The AR-15 derivated guns in 5.56mm tend to be decently mechanically accurate (depending on the exactly setup and blahblahblah) and have a flat trajectory which makes them practically accurate.
The ability of 5.56mm to wound is velocity dependent. Within the range where the velocity is high enough (600 to 800 meters, again depending on specifics) they are quite damaging, at least to humans. 5.56mm was designed specifically with humans as targets in mind, and designed to kill with hit to the heart/lungs/head. It minimizes recoil to allow the maximum volume of aimed shots in the shortest time, to maximize the chance of hitting a vital.
For hunting something like deer, a lot of gun people have shown 5.56mm is capable of taking down a deer with a similar hit to the vitals, however many locations still regulate that 5.56mm is not legally allowed, so it’s sort of a moot point.
For home protection I would want a pump action 12 gauge.
Not my personal choice or recommendation, but I’ve had this conversation enough to know it is hard to change minds.
So I live in a place where owning a gun for home protection is not considered a rational thought and you’d be a weird fucker if you did (i.e. not US), so wondering what would be your choice/recommendation?
Personally, and this is from a non-gun owner but understand decision making in stressful situations, I’d have thought the recoil and skill needed in a tense situation would not be appropriate for a 12 gauge, unless you’re just using it to look threatening or as a melee weapon - and in which case, a bat might suffice. An ar15 would be a bit too large and unwieldy for home protection so I’d have suggested something simple, low recoil, easy to wield and use but with a bit of stopping power so maybe a Glock 0.4, Colt M1911 or something similar.
I dunno though as I’m not that knowledgeable about guns, especially for this purpose. Would be interested to hear your thoughts.
An ar15 would be a bit too large and unwieldy for home protection so I’d have suggested something simple, low recoil, easy to wield
A pump action shotgun is often going to be longer and more unwieldy than an AR-15 with a collapsing stock and 16 inch barrel (the most common by far layout in U.S.). A Mossberg 500 is 3 inches longer than an AR-15 with a 16 inch barrel, as an example.
A shotgun has the opposite of low recoil. It is high recoil.
AR-15s are specifically designed to minimize recoil; they have very little. For follow-up shots with an AR-15 you simply need to pull the trigger again, for a pump action, you need to pump and if you’re stressed and not super familiar it might take a second or two to register that you need to do that.
AR-15s are also more “pointable” than shotguns, given that AR-15s have almost none of their weight up front whereas pump shotguns have a tube and all the ammo under the barrel.
In the US, you can go even shorter with an AR-15 pistol with no additional legal hurdles, which makes it even more compact and handy. You only lose out on velocity, which only matters at longer range.
While you can add optics and lights to shotguns, it is normally easier to do so with modern off-the-shelf ARs. A flashlight is (I suppose obviously) important to illuminate what’s in front of you to prevent shooting something or someone you don’t intend. Modern red dots commonly have shake awake functions, which means simply picking up the gun causes the red dot to turn on without you having to do anything.
Shotguns are not the cheat code to hitting targets as people think they are. I have seen people, under only the stress of a timer, miss steel plates with a shotgun.
A common, easy alternative to a 5.56mm is a 9mm carbine. This can be an AR rechambered for 9mm, or one of a variety of common 9mm carbines on the market. A lot of similar pros and cons to AR-15s.
In either 5.56mm or 9mm I’d recommend hollowpoints mainly to reduce over penetration of walls.
A silencer (and yes gun people- it is a silencer on your eform so I don’t want to hear whining about suppressors) only takes a little bit of paperwork in the U.S., and I’d recommend it. It protects hearing and reduces your own shock from muzzle blast, to help keep you from being distracted. It’s an extra but not a bad idea.
That sounds like a lot, but aside from the silencer it is all simple and cheap to put together in a single shopping trip.
A home defense gun that is short but can be steadied two-handed with a foregrip is better than a handgun mostly because of accuracy under stress, though handguns are common since those are actually able to be carried outside but that’s a whole other thing.
