IMG_1805

If you carry a gun, the tendency of most toters is probably to un-holster your heater and drop it on the nightstand before you hit the hay (assuming there are no rugrats or other non-gunsafe individuals in your domicile). But my EDC gun is a GLOCK 43…which is great for comfort and concealment, but doesn’t really have the capacity you’d want if you hear that dreaded bump in the night. That’s why the gun on my nightstand is a FNS-9C with an extended 17-round magazine. In addition to round count, it will also take a light or laser if that floats your boat. My torch of choice, though, is a Streamlight ProTac HL USB (highly recommended). What occupies the real estate on your nightstand?

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

215 COMMENTS

  1. No nightstand gun, my carry gun lives on my desk. but I do have a 12 gauge pump in the corner within arms reach from my pillow

    • While I do carry my EDC while I am home, since I am not always dressed, there is always a 12ga pump close at hand. I don’t take my carry gun to my nightstand, I lean my KSG against it.

    • Pump 12 on my side of the bed with a j frame and a Ka Bar cutlas machete. 20 g on my little woman’s side

      • What is the machete for? Cutting up the pieces of the dead body (already cut in pieces from your 12 gauge shotgun blasts) into even smaller pieces for easier removal from your home?

  2. G17 in a digital quick safe anchored to the bed frame.

    But, to be honest, that’s mostly for my wife. I’m going for the pump gun, if at all possible.

  4. Sig P226 in .357 sig. Fifteen round clip and Veridian laser.

    But there are now so many wonderful guns for home defense. Nothing like free enterprise, free markets and freedom.

    Sorry Californians.

  5. My carry weapon (G22) sleeps under the pillow next to me wrapped in its cozie Crossbreed SnapSlide holster. To assist my old eyes she wears a Crimson Trace Laser Grip and a Crimson Trace Light Guard. She is a joy to be with 24/7.

    • I use my work issued Glock 22 as my nightstand gun. If I have to use it the dept can hold it (their own gun) during the investigation and not one that I paid for

    • My HD weapon is my carry weapon: Glock 19. It works great for both and simplifies things. My backup HD weapon is my AR15 with dreaded 30 round magazines.

  6. Didn’t Farago just say that a gun belongs on your body or in your safe and nowhere else?

  7. Right now it’s my Springfield XDs 9mm in a digital quick access pistol safe. However, the plan is to switch to my Springfield XD Mod 2 4″ as my night stand gun soon. My S&W M&P 15 Sport is only a few steps away in the closet if necessary.

  9. Before it was lost in a freak boating accident (as far as you know,) I had a Glock 17 with a +2 mag extension ready to rock for bumps in the night.

    But the truth is, the G43 is always in a more readily accessible location. It’s also the one I’ve practiced with more lately.

    • Did you recover this piece from under the sea or did you get a new one after that boat went under??

  14. My arrangements have always been in a little bit of flux, based on what I’ve owned over the years. Currently, I have a Glock 20, loaded with 15+1 Hornady 155gr XTP. and a spare mag loaded with the same. Also in same drawer, a spare mag loaded with Underwood 220gr hard cast for black bear and such. But my AR is only a few feet away now, and it happens to have the light, and so the pistol has been rendered kind of superfluous. There’s several other non-gun security precautions in place as well, but those really aren’t germane to this particular conversation. I know it sounds a bit curious that a 5.56 AR would be the main defensive weapon yet a 10mm G20 the bear gun. (No, I don’t own a shotgun at the moment. Thus the rifle, for the time being.) But it is what it is. Two legged critters are a much more likely threat in the cabin than a black bear ever would be anyway.

    Tom

    • I know it sounds a bit curious that a 5.56 AR would be the main defensive weapon yet a 10mm G20 the bear gun.

      It doesn’t sound curious to me at all. The 5.56 x 45 mm cartridge was designed for VARMINTS. Obviously bears are several orders of magnitude larger and tougher than varmints. That being the case, a full size pistol chambered in 10mm shooting full power, heavy-for-caliber hardcast lead bullets makes a lot more sense for bear defense.

      The only way I could see promptly stopping a bear with an AR-15 is if you have 69 to 77 grain hunting bullets and you are able to put a LOT of them into the bear before it shreds you.

      • Even a 55fmj will do more damage than 10mm hardcast from a pistol.

        Black bears ain’t that tough either way.

