Thoughts on "sacrificial" guns in the house?

[toolmaker]

My collection is very small, but I do have some pieces I'd hate to see stolen.
It occured to me that one way to deal with this concern, since my firesafe is not hideable, is to have on display a few cheap AND, if possible, deactivated display guns in the same room.
Say, for example, an old .22 with the bolt removed, a shotgun minus the firing pin, and an air rifle (that one would have to remain functional due to the difficulty of deactivating). Should a burgler in a hurry get in (please let this not jinx me) my hope would be that he or she would grab the least secured items and high-tail it out., leaving the safe essentially alone. Got the idea from a fellow I met once who, when on trips out of town, left two $50 bills and an unopened bottle of good bourbon on the dining room table with a note saying "take these and get on out". It worked on the one occasion he was burgled. Thoughts please?

 

[Navy joe]

Yep, someone I know has a few blackpowder guns and an air rifle sitting out, the good stuff is locked very far away.

 

[toolmaker]

I can't keep stuff very far away, unfortunately. But to get into a safe, I would think one would have to come prepared to breach one. Not a quick or quiet proposition I hope.

 

[Nick1911]

Decoys aren't a bad idea per say. Do be sure to make them non-functional though - the last thing we need is more bg's with guns.

Better get, leave a cheap handgun with the barrel welded in the middle, where you can't see the modification.

Joking - of course

 

[axmurderer]

this could be a job for .... AIRSOFT!!

some perps are probably dumb enough to think they are real until they shoot them...

 

[RyanM]

I liked the idea in another thread to use a Makarov as a car gun. 9x18mm is obscure enough that Wally World doesn't stock it, so a criminal would likely end up loading 9x17mm, or trying to shoehorn 9x19mm in.

 

[Jim K]

A friend once set up a sunken coffee table in his living room, lined it with blue velvet, put in some old junkers that he had deactivated and had chrome plated at the local bumper shop, then put on a glass cover. Made a rather nice, tasteful display. He figured that any unwanted guests would break the glass and take the junkers and not look further. Since he was never burglarized, he never knew whether it would have worked or not.

Jim

 

[Standing Wolf]

Not here. I'm planning to keep it all.

 

[Kharn]

My aunt and uncle have a very nice display of precussion-cap black powder revolvers hanging on the wall in their living room, the good stuff is hidden away in the basement vault.

Kharn

 

[Werewolf]

Better get, leave a cheap handgun with the barrel welded in the middle, where you can't see the modification.

Joking of Course

Huhhhhh????

Why? If a BG breaks into your home, steals a gun and then kills himself shooting it so what? If he sells it to another BG without shooting it and the other BG kills himself - again - so what?

Not your fault they tried to shoot a non-functional DISPLAY gun.

I don't see the problem here...

Upside - dead or severely injured scumbag
Downside - hmmmm.... tap... tap... tap... what downside?

 

[Crosshair]

How about Nagant revolvers, try getting ANY ammo for those things.

 

[pax]

Never bought a gun from a pawn shop, Werewolf?

pax

 

[Kharn]

Crosshair:
They'll use anything thats .32 and rimmed just fine as I understand it (.32S&W short, long and H&R Magnum, IIRC).

Kharn

 

[Missourigunner]

Thoughts on "sacrificial " guns in the house

I have a nice wall display, of an old, non-working CO2 Rifle, an Inoperative BB Gun, a useless Blackpowder pistol and an deactivated .22. All cleaned and polished up. The good stuff is locked away.

 

[joab]

Downside - hmmmm.... tap... tap... tap... what downside?

Somehow, someway you're getting sued. Or at least I would with my luck. Maybe just shove an oversized bullet or two down the barrel

I've been giving this some thought lately
I have to choose what I want to put in my locker/safe and what I am willing to put in an old glass front cabinet.

So far I'm leaning to old mil-surps with the bolts removed and some old mostly un or dysfunctional Iver Johnson revolvers.

My insurance is replacement value and the rifles are not at all rare

 

[Moonclip]

I know a guy who did this with an Arisaka. I read a book written by a guy whom was a reformed"master burglar" who reccomended such a thing. He said one time he went to the trouble of stealing a decoy safe out of a home and all that was in it after a hard time cracking it was a cheese sandwich and some loose change and stamps, like $2.50 in loot!

Aything you can do to discourage a burglar or slow him down is a good thing. Most burglars are things like the neighborhood delinquent or crack head anyways and the Arisaka and junk jewlery trick will work a lot of the time along with other measures like a dog, alarm system, ect. If you neighbot is easier pickings, 9 times out of ten he will be burgled and not you.

 

[jefnvk]

How about a Mosin or Turk Mauser with the firing pin removed? Make them a wall hanger, and you will have a nice decoration as well.

 

[wizard of oz]

Burglar in the house after my guns ? It would not be my guns that become sacrificial

How about spending the money backing up your safe with improved locks on the doors and windows, a monitored alarm system, camera etc.. ?

 

[joab]

How about a Mosin or Turk Mauser with the firing pin removed? Make them a wall hanger, and you will have a nice decoration as well.

That's what I have, you been casing my house?

 

[pax]

Does this make anyone else think of James Thurber?

pax

Then there was Aunt Sarah Shoaf... -- James Thurber

 

[KriegHund]

Thats a good idea. I think i shall implemement it.

*edit*

Just put up two air rifles and a co2 pistol and a crappy replic black powder.

Ill hate to lose the better of the air rifles and the c02 pistol, but its better than my real guns.

 

[Standing Wolf]

Does this make anyone else think of James Thurber?

Yep. I'm sure the criminals would feel suitably pleased if they had any idea how much time we spend thinking of them.

 

[Crosshair]

Kharn

Crosshair:
They'll use anything thats .32 and rimmed just fine as I understand it (.32S&W short, long and H&R Magnum, IIRC).

Yes, but don't the case necks tend to split, making reloading impossible.

 

[jefnvk]

IIRC, one of the imprters had a replacable cylinder for the Nagant revolvers, that allowed t to shoot one of the .32 modern cartridges.

Another good thing about old military guns, many don't have caliber markings. And the ones that do, are obscure enough that you probably won't find the ammo at Wal-Mart.

 

[Bob F.]

I love my 256 Rigby. Yeah, around here the 6.5x55 Swede is almost as hard to find, but not many know it's the same round! On another vein, I don't keep Fox Spray on the night stand; if the SOB's in my hiuse at night, there's no need for continum of force, 2 to COM!!

Stay safe.
Bob