[ajacobs]

So you a sleeping soundly when you are startled awake by a bump in the night. Now I know most of us say that if there is an intruder you would just wait in your room and call the police, but suppose you need to go investigate or leave your room for whatever reason. Either to get the kids gathered up, or becuase after waiting while you didn't here anything else and before you can get back to sleep you have to check the house. My second assumption is that you would be checking it out with a long arm (either your trusty 12 bore or urban carbine).

Do you also bring a handgun and if so how do you carry it?

I started with a fobus paddle but even my underoos don't hold it up so that was quickly abandoned.

Then I went to a invention of my own that I had a company produce I call the "bedside bandoleer" Which was very similar to pacsafe made by The Wilderness only with a shoulder strap and no top flap but with 2 mag puches sewn on the outside as well as a carrier for a handheld surefire. It works pretty well, has everything in one spot and doesn't scare people if you pick it up before you answer the door, etc. The disadvantages are that it can swing around (which is annoying in its own right) and can swing out of a fairly easy draw possition. Also the spare mags are left on the strong side slowing speed of reload.

I was considering purchasing a belt that for lack of a better word would be "police/patrol" style. Something with a large fastex buckle so that it can go on easy and quick could carry extra long gun rounds, the pistol and spare mags properly and anything else. Of course this isn't as concealed and could appear very poorly in court, what are your thought?

I could also attach a lenth of cloth to the bottom of the belt all the way around for something to cover my boxers then I would have the first tactical kilt :)

[Onslaught]

I don't take a longarm to "clear the house", so I just carry my pistol in-hand.

With UTL attached, I've got the pistol and flashlight on one hand, with the other hand free to open doors or dial 911.

Your invention does sound interesting though. I made something similar for a .22 pistol just so I could throw it on and go. I used the holster from an old Uncle Mike's shoulder rig, and a rifle sling to make my own quick-on quick-off range toter for my rimmy.

[TooTaxed]

Handgun in hand. I used to use a P-38...found the protruding pin useful to indicate a round in the chamber.

Be very cautious about firing...most of the time that "bump in the night" will be one of your kids.

[10-Ring]

Because of the layout of my house, I would have to get up & check other occupants of the house. I would have my nightstand gun in hand (currently, my USPc 9 has that duty).

[Ala Dan]

Greeting's Folk's-

Like other's have stated, clearing the house with the
trusty ole' Remington 12 gague 870 Marine Magnum
would put other household member's at risk; so I
rountinely check out the situation with my .45 caliber
SIG-Sauer P220A in my hand.

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

[Dr.Rob]

No kids, if I'm worrying about a bump in the night my pistol will be in my hand, never gave too much thought about needing to carry a spare mag inside the house...

hmmm makes you wonder how those folks who sleep au natural carry spares?:scrutiny:

For the late night knock on the door when no one should be knocking just slip your pistol into your bathrobe pocket.. most terrycloth robes have HUGE pockets, heck I betcha there is somekinda tactical terrycloth out there now.

[Preacherman]

Easiest and simplest way: get a load-bearing vest of some kind, and modify it to suit your requirements. Even if you sleep naked, you can very quickly slip it over your shoulders, and you're good to go in a matter of seconds (not outside, though - with your nether regions naked, you don't want to frighten the neighbors! :D ). Mine supports a holstered Glock (in an Uncle Mike's fabric holster that I stitched onto the vest), two spare high-capacity magazines, spare shotgun ammo, a canister of OC gas, a Surefire flashlight, an M3 weapon light, a pair of handcuffs with key, a couple of heavy-duty cable ties for securing multiple visitors (if necessary), and a couple of pockets I can use to put odds and bits in (like my CCW permit, LE ID wallet, a cap reading "Federal Officer" - to avoid giving responding LEO's conniptions - etc.). Everything's where I need it, and it's a matter of a few seconds to slip the whole thing over my shoulders and be ready for action. All I have to do is pick up my shotgun and move out.

[Drjones]

I'm going to disagree with most people here, though there have been lots of great ideas.

Last night, I heard a car alarm going off across the street, which is very odd. NEVER heard it before in 16 years of living where I do.

