What is the best style/model handgun for home protection?
preppy20 asked:
I went and looked at some guns this week and am having trouble deciding what style to get. Strictly for home protection, I want it to take someone down if need be on the first shot. I’ve decided against the .22, and many people are telling me a 9mm is not powerful enough. Would a .38 be the next step up? I’ll probably get a used gun, and would like to stay around $400-$500.
I went and looked at some guns this week and am having trouble deciding what style to get. Strictly for home protection, I want it to take someone down if need be on the first shot. I’ve decided against the .22, and many people are telling me a 9mm is not powerful enough. Would a .38 be the next step up? I’ll probably get a used gun, and would like to stay around $400-$500.
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Your surest bet is a .357 mag revolver. Reliability in a semi-auto, such as 9mm, is very, very good, but not as good as in a revolver. Those telling you a 9mm is not powerful enough are mistaken. The military wouldn’t use it so much if that were the case.
A .38 is not more powerful than the 9mm, but the .357 mag is, and you can shoot .38s in that gun for cheap practice rounds as well.
Get a Colt, Smith and Wesson, or Ruger.
I like the .357 magnum. I just bought one used for $200 in excellent condition. I prefer revolver over semi auto-
Ease of use: Revolvers are truly point and shoot. No safeties or complex procedures inhibit putting a revolver into action.
Reliability: Blockages and malfunctions are virtually impossible in a revolver. A dud round is cleared by a simple pull of the trigger.
More stopping power: The largest and most powerful handgun rounds are rimmed rounds for revolvers only.
Storage: Revolvers and speedloaders can be stored loaded indefinitely with no issues. Semi-auto magazines have springs under tension when loaded.
More variety in ammunition: Revolvers can chamber virtually any cartridge, including wadcutters, which will malfunction a semi-auto.
Easier to determine if loaded: bullets in a loaded revolver are readily apparent. An unloaded semi-auto is often visually identical to a loaded one.
Easier to clean and maintain: Revolvers have few exposed moving pieces and do not require disassembly.
yes go with a quality revolver,, in at least 357 smith colt etc ,, however a 12 pump is the best for home,,,,,, ok tu eddie
get a .44 revolver
As others have said, the .357 revolver is your best bet for a handgun. Get hollow point bullets for it.
Otherwise, a nice short barreled shotgun like a Remington 870 Express or Mossberg 500 are great for home defense too. 00 buckshot will take anyone down.
IMO, handguns are not the right answer for home protection. Those suggesting a .357 need to think things through a bit more. Lets say you miss your target. Where is that round going to go? It’s going right through your walls and possibly into the neighbors. The person talking about how great a 9mil is because the military uses them… Handguns are for the most part only carried by officers and the 9mil is vastly weaker that the old .45s. The military doesn’t want a round that kills. The militay wants rounds that cause wounds which place a burden on the rest of the enemies infrastructure, ie medical, transportation, food, etc. Dead men cost no money to feed, cloth, heal… Wounded men do.
What you need is a short barreled shotgun such as the Winchester Defender. Such a firearm has good stopping power, has a large pattern which means you will more likely hit what you are aiming at and the stray rounds will not be spilling over into other rooms and houses. You also get the added benefit of the scare factor that just racking a round into the chamber provides. If someone is in your house and hears that slide, they will know right away that you have a very large weapon and be on their way out. Handguns are for concealed carry and the movies.
Double think you decision on a pistol because a shotgun would be far better suited for this task. 20ga or 12ga bird shot wont penetrate the wall as much as a pistol round will.
If you really want to get a pistol, you will need to practice with it often to make sure you can hit your target. Calibers for home protection from smallest to most powerful, .38special, 9mm, 40s&w, .357sig, .45acp, 357mag. All of these WILL stop a person.
357mag revolvers can also shoot the 38special. The 9mm has plenty of stopping power, regardless of what others think. Yes people have been shot with 9mm a few times and survive, but the same is true for EVERY caliber. Hell ive read reports of wild hogs being shot 4 times with a .30-06 and it still didnt drop and kept charging…Granted your not gonna have a wild animal charge you in your own home(hopefully) but you get the idea.
