Suggestions Needed

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jimk66

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Good morning Gentlemen, My son called this morning and told us his house alarm went off lin the middle of the night around 3:00 AM. He, his wife and two small sons were scared stiff and waited upstairs in their bedroom waiting on the police to arive. The police discovered someone was trying to break in through the rear French doors of his house. Before leaving they ask him if he had any defensive weapons in the house to protect himself with. Well his answer was "no" and they made the comment that he and his wife should consider getting one. Well he and his wife are some of these wimpy souls that are aftraid to have a gun in the house because of the boy's.:gah: How one of those came out of my house beats the heck out of me, but sure enough. I'm not surprised because he took after his mother and never did care for shootin :35:. Just the opposite with his sister.
He wants to come over and talk guns tonight and I wanted to ask you guys if you can think of a good small 9mm SAO pistol that wont freak him or his wife out because of it's size and weight. Of course I'll recomment wither the S&W 640 or 642 revolvers, but I'd like to also be able to put a small DAO 9mm pistol on the table to consider as well. Not Kel-Tec small however and as soft a shooter as possible. (Remember now...I said "DAO PISTOL") and yes they will both take classes or nothing from me.
Thanks,
JimK
 
It isn't small but it is a soft shooter & very easy to learn with...browning hi-power...cause of the mag-disconnect safety with kidds in the house provides an add level of safety. perhaps a 5 inch sw 60 instead of 640. aftermarket larger grips make it easy to shot vrs stock j frame. Springfield EMP is now trouble free ( see post here) though rather pricey.
 
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I understand the "theory" behind no guns because of small childern.BUT,I grew up in a " gun collectors" house without any problems.from the day I opened my eyes,I was taught untill I could check a weapon to see if it was loaded I DIDN"T TOUCH IT. and I didn't touch.but I guess in these days of "the kids" being in charge,things are different.in that case,all you can do is build a "safe room" and hope for the best. jwr
 
Smaller guns the 640 & 642 are harder for some to shoot accurately. I would consider a Glock 19 as a good semi auto pistol for HD/SD or a larger revolver, something like a S&W 686 or Ruger GP 100 or SP 101.
 
If budget is a issue get a ruger p series they are very reliable and get only a decocker model no saftey to mess with. If no budget issue get a glock or good quality revolver. For HD don't talk them into snubies its not a CCW. Please take him and his wife shooting and teach them basics and clearing all the ftf's. NO TRIGGER lock try and find a key in the dark when some guy is beating down your door. Use a lock box with five finger combo lock if they want to keep it from the children.
My .02
 
I like the Glock 17 or the best HD weapon devised the 12 g. pump like my Mossberg 500A. Nothing says leave like a 12 g. action moving.
 
As much as I hate to admit it, a revolver would probably be best, and one with an exposed hammer. Easy to clear, easy to fire, no buttons, levers or switches, it's firepower for dummies.:neener:
 
I always recommend a revolver for a first gun. I highly recommend the S&W 686 as it can shoot 38 special for plinking and 357 mag rounds for SD there are also no saftey's to worry about in a SD situation. The excues there are kids in the house is exactly the reason to have a SD weapon. I have had loaded guns in my house ever since both my kids were babies. As soon as my son could shoot a gun ( 4 years old) he was shooting a bb gun and by 7 he was shooting his own 22 lever action rifle. I am sure glad your son had an alarm or the night could have ended very different, but an alarm doesn't always detour a break in. No matter what gun they choose make sure they both obtain proper range time as sometimes a untrained gun owner can be very dangerous.
Good Luck
 
Thanks Everyone, Growing up in Central IN I'm like most of you... I was brought up with guns in the house. I was always going hunting, trap shooting or just having fun plinking with my dad and uncle's for as long as I can remember. I still have my first rifle....a single shot JC Higgins 22 that weighs a ton that I got on my 10th birthday. Then a couple years later a little single shot Savage hammerless 12 ga on my 12th. I was a little guy and that little 12 ga kicked like a horse, but man....was I proud of it and the rabbits be brought home for supper.
My children were always taught never to tough my guns without me being present and they never did.
I always encouraged them to go to the range with me and get to know how to shoot and safely handle a firearm. Like I said in my earlier post....my daughter took to it like a duck to water and still, every time she comes home she wants to go to the range and shoot, but evidently my son listened to his mother too often and he always had a fear of my guns or else he just didn't care to have anything to do with them. Too bad cause he doesn't know how much fun he's missed out on. He and his wife are probably bringing up his two sons...my grandsons the same way. His wife has never held a gun and every time I've mentioned the possibility of she and my son joining me to go to the range she turns white.
Anyway, as you can see I have most of the guns you mentioned and had considered and eliminated for one reason or another. I was able to intice my wife to shoot with me by getting her a little Walther P22. Maybe that 225 lb son of mine would like one of those to put in his bomb vault that might keep the kids away from the gun. Not much for HD/SD, but better than nothing I guess. So again...can you think of A SMALL 9mm DAO PISTOL??
Something about the size of the Glock 26/27, EMP, M&P 9c, etc., but 100% DAO.
Thanks,
JimK
 
jimk66, you are making me jealous with the Colt Govt .380. I sold mine a couple of years back and can kick myself for doing it to this day, but I was using it for carry and was uncomfortable carrying it cocked and locked because of the lack of a grip safety. They are a sweet shootin' .380!
 
They’ll never shoot it after receiving initial training, so make it a closet gun/under the mattress gun. A well blued 38 revolver with a 4” barrel is about as good as you can do for a sure to be neglected gun.
 
