I figure this will turn into a wide ranging and rousing discussion and it's one of the areas I am most suited to talk about. I have 23 years of expierence with firearms in a professional capacity and many more for personal pleasure. I love the subject and I'm quite passionate about the art of self defense with a firearm. I consider myself a Templar , a man of arms dedicated to Christ.
I have written tomes on the psychology of the good shoot, what I'd like to focus on in this thread is just the basics of firearms, what I've found works, what others like and simple suggestions on the most bang for the buck...(get it bang for the buck)
I'll make suggestions here and use terminology that I've been using for more than a life time. If it strikes you as harsh I'm sorry but this discussion should be about protecting your family and the easiest way to do that is to remove the threat quickly. If you were to hire my company to train you I would charge for this information but here it's free as I want as many of my brothers and sisters in Christ to be alive and happy as possible.
I will discuss ammo selection later it's very important and can be quite complex.
If you have the money I'd suggest 3 firearms. I'll cover additions and why after the basic 3 you should have.
1. A shotgun, pump or semi, 12 gauge preferred. Rationale: The shotgun is frankly, just really handy. It can be used for close quarters combat (refered to as CQB from now on) with slugs can reach out to 50 yards quite accurately, and can be used for hunting. Lastly it's devastating to a target with the right round a 1 shot drop is quite possible and quite quickly.
The basic 12 gauge pump shotgun is affordable, easy to maintain and easy to use. I say 12 gauge because it's the most common and as such ammo will be easier to find, trade for or liberate from bad guys.
2. A Handgun: they are for the most part concealable (please see your state for concealed carry laws and if you live in a communist state good luck) they tend to be light, easy to handle and comfortable for many sizes and ages of folks to use (though this depends on the cartridge used but let's go with the average for now)
A well built handgun is easy to maintain, comfortable in your hand and with proper care seldom if ever malfunctions. We will cover semi auto vs wheel guns later I'm trying to keep this first post flowing. You can use the proper handgun for self defense and hunting (though hunting with a handgun takes a much larger cartridge if you are to be a humane Hunter)
3. A Rifle, specifically a semi automatic, magazine fed rifle with a military heritage. I will cover other rifles to own and that will include bolt actions etc but remember this is just the first 3 that you should own.
Why a military heritage you ask? Well those rifles tend to have the most use and abuse in war time environments. They tend to be tough, easy to clean, have standard capacity 20 to 30 round magazines and be of a caliber that works well in bad situations. These rifles are multi purpose, durable and given the right cartridge have a long arm of authority.
The price ranges very but I'll always try to offer really affordable options but I do love the pricey toys as well.
I'll get into the whole AK/AR/FN FAL/M14/PTR 91 argument later...oh man does that turn into an argument. At this point I just want people to begin to think about the basics and not overwhelm them.
I'll be adding more nightly, I'm quite passionate about this and love teaching and learning about firearms. No matter how much you know or how good you are theres always more to learn and things to get better at.
Sabres out! Sabres ready!
I have written tomes on the psychology of the good shoot, what I'd like to focus on in this thread is just the basics of firearms, what I've found works, what others like and simple suggestions on the most bang for the buck...(get it bang for the buck)
I'll make suggestions here and use terminology that I've been using for more than a life time. If it strikes you as harsh I'm sorry but this discussion should be about protecting your family and the easiest way to do that is to remove the threat quickly. If you were to hire my company to train you I would charge for this information but here it's free as I want as many of my brothers and sisters in Christ to be alive and happy as possible.
I will discuss ammo selection later it's very important and can be quite complex.
If you have the money I'd suggest 3 firearms. I'll cover additions and why after the basic 3 you should have.
1. A shotgun, pump or semi, 12 gauge preferred. Rationale: The shotgun is frankly, just really handy. It can be used for close quarters combat (refered to as CQB from now on) with slugs can reach out to 50 yards quite accurately, and can be used for hunting. Lastly it's devastating to a target with the right round a 1 shot drop is quite possible and quite quickly.
The basic 12 gauge pump shotgun is affordable, easy to maintain and easy to use. I say 12 gauge because it's the most common and as such ammo will be easier to find, trade for or liberate from bad guys.
2. A Handgun: they are for the most part concealable (please see your state for concealed carry laws and if you live in a communist state good luck) they tend to be light, easy to handle and comfortable for many sizes and ages of folks to use (though this depends on the cartridge used but let's go with the average for now)
A well built handgun is easy to maintain, comfortable in your hand and with proper care seldom if ever malfunctions. We will cover semi auto vs wheel guns later I'm trying to keep this first post flowing. You can use the proper handgun for self defense and hunting (though hunting with a handgun takes a much larger cartridge if you are to be a humane Hunter)
3. A Rifle, specifically a semi automatic, magazine fed rifle with a military heritage. I will cover other rifles to own and that will include bolt actions etc but remember this is just the first 3 that you should own.
Why a military heritage you ask? Well those rifles tend to have the most use and abuse in war time environments. They tend to be tough, easy to clean, have standard capacity 20 to 30 round magazines and be of a caliber that works well in bad situations. These rifles are multi purpose, durable and given the right cartridge have a long arm of authority.
The price ranges very but I'll always try to offer really affordable options but I do love the pricey toys as well.
I'll get into the whole AK/AR/FN FAL/M14/PTR 91 argument later...oh man does that turn into an argument. At this point I just want people to begin to think about the basics and not overwhelm them.
I'll be adding more nightly, I'm quite passionate about this and love teaching and learning about firearms. No matter how much you know or how good you are theres always more to learn and things to get better at.
Sabres out! Sabres ready!