A while back, I wrote a piece about using long guns for home defense. http://larrycorreia.wordpress.com/2007/09/20/carbine-vs-shotgun-vs-pistol-for-home-defense/
I did this after a request from pax at Cornerd Cat. She recently wrote a piece about the advantages of pistols for home use.
http://www.corneredcat.com/FirstGun/handgun.aspx
It is a good article, but I’m keeping my rifle as my primary. We may disagree on what we personally use, but we agree that the most important factors are finding the tool that works best for you and learning how to use it.
You make some good points in that article, but I still prefer a pistol–just “feels right” to me.
Also, this is off topic, but I figured you’d get a kick out of real archaeologists reporting on zombies: http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/hierakonpolis/zombies.html
I agree with both of you. I remember your comments on THR about this subject and you made a lot of sense. You also echoed what some other respected trainers have been saying. I would prefer a carbine, but at this time, a pistol is easier to secure and faster to get to in my house. I’d like to come up with some way to store a carbine so that I can get to it fast, but having children means that it has to be secured in a way that they can’t get to it (at least until they are old enough).
I use a pistol (S&W .44 with Glaser Silver Safety Slugs; yes, I’m aware of the problems with frangie ammo, but I’ve got thin walls) because my apartment is very small. It’s literally two steps from my bedroom door to my bed. If someone comes through the door or window, they’re going to be on top of me before I can get a long gun into action.
I don’t deny that the shoulder arm is easier to shoot and, in a rifle caliber or shotgun chambering, considerably more effective. But circumstances dictate for me.
Handguns are for answering the door – easier to hide, and they give you breathing room to get back to an effective fighting tool. If it does somehow end the hostilities of one home invader, it’s still a good idea to get to said rifle and maintain static defense and call for the authorities.
After all, why clean the corpses out of your own home when the city will do it for you?