        • I can’t see 55 grain full metal jacket bullets from an AR-15 being reliable to stop a bear quickly. Would they eventually kill it? Sure. But that doesn’t do you much good if they are full strength for the first 2 minutes after you shot them … that is plenty of time for a bear to seriously mess you up, or worse.

          And if the bear is on the larger side, you are easily talking 400+ pounds for black bears. I think I would still take the 10mm full size pistol shooting full power, heavy-for-caliber hardcast lead bullets over an AR-15 shooting 55 grain full metal jacket.

    • Same here. The safe in which all the guns reside is actually in the bedroom, so they’re all technically available as “nightstand” guns. But the EDC pistol (Springfield XDm in 9mm) is the only one that stays loaded and ready to go 24/7.

  16. Upstairs bedroom – FN FNP-9 with CT Railmaster laser, and Rem. 870 pump in the adjacent corner.

    Downstairs – XDS Tactical w/ Deltapoint and Surefire X200. Also Mossberg 890 and custom AR15 in 300 Blackout with Vortex SPARC and AAC suppressor.

    • +1 for the 300 BLK long gun under the bed. 40 rounds of 110 gr V-max on tap. No can for me. The center mass laser sighted for seven yards works almost as well as a flashlight in the dark and hip firing is a snap.

    • Ok, so are the downstairs guns locked up at night when you’re upstairs? Or are you arming the intruders who break into the house at night? (Just curious)

  17. My carry/nightstand for now is a Sig p250 Compact in .40, my soon-to-be-wife also has a P250 Sub-compact in .40. Both are our carry guns but I want to get myself a P320 full size in .45acp and I want to get her a Taurus Judge. I also have my Sig556xi with a few loaded mags under the bed just in case lol. We’re loaded for bear at our Texas home.

    • My wife’s bedside gun (her side of the bed) is a Judge. I’ve been thinking about a P320 myself – how do you like yours?

      • Like I said I WANT to get a P320, but it is basically a P250 with a Striker firing mechanism. I like glocks, I love my P250, seems like a good match to me. It’s gotten a gun of the year award and a golden bullseye award so I have to think it’s a great gun.

    • Jonathan,

      Make sure your wife can handle the weight and grip size of the Taurus Judge.

      • She handles a 30oz subcompact .40 better than some men handle 9mm, i’m sure a heavier .45 will be no problem for her as far as recoil is concerned, as far as weight you may be right there lol.

  18. I have a dog for the things that go bump in the night. A beautiful Dobie German Shephard mix. But for those things that need to be bumped back, i got a 9mm Beretta Px4 Storm with 17+1 and an additional 20 round mag to boot.

    • Pitbull x 2. They do have feeding issues tho. Like they allways want fed. German shep, doobie cross, that must be a hell of a dog. PEACE OUT

  19. My nightstand gun is an Aimpoint equipped Tavor. It can be used one handed and is perfect for close quarters. Plus m193 vs bad people is not pretty. I do need to get a can for it though.

  20. Pistol Grip 20 guage with my C 9 open and ready. No kids ( human ones)
    The shotgun will mean house repair and paint but oh well.
    Soon to have a 12 guage home defense pump with 5+1.

    • Jaffas,

      Why abandon the 20 gauge? It has less recoil than a 12 gauge for faster follow-up shots. And I don’t know anyone who is going to be standing after absorbing the .63 caliber slug from a 20 gauge shotgun.

  24. Mossberg 930 SPX, and a CZ P09 9mm 8 rounds of buckshot and 20 rounds of 9mm should do it.

  25. I like the comment about the dog. My dog lets me know when any large truck turns around in our cul-de-sac. And if anyone comes to the door, I get advance notice for sure.
    For the bedroom I prefer my CZ-75. I’ve got a Remington 20 gauge in the corner (for my wife), but I prefer a handgun for close quarters.

  26. Taurus 1911 with an extra 10 rd magazine; I’m unapologetic about this firearm. It was obtained used about 4 yrs ago and runs flawlessly. I could have spent three times what I paid and not as happy with a more expensive firearm. I understand that I may be in a small minority, still my favorite. My two large Labs run audio recon and bad guy first responders.

    • Seconded on the PT1911. Once it was broken in, its been extremely reliable with 230 GR JHP and 235 GR cast reloads.
      Sits in a hand safe on my night stand.

  27. I have a couple different guns i carry daily, my two usual options are full-size pistols with night sights, so either work well as a nightstand gun. Either a CZ P-07, or a Springfield Armory TRP 1911.

