Hello All,

I've been thinking critically about what type of guns I need to own (not just ones that I want). The following firearms are on the list:

My Everyday Carry
Ruger LCP 380
Taurus Slim 709

Home Defense
Taurus 92 9mm Pistol
Taurus Judge
Hi-Point 9mm Carbine

Training
Marlin Model 60 22LR
Walther P22 or Taurus TX22
Heritage 22LR Rough Rider Revolver

Is there any gun that you'd take off or add? I want to slowly duplicate this list as each of my sons are trained in their use and maintenance. Thank you for your help.

(I currently own the ones which are underlined.)

Carry what you shoot and shoot what you carry. If it's working for you, then don't change. If it isn't then do.

I have one CCW gun and one HD gun. One has a larger capacity and weighs about twice as much as the other, but they have the same manual of arms.

I also have a training handgun...same manual of opperation too, except in 22.

Everything else is just for the "fun" aspect.

So how did you decide to buy these particular guns? Did you rent several of them at a range??? Are you satisfied with their reliability? If so, then they are good. If not, get something else for your EDC and HD.

I question the wisdom of a Judge (or S&W Governor) for home defense.
Maybe I'm wrong but it seems awfully hard to aim and hit your target with it when under stress.

Don't know much about Hi-Point carbines but my impression is they are simple, rough, not super-comfortable, but cheap and reliable.

Just my musings.

Unless you have an architectural reason for a home defense handgun, a long gun is almost always a better idea. I have nothing good to say about the Judge. I'd sooner have a pump shooting full strength .410 loads much more comfortably and accurately.

Pistol caliber carbine is a good choice. Looking at numbers for damage to people (more) and overpenetration of walls (less) the counterintuitive choice of 223/556 over 9mm for this purpose is worth a look. If I was going to have a 223/556 home defense gun, it'd be a Ruger Mini 14 because it's not an AR, which is a scary gun to have shot someone with when you go to court (satan forbid it should ever come to that).

I'm gonna point out one other thing. I notice that your list is full of inexpensive guns. I love inexpensive guns, so I don't want to sound like I disapprove. I have a lot of guns and that includes my junk collection. If I was in a financial situation where I didn't get to have lots of guns, I wouldn't want to have only the cheap ones. I would much rather have a smaller number of high quality (not fancy) guns than a larger number of guns that had a higher chance of being troublesome. Some guns are a great deal and price does not equal quality (High point is an excellent example of a good but unglamorous gun for cheap).

Taurus makes good guns and their price is low because they include the customer in the quality control process. Usually you get a very fine gun. Sometimes you get a gun that needs to be sent back for work. They do the work. As long as you're up for your end of the bargain on that, you're in good shape.

I have not heard anything good about the quality of the Heritage Roughrider. A used Ruger is a much better bet for a 22 single action revolver.

As usual, listen to Marline. The Taurus 92 would probably be MY first choice for sd in MY home. Of course, your house is different. The HiPoint Carbine would be my next choice. It's a good weapon and a 9mm coming from a 16" barrel is probably equal to a 357 from a 3" barrel.

I agree with senorgrand about your list choices. I don't know a lot about the HiPoint Carbine. If it is reliable and rugged, it is a good choice. I really like the Taurus 92, so it would be my first choice on that list due to my pro-Taurus 92 bias.

If, by training, you mean just regular old practice, I would train with the firearms I carry and use for HD. I have two of my carry pieces so that I shoot each one at the range every other time. That's just me. YMMV

Marlene wrote: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:53 pm Looking at numbers for damage to people (more) and overpenetration of walls (less) the counterintuitive choice of 223/556 over 9mm for this purpose is worth a look. If I was going to have a 223/556 home defense gun, it'd be a Ruger Mini 14 because it's not an AR, which is a scary gun to have shot someone with when you go to court (satan forbid it should ever come to that).

This.

223/556 is the best I've come across for home defense. More potent than any handgun round and less likely to leave your house if you miss. Tough to stick in your britches, but I don't sleep in those.

One more vote for consideration of a .410 pump shotgun. There are a number of interesting SD loads out there, as you, as a Judge owner, probably know.


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featureless wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 2:55 am

Marlene wrote: Mon Mar 18, 2019 9:53 pm Looking at numbers for damage to people (more) and overpenetration of walls (less) the counterintuitive choice of 223/556 over 9mm for this purpose is worth a look. If I was going to have a 223/556 home defense gun, it'd be a Ruger Mini 14 because it's not an AR, which is a scary gun to have shot someone with when you go to court (satan forbid it should ever come to that).

This.

223/556 is the best I've come across for home defense. More potent than any handgun round and less likely to leave your house if you miss. Tough to stick in your britches, but I don't sleep in those.

My thinking is, if you want a hand gun for HD (easier to secure close by, or same as your EDC), a lower velocity 9mm Jacketed Hollow Point round is a good 2nd-best alternative to a .223/5.56 carbine. IMHO

Looks like a decent list. The two that are kinda out of place are the judge and the Hi-Point carbine. Weight is not a big deal for home defense, but the stakes are high. I would go for a large capacity gun, as large as your locality allows.

My HD setup includes an 8.5" barrel AR pistol with two 30-round mags in tandem.

As a general rule for home defense, I don't use any gun longer than the narrowest width of my doorway. I want to pie a corner without ever having to tip the muzzle up or down.

Your miles may vary, but this is what works for me.

Your list looks fine, but unless you are keeping ready firearms in several rooms, you may have more on the list than needed for "home defense".

One caution about semi-auto pistols for home defense: rotate the magazines. The modern springs are pretty good, but keeping a magazine 100% loaded for the long term will likely lower reliability in the last one or two rounds.