I keep my G27 on the nightstand (darn 30 isn't reliable yet. :fire: ) but grabbed my Mossberg last night.

I did so because it was an "outside" threat that could possibly come in. Obviously, for distances, you want a long gun. (NOT that I would shoot someone outside my home...you know...) Or, if someone starts to break into a door or window....

Well, OTOH, my house isn't very open, so a long gun may not be practical for clearing.

But I would definitely want the firepower of my 12....

Hmmm....maybe its time to put the pistol grip back on!!! :D :cool:

[ajacobs]

I am suprised at the number of people who are using handguns as a preferance. I had always heard here and do personally belive that a handgun is to fight your way to your long gun, if I knew I was going to be in a fight I would want a rifle, etc. I guess I have just never noticed many issues when using a long gun. I have a fairly open living area and I rarely shut anything but the outside doors. I would always want the more power or the long gun.

[Preacherman]

I agree - I want the extra power of the long gun if at all possible. You'll note in my previous post that my LBV carries my holstered pistol - in my hands is a shotgun!

[ajacobs]

I agree - I want the extra power of the long gun if at all possible. You'll note in my previous post that my LBV carries my holstered pistol - in my hands is a shotgun!

I cought that preacherman but it still makes it 5 to 2 in favor of only a handgun.

[Drjones]

Jacobs and father said it before I could get back to edit:

Whatever happened to "a handgun is only to fight your way to your rifle"?

Been thinking about it for a sec, and just as I've been mentally training, I will continue to first reach for my 12er at home.

Didn't they always say:

Rule #1 of being in a gunfight: Don't be there.

Rule #2: If you have no choice about being there (i.e.; it is forced upon you, as in your home) bring a long gun!

:cool:

[HS/LD]

I have a bandolier beside my Winchester Defender 12g.

The bandolier for around the waist carry some extra shells and a H&K USP C in .40 and an extra scorpion light.

If I am going to go out and investigate I am going to take the time (if possible) to strap that on.

I think the reason that there is a leaning here to taking the pistol only is more to do with confidence rather than intelligent planning. There are very very few circumstances where a oistol is advantageous over a long gun.

HS/LD

[Kahr carrier]

Pistol grip 870 with a Surefire forend and a side saddle.:)

[CGofMP]

In my situation not every thump and thud requires a call to the police in my opinion. So I personally DO NOT hunker down in the bedroom but I choose to risk myself and have a look.

I personally DO NOT like the idea of long guns for clearing purposes... too unwieldy and leverage is all against you as you come round a corner with that muzzle.

Also with sheetrock making a really lousy backstop a rifle is in my opinion insanity - it risks other family as well as neighbors down the block.

At the distances involved, a reload is VERY improbable so either the Valtro or the 686 Smith has to carry me along with what is onboard.

Having said all the above opinion, I sugest (with total respect for all concerned) not listening to any of us and getting some real training.

Charles

http://www.valtrousa.com/photogallery/clip2.jpg

[Quartus]

Now, it may not be the best choice for CCW for various reasons, but consider a vertical carry shoulder rig as a bedside friend. You can toss it on, grab the 12 gauge, and you are as ready as you are likely to get. And you can carry extra mags, too.


Yes, the long gun has some disadvantages, but proper training will nullify most of that, and the firepower advantage is worth it, IMO.

[Jeeper]

My clearing technique for bumps in the night.

Grab shotgun.
Send the dogs downstairs. I cant imagine a better device to see if someone is in your house than a dog that can basically see and hear everything.

Hall light makes it obvious if someone is outside my bedroom door.

[Gerald McDonald]

I'm lucky, got a dog who investagates all my bumps in the night long before I ever wake up. When I remarried I finally convinced my wife you dont sweat a bump in the night unless after the dog investigates you hear growling, snarling, blood curdling screams followed by prayer in what ever denomination they may be. Shes 33" at the shoulders and 150lbs (dog not wife)and takes her only two jobs (family clown and protector) very seriously.

