jordan@greipa.UUCP (Jordan K. Hubbard) (09/20/85)
Article: 9:11 I, as the moderator, will take it upon myself (harumph) to answer your question. Actually, I'll just provide you with more-or-less universally proven data and a recommendation and you can make your own choice. [If I've made any mistakes, I expect some flame from you guys, the model numbers are off the top of my pointy head -jh] Home defense is something of a catagory unto itself. There are many factors to be considered. Some of these are: Type of dwelling: Tight hallways? Adequate cover / line of fire near bedroom? Adjacent dwellings? Danger to non-combatants from stray fire? Construction: Wood/Brick/Plaster walls? (for reasons above) Your skill: Good shot? Generally cool under stress? Used to handguns? Rifles? Would other members of family be using weapon(s)? Most home defense 'experts' advocate the use of the shotgun for defense. It is more intimidating, it tends to cover sloppy shooting and with light loads (not 00 buck!) it doesn't penetrate too far. It's also not likely to travel several blocks and nail somebody, the way a handgun round could. On the minus side, it's not manuverable in tight hallways. It's not as readily stored or as accessable. Unless you get a riot type shotgun (which I do not suggest), it's firepower can also be limited. You can obviously get a good pump holding 7 - 8 rounds, but they tend to be large and unwieldly. However, you asked about handguns, so let's go into that. In my opinion, the .45 ACP is the best all around defense weapon. I've carried one for years, and one's usually always close at hand. The round is a potent man stopper. When the time comes to actually fire on someone, you want them down as soon as possible. Its large caliber and low speed (about 700 f.p.s.) also make it a fairly 'safe' round in that it doesn't penetrate too far. A friend of mine accidently fired one into his wall. It did not penetrate, and we found that it had only gone in about 1 3/4 inches. I don't advocate this method of testing however, as we've never let him live it down. A potential fly in the ointment is that most .45's only hold 7 rounds. This should be plenty for most people, but if you're a bad shot, well.. Also, the .45 tends to kick a little too hard for most small handed women so if your wife will be using it, you might take her to the range first and let her try one. Safeties on the .45 (I'm speaking strictly colt) are OK, but you have the usual problem with single action autos in that you can't have a round ready to fire without having the weapon cocked and on safe. This is not really all that 'safe' and will compress your hammer spring if you store it that way for long periods. If you can rack the slide to chamber a round and cock the piece fairly quickly, then this shouldn't be a big deal. 9mm is getting increasingly popular. Some of the 9mm advantages are that you can usually get a double action piece that eliminates the safety problems with the .45.. You just pull the trigger on the first shot and it cocks the hammer (like a revolver). Each subsequent shot is single action since the hammer obviously cocks itself. 9mm's also have a lower recoil and usually carry about 14 shots. A few extra clips can make you a regular army. On the minus side, 9mm penetrates a LOT. In tests I have conducted, it's obvious that almost all 9's would penetrate the average wall and anyone behind it (I didn't use an actual wall, I tried to get my friend to test this and he declined, but effects on various targets has pointed this out). 9's do not have the stopping power of .45's. Certain ammunition such as the winchester silver tip are supposed to 'cure' this problem however by exhibiting great expansion. I'm a dyed-in-the-wool .45 man myself, so I won't let myself believe this .357 magnum pretty much rounds out the list. It's a great round and I like it (I own several .357's). But unless you're using special ammo like the BAT or Glaser Safety slug round, it will zip right through your adversary, the wall, the baby next door, the next wall, the couple in bed and finally come to rest out in the hallway. Definately an over-penetrator. However, if revolvers are your game, it's probably your best choice. There is quite a bit of ammo available that cures this problem resonably well. You can also use .38 special ammo in your .357 and plain old .38 if you want low-power ammo for the wife. This gun DOES kick. There are a number of other weird calibers and weapons, but these are the best representatives of their groups. They're also the most popular and boast the cheapest ammo. I HEARTILY recommend practicing at the range with your chosen weapon, even if using it only for home defense. You should be absolutely familiar with it. Practice at least once a month if you can. My recommendations for the weapons themselves are as follows: Colt .45 Government model or Combat Commander (a little smaller). Expect to pay around $500. Beretta 92SB 9mm. Best 9mm around. Failing this, the S&W model 59. Around $400 for the beretta, $350.00 for the S&W Colt .357 Python. The cadillac of .357's and well worth it (I've had two of them). If the price makes your heart stop (around $650) then a nice S&W model 49 is not a bad choice at around $300.