Do You Have a Gun You'd Lend To Someone in Need?

[stevelyn]

I would berrate them for not paying attention to anything I tried to tell them in the past about being prepared, and waiting till crunch time to aquire survival tools and skills. Then I'd send them on their merry way telling them "Good Luck" as I booted them out the door. My tolerance level for sheeple is low, even friends and family. :banghead:

 

[Sean Smith]

No, but only because I own one gun right now (wierd feeling... ), and a pistolsmith is working on it right now.

My friends aren't random idiots. Therefore, I'm happy to loan them guns when I've got 'em.

 

[BerettaNut92]

Depends. If it were my shooting buddy and all his guns got stolen and needed a gun to hold over the 10-day period, sure, I have a few.

If it were someone with no experience, it would be a slumber party and condensed gun skul.

 

[hawk0484]

I have loaned a gun to my sister, but under different circumstances than you describe

She is single & owns her own business (massage therapist) and was getting the willies going into her house alone late evenings after being gone all day.

What I loaned her was a Taurus model 85. I spent some time with her here at my house going over safety, loading weapons, etc. Then we took all my handguns, sons' handguns, and hubby's handguns to the range, and got her familiar with handling them and shooting them. At the end of the day, I was comfortable loaning her that gun for a while, until she had a chance to shoot them all again and decide what she wanted.

She's since then bought 2 guns and is always someone I can talk into going to the range with me!

Becky

 

[Chris Rhines]

No experience with guns or shooting? Then I wouldn't give them a gun, plain and simple.

- Chris

 

[valnar]

Moving aside the legalities and the insaneness of such a request from a relative, I will answer the question.

Any S&W K-frame with a 4" barrel would be best. If they've never shot a gun, I'd load it up with 38+P. A model 19/60/66 would suffice.

-Robert

 

[Ala Dan]

Armed & Dangerous

Firearm = NO WAY due to possible legal consequences

But I do have a nice selection of BASEBALL BAT'S
from which they could choose!

The truth be known, EVERY MEMBER of my household (and
there are 4 of us total) has access to any and all firearms
in my possession. With all family member's having their own
CCW license; I don't see a problem with it. At any given
time, they are more than welcome to borrow my weapons
for their personal protection!

However, any other person would need to select an
appropiate baseball bat! (Laughing Really Loud)

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

 

[blooch]

yes i do .

yes i have.

would i do it again?

yes i would, but not to everybody i know.

was it fired, yes.

did it hit it's mark yes, stopped the attack quite well. the borrower of the gun lives today, the attacker is a guest of tdc for the rest of his life. he does not hear or see so well after the experience. he attacked my then girl friend and she shot him six times, as he reached through her drivers side window to drag her out, with a 4" 629. her experience with guns was plinking with me and her family. yeah, i was questioned. she was no billed. there was no civil suit. but this was 20 years ago. there was no chl and the laws were pretty much interpeted case by case. she defended herself, first with a stun gun, a new thing at the time, then the 44. she was travelling back and forth on a 90 mile trip from college to her home for the weekend as she did every week. this same guy followed her for about 3 weeks as she left school and she noticed him the second time and got his lp and turned him in.no stalking laws. the local sheriff's deputy asked her if she had a gun, "no, but my boyfriend does".....she had one that night when she got home. on her next trip home she had a flat about 10 miles away from school and about 4 miles from the nearest town about 4pm. no cell phones then. she was going to fix her flat when she spotted the guy she seen before. she tried to get away on the flat, but he forced her off the road with his car and had her trapped down the embankment. he should have stayed in his car and left her alone.

would i do this again for someone i loved. yes. no training, no gun handling experience? there is only one person i know that i would not loan a gun too. he is anti, he has "issues" of the mental variety, and i 'm quite sure he has no ability to handle any firearm or weapon. he also has no desire to finish what he starts, never has had. a weapon would most likely just get taken from him and perhaps have it used on him or others. his mental issues are not diagnosed, but believe me, he's nuts in my book. i would not be able to defend my decision to loan him a weapon. and defend my decision is just what i had to do in the case above.......for hours and hours.