If all of the above criteria are met, then you take the Hi-Power or 1911 along with the Surefire off the night stand and find out what all of the ruckus is. Only happened once at night and every who it was, was at the back door. By the time I got there they were long gone. I came home one day and found the levelor blinds torn off and a package by the door, the UPS guy later asked me what kinda of beast I had locked up in the house, said he thought I was home so after the first knock brought no response he really wacked the door thinking I would hear it, told me he abandoned the package.

My advice which with 64 cents will get you a refill on a coffee, is house dogs are the best thing for the bump in the night. Doesnt really matter how big they are, as they all think they are 150 lbs when they are protecting you. All they gotta do is wake you up, then its your turn to protect them.
Later
Gerald

(edited to add)

I dont care what I'm wearin. If the intruder cant handle seein a fat naked guy with a Hi Power he shouldnt have come in.

[redmule]

Like Mr. McDonald says. Use a dog for house clearing. Do the clean-up with a mop.;)

[Preacherman]

Don't know about the dog under all circumstances... I remember when I was about 10 or 11 years old, we were all in bed asleep when a noise was heard downstairs. My dad released our dog (a Labrador female), who was growling fit to wake the dead, to go downstairs and check things out, while he lurked at the top of the stairs with his revolver. The dog ran downstairs, growling, and then stopped growling, and the noise of furniture being bumped was heard in the night. After about three minutes of this, my Dad went downstairs (carefully) to investigate. Next thing I heard was his scream of outrage... our female Labrador (in heat at the time) was being thoroughly mounted by the neighbor's (male) Labrador, which had caught her scent and forced his way in through a partly-opened window! :D :D :D No, he didn't shoot the other dog - and yes, they were nice pups, too! :D

[Gerald McDonald]

Thats kinda how I got my dog, she was supposed to be a full blood Pyrenees out of my sisters bitch. Unfortunately the neighbors German Shepherd got wind of the goings on first. So now I have a Pyrenees/Shepherd mix. Wouldnt trade her for the world. Pyrenees can be a little on the slow moving side but when mixed with Shepherd they move very quick and her confidence in her self is truly amazing. Shes nine years old now and I have had her since she was 9 weeks, best dog I have ever owned and I have owned a lot in 45 years. Best thing about her being if she feels my wife is being threatend she would put Mike Tyson through a brick wall and make Osama swear off Islam. She is real serious about threats to the wife.
Gerald

[Trisha]

Suede shoulder rig (perfect one-hand draw) solves the problem for me (us). One takes a riot gun, the other takes the 1 million cp spot. Flash-and-move.

We have no children, and there's little two-legged traffic up here from dusk to dawn.

We rehearse, under every imaginable scenario.

As to physically 'how' to hold a pistol in indoors CQB, we prefer elbows tight to the ribs, pistol in closest-possible weaver (versus extended, for a goblin to grab).

Trisha

[DAL]

I'm with Louis Awerbuck on house clearing--leave it to the professionals (that's what you pay taxes for, right?). Having said that, my boy's life comes before my safety. If something's not quite right at night, my 70lb. Rottie/Black Lab will be the first to know about it, and she's not shy about letting others know of her discovery.

The job of making sure my boy is safe, NOT house clearing, will probably fall to my Makarov or S&W Model 19 (again, leave house clearing to the professionals once you have made sure your loved ones are safe).
DAL

[Viking6]

This is similar to the thread on home defense plan. I live in a quiet neighborhood and we have dogs. When I hear a bump in the night, I usually roll over mumbling curses that my oldest is coming in late and disturbing my sleep. Then as most people know, there are noises and there are noises. If one of those other noises is heard, then I grab the nightstand gun de jour (or should that be de soir?) and hobble downstairs. If my risk assessment for the neighborhood changes, then I would put my Mossberg 500 near the bed and make it my weapon of response.

[mrstang01]

I use a mechanic's coverall set, the cotton kind. Quick to get into, then grab up a shoulder holster for the .45, the maglight, and go.

[Dr.Rob]

Sadly I'm not at home enough these days to have a dog, and you are all correct a dog is the BEST alarm system/early warning system you can have.

Why a handgun? I can't figure out how to dial the phone, use a flashlight and a 2 handed weapon at the same time.

