Training Topic of the Week #2 - Handgun selection for home defense for a "non shooter"

[NASAcollector]

When one with limited skills or none with firearms ask me about what’s good for home defense I say revolver. .357 would do since it can be loaded with 38 special for practice then 357 for home.

That is absolutely horrendous advice and you should change your recommendations. Firing a .38 target round, compared to a defense .357 round inside of a room or hallway at night, is ridiculously different. I teach everyone with my mantra of "you practice like you play and you play like you practice".

My partner shot an armed robber with an S&W 28 4", 5 times from 8ft with Federal 158gr JHP. Every round hit center mass torso, penetrated the bad guy, went through the plate glass window and hit a banks window, a bus stop, and a brick building across the street.

The bad guy ran around our display cases, out the front door and 2 blocks away dropped over dead. Please learn WTF you're talking about when recommending calibers to FNG's, because it was by the grace of God that innocent people weren't hit by my partners gunfire.

As far as the revolver vs auto, if you're truly interested in defending your family and yourself from motivated predators, you're a complete fool to think that 6 rounds in a gunfight is enough. Not only is training required, but I insist that new gun owners use passwords for loved ones, to avoid friendly fire and panic shootings.

Personally I use a 10.5" AR pistol with a laser, loaded with Winchester 40gr frangible, so if I miss the bullet won't penetrate a wall, door or window and hit an innocent person. If someone isn't a gun fan, a Glock 19 is the perfect 1st gun because of the versatility, reliability and you can have 33rds to protect your family.

 

[sonofeugene]

But revolvers do have their place. I have a neighbor who was a fire chief in a local city. He was up on a ladder and fell, breaking his neck. He’s now mostly paralyzed and considered to be a quadriplegic. His gun of choice is a revolver. He’d prefer a semi but he can’t rack the slide.

 

[Deadcoyote]

I appreciate what a lot of you guys are saying, but you have to work with the person who wants the gun. The OP says what handgun for a person who doesn’t know about guns. From there I think you have to divide down into willing and wanting to train or wants to take to the range once and familiarize themselves and keep it on a shelf.

A lot of folks will say “if they don’t want to train they don’t deserve to own the gun”. There’s certainly some truth to that but simultaneously people should still have an affirmative right to self defense especially considering the eroding landscape of services within this state. I know the question was what handgun but I (at the risk of sounding like Joe Biden) still think a simple side by side shotgun combined with teaching folks basics of hard corners and holding long hallways and calling 911 and putting it on speaker immediately can serve them well.

 

[percolate]

I can't imagine expecting a newbie with minimal training to hit a target with a double action trigger pull.

 

[sjb323]

I can't imagine expecting a newbie with minimal training to hit a target with a double action trigger pull.

Training methodology has evolved so much in the last decade, it is absolutely possible for a good instructor to get a newbie to make hits with a double action pistol. Maintaining proficiency after the lesson is a different story. That's up to how much the student invests in what they've been taught.

The days of "slow smooth press straight to the rear attempting to achieve a surprise break" are coming to an end, and good riddance. The much more applicable and easier to absorb "practical shooting" is proving its merits even within some of the larger and very dogmatic police agencies. Double action isn't ideal for a new shooter, but it can definitely be done.

I appreciate what a lot of you guys are saying, but you have to work with the person who wants the gun. The OP says what handgun for a person who doesn’t know about guns. From there I think you have to divide down into willing and wanting to train or wants to take to the range once and familiarize themselves and keep it on a shelf.

A lot of folks will say “if they don’t want to train they don’t deserve to own the gun”. There’s certainly some truth to that but simultaneously people should still have an affirmative right to self defense especially considering the eroding landscape of services within this state. I know the question was what handgun but I (at the risk of sounding like Joe Biden) still think a simple side by side shotgun combined with teaching folks basics of hard corners and holding long hallways and calling 911 and putting it on speaker immediately can serve them well.

Maybe not a great analogy, but if someone said, "I want to get a car, but I don't want any behind the wheel training, I don't want a license, and I'm only going to drive once a year", would you help them pick out a car?

 

[sonofeugene]

One of my sisters bought her first gun. A 357 magnum. I’ve forgotten the brand/model. At her first time at the range, with her instructor watching, she was making 6” groupings at center mass.

 

[NASAcollector]

My last pearl of wisdom, after doing a CCW clinic put on by a 2A lawyer in Arizona, he said "If you remember 1 thing remember this, EVERY bullet comes with it's own attorney and when you pull the trigger on a bad guy, be prepared to have your life gone over by every Gov't agency for the next year".

You're a fool to think that merely owning a gun makes you safe. If you're not willing to put in the time to practice and become proficient, buy Bear spray. Like someone said earlier, would you allow someone to drive a car without practicing ?

 

[NorCalBusa]

I can't imagine expecting a newbie with minimal training to hit a target with a double action trigger pull.

I did, 50 years ago. Of course a newb won't shoot well, with any gun. Part of the fun is developing the skill and control- as your ability grows, anyone is going to shoot better. Starting with a revolver or a semi auto I don't think much matters. Learn the fundamentals, get a good coach/partner and put the time in doing "real" practice, not just counting how many rounds you fired. Not too long ago, kids learned with their dad's wheel gun.

 

[sicks]

this is an area where i think the option shouldnt be limited to handgun. my wife doesnt shoot often and i did get her a 9mm revolver for home defense. However, after a handful of visits (spread out over 1.5 yrs) to the range with her, She is way more comfortable and accurate shooting something she can brace. While these have primarily been .22lr (M&P 15-22 and 10/22) - I believe a PCC is the best option. I do the cleaning etc - if braces were legal, answer would change

 

[H. Bowman]

this is an area where i think the option shouldnt be limited to handgun. my wife doesnt shoot often and i did get her a 9mm revolver for home defense. However, after a handful of visits (spread out over 1.5 yrs) to the range with her, She is way more comfortable and accurate shooting something she can brace. While these have primarily been .22lr (M&P 15-22 and 10/22) - I believe a PCC is the best option. I do the cleaning etc - if braces were legal, answer would change

Shes way better off with a reliable 10/22 she's comfortable with than anything else she isn't.

 

[sicks]

Shes way better off with a reliable 10/22 she's comfortable with than anything else she isn't.

for sure would get her to shoot the pcc as much as possible and hopefully be as comfortable as she is with the .22lr. I do prefer 9mm for longer term solution if it works out tho

 

[Ryan Gosling]

That is absolutely horrendous advice and you should change your recommendations. Firing a .38 target round, compared to a defense .357 round inside of a room or hallway at night, is ridiculously different. I teach everyone with my mantra of "you practice like you play and you play like you practice".

Unrelated story-

Way way way back in the day, the (i believe it was) romans were on the march to war. They were going to face against a heavily armored, and outnumbering group of soldiers that was expected to be a tough battle. Little did they know, the heavily armored soldiers never really trained for fighting inside of their armor, opting instead to train nude or in cloth for the heat.

By the time the battle started, the enemy soldiers quickly became exhausted from the sweltering heat trapped by their armor, and extra 30 lbs or so of weight. They were crushed.

Train how you fight is still taught to this day because of things like this happening