My recommendation for home defense semi-autos is to rotate the mags every month.

As for Stiff's comment about long guns for home defense: +1. I think most of us would be better with a handgun inside the house. If you live in the country, a long gun is a very good idea.

I am an admitted Taurus fanboy - Taurus 92 is a extremely good choice - inexpensive, accurate and reliable - I own several versions in 9mm and .40S&W. I personally have no use for any .380, .45acp. or Judge. My EDC is 740 Slim w/extended 8-rd mag and PT100 .40S&W (Latter for crowd events and malling). HD bedside is $&W SD40VE - another inexpensive, accurate and reliable pistol with an atrocious trigger, but fine for HD. I don't see the need for an HD rifle unless you live in the country or a ghetto.

If you get a TX22 let us know how it goes. For a .22 revolver I'd recommend SA/DA M992 Taurus over the Heritage RR.

YankeeTarheel wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 7:18 am My thinking is, if you want a hand gun for HD (easier to secure close by, or same as your EDC), a lower velocity 9mm Jacketed Hollow Point round is a good 2nd-best alternative to a .223/5.56 carbine. IMHO

Yes, and mine is currently a 9mm handgun. That will change when the kid is moved out and the specifics of securing a long arm are less arduous. It's much easier to put a handgun safe in the upstairs bedroom than a rifle safe.

Anyone else actually prefer a handgun for home defense? I have people in multiple beadrooms, so hunkering down in my bedroom until the cops arrive isn't an option. Having something that I can fire and still use my off hand is important. As is the ability to holster.

senorgrand wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 12:32 pm Anyone else actually prefer a handgun for home defense? I have people in multiple beadrooms, so hunkering down in my bedroom until the cops arrive isn't an option. Having something that I can fire and still use my off hand is important. As is the ability to holster.

Because all our situations are different, it's good to have options.

My preference is a rifle because I am more proficient with them and they pack more heat. That said, my handgun is accessible. My rifle is not. Our alarm system (self installed and inexpensive) will wake me up and then it's a matter of holding the stairwell. They are welcome to anything downstairs before the cops arrive. They are not welcome upstairs where my family is.

I prefer a handgun. I assume that I will need the other hand for a cell phone. Any invader(s) will need me to rescue them from my K9 alarm system if they are stupid enough to walk into a house with barking dogs.

I see someone mentioned the Mini-14 as a possibility. i have one, and that was the first gun I ever bought and was my first home defense weapon. It's fine, but being a rifle it's a bit big and can be awkward to use indoors in close quarters. These days I have a Ruger American Pistol, 9mm. It's much easier to manipulate in close quarters and it's 17 round magazine satisfies me (though I do keep a second loaded mag with it, of course).

I live in CA, so I can't have more than 10+1 9mm. So my SD is 8 shots of 357 coming out of a 5" barrel. My new house is semi-surrounded by berms, so overpenatration isn't as big an issue as it was.

Of course, I might go deaf...

senorgrand wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 1:16 pm I live in CA, so I can't have more than 10+1 9mm. So my SD is 8 shots of 357 coming out of a 5" barrel. My new house is semi-surrounded by berms, so overpenatration isn't as big an issue as it was.

Of course, I might go deaf...

Only 8 shots? Sounds like you need to buy a couple more of those guns to make up the difference.

NY reload with an N frame. Holy shit that would be awesome!

Eris wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 1:18 pm

senorgrand wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 1:16 pm I live in CA, so I can't have more than 10+1 9mm. So my SD is 8 shots of 357 coming out of a 5" barrel. My new house is semi-surrounded by berms, so overpenatration isn't as big an issue as it was.

Of course, I might go deaf...

Only 8 shots? Sounds like you need to buy a couple more of those guns to make up the difference.

Dual wielding for the win.

And yeah, mag limits suck.

Stiff wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 9:43 am My HD setup includes an 8.5" barrel AR pistol with two 30-round mags in tandem.

Unfortunately there are at least 3 reasons (maybe 4) why that's illegal in NJ.
If it's a pistol, you can't have a box mag that doesn't go in the pistol grip.
If it's a rifle, barrel must be 16"
Magazines went from a 15 round limit to 10 rounds last June.
I believe magazines in tandem may also be illegal.

Otherwise it's PERFECTLY legal here!
(except it's not...)

YankeeTarheel wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 2:11 pm

Stiff wrote: Tue Mar 19, 2019 9:43 am My HD setup includes an 8.5" barrel AR pistol with two 30-round mags in tandem.

Unfortunately there are at least 3 reasons (maybe 4) why that's illegal in NJ.
If it's a pistol, you can't have a box mag that doesn't go in the pistol grip.
If it's a rifle, barrel must be 16"
Magazines went from a 15 round limit to 10 rounds last June.
I believe magazines in tandem may also be illegal.

Otherwise it's PERFECTLY legal here!
(except it's not...)

I'd go with Stiff's recommendation and add a suppressor and DeltaPoint Pro red dot. Unfortunately, CA views such things in similar light to NJ, so not for me either.

I must admit there are laws I don't understand, like drug paraphernalia laws. I mean, why is a bong illegal, unless it has residue? You can smoke tobacco in it, too.
Then again, I don't understand how any box magazine that's not in a gun can be "illegal". After all, they are no different in how they work than a PEZ dispenser--and some even are plastic, too!

If I put a piece of steel rod in my lathe, drill a hole in it, and threat it on the inside on one side and on the outside of another, it could be a pipe fitting...or an adapter to use an oil filter as a suppressor. How can you tell? Thread size shouldn't be enough to make it a felony, but it is.