Weapons Rarely Used to Defend Home

[VegasGeorge]

This is an interesting study:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7769769&dopt=AbstractPlus

The conclusion, "Although firearms are often kept in the home for protection, they are rarely used for this purpose.", really shocks me.

I think I know what's going on here. Yes, we keep weapons in the home for "protection." But, where are they when we need them? Do you get your gun before you answer the door every time? Is your gun so handy that you could get to it if a bad guy rushed in through the garage?

I'm considering a comfy open carry holster to wear around the house. Do you think that is going too far? What about those statistics?

[Clark]

VegasGeorge - I could not agree more about packing around the house. My family has had several neighbors and friends that have been victims of home invasions. Some have been tied up and beaten and others have barely gotten out alive. Personally we have been very close to having bad guys trying things on our family.

We also put hand safes around the house so that my wife and I can get to the loaded guns quickly and leave them locked up. 99% I have one on. You do not know when you will be surprised.

The Kangaroo holster is comfy and works well for all day wear even in gym shorts. I can carry a .357 snubby or a Springfield Arms .45 all day in shorts and no one even knows.

I also like the shoulder holster when working around the ranch. It is just like a tool that you put on and hope to never use.

Any other opinions?

[EddieMossberg]

I agree as well, I have a gun on my side as I type this. Glock 26 IWB 3:00. I'm breaking in a new holster right now, but I usually have something in close proximity at home. Everything else is locked up, to help prevent theft. The dogs help too, my two Border Collies. :D

[BikerRN]

I have a handgun on me from the time I wake up until I go to bed. I answer the door armed. :)

With that said, I thought this was going to be about various weapons one rarely uses for Home Defense. I was thinking maybe a Sharps 45-70. :D

Biker

[jayspapa2002]

While I don't carry in a holster at home , I do have a gun within easy reach at all times. Have a .45 gold cup 6 inches from my hand as I type this. Yes I do answer the door with a gun in my hand unless I know the person well or it is family. I have a Jack Russel terrier that lets me know when someone is at the door also. I am glad to see i am not the only one who likes to be prepared..

[Sky Pilot]

Pardon the larger type, it's easier on my eyes.

Concerning the original (and highly flawed) premise that firearms are so seldom used in defense of the home:
We're not trying to run up a body count.
We are not out to statistically establish a score of dead and wounded.
We are interested in keeping ourselves SAFE.
Simply HAVING a firearm in the home does that.
I have in the past let it be discreetly known that I was armed and hostilities ceased immediately.
I carry in home and out.
We're seeing more and more instances of criminals traveling to the less urban areas to kick the door and plunder, then return to their concrete jungle.
I don't know about their study.
I do know my actual experience.
I've had to keep my home safe in the past, and I had firearm in hand when I did.
I prefer a 1911 to an umbrella for defending my castle.

[tuna]

If I don't answer the door with firearm at hand, then I have OC IN hand, or flashlight ready to club.
I also keep my combat boots by the door (at wife's request) so that I can easily put one on, to block the door against a shove.

[VegasGeorge]

I prefer a 1911 to an umbrella for defending my castle.

Gives a whole new meaning to the british term, "brawley," doesn't it?


I also keep my combat boots by the door (at wife's request) so that I can easily put one on, to block the door against a shove.

Rue the day when you come home to find your combat boots on the porch! :lol:

[tuna]

Rue the day when you come home to find your combat boots on the porch! :lol:

Nah, I'm not worried, I married a fellow NCO. That means I've got beauty and brains in one package

[magnum]

This is an interesting study:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7769769&dopt=AbstractPlus

The conclusion, "Although firearms are often kept in the home for protection, they are rarely used for this purpose.", really shocks me.

I think I know what's going on here. Yes, we keep weapons in the home for "protection." But, where are they when we need them? Do you get your gun before you answer the door every time? Is your gun so handy that you could get to it if a bad guy rushed in through the garage?

I'm considering a comfy open carry holster to wear around the house. Do you think that is going too far? What about those statistics?


I think the bigger question is why did the U.S. national Library of Medicine and Institute of Health feel this information so important to do a study? What medical benefits can come from it? Nothing medical related was identified in the article which was probably done with government funding.

Now on the study itself. They did a 60 day study on a population of about 405,000 and determined that only 1.5% of victims used a firearm for defense? You would need a study on the magnitude of about 5 years to get reliable information.

Sorry, I think this article is nothing more than anti-gunners run amuck :evil:


As far as carrying a holster around the house. No, that is not going to far. In fact having a gun in every room of the house, plus one on your side is still not going to far in my opinion. As I sit here at my computer late at night typeing I can count 3 guns laying near me and at least 2 full 45 mags for my primary.

[pioneer461]

I've seen similar studies, where the "use of a firearm" was only a factor when someone was shot. If a firearm was simply brandished, thus scaring off the intruder, it doesn't show up in the "study." I'd be very skeptical of any study from a university, most of which have an anti-gun bias.

[duc_fan]

+1 to what pioneer said. A number of these studies are flawed because the data is incomplete (i.e. applicable events go unreported because no shots were fired and/or no injuries or death).

I smell anti-gun bias as well.

When I'm home, sometime I carry, sometimes I just keep the SIG and a full spare mag within easy arm's reach. I need to find a holster I can wear comfortably while sitting on the couch with my SIG P220 Carry. The cheap plastic Uncle Mike's paddle holster doesn't cut it... it's either too loose to retain the gun, or the whole bloody thing comes off my waistband when I draw. :roll:

Anyway, I keep one or more firearms within easy reach when I'm home. I live alone, so having it sit on the couch next to me or on the coffee table isn't a problem (no kids to worry about).

[Dogman]

Something to look at is FAST (Firearm Access System Technologies)
www.fastholster.com