tactical nightstand

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SSN Vet

SSN Vet

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I've been using an old singer sewing machine (the old foot powered type) as a night stand for years and I finally "tricked it out" this weekend.

1. 3 'D' cell mag. light on a "snap in" type mount.
2. a small fire extinguisher, also mounted
3. a two shelf Gun Vault bolted to the cast metal frame. My home defense 6" .357 mag. with a speed loader on one shelf, and my carry piece in it's holster on the other.
4. hard wired telephone mounted (w/ utility companies power outage number taped to the base.
5. night vision binoculars in their case.

All this stuff has been kicking around loose for some time....but now it's all integrated into the "tactical nightstand"

Thinking about additional "features" ....

any recommendations?

maybe a whistle for waking the kids up in case of a fire.
 
[Moderator deletes all 5 replies to thread so far...]

OK, let's try this again, shall we?

Unless you have some serious recommendations or comments to share- please don't share.

lpl/nc
 
I am very interested in this as it seems like a great idea. Can you post a pic? Oh and dont forget about the cell phone.
 
You might want to do something about the safe since bolting it down might not stop theft, they will just unbolt it, or cut it away.

Also, additional house keys on a glowstick. A rough floorplan laminated in case you and the family can get out and the BG is still inside and LE needs to handle the threat? You never know. It could help also in a house fire too. Maybe your car keys in the event you have to evacuate quickly from a threat?

Definitely a cell phone.
 
A duty belt or other "pistol" style belt. I will tell you why, the best place for a gun to be is in a holster unless it is being used. You don't want to make a mistake, but you will want it close to hand. So a belt (pistol or duty belt) with a holster already attached to it under the stand or in a very "handy" spot would be nice. Something that can just go on around your waist over PJ's or whatever it is you wear to bed... If you don't wear anything, you might want to keep some clothes close by. ;)

holster-pistol.jpg


It looks like you have hit all the other bases... Do you have an Alarm system? You can get a keyfob for most Alarms, that might be a good thing to have by you as well.
 
there are also 6 small drawers for keeping items handy ... like TUMS!

I've had the gun vault sitting on the pedal for about eight years and just finally got around to bolting it down using carriage bolts with the nuts iside the locked box. Some one could tear it apart if they put their mind to it....but it should foil a smash and grab attempt.

The night vission binoculars were given to me after my dad won them as a door prize (he's become pretty darn luckiy in his retired years).

So far I've used them once....to catch a "tribe" of racoons in the act of raiding our trash cans. (They've since all been deported.)

But I got to thinking....what good are these doing me down in the basement.

My phone line is exposed and in plane site where it comes out of the conduit in the ground @ the exterior of the house and would take little effort to clip (I need to enclose the exposed portion in conduit ... another project on the back burner).

So I'm now keeping my cell phone on my night stand as well....but am thinking, it should really be left on and ready (it's noisy on start up).

Will need to work on my 60 second warning bug out bag some day, then I can hang that on the other side.

I also want to rig a fabric valence around the base so the gun vault isn't visible.

I know it sounds like a complete doophis project....but it's kind of like a mini-emergency management commande center.
 
Do you have an Alarm system?
Click to expand...

Does a big fat cat sleeping by the door count? He does manage to make a fair amount of racket when he gets stepped on.

I like the duty belt idea a lot.....

decent slippers kept right there might also be a good idea....but only if they're black! Maybe with the ninja toes?
 
House key with lightstick on it.
Don't go looking for an intruder (requires 10:1 force minimum for reliable location & extraction if he doesn't want to be found) - lock bedroom door, tell cops to search for him, snap lightstick & toss it with key out window for them to find & unlock front door with.
(Suggestion courtesy of Ayoob.)

Cell phone a must.

Extra batteries. Sucks when a flashlight is dead when you need it.

Night sights. Not unusual for there to be enough light to function, but not enough to see sights.

Active hearing protection. Not just to protect your ears, not just to hear normally, but to magnify sounds.

Dog. or two. 'nuf said.
 
When my wife and I moved to Houston we got two touch lamps for our nightstands. That, along with glasses, cell phones, and a pistol on each side pretty much has us covered. I used to keep a big mag-light on my side until the cat knocked it over and broke some stuff. I'm fine with staying in bed pointing two guns at the door while the 911 operator is on speakerphone.

If your bedroom is near the driveway, car remotes with panic buttons would be nice.

I have my hunting backpack ready to go with lots of other goodies, but that's for a whole different situation.
 
Dog. or two.
Click to expand...

this has been under negotiation for some time.

unfortunately I'm not getting anywhere.

for home invasion, I need to get out of bed and get to my "spot" before BG makes it to the stairs. This puts me between BG and kiddies bedrooms.