I agree the .22 is almost worthless for self defense, the 9 is NOT too weak, i fact it is the opposite, it tends to over penetrate (small bullet moving at high speed) which can endanger others, The .38 special is a very good choice and since it is in a revolver, it is almost ideal for the layman to use for self defense. I say this because it has no safeties to try to fumble with under stress, jams are almost non existent, it is accurate, you have no slide to operate etc etc. This is not to say that a pistol isn’t an excellent choice, just that the person using it should be trained in the operation of the pistol, which takes more training than does a revolver. For self defense, I prefer a pistol, chambered in .45acp, but I have well over 30 years experience and training with them. I still use revolvers, especially when handgun hunting.
May I suggest that you look at the Ruger revolvers? the SP100 and SP 101 are excellent choices and under your budget amount. One is a 6 shot .38 spcl, the other is a 5 shot .357 magnum. Both shoot .38 spcl , but one can also handle .357 magnum.
Avoid charter arms, try to avoid Taurus and stay away from Rossi. If you can’t afford a new one, try the local pawn shops and remember that cash talks and pawn shops will haggle a lot on price. Also, look for police trade ins.
Good luck and shoot safe
First you must decide if you prefer a revolver or a pistol. Are you an apartment dweller or do you share your living accommodations with others? Then consider Frangible Ammunition which does not go through drywall endangering others.
There is nothing wrong with the 9mm for defensive purposes but ammo selection does become critical. Other than Frangible rounds from manufacturers like Glasier the best defensive ammo for the 9mm is the 115 to 127 grain jacketed hollow-points.
If you decide on a wheelgun consider the .357 Magnum which also fires the .38 Special family of bullets. With the .38 pick a quality defensive round in the 110 to 125 grain semi-jacketed hollow-point configuration. Frangible Ammunition is also available for the .38/.357 Magnum.
In any case I wouldn’t go with anything smaller than a .380 Auto or .38 Special revolver.
Good luck.
H
The best handgun is the one that you’re able to be the most proficient
with. Next I wouldn’t choose anything smaller than a 9mm or .38 special. As for whether to choose a revolver over an auto depends on your level of skill and familiarity with handguns as well as the amount of time you’re willing to devote to training and practice. The revolver is simpler to learn to operate and is less prone to malfunction. Probably the most overlooked consideration as far as caliber is the safety of innocent people living in your house. Rounds with high knockdown capability and velocity low enough to avoid penetrating walls, furniture and so on and hitting someone in another room(someone you’re trying to protect not kill) such as children are a good choice. Remember we do not always hit the intended target every time. That’s why .40 S&W and .45acp are a good choice. Glazer saftey slugs and other ammunition designed specificly for home defense should be looked into. Contrary to popular belief the shotgun(even a short barreled one) has a lot of drawbacks compared to a handgun the most notable being the tactical disadvantage of manuvering a long gun through narrow hallways and around corners and past open doorways where someone might well be waiting to snatch it away from you. Also the second hand needed to operate a long gun could be used to hold a flashlight when using a handgun. Additionally a load of 12 guage 00 buck or a slug may,and probably will, over penetrate walls endangering innocent people. Find the weapon that fits you best and get out there on the range and practice…a lot. And don’t just practice shooting but set up realistic senarios and practice speed reloading and bldg. clearing.
9mm is plenty of power for home defense if you buy the right ammo. If you are looking for semi-auto it goes 9mm, .40s&w, and .45acp (most common). .38sp is for revolvers.
You can probably buy a new gun at the budgeted price you have. Taurus 24/7 Pros are about 450. Springfield Armory XDs (my fav) are about 500-550 unless you find a good deal for under 500. The Ruger SR9 is only 440 by me. These are all new in box (NIB).
If you are new to handguns or have limited experience with handguns I would start with a 9mm. Definitely the better round to learn on due to the less recoil and lower cost for target ammo. You should be taking your gun to the range for practice at least once a month. 9mm ammo is about 20 bucks for 100 rounds at walmart…any of the other calibers are going to be at least 10 bucks more.
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Gunbroker.com has some great prices if you wish to look there.
My 9mm kicks harder than any 38, truth is, they all do. A 9mm is enough gun. A .357 just gives you the chance to kill someone a block away. The real question is - do you plan on using roundnose ammo or hollow points? That really has more to do with how much it might go through walls, etc. Bigger, or Faster, or Stronger doesn’t really make that much sense if you live in town or a city.