Recently, there has been a large upswing in firearms sales, and applications for firearms licenses nationwide. I’m going to start by saying this- if you have never thought of owning a firearm, or ever trained with one, just buying a firearm as a reflex to fear doesn’t make you safe, it actually makes you a danger to yourself and others. The first step should always be learning firearms safety. Then, get hands-on training to understand what kind of firearm fits your needs. Then, purchase the firearm you have identified through learning and training. Panic buying a gun doesn’t mean you can actually safely use it, and makes gun owners look crazed to the rest of society. That will only hurt our ability to defend our Second Amendment rights in the long run.
If, however, you have done your reading, and gone through certified training, you will have noticed that there is a wide range of opinion concerning what firearms are suitable for defense of the home. Some of the opinions are sensible, and some aren’t. The way to sort out all the opinion is to first determine the essential requirements of a good home defense weapon.
First, a home defense firearm needs to be capable of safe, long term storage while loaded. All firearms need to be stored securely, either with trigger locks or in gun safes. But, for home defense, those are often too slow to access in an emergency. So, safes designed for home defense- with either a biometric or finger pad combination- are a must. Also, realize that the eventuality of having to defend your home is extremely rare, so a firearm for that purpose will likely remain stored and may never have to be actually used. That said, the firearm you choose must be capable of reliable operation any time. Be aware that many firearms use springs that are under tension when they are loaded, and that over time those springs weaken if the tension is constantly maintained.
Along with this, a firearm for use in a defensive situation must be simple, but safe, to manipulate under stress. This dictates the number, and type, of safety features on the firearm. And remember, the more steps required to bring a firearm into operation, the more training is required to effectively use it.
Second, if you maintain a firearm for home defense, every adult in the home should be licensed, trained, and (extremely important) capable, of using it. This may often dictate the size, weight, and acceptable recoil of the firearm. Often, in families, the only person who considers what firearm is suitable to their needs is the primary user. But, the size, hand strength, and ability to effectively control the firearm through recoil, of all adults who may have to use it, must dictate the firearm chosen.
Third, awareness must be given to the amount of target penetration a firearm/ammunition combination is capable of. Many firearms, at the close quarters of a home defense situation, are capable of shooting through their target, and sending projectiles to continue on through the exterior walls of a typical house. You are accountable for where every shot fired ultimately lands. You must ensure that the potential for damage to unintended targets is minimal.
Last, consideration must be given to the muzzle flash a firearm generates when fired. Most often, home defense situations take place at night, in low light. If you have to fire a weapon, don’t let the muzzle flash from the first shot eliminate your night vision and impede your ability to take effective follow up shots if the situation dictates it.
So, having gone through the necessary requirements, what type of firearm fits the bill? Here’s what I think, and why. I think revolvers are inherently better for home defense than semi-automatic, or magazine fed weapons. The weakness of magazine fed firearms is the magazine itself. Over time, if magazines are not emptied and rotated regularly, the follower springs of the magazines will lose tension. The vast majority of semi-automatic malfunctions can be traced to magazine failures. Double feeds, failures to feed, and failures to properly eject (stovepipe malfunctions), are issues that can be caused by weak springs, and require implementing immediate action drills that eat up time and attention in an emergency situation. Revolvers have none of these issues. Stored with a loaded cylinder, no springs are under tension, and the revolver’s performance will not degrade during long term storage. Malfunctions will be reduced to possible ammunition failure, which requires the much simpler action of only pulling the trigger again to bring a fresh chamber into battery.
Often, the fact that magazine fed firearms have a higher ammunition capacity is brought up to show them superior to revolvers. But, you should ask yourself, who are you preparing to go up against. The threat you are preparing for in home defense is not some hardened breach team coming in hot, but likely one to three men looking to grab cash, jewelry, and electronics to fund a drug habit. They very likely could be armed, but they are not going to stand up to a firefight with a prepared homeowner. Also, you’re not looking to clear your home with CQB tactics, but stay in a defensible position and call 911. In short, you’re not taking the fight to the intruders, you’re keeping yourself safe and waiting for police to arrive. Using a firearm is always the last resort, and you don’t need suppressive fire for that.
As regards size and weight, there are just as many choices as for semi-automatics. You also have the advantage in home defense that you should have planned in advance to use cover like a bed or other piece of furniture to put an obstacle between you and any intruder while you wait for the police. This not only gives you an obstacle to create distance, it also gives you a rest to take up some of the weight while holding a firearm. The large number of revolver options out there ensures that you can find a grip size for any size hand. Also, the grip of a revolver is not dependent on the size of an internal magazine well, as in semi-automatics, giving revolvers much more flexibility in grip size.
For simplicity of operation, revolvers have a distinct advantage over semi-automatics. Unlike semi-autos, there are no external safeties on revolvers. This does not make them any less safe, as all the safety features are internal, ensuring that the revolver can only fire when the trigger is pulled completely. Also, in terms of hand strength, revolvers allow for double action trigger pull, which I prefer, of around 13 pounds, or single action pull, if the hammer is fully cocked, of around 3 to 4 pounds. Rotating the hammer all the way back is not difficult from a two handed grip, and allows more accurate fire for those with weaker hand strength. Care must be taken, however, when returning the hammer to the down position. But this can be accomplished after the situation has resolved, the police have arrived, and the stress has passed.
In terms of penetration, revolvers have an advantage as well, in that there are far more cast lead or semi-jacketed ammo options for revolvers. The copper jacket rounds used in semi-autos rely on very specific circumstances to deform, if they are hollow point, while cast lead hollow point ammunition is almost guaranteed to deform once it hits a target. This means that revolvers shooting cast lead projectiles have a smaller chance of over-penetration than equivalent jacketed rounds fired from semi-autos. Also, many revolvers are capable of using different ammunition. Thus you can run special loads through magnum revolvers to mitigate recoil, if necessary. I prefer to use .38 special+P ammo through my .357 magnum. The beefier frame of the magnum helps soak up recoil, while the .38 special+P still retains good terminal ballistics.
Lastly, revolvers hold another advantage over semi-autos in home defense, in that revolvers offer longer barrel lengths. Since there is no requirement for concealment, revolvers for home defense can have barrels between 5 and 6 inches in length. Almost all semi-autos top out at a 5 inch barrel. What this means, is that revolvers can give the powder more time to fully combust before the projectile leaves the muzzle, allowing less muzzle flash. Less muzzle flash gives less of a chance of dazzling your night vision in low light. This is absolutely essential as it allows you to stay in the fight should follow up shots be necessary. Going night blind just makes you vulnerable and ineffective. You need to retain all the advantages you can.
So, now that I’ve laid out what the realistic requirements of a home defense firearm are, and looked at what firearms fit those requirements, I’ll share my personal pick. I choose a Ruger Security Six revolver with a six inch barrel, chambered for .357 magnum ammunition. I run .38 special+P ammunition through it. I like Ruger, but a commensurate revolver from any manufacturer would work, as well. Depending on your circumstances, your ammo choice may vary too. But, hopefully, this has given you a place to start.
Tactical & Target 