Jim,
Just a few questions and suggestions. First of all I am curious why you would want them to have a compact "small" handgun? I think most will agree that someone who is new to shooting should not start out with a compact as the recoil may really be a turn off. I would suggest a full size weapon made of steel especially if your daughter in law is new to shooting. The DOA is a little limiting but you should be able to find something that would work. I would suggest a few in no particular order or price range, S&W 910, S&W Sigma, S&W M&P, Glock 17 or 19, Kahr CW9, FN FNP9 DA may be hard to find, also you may not want to overlook a .38 revolver maybe Taurus, Charter Arms, Ruger or S&W.
I guess my only real problem with your requirements are the size, if it is for home defense the size won't make a difference and a smaller gun won't be any harder for a kid to find than a bigger one. The bigger one would be safer in my opinion. If you want something smaller the suggestions you made are just fine.
Make sure that they educate their children because at one time or another they will come across guns and they better know the proper way to respond.
Good Luck and may God keep you and yours safe.
 
DAO Pistol

Yeah, I hear and agree with every word you've said, however, my son and daughter-in-law associate a large, heavy gun with something thats going to kick like the devil and hurt to shoot. When I handed Jon (my son) my S&W 4"brl 686 as a gun he should consider...he frowns and say's "that's way too big and heavy for Melisa" she couldn't hold it and would never touch it. Keep in mind she's 5'7" about 125 lbs ,works out 4 - 5 times a week and folks that isn't a little half pint by any stretch of the imagine, I was going to give it (686) to him if he would agree to get some instruction for them both.
Like many of you I felt a revolver was the best and safest rout to go for a first time weapon. You can shoot 38's in that and it's almost like shooting 22's. Sooooo.....He liked the Walther P22 and Bersa T380 because they were small and light, but when I explained again the price you pay for small and light and why I'm not recommending a SA simiauto for he and his wife I think he reluctantly agreed. I think!!! lol.
I'll still keep my eyes open for an ultra compac DAO Pistol and may pick one up for myself just to mess around with lol. That FN 9mm Ultra DAO looks interesting, but I guess are hard to find.
Anyway, thanks to all of you for your help.
Best,
JimK
 
S&W M&P compact or Springfield XD for what you want. But I just can't understand wanting a handgun for home defense. Why a handgun to do a shotguns job?
 
Me, my first thoughts were of a 357 magnum wheelgun & a pump shotgun, but since this is in the autoloader section, I'd probably recommend the P2000 9 LEM and G19 for their durabiity, reliability & accuracy.
 
I usually don't say this, but for this situation a Glock seems like it would be a great choice, specifically a Glock 19. It's a perfect size and weight for that all-around gun, shoots effective 9mm defense rounds, has mild recoil, and you can bet your bottom that it will work 100% out of the box for thousands of rounds before even a touch of maintenance gets done to it. The light rail for an optional LED tac light/laser is also a great option to have for a home-defense scenario. They work for CCW, a home defense gun, and even a great range gun.

Don't go with a snub or even a revolver IMO.... When somebody is trying to break in your house, I wouldn't grab anything but a RELIABLE, high-cap auto w/ night sights (also an option for the future). At around 500 bucks out the door, you cannot go wrong with a Glock, especially since you know you will have spent the 500 on something that WILL work without any fuss. Sure there are other options like the XD(which I actually like better although it's heavier) and such, but if your primary goal is to get your son and his family protected ASAP, there isn't a safer bet than a Glock.
 
Interesting set of replies. I don't drink the Kool-aid, but a Glock would certainly be trustworthy out of the box. The big issue with limited experience such as your son and his wife have is shot placement. With a long gun, as long as the stock is in the shoulder and they're looking down the top, you can put a shot on target relatively easy. The body and eyes conform to the stock.
With a handgun, there's that much less inherent er..form that you have to go on. IE, pointability. If you're waken up in the middle of the night, you go for a gun, but are your first instincts upon sighting the target for proper sight alignment? Many of us do it instinctually from practice, but new or limited shooters won't do much more than point. Have him feel a few different types of guns and grips. Find the one he can point naturally and comfortably. From my experience, the Glocks are somewhat lacking in pointability, but YRMV.

BTW, I'd recommend the M&P9, as the recoil is less than most expect, it's a pointable platform, and reliable. Easy to clean.

Regardless, help them get some practice in, and let them know the best security against kids playing with guns is to remove the mistique from them. Proper education and a stern warning about unauthorized touching will make a child safer than any lock and key.
 
Thanks Guy's, Sorry I wasted your time. After last evening discussing the need for a HD/SD weapon with my son and daughter-in-law I've decided to step back , wash my hands of the whole topic and let the two liberal yuppies do their own thing since they have all the answers to any questions on the topic before you can respond to them.
Thanks again and good safe shooting.
JimK
 
That's too bad, Jim. At least you can't say you didn't try... I would consider the first break-in attempt as a warning and a reality check. I would definitely make sure I was prepared for a second time, should it ever occur. I'd feel a LOT more comfortable knowing I had some way of protecting my family vs. having to hole up in my house and rely on the alarm to get the police there in time... :rolleyes:

You said they were scared stiff, but obviously their fear of guns is greater than their fear of being harmed by an intruder. I think you should take your son out and MAKE him shoot some of your guns. Not the cannons, mind you, but something that he'll be able to easily manage and work up from there. If you succeed in helping him get past his fear/lack of interest/hardheadedness/whatever you want to call it, he will undoubtedly thank you later.
 
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