  31. G19 w/Streamline TLR-1 in a digital quick safe bolted to the bedframe located between wall/bed. From wake-up to gun in hand is less than 5 seconds.

  32. S&W Mod. 10-5 .38 special with alternating Bear/Human (Underwood hard-cast LSWC+P/Hornady critical defense +P) because in the mountains, ya never know what’s going to break in.

  33. 18 round S&W Governor. (6) .410 Critical Defense rounds. Mine comes factory with 3 or 4 round “burst” fire with extra no paperwork.. Imagine that? Night sight from the factory. Have a 3 d cell mag light as well if needed. Motion lights outdoors and occupancy switches inside are your friends.

  34. M&P 9 or 9c depending on which is in my carry rig at the time. Supplemented by a 560k grain GSD.

  35. For the time being… a machete. Transitional moving phase so… a machete is better than a fist. Or at least my fist. By the window is a mason hammer.

    • I like that. I call machetes “corn knives”. Grandpa calledm corn knives, dad called em corn knives. Still have one of my grandpa”s looks like a roman short sword only thinner.

      • I picked up a kaiser blade that was sittin there by the screen door…Some folks call it a sling blade…I call it a kaiser blade…

  36. Remember too in the middle of the night you need a weapon you will not accidentally fire off when you reach for it. This completely rules out the “unsafe” Glock and copy cat pistols that have no manual safety or no long hard double action pull. Snag the trigger on these guns and they go off right now. Very easy to accidentally do when half asleep in the middle of the night.

    “Original” Browning High Power in 9×19. No junk modern castings that can fail at the worst possible moment, No junk modern plasticky parts, No junk modern sheet metal stampings. Plenty of firepower so I will not need to re-load. Used by over 50 Nations in History and still by far one of the best of the best unless you are lucky enough to own the Star Model 30M which was also a double action/single action and made also of forging not junk castings, plastic or stamped sheet metal.

    My list of acceptable night stand pistols

    1. Browning High Power “original model without any junk cast parts”
    2. Star Model 30M
    3. Original 1911 in 9mm or 45acp “WITHOUT” any modern junk cast or plastic parts.
    4. Original Beretta 92 (with the manual safety) without the current junk plasticky parts.
    5. Polish Radom VIS
    6. French MAB PA15
    7. Beretta M1951
    8. Walther P88 and Compact Model
    9. Walther P4 and P5
    10. “Original” Smith & Wesson Model revolvers (without junk MIM cast parts) in .38 special, .357 Mag, 44 Special, 44 mag. 45acp etc. etc.
    11. Colt revolvers in the same calibers.
    12. Mauser Broomhandle in .30 Mauser, 9×19, and 9mm Export and .45acp (Yes they did make them in .45acp not once but twice).

    • It’s a ridiculous assertion a Glock is not safe. It’s you my friend who is not safe.

    • That’s a long list of some random and obscure firearms….especially a broom-handle Mauser!? We are still curious to know which one, if any, is your go to bedside gun…

    • Glock no, Mauser Broomhandle yes? o.O Okay then. For my part I find it pretty simple to (safely) use a contemporary gun with a holster, whereas getting an antique and making sure it runs would be difficult. But I know there are enthusiasts that would have a Broomhandle, Luger or whatever running alright anyway.

  38. S&W Model 642 with Crimson Trace laser grip and a flashlight. Revolver is holstered/accessible behind the headboard. Shotgun backup. Secondary weapon hidden downstairs. In the middle of the night I want the simplicity of a revolver and a stronger trigger pull. The laser is ideal for low lighting and aiming accurately from unusual positions. Of course, like anything, practice makes perfect!

  39. No gun on nightstand due to little ones, however on top of the dresser sits a FNX 45. If I think that I have the time I’m going for the 870 pump in the closet though, I leave the key in my safe at night so it’s accessible. I am comfortable with the thought of 6 rounds of 00 buck, as well as with the thought of 15 rounds of 45, as long as they’re flying away from me!

    • Unless your attacker is wearing a ballistic vest, he/she is NOT going to shrug off 15 rounds of .45 ACP.

      Unfortunately, if your attacker IS wearing a ballistic vest, your shotgun shooting buckshot won’t do any good, either (outside of possible blunt force trauma from the impact of the buckshot hitting, but not penetrating, the ballistic vest).

  40. What occupies the real estate on your nightstand?

    Yes.

