near idiot proof to shoot out a door lock without loosing energy by standing off or blowing up the barrel by keeping it tight against the door.
You can also get flares, teargas, less lethal rubber rounds.
For the house you can get low base #8 which will knock anyone on there asse at indoor distances (maximum 60 foot like say in your hall). This one has the least amount of penetration though even this one will go through two sheets of sheetrock but will be stopped by the front/back wall of a lathe and plaster. Two sheets of sheetrock does significantly reduce the energy of these though.
For the more powerful AK/AR style rifles, you can get those frangible rounds for inside the house defense that do not go through your wall and the neighbors wall so those could be used as well (actually if I don't use a shotgun, then I would want to use a handgun for inside the house defense due to small size and ease of use when in confined areas and because distances would be short).
Other than the Ruger 10-22 and a combo shotgun there really is no basic weapons to get as from there your budget and requirements will dictate what to get.
Many favor the AR15 16" with collapsing stock (M-4 style). It has decent accuracy and is like an erector set in what you can do to it.
Others favor the AK series as it is 1/3 less in price and ammo is a bit cheaper especially in regards to cheap ammo as it is far more reliable shooting cheap ammo than the AR series. It is also a far better rifle for one that sits for years and years without maintenance and being able to be picked up and shot even if it is beginning to rust and get dirty.
For strictly home defense I would recommend one of these. There is also the Kel-Tec or Ruger Mini which were once favored before OLL and are still favored by some who do not want to be hassled by ignorant and poorly trained law enforcement who may see your AR/AK as an assault weapon because they don't bother keeping up with the latest interpretations from the courts or AG.
For handguns if you are unsure what to get then get a Glock 19. Alternative I am partial to the Smith & Wesson air weight 5 shot as being a revolver it is far more reliable if just stored loaded and not maintained. It is also a far better concealed weapon as you can bring it into action from inside your jacket pocket and not have to "brandish" the weapon. In other words you can be battle ready without showing your cards, which is especially good if you misinterpret the situation and also does not escalate it either. A semi-automatic on the other hand can only be shot once reliably from your pocket and would likely then jam so its best to take those out of your pocket and brandish.
If you will be practicing a lot then I would go for a stronger pistol caliber like the 40 or 45 and get the Glock or last years fad the XD40.
Another possibility that folks choose when on a budget and wanting an "everything" home defense rifle, is a milsurp C&R. Use to be till only a few years back you could get one and 500 rounds of ammo for just over $100 and had lots to choose from.
Now a days your choice is really limited to the Russian Mosin Nagant. These can be had with 500 rounds of ammo for as little as $200, though this price is going up every day (though rumor has it the South Korea has authorized its military to sell off its Post Korean War Weapons supplied by the US which includes over 800,000 garands and 250,000 carbines as well as the ammo reserves for these so maybe the $500 garand and $300 carbine will make a comeback).
That is the second gun to get after the 12 gauge.
I am a strong proponent of the Remington 870 with a 28" or 26" vent rib with Remchoke and a shorter barrel rifle site with Remchoke. Mine is a 21" but would get a 18.5" (that matches the +2 mag length better than the 18").
Amazing as it sounds with the Rifled Remchoke and 1oz slugs I can freehand stand shoot and hit a 8" 90% of the time at 150 yards, +50% at 200 yards, and can hit a 12" gong at 300 yards about a third of the time (takes some practice to figure out how high to aim up).
That makes the shotgun a fairly decent long range weapon in a pinch so for the first rifle, so to speak, get the combo barrel kit. Big 5 sells these with the Mossberg, but be careful as they also sell a cheaper version without the removable chokes.
As an aside there are now removable chokes with flash/muzzle brakes and one specially designed to use with a door breaching round to make it near idiot proof to shoot out a door lock without loosing energy by standing off or blowing up the barrel by keeping it tight against the door.
You can also get flares, teargas, less lethal rubber rounds.
For the house you can get low base #8 which will knock anyone on there asse at indoor distances (maximum 60 foot like say in your hall). This one has the least amount of penetration though even this one will go through two sheets of sheetrock but will be stopped by the front/back wall of a lathe and plaster. Two sheets of sheetrock does significantly reduce the energy of these though.
For the more powerful AK/AR style rifles, you can get those frangible rounds for inside the house defense that do not go through your wall and the neighbors wall so those could be used as well (actually if I don't use a shotgun, then I would want to use a handgun for inside the house defense due to small size and ease of use when in confined areas and because distances would be short).
Other than the Ruger 10-22 and a combo shotgun there really is no basic weapons to get as from there your budget and requirements will dictate what to get.
Many favor the AR15 16" with collapsing stock (M-4 style). It has decent accuracy and is like an erector set in what you can do to it.
Others favor the AK series as it is 1/3 less in price and ammo is a bit cheaper especially in regards to cheap ammo as it is far more reliable shooting cheap ammo than the AR series. It is also a far better rifle for one that sits for years and years without maintenance and being able to be picked up and shot even if it is beginning to rust and get dirty.
For strictly home defense I would recommend one of these. There is also the Kel-Tec or Ruger Mini which were once favored before OLL and are still favored by some who do not want to be hassled by ignorant and poorly trained law enforcement who may see your AR/AK as an assault weapon because they don't bother keeping up with the latest interpretations from the courts or AG.
For handguns if you are unsure what to get then get a Glock 19. Alternative I am partial to the Smith & Wesson air weight 5 shot as being a revolver it is far more reliable if just stored loaded and not maintained. It is also a far better concealed weapon as you can bring it into action from inside your jacket pocket and not have to "brandish" the weapon. In other words you can be battle ready without showing your cards, which is especially good if you misinterpret the situation and also does not escalate it either. A semi-automatic on the other hand can only be shot once reliably from your pocket and would likely then jam so its best to take those out of your pocket and brandish.
If you will be practicing a lot then I would go for a stronger pistol caliber like the 40 or 45 and get the Glock or last years fad the XD40.
Another possibility that folks choose when on a budget and wanting an "everything" home defense rifle, is a milsurp C&R. Use to be till only a few years back you could get one and 500 rounds of ammo for just over $100 and had lots to choose from.
Now a days your choice is really limited to the Russian Mosin Nagant. These can be had with 500 rounds of ammo for as little as $200, though this price is going up every day (though rumor has it the South Korea has authorized its military to sell off its Post Korean War Weapons supplied by the US which includes over 800,000 garands and 250,000 carbines as well as the ammo reserves for these so maybe the $500 garand and $300 carbine will make a comeback).
Comment