the case above went our way. i did not say that the da just rolled over and said...you defended yourself, go home..... to my then girlfriend. he did everything he could to make it out that we were acting together to kill someone. in his not being able to do so kept there from being any chance of a civil suit. he did his job. it is a wringer to go through. they twist evreything you say and try to make a case out of it. if they don't some bright attorney for the other side will. he left no stone unturned.

if the gun is used , in my experience, you are going to miss a lot of work. be asked a lot of very leading questions. things that you think have nothing to do with you are going to be very important to you, and you won't know why except for the fact it may keep or put you in jail. every nook and cranny of your life, yeah your's, the loaner, is going to be put through the mill. it will cost you in time and money.

did i think she'd ever shoot anyone? no , just because i thought she'd never have to. did i think she would if she thought she had to? never was any doubt whatsoever. again, i never thought she'd have to.

did i train her? no just how to load and fire the gun. she had shot a 22 pistol some. she understood aligning the sights. she knew she would not be putting ear plugs in in an life or death situation. didn't train her much. she shot six times, hit him six times, no shots were life threatening, but they all hit him. she said later he did not just sit there like a tin can and she was excited. if you had given her that gun before this and plenty of time, she would go 6/6 on a soda can. she said it was like nothing she could explain.

i've never shot at anyone. never been attacked by someone. i can only rely on what she said here.

was i prepared for what happened to me? no

did i live through it? yep, and have never regretted it.

did i marry her? nope , and have never regretted it.

where is she now? she's a cop in a medium sized town in texas

still friends? yes

did this drive us apart? no, but it created lots of problems for both of us in our families.

loaning gun easy to do? yep, as i said above , i'd do it again. i never regretted doing something that kept someone alive.

 

[Edward429451]

WOW Blooch, some story. Glad it turned out OK. It may have weighed even more heavily on you if you had turned her down for the gun, and it turned out different than it did. Not to pry, but did her family realize that and thank you at some point afterward?

it is a wringer to go through. they twist evreything you say and try to make a case out of it.

:banghead:

 

[Johnny Guest]

Yes, i would, and have, and will probably do so again.

You know, EVERYTHING is on a case-by-case basis. Can't think of any adult family member who doesn't have the basic gunhandling training and skills to properly use a firearm. That is a comfort.

I have three or four suitable handguns and a couple of shotguns which I'd loan out. I got a Glock 19 for the main purpose of loaning to visiting friends. There's nothing wrong with a four-inch S&W .38, as well.

I wouldn't lend a gun to someone I couldn't trust to do the right thing with it. I know my responsibilities and duties, and stand ready to account for my actions.

Best,
Johnny

 

[Blueduck]

Yep, though there are only certain people I would loan a gun to.

I have a 3" 65, thats become virtually a "community gun". It's normally only loaned out to other people in the Parole office who did not carry and decide for some unexpected reason it might be best to have a gun that day. These people are of course already qualified with thier own revolvers so training not an issue.

I can and have loaned this gun out on occasion to trusted others as well. Good thing about a revolver, doesn't take long to bring someone from novice to at least semi-competent. Usually spend way more time on "When" to shoot rather than "how".

 

[Mossyrock]

As I type this, I am 3,000+ miles away from home and the people I love. Just before I left, a "certain young lady of my acquaintance" who is a divorced single mother was receiving threats from her ex-husband. Literally 12 hours before I got on the plane, we were at the range, giving her a quick refresher. My 4" 66 is currently residing in her bed-side gunsafe. Would I do it again? Without hesitation...for THIS person. Would I loan a gun to EVERYONE I know? Not a chance. Hell, I wouldn't trust my brother-in-law with a pointy stick. Here is a good question to ask before loaning a gun:

If it came down to it, would you give your life for this person in their defense?

Kind of puts it into perspective, doesn't it?

 

[JohnKSa]

If the danger was that imminent, why would you go back or let them go back?

I guess for the same reason you let your friend go back.