[Onslaught]

OK guys, I know that a handgun isn't going to lift anyone off their feet like it always did in "Magnum P.I.", but some of you sound like all pistols are .22's, while the shotgun is a cannon! :D

For bumps in the night, like the thread starter stated, I don't feel a BIT undergunned with 10+1 of 230gr .45 that I can fire accurately SA just as fast as I can pull the trigger.

If I put on a jumpsuit and threw on a holster then grabbed my Winchester every time I got up to see what the neighbor's cat knocked off my back porch table, I might as well sleep with it on. (stupid cat :fire: )

I do keep a shotgun in the closet, which I'd head to (HK in hand) if, say, a window smashed, or the front door got kicked in, or some significant sign of trouble, but I'm just checking bumps... usually outside, that just don't warrant a two-handed response. I also wouldn't call what I do "house clearing" in the tactical sense... I just have my HK at my side when I walk to the side of the window to peek out and identify the noisemaker (stupid cat :fire: ) But no matter whether it be a bump or a smash, it's better to stop an attack BEFORE it makes it through the door, rather than hide in the bedroom and call the CPD... especially now that we have an infant in another room.

if I knew I was going to be in a fight I would want a rifle, etc.
Well, yeah, if the BG called ahead, I'd want my AR-15, but again, this is bump-in-the-night stuff, not home invasion/SHTF/EOTWAWKI stuff.

But of course, to each his own. ;)

[doctorj]

If for some reason you don't want to investigate with the weapon in hand, a cheap shoulder holster is good enough; maybe throw a robe over it. In my situation nobody could sneak into my apartment without me knowing. I'd be more concerned about somebody banging on my door in the middle of the night. One thing to consider is that if somebody's been in a legitimate emergency and needs help they may not be thinking rationally. I wouldn't want to further traumatize them by meeting them with a drawn pistol. "But if they're not legit, they better quit!"

[coonan357]

luckily nokids yet , but bump in the night gets investigated by Me and MY lda , with the 14 rd mag full .

[Bainx]

Ajacobs....
Congrats on NOT having to have a damn permit to carry your handgun!

I am so jealous!;)

[Mannlicher]

I have never had to 'clear' my house. I keep a Smith & Wesson Model 25-5 by the bed. Tritium sights. I have the Mossberg near, so I guess I am set. My house is never really dark. Outside street lights, filter into the house.

[JeepDriver]

95 # Black Labrador clears the house. She is always on alert. There has only been one time to date that I have picked up my handgun (686 4' barrel w/125 gr Gold Dots). If the dog does not bark there is nothing to worry about.

She sleeps at the foot of our bed, if she barks I'll wake up, and God help anyone that comes in. Once she is done with them the 686 will not be needed.

[The Silver Bullet 1719]

There is a nightlight in the hall upstairs so I don't worry about carrying a flashlight due to the geography of getting upstairs in the house. When I did get up one night to check about the motion sensor light outside my window going haywire one night (ending up being squirrels) I just took my CZ in hand with me since I like the idea of IF I would have to use it, I wouldn't have to fiddle with a holster.

[Onslaught]

There is a nightlight in the hall upstairs so I don't worry about carrying a flashlight due to the geography of getting upstairs in the house.
Oh yeah... that's another thing that I think really helps. I need TOTAL darkness to sleep, but the hallway, kitchen, family room, infant's room all have light sensing night lights. So if I'm sneaking out of my pitch-black bedroom, my vision's gonna be GREAT looking down the hallway.

[benEzra]

If I just need to check the house out to make sure everything was OK, I'd take the 3913 9mm in one hand in a retention position and small, bright flashlight in the other, turned off for a few seconds while I move into a position of cover to dominate the hallway. Wife is backing me up with her Glock 26 w/tritium sights, and is cool under pressure. (I love having a tactical wife.:) )

If we really thought someone were down at the other end of the house, we'd take position to dominate the hallway and call police. (Kid's rooms are off the hallway.) Wouldn't go "clearing" if I thought someone were actually there, unless they were between me and a family member.

bE

[BigG]

Since I'm usually in my skivvies, I take a two-handed hold - on my 12ga dbl bbl'd shotgun. :cool: You asked! :o