Gun control question

[waldopepper]

I have a variety of weapons. The just-for-fun rifles and pistols are locked in cases and the key is locked in a biometric safe with my home defense and carry pistols. I do not have a proper security mechanism for my shotgun. Right now it is up and out of the way in the closet and is not chambered. Between its length and difficulty to chamber it's reasonably safe with respect to my very young children. However this will not be the case for long and I'd like to find the sweet spot between safety and availability as it is my primary home defense weapon.

I've seen some wall mountable keylocks and racks that aren't exactly ideal. The only option there would be to keep the key in the biosafe next to it so it would be a two step process to carry out - probably about 8-10 seconds under absolute best case conditions (and awoken from a dead sleep in the dark with the sound of someone breaking in the house isn't exactly a best case condition). What do others here do?

What do you guys think of being able to buy a gun at a gunshow without a back ground check? I'm pretty sure that it just requires a call to some database (not linked to any waiting period). I'm a big time supporter of gun rights but I can't think of a reason that this really infringes on a person's rights. It's done before a sale so there's no way they could link that check to an actual sale. I've never been to a gun show but I hear there are a lot of unscrupulous characters there.

[so-tex]

What I find amazing, is how noone ever gets killed at these gun shows.

[Marius_Ursus]

Err on the side of security of the firearm. A good dog will give you all the lead time you need to unlock any weapons you may have. Criminals are not Navy Seals.

Might I also add using a Surefire to double-tap a perp's eyes? I learned in ******** training how disorienting getting intermittent flashes is. You can be sure a perp will be incapacited with a two or three pulses of 200 lumens, and you can keep it right on your night stand.

[Marius_Ursus]

I don't own a gun, but here's my advice; use a pistol for first response. My father always had a Luger pistol strapped right under his bedside (Boston life) That, to me, was the most useful place to keep it; accessible in less than 5 seconds.

A 9 mil has a pretty good chance of going through a wall and injuring someone on the other side, so it might be a viable option, but the shotgun is actually safer as far as accidental injuries go.

[HairyScandinavian]

Mine are not locked up. My kids have been trained and permitted to use them in an emergency, if I lock my own kids out of the guns how the hell are they gonna protect themselves when I'm not at home? I figure the odds of someone breaking in when my truck is there are slim, when they watch me drive away for a quick run to the store... that's when they'll hit. A quick google search will yield plenty of "kid shot intruder with his .22" news articles, etc. Train your kids, properly and often, that's the best security measure for your firearms. Show them the destruction they're capable of and engrave the gun safety rules into their heads.
edit: The ONE thing I worry about are other kids in the house. When I'm gone there are no other kids/friends/anybody allowed inside the house, period.

[HairyScandinavian]

What do you guys think of being able to buy a gun at a gunshow without a back ground check? I'm pretty sure that it just requires a call to some database (not linked to any waiting period). I'm a big time supporter of gun rights but I can't think of a reason that this really infringes on a person's rights. It's done before a sale so there's no way they could link that check to an actual sale. I've never been to a gun show but I hear there are a lot of unscrupulous characters there.

Dealers already have to (I think, at least in Texas), but person to person sales do not. Either way the gun shows here are a joke, just a bunch of resellers trying to cash in on uneducated impulse buyers. The whole gun show thing, IMO, is just a hyped up talking point from the media.

[drudixon]

In addition to security, I think the best thing you can do is to teach your kids about guns and gun safety (maybe even have them take a gun safety course when they are old enough). Tell them how a gun should and should not be handled, and maybe even have them practice using weapons so that they understand how they work. This way, their curiosity will be indulged in a supervised safe manner, and they will not likely try and defeat your security measures to play with the guns. Just from my own experience, I grew up around guns. From about the age of 10 on, I actually had 3-4 guns in a gun rack above my bed, and a whole closet full of ammo. Not once was I tempted to experiment with them, or load them, or do anything stupid. I had plenty of experience with guns, and I did not need to play with them out of curiosity.

We don't own a gun but I definitely plan to take my son (I'm guessing age 8-10?) to a course so he can learn about it. I'm not worried about him here, but at friends' houses if they bust out a piece.

[Corbi]

I've never been to a gun show but I hear there are a lot of unscrupulous characters there.

I've been to my share of them and the vast number of people are 100% normal sane humans, but yes there are the crackpots there selling their nazi crap, these same guys will have some of the most baddass guns though. Full automatics in all sorts of calipers are owned and usually displayed but I have never seen anyone even attempt to buy one.

[DubfromGA]

We don't own a gun but I definitely plan to take my son (I'm guessing age 8-10?) to a course so he can learn about it. I'm not worried about him here, but at friends' houses if they bust out a piece.

On spread!


Allowing my son supervised exposure and safe handling instruction was how I proceeded with my son. I wanted to eliminate the curiosity. He knows that he can ask me to see them or go target shoot and we do so.

[Brackneyc]

I've never been to a gun show but I hear there are a lot of unscrupulous characters there.

I attend them, so, yeah, you may be right.

[mslman71]

What do you guys think of being able to buy a gun at a gunshow without a back ground check? I'm pretty sure that it just requires a call to some database (not linked to any waiting period). I'm a big time supporter of gun rights but I can't think of a reason that this really infringes on a person's rights. It's done before a sale so there's no way they could link that check to an actual sale. I've never been to a gun show but I hear there are a lot of unscrupulous characters there.

Not thrilled but would acquiesce if there was absolutely positively no record whatsoever of the request for a check. Of course, this won't happen, so ...

[jz416]

Personally, i would use a pistol for one reason, shotguns penetrate walls and do so in large surface areas. What if your kids bedroom is behind the wall you just shot into, trying to hit the intruder.

Plus theres nothing more reliable than a .357 revolver.

[mslman71]

Personally, i would use a pistol for one reason, shotguns penetrate walls and do so in large surface areas. What if your kids bedroom is behind the wall you just shot into, trying to hit the intruder.

Plus theres nothing more reliable than a .357 revolver.

Anything that carries enough momentum to penetrate the chest wall of a bad guy will penetrate a wall, frag or not.

[so-tex]

Dealers already have to (I think, at least in Texas), but person to person sales do not. Either way the gun shows here are a joke, just a bunch of resellers trying to cash in on uneducated impulse buyers. The whole gun show thing, IMO, is just a hyped up talking point from the media.

You are correct, but sometimes you can find a good deal. Several years ago I got a steal on a Sworovski Scope at $450 still in the box.