In an emergency, there is not always time to go to the range to get live fire instruction.

Precisely the reason I've spoken to my friends and family on more than one occasion about the need for guns and gun training.

I meant what I said about guns not being magic. What I mean by that is simply introducing one into a dangerous situation doesn't automatically "fix" everything. In fact, it can easily make things much worse.

I also meant what I said about guns not being security blankets. They are not something that's supposed to give you a warm fuzzy by its mere presence.

They are a responsibility. A responsibility to store them safely. A responsibility to use them safely. A responsibility to use them lawfully.

I guess you figure you got that all of that across to your friend in 30 minutes. Maybe you did, and maybe you didn't. I'm glad it worked out well for the both of you, but it could have very easily gone the other way.

Let's ask another question.

A friend comes over in desperate need. He has no vehicle, and no driving experience, but needs to drive to a job interview in the morning. You can't possibly chauffeur him, you have a big meeting with the boss tomorrow. You happen to have a spare vehicle.

Assuming it were legal, would you give him the keys and turn him loose with just a 30 minute sit down talk and no behind the wheel time?

Now, explain to me the difference, if you respond to this question differently than you did to the original question in the thread.

 

[Lone_Gunman]

JohnKSa,

The difference is safe operation of a gun is much less complicated than safe operation of an automobile.

Old ladies with no training whatsoever have been known to defend themselves successfully with handguns.

 

[Preacherman]

I see that many on this thread would lend handguns to neophytes. IMHO, this is NOT GOOD!!! A handgun is much more difficult to use rapidly and accurately than a long gun. I've loaned out .22 rifles before (surely one of the easiest weapons to use), as well as double-barrel and pump-action shotguns. These are easy to learn to use quickly, and at typical home-defense ranges, they aren't difficult to employ and get good hits. I would be MUCH more reluctant to lend out a handgun than to lend out a basic long gun. (Of course, if the person has some training and/or experience, that changes the equation immediately.)

 

[JohnKSa]

Old ladies with no training whatsoever have been known to defend themselves successfully with handguns.

And children with no training whatsoever have been known to drive vehicles sucessfully while old ladies with lots of training have been known to be totally incapable of driving safely.

Nevertheless, in terms of controls, I agree with you, the average handgun is simpler to operate than the average car.

But actually making a gun go bang is actually the simplest part of using a gun. It's the legal, safety, social , etc, aspects, of firearm use that make it similar in complexity (perhaps even more complex) to using a motor vehicle. I just don't see how you can give the legal aspects of deadly force a proper showing in a 30 minute session, and I don't think it's realistic to assume (for example) that a person with a handgun, a 30 minute familiarization session and no range time is going to be effective and safe in a house with no power in the middle of the night.

Regardless of that, the analogy is very good for one simple reason.

An incompetent person can purchase a car and get a license (no driving test required in my state). An incompetent person can purchase a gun and keep it in their home (no license required in my state.)

But, those two actions place absolutely no responsibility on you (or me).

Lending someone a gun when you know they don't know how to use it, or lending someone a vehicle when you know they don't know how to use it is irresponsible. Even if you try to assuage your conscience by giving them a cursory training session.

And, both of the hypothetical questions skirt the important issue--if these people in question had taken responsibility for their own safety/transportation, all this would be a non-issue. This is the REAL issue which is carefully camoflauged by making an emotional appeal. I.e.: "Your FAMILY member or FRIEND needs HELP NOW!"

How does the saying go?

"Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part."

I'm not really that cold. I would try to help them. I might offer them a place to stay for the night. I might offer to go stay with them for the night. I might offer to give them some REAL firearm training (like mossyrock described) and/or help selecting a firearm.

I just don't consider interjecting a handgun into a situation with an untrained, stressed out person to be a true help.

 

[Lone_Gunman]

Lending someone a gun when you know they don't know how to use it, or lending someone a vehicle when you know they don't know how to use it is irresponsible.

Now how is it that lending an incompetent person a gun is irresponsible... but selling one to them at a gun store is not?