    On a more serious note, I have a Smith and Wesson M&P 40 (full size, 4.25 inch barrel) semi-automatic pistol with 15 round magazine and one in the chamber available for immediate emergency deployment. I keep it loaded with Winchester Ranger 180 grain bonded, jacketed hollowpoints. Muzzle velocity with these should be up around 950 fps.

    If I have an extra five seconds for preparation, then I can bring my Kel-Tec SUB-2000 carbine into play. It is chambered in .40 S&W and I keep a 22 round magazine loaded with Winchester Ranger 180 grain bonded, jacketed hollowpoints. Muzzle velocity with these should be up around 1,150 fps due to the 16 inch barrel.

    If I were to receive credible information that someone was planning to break-in during a certain time period, I would then keep a 20 gauge shotgun at the ready loaded with slugs.

  41. SIG P228, in a shoulder holster with 2 extra mags, draped over our bed’s footboard. All the magazines are 15 rounders. Pretty Wife has her S&W 642 .38 in
    her nightstand. My 1911 is in a quick-release safe, that’s bolted to the bed frame.

  42. G34 with a stick of FMJs. G34 might not the best, ashort barrel PCC with a can would be my ultimate preference, but better than a compact.

    FMJs how dare I? Well I’m not that concerned, it’s the way my priorities work, special ammo is just where I draw the line. Some keep no gun at all.

  44. For the moment, Beretta 92FS and a Nitecore P10. These are also my EDC items so it works pretty well. Things may change after I swap the 92 for the M9A1 so I might keep a Streamlight TLR-1 HL on the nightstand and mount it at night.

  45. Mossberg 590A1. No need to have a living witness should there be an encounter. That’s the problem with handguns. They lake lethality.

    • That begs the question in a home defense situation is the home owner looking to kill the intruder or to stop the threat?

      If the death of the intruder is part of stopping the threat so be it. That death should not be the stated and pursued end state. From a liability stand point at a minimum.

  46. S&W SD9ve for me. Charter Arms .38 for her. Along w a flashlight, Marine KA-bar, a poly carbonate katana, and the key to the big safe for the M&P 15. Cause the pistol is to fight your way to the safe gun, right?

  48. Ruger SP101/357 under the nightstand.
    Mossberg 500 and ammo hidden in a nearby closet.

  49. Glock 17 with attached light. 1 spare mag, 1 mag in the weapon. No round in the pipe.

    Closet (6 foot from bed) 12g auto above the door, again with attached surefire.

  50. Suppressed FNX-45 Tactical with a trijicon RMR and Hornady Critical Duty +Ps. Safety on, round in chamber. Spare magazine. Glock 19 as a backup.

  51. just a Rossi 357 snub nose loaded with 38 wad cutters and a few speed loaders
    and a Blackhawk! Legacy L2A2 flashlight if I need to illuminate something or bludgeon something.

    But the gun safe is just in the closet and I try to keep at least 1(preferably 2) full magazines for everything I keep in there.

    • Your .38 Special 158 grain wadcutters are key in your setup. They make pretty big and pretty nasty holes in attackers … and are almost guaranteed to exit providing two holes for your attacker to bleed out. And yet they produce less recoil than .357 Magnum rounds which enables more accurate/faster follow-up shots.

      While some firearm and ammunition combinations are certainly better, you are anything but vulnerable.

  52. What occupies the real estate on your nightstand?

    My CPAP machine, a bedside lamp and an alarm clock.

    However, I have a SIG Sauer P250 subcompact in 9mm and a Bushnell Pro 350 flashlight hanging at the side of my bed in an under the mattress gun holster (I have no small children to worry about.) A pair of Caldwell electronic ear muffs hangs on the butt of the pistol. I run a 15 round magazine (with an X-Grip adapter) in the subcompact grip module, loaded with Hornady Critical Defense 115gr.

  53. My girl keeps her .38 and AWB-era Norinco SKS (a Navy Arms import sans bayonet & lug) at her bedside; on mine is the Mossberg 835 sporting an 18″ barrel, along with the Tokarev and my modernized SKS….. along with our pair of tactical tomahawks and various flashlights.

    There’s not really any room for bedside lamps or wall decorations because of our “arsenal”…. is that weird?

  57. The gun I carry during the day is the one that protects me at night. But it has friends — a twelve gauge wall leaner and a SOG tactical tomahawk share pride of place, and there’s also a BFK hiding out just in case. Because ninjas.