The AR-15 derivated guns in 5.56mm tend to be decently mechanically accurate (depending on the exactly setup and blahblahblah) and have a flat trajectory which makes them practically accurate.
The ability of 5.56mm to wound is velocity dependent. Within the range where the velocity is high enough (600 to 800 meters, again depending on specifics) they are quite damaging, at least to humans. 5.56mm was designed specifically with humans as targets in mind, and designed to kill with hit to the heart/lungs/head. It minimizes recoil to allow the maximum volume of aimed shots in the shortest time, to maximize the chance of hitting a vital.
For hunting something like deer, a lot of gun people have shown 5.56mm is capable of taking down a deer with a similar hit to the vitals, however many locations still regulate that 5.56mm is not legally allowed, so it’s sort of a moot point.
Not my personal choice or recommendation, but I’ve had this conversation enough to know it is hard to change minds.
So I live in a place where owning a gun for home protection is not considered a rational thought and you’d be a weird fucker if you did (i.e. not US), so wondering what would be your choice/recommendation?
Personally, and this is from a non-gun owner but understand decision making in stressful situations, I’d have thought the recoil and skill needed in a tense situation would not be appropriate for a 12 gauge, unless you’re just using it to look threatening or as a melee weapon - and in which case, a bat might suffice. An ar15 would be a bit too large and unwieldy for home protection so I’d have suggested something simple, low recoil, easy to wield and use but with a bit of stopping power so maybe a Glock 0.4, Colt M1911 or something similar.
I dunno though as I’m not that knowledgeable about guns, especially for this purpose. Would be interested to hear your thoughts.
A pump action shotgun is often going to be longer and more unwieldy than an AR-15 with a collapsing stock and 16 inch barrel (the most common by far layout in U.S.). A Mossberg 500 is 3 inches longer than an AR-15 with a 16 inch barrel, as an example.
A shotgun has the opposite of low recoil. It is high recoil.
AR-15s are specifically designed to minimize recoil; they have very little. For follow-up shots with an AR-15 you simply need to pull the trigger again, for a pump action, you need to pump and if you’re stressed and not super familiar it might take a second or two to register that you need to do that.
AR-15s are also more “pointable” than shotguns, given that AR-15s have almost none of their weight up front whereas pump shotguns have a tube and all the ammo under the barrel.
In the US, you can go even shorter with an AR-15 pistol with no additional legal hurdles, which makes it even more compact and handy. You only lose out on velocity, which only matters at longer range.
While you can add optics and lights to shotguns, it is normally easier to do so with modern off-the-shelf ARs. A flashlight is (I suppose obviously) important to illuminate what’s in front of you to prevent shooting something or someone you don’t intend. Modern red dots commonly have shake awake functions, which means simply picking up the gun causes the red dot to turn on without you having to do anything.
Shotguns are not the cheat code to hitting targets as people think they are. I have seen people, under only the stress of a timer, miss steel plates with a shotgun.
A common, easy alternative to a 5.56mm is a 9mm carbine. This can be an AR rechambered for 9mm, or one of a variety of common 9mm carbines on the market. A lot of similar pros and cons to AR-15s.
In either 5.56mm or 9mm I’d recommend hollowpoints mainly to reduce over penetration of walls.
A silencer (and yes gun people- it is a silencer on your eform so I don’t want to hear whining about suppressors) only takes a little bit of paperwork in the U.S., and I’d recommend it. It protects hearing and reduces your own shock from muzzle blast, to help keep you from being distracted. It’s an extra but not a bad idea.
That sounds like a lot, but aside from the silencer it is all simple and cheap to put together in a single shopping trip.
A home defense gun that is short but can be steadied two-handed with a foregrip is better than a handgun mostly because of accuracy under stress, though handguns are common since those are actually able to be carried outside but that’s a whole other thing.
A what?
A Glock 27, 0.4 calibre.
Thanks for your opinions.