Do you recommend mandated "competency" classes prior to being allowed to purchase a fire arm?

 

[c_yeager]

How can anyone involved in shooting say that people need to rise to a certain level of comptance to safely possess a firearm? Isnt this exactly what the anti's say? How far is this from saying that someone need to be in a "club" to prove thier ability to own a gun (ala germany, australia etc)? You guys have all fired weapons before. You know as well as i do that it isnt difficult to be safe with a firearm. Now with that in mind there ARE people who i wouldnt trust with a gun around me. Simply because i think they are untrustworthy or might shoot someone for fun. My really easy solution to this is that i dont associate with low-lifes. My friends an family are people that i would trust with my LIFE. The very IDEA that i wouldnt trust them with a usefull tool is absurd. But the fact remains (and we never seem to get sick of preaching this) that every american is QUALIFIED to have a gun. And that RIGHT should not be infringed. So, am i going to let my states (unconstitutional) 5 day waiting period keep a friend or relative in danger for one more week? Not only no, but HECK no.

edited to add (since i didnt even answer the ACTUAL question) Given the time i would take the person in question to the range and let them try all my guns (save my personal carry piece) and let them decide which they were most comfortable with. Without time its going to be between the shotgun or a revolver depending on the circumstances. Of course i would be taking them to the gun shop at the earliest available convenience to purchase a weapon of their very own. And presto! one more convert to the cause. There is no better gun advocate than a person who truly has NEEDED one in their lives.

 

[Black92LX]

i would have my lawn chair and mossberg 500 ready with the 18'' barrell. they i arrive i'd say lets go. and i would sit in their front yard. or maybe just on the couch inside and handle it for them, if they had never used a gun before. then after the situation was handled i would drive them to the gun shop and say. you want this one. and teach them to use it propperly.

 

[YodaVader]

"To the people who are saying they would not loan a gun to someone in their own family whose life was in mortal danger because of lack of training, or failure to be responsible enough to own a gun in advance...

I have to ask, how will you sleep at night knowing you could have prevented their needless death????

If the situation was that serious I would just tell them to come on over to my place where someone (me) has no problem handling guns. Or I would show up at their place - again with a "tool" that would get the job done if needed.

"
i would have my lawn chair and mossberg 500 ready with the 18'' barrell. they i arrive i'd say lets go. and i would sit in their front yard. or maybe just on the couch inside and handle it for them, if they had never used a gun before. then after the situation was handled i would drive them to the gun shop and say. you want this one. and teach them to use it propperly."

Yeah , I have one of those trusty Mossbergs as well - would have no problem helping out loved ones with it should the need arise.

 

[Black92LX]

i may wouldn't loan them my gun if they had inadequate experience. but you can garuntee that i would be the first in line to solve the problem even if i had to pull the trigger and lose my life as long as they were safe. family is family friends to i'll fight to the death for the ones i love.

 

[Logistar]

It is simple for me. All my relatives and close friends know where I stand on CCW. I have suggested to them that they should learn to shoot, get their CCW and stay prepared. If the excuse is money or even transportation, I tell than that I will take care of it - even paying for their license and gun if necessary.

If they choose not to do this and then "get scared" and ask for a gun... they already made their decision. I don't want to loan a gun to a person who knows nothing about them.

If my sister asks to borrow a gun... I will let her borrow my revolver. She shoots a revolver and I can only imagine her asking if it was broken, stolen, etc.

Loaning a gun to a scared, untrained person sounds like a bad idea to me.

Logistar

 

[Gordon]

My 4 Sigma's(2 in 9mm 2 in 40) and 4 extra preban Ak's are reserved as loaners for my 'retainers' when they come to take my legally registered firearms. I have a loaner hunting gun or two, but loaner guns for "protection" seem counter productive.

 

[4v50 Gary]

A friend in need? What caliber does (s)he want?

 

[foghornl]

Only person within reasonable driving time (less than 1 hr) is my sis-in-law.
For anyone else, it is F.F.Y.


Fend For Yourself