  60. I keep a Tactical 5″ XD .45 with a Streamlight TLR-3 in a Gunvault SpeedVault SV500 mounted to the side of my nightstand. I highly recommend the safe as an excellent solution for those with rugrats. We once had a bump in the night and my wife still tells our friends and family how quickly I had a gun in my hand. [Fortunately the “bump” was just a falling ironing board that knocked over a wine glass, but it was terrifying nonetheless]. Nightstand gun is not my EDC.

  63. Guns stay locked up at all times, my roomate is an occasionally suicidal bipolar fellow.

    Nightstand has an Ontario Knife Company SP1 resting on top of it, that way if I absolutely don’t have time to arm-up, I’m not entirely defenseless.

    • You’re probably gonna wake up with that knife to your neck and your roommate tucked like buffalo bill. 😮 !

      • I’m not entirely sure what you mean by that second part. If you’re suggesting that the roommate would go off the rails and attack me, I’d say not to worry. I’ve known the man for 22 years, and in that entire time he’s never been a danger to anyone but himself.

        If it’s just suggesting I’ll get robbed with my own knife, sure, that’s a possibility. I’ve weighed the relative risks of both armed home invaders and my friend making a bad decision when hits a rough patch, and made the compromise I *personally* feel protects myself and the people around me optimally. If someone else in a similar circumstance reaches a different conclusion, that’s fine by me.

  64. My EDC GLOCK 26 9mm rests on the nightstand, but at night it becomes the back-up gun to my KRISS Vector in .45 ACP, also on the nightstand.

  66. Downstairs: Sig P226 TACOPS w/TLR1s, +1 extra 20rd mag (40 total)

    Upstairs: CZ75 SP-01 w/TLR1s, +1 extra 19rd mag (38 total)

    Rifle(s)/Shotgun(s) in the big safe that I’ll fight my way to if the zombies come.

  70. FNX45 in condition 3 with a Streamlight TLR2s. Condition 3 not because of the kids, but because I’m one of those people who dreams that I am fighting with a bear or something and then I wake up and all the sheets are on the floor and I have the pillows in some sort of submission/stranglehold. Just don’t think it would be prudent to add a locked and loaded handgun within arm’s reach to that mix.

  71. Its true about the glocks. My older brother, who since is deceased, blew a huge chunk out of his hand, while sleeping with his glock 17. The aftermath was not pretty. Didnt go to the hospital until 4 days later, because he was so embarressed. By then it was leaking some nasty greenish, yellow puss liquid. The chunk was under his pinky on edge of his palm. Looked like an animal bit a golfball sized chunk outta side of his hand.

    • Yup, why I wont own one. Glock saftey? Striker fired accident waiting to happen. Theyre good firearms if they had a real saftey. I”ll cock my superblackhawk n call it glock safe, now we will run thru the jungle, you wanna be in front of me? Didnt think so

    • Loaded glocks need to be in holsters. Sorry about your brother, keeping a loaded glock (or any other number of striker fired guns or da/sa decocker guns under your pillow is a bad idea, as he showed.
      Peace.

      • My glock 17 is always in condition 1 inside a holster, either on my hip or on the nightstand.

        Fenix pd35 at the ready with 1,000 lumens. Most likely Id grab the 870 and stay planted where I’m at.

  72. Glock 17 Gen 4 stoked with Critical Duty’s and topped off with a TLR-1. 1970’s – all steel Remington 870 with extended mag and Mesa Tactical side saddle stored in cruiser mode in the nearby closet if I can get to it first. Mongo always like using big bangstick first!

  74. Night Stand gun is Sig 226, fumbling in the dark and startled I like the D/A trigger for first shot. My carry guns M&P Shield holstered or Polish P-64 for pocket are lower capacity than I want for home defense. No kids at home so also have 20 gauge pump in living room within reach of easy chair and a Yorkie alarm system to alert me of intruders LOL.

  76. I can’t be the only one with a AR at bedside. Its always my go to for anything in the home.

    • You’re not. AR with dot/acog & white light. Short barrel or 16″ or 14.5″…. depends

      Various flavors of pistolery too, depending on what day of the week it is.

      And a GSD that is the first responder and deterrent.

      Pick the next house, fucksticks.

  79. SIG P227 with a Surefire flashlight on the picatinny.

    Remington 870 not far from the night stand.