Then wife unit gets to her "spot", in case I get plugged....or to keep kiddies safe in there rooms when the doo-doo starts flying.
 
this has been under negotiation for some time.
Click to expand...
Doesn't have to be something famously large and mean ... cute & cuddly works too:
DSC03142.jpg
DSC03143.jpg

Couple of those are fun to have around ... and make a suitably chaotic racket if intruded upon!
 
Touch lamps sound like a good idea.

Something you can tap really quickly and alert your children. The whistle is a good idea, but is there something you could attach to the side of the "nightstand" which would make a lot of noise just by tapping or touching it?

I also like LED flashlights. Lots of light in a small package. I know the big flashlight has more uses.

How about some things for your wife's nightstand? A pre-paid Cell phone with big buttons such as the Jitterbug would be easy to use. They have good customer service. And whatever else you and she agree on.

I've always thought there should be adjoining doors between the bedrooms of the parents and those of small children. What about a silent alarm such as a flashing light in the children's bedrooms. What about an easy alarm for them to push/click to flash in your bedroom if they need to alert you silently?

I keep my cell phone on and put it on Silent Mode at night.
 
SSN Vet said:
Does a big fat cat sleeping by the door count?
Click to expand...

You have a cat! Then don't worry. If someone comes in the house, grab the cat by the nap of the neck and throw him right at the guys face... That is more effective than buckshot! :neener:
 
Concur with the cell phone. You might consider buying an extra charger and just using that. I used to turn mine off, but now I leave it on and throw it on the charger every couple of days to make sure the battery gets a little conditioning.

I also agree with the holster. In my encounter last weekend, one of the things I realized is that I didn't have an adequate way to secure my gun if the need had arisen. So now I have a Wilderness-style belt with a Comp-Tac holster for my "go to" gun hanging in the closet right next to the lock box. Easy slip on, whether I take the time to throw on pants or not.

Jim
 
I, too, think something for you to carry your pistol in would be a necessary item. Be it a holster that you can slip on over your pajamas, a shoulder holster that you can easily slip on, or a fanny pack that allows you to carry your pistol, speedloader, cel phone and a smaller flashlight, you need to be able to secure your weapon and have your hands free if needed.

Yes, I know that checking out that bump in the night is much more comforting when you have a gun in your hand, but if you ever need to carry your kids, be on the phone while leading them to safety, or be on the phone with one hand and hold your flashlight with the other hand for an emergency, a free hand will be nice to have. Hard to do when you don't have anywhere to put that .357. I personally use the fanny pack and keep my flashlight, spare mag, pistol, cel phone and a knife in it. I can go outside and not alarm everyone, yet have everything I need in one spot, and free hands if necessary.

Lastly, if you wear glasses, a spare pair that's exclusively for your nightstand wouldn't be a bad idea. Even if you put them in the same spot every night, they have a weird way of disappearing when you most need them.
 
I like mbt2001's idea of the duty belt. I keep my previously worn pants with IWB holster next to the bed. Has my keys, wallet, small but very powerful Fenix P2D LED flashlight, knife. I keep a vest with rifle plates behind the nightstand, between the wall and the back of the Gunvault I keep my pistol locked in. Electronic hearing protection on the floor.

Under the bed is a fire ladder, since the bedroom is a second floor window.
 
if you have any old cell phones, they still work for 911, just keep them on the charger and dont worry about battery life anymore
 
A number of good ideas....
The main one is having cell phone. You will use the phone much more then the gun. :)
I picked up a "tac vest" a few yrs back. It hangs with a G21 with 4 spare mags, flashlight (ok 2) :) as well as mags for my AR (which is also handy) I also have a "spot" where I control access to the level where bedrooms are. Unless invaders have gernades/use a ladder from outside its a nasty choke point to breach against a carbine.

No idea if its practical to make that cabinet hard cover? Is there a location where your family "should" be safe from where you might fire in defense/intruders might fire?
Another little (edge) might be a $12 remote switch for a lamp on lower level. I have a couple that I can turn on a TV in the computer room with one, a light near base of stairs with another. My "almost thinking" is I can distract with tv comming on and if they start comming up stairs backlight them/distract/positive ID before......."Discouraging access to second level"
 
larry minn said:
I picked up a "tac vest" a few yrs back. It hangs with a G21 with 4 spare mags, flashlight (ok 2) as well as mags for my AR (which is also handy) I also have a "spot" where I control access to the level where bedrooms are. Unless invaders have gernades/use a ladder from outside its a nasty choke point to breach against a carbine.
Click to expand...

Doh! I have the perfect vest in my garage - I got it for 3-gun competition. It will be faster, easier and carry more stuff than the belt and holster I just added. Thanks for the idea!

Jim
 
I like the cell phone idea. The duty belt is also grade A thinking. How about a pair of shorts and some slip on footwear? Just so's your don't have to charge into battle "skyclad". (Mad Mike, yes, you.)
 
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