Is a sling a good idea for a HD long gun?

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Unless the sling is part of your practiced defensive moves and training and you can't live without it---I'd skip it at home. By their nature, slings CAN snag on something in a close quarter. But as said, if the sling is such a part of your training, go for it.
 
rondog,
How is your sling mounted? Did you ad a swivel stud to the stock? It doesn't look like you're using an oiler.
 
Personally, no, I don't have a need for a sling on my HD gun(s). Just doesn't fit into how I would be using the weapon(s) and strappy, dangly things hanging off the gun are more of a distraction, annoyance, and potential snag hazard than of any benefit -- again, to me and the way I use the gun(s).
 
I train and compete with slings. My HD scenario starts with arming up with a handgun and working my way towards a long gun. Abandonment of a loaded hand gun is not in my plan.
 
Single point might make good sense for hands free retention that's less likely to hang up on things..

I have a sling on my rifle but I practice with it that way. No sling kept on my shotgun at present but it does have swivels. In fact only ONE of my long guns doesn't have sling swivels.
 
Considering I live alone, I think I may take the sling off my shotgun. If I need hands-free, I can set it on the bed.
 
I don't see any benefits of a sling indoors. If your hands are occupied by anything but the long gun, the long gun is temporarily useless. If the "child" in this scenario is small enough to have to be carried, what is your plan if you run into the intruder while carrying the baby? Are you going to drop it? Tell your wife "Go long!" and throw it so you can shoot?

If so, stop working the rifle-to-pistol transition and work on baby-to-rifle transition.
 
I can see a few good points in favor of no sling. The snagging is certainly an issue. Getting locked into a sling-supported stance might also not be such a good idea inside a house. And you really really need to be able to drop that iron in a big hurry when the law arrives and get your palms up high.

If your plan for defense involves carrying babies around, you might need another plan for defense.

02hardboiledposter.jpg
 
A long gun without a sling is like a pistol without a holster. What do you do with it when you need your hands for something else.

I went through this very argument years ago when my old department first fielded patrol rifles. One sergeant didn't want the policy to allow officers to deploy them indoors because "the slings will catch on things" the answer was that the military and every tactical unit you can find uses slings indoors on their long weapons and has no problem with them snagging. Then it was "the bad guy could grab the weapon while you are slung up and control you with it". The answer was a demonstration of simple retention techniques and the realization that an attempt to disarm you crossed the threshold into deadly force territory and that one would be justified in shooting at that point either with the long gun or the secondary weapon.

The advantages of a sling far outweigh the perceived disadvantages.
 
Absolutely! And after using a V-TAC for the last three years, I'd say the worries about snagging are unfounded if it is used properly.
 
the military and every tactical unit you can find uses slings indoors on their long weapons and has no problem with them snagging.
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What are the protocols for sleeping with a loaded carbine next to you? What is supposed to be done with the sling?
 
Skribs: I was going to ask this in rifles, then I realized it applies to shotguns as well, so I might as well post it in general. Would you say that a sling is a good or bad idea on a long gun specifically purposed for home defense?
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Im my case my hd shotgun is also my hunting shotgun, is also my target shotgun, is also my clays shotgun . . .you get the idea. So yes it has a sling. I see no reason to take it off when I get home anymore than I do when I walk through the thick maine woods while hunting. Does it get hung up while hunting, yes, but the woods are much thicker than my livingroom.
 
There are two big differences between a sling and a holster, Jeff:

1) The holster provides a passive safety, the sling does not.
2) The holster stays on you, the sling stays on the rifle.
 
A sling is no real problem indoors if you use it right. I believe Clint Smith has a video on this, but the basic idea is you grab the extra material in your weak hand and hold it against the fore end. Then the sling is essentially snag free.

No, you probably don't need one in the house, but the fight you plan for and the fight you are in are almost certainly two different things. The ability to sling a long gun may be handy. I have slings or simple carry straps on mine.
 
rondog,
How is your sling mounted? Did you ad a swivel stud to the stock? It doesn't look like you're using an oiler.
Click to expand...

Standard way, with an oiler. Carbine is a Plainfield, main reason I bought it was because it already had the Ultimak handguard on it. Turns out it's a wonderful shooter and very accurate.

DSC_0491.jpg
 
How are you guys using slings that they're getting caught on everything? Put a sling on your rifle or shotgun, it is like a holster for your handgun. Yes, the sling is on the rifle, but it's also on the shooter. Use a two point tactical sling correctly and it's too handy to NOT use

Click on the image to watch the video
View attachment 644756

Easy!
 
There are two big differences between a sling and a holster, Jeff:

1) The holster provides a passive safety, the sling does not.
2) The holster stays on you, the sling stays on the rifle.
Click to expand...

You miss the point entirely. Both the sling and the holster give you a place to put your weapon when you need to use your hands.

Both secure the weapon to your person when it isn't in your hands.
 
Not all slingsare created equally. A carrying strap doesn't add a lot in my opinion. The modern two point slings keep the rifle tight to your body, get the rifle in and out of action fast for hands free use, make it easier to use the rifle one handed, aid in retention, and are a shooting aid. You arent slinging the rifle over your shoulder. The sling isnt dangling. It is tight to your body.
 
Even a carry strap is preferable to no sling at all. When I got my first job in law enforcement we had no slings on the Remington 870s we carried in the squad cars. I hate to think of how many times we just needed a way to secure the weapon to our body once the immediate need for it's use was over but we weren't ready toi head back to the squad and lock it back up. Some officers left the shotgun in the car for that very reason.
 
I think you are better off with a sling than not having one.

Most times you will not have place to put a handgun when you need to set it aside in a home SD situation. Few people sleep with a holster strapped on.

A long gun sling is always with the long gun so is always available.

OTOH, if it bothers you that it might get in the way, don't put one on your long gun. It seems like a moderately trivial thing to get real excited about.

Probably best not to have a sling if you are not practiced in using it.
 
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