  80. Ruger Security Six .357 with Hornady Critical Defense ammo and a Surefire M2 with Malkoff lamp module.

  83. Unless budget won’t allow another, why have a compact gun as a HD gun? Or is it just for familiarity?

    • I’ve got some fairly tight paths in my house, I don’t own a lot of land, and unless I’ve got an SBR, I don’t think I’m capable of opening doors while also keeping the long gun at the ready.

  84. Glock 30 SF, an extra mag and a flashlight all within reach, although not necessarily in that order. 🙂

  86. Beretta 92A1
    Trijicon bright and tough night sights
    TLR-1
    30 round magazine
    D-hammer spring
    Osprey 9
    Federal 124gr HST

  87. Hk vp9 with surefire 200 light, filled with crtical duty hollows. Xtra mag filled with fmj.

  88. Nothing on the night stand, but my safe is 1.5 steps from my side of the bed. 20ga pump is kept loaded with #4 buck, also my edc (sd9ve) stays on the top shelf in ready to go condition as well as my first gun, a charter arms police bulldog in 38spl that i keep loaded with gold dot hollow points.

  89. No fooling and no joke, a Webley MkIV in .38-200 is in my nightstand. I’ve got tritium sights on there, too.

    Of course, that’s not what I’d reach for if someone were to break in – that’s what my G17 with TLR-1 is for.

  91. My carry gun is my nightstand gun. Ruger SR9e, 17+1. My two other guns are of smaller capacity anyway, so it wouldn’t make sense to alternate. I take it off my hip at bedtime and put it by the bed, then in the morning it goes back on.

  92. I have a CZ Scorpion Evo SBR with Octane suppressor and TLR-1 HL. Meprolight RDS sitting on top.
    Backup is my Steyr S9-A1 carry gun that I take off before bed.

    Wife uses a Kriss Vector SBR with Octane suppressor and TRL-1 HL with EOTech XPS 2-0 on top.
    Backup is Sig 224 carry gun that she also takes off before bed.

  93. I switch them around sometimes but usually my 686+. Occasionally it’ll be my M9 but I usually just leave it in its holster when I take it off for the evening and put it in my dresser.

    • Yup, 686+ in 3″ w/ 7 rnds of .38 Hornady.
      If they/it gets past that then it’s a Mossberg 930 JM ProSeries w/ 8+1 of 12 guage mess makers.

  95. 8.5″ Spike’s .300AAC SBR with a Fenix PD35 TAC and an Aimpoint PRO. 110gr Barnes Black Tips in the PMAGs. I don’t have any neighbors OR kids, so the SBR is propped right by the bed, and I prefer the supers to subs without a suppressor.

    7+1 Mav88 loaded with 00 buckshot on the other side of the bed.

    It’s a big bed.

  97. FN FNX 45 with Surefire x300u and Speer Gold Dot 200gr +P on my side.
    Mossberg 590a1 directly under bed on my side.

    FN Five-seveN Mk2 with Surefire x300u and ss198 on her side.
    Colt 6920 Magpul with 62gr Speer Gold Dot directly under her side.

  103. XD Mod.2 .45 with 13 rounds by night, 9 rounds by day. Loaded up with 185 gr. Golden Saber’s, I rest easy enough 😉

  104. I’m gonna give some different answers here. I have a Taurus millennium g2 with 3 mags loaded with some Hornady 115 grain in the night stand and a Marlin mod 60 (!!!) with 13 rounds of CCI velocitors propped in the corner is my go to.

    Fire a gun in a house without ear pro and you’ll go with a 22 too. Lol.

    • I have a bunch of times.. I wouldnt go with a 22

      The eye opener is that a 9mm +p is louder inside than an AR, and it penetrates more walls.
      .
      AR’s, for the chill druhnn

      • While .22 LR is less than ideal, it certainly isn’t anything to sneeze about when you have a reliable semi-auto rifle with a 15+ round magazine capacity loaded with hot 40 grain lead bullets. Each bullet is going to mushroom to something like .32 caliber and have no trouble penetrating every bit of 15 inches. Add in the fact that you can easily dump 10 shots accurately in 2 seconds (since there is no recoil) and you almost have the equivalent of a 20 gauge shotgun shooting #4 buckshot.

      • Different strokes for different folks I guess. Low penetration through drywall, 12-13 inches of penetration through ballistic gel, non-existent recoil for quick follow-up shots, extremely reliable platform and yeah I think that might be the quad-fecta for a strictly in home self defense weapon.

        Btw I have blown out both eardrums twice by shooting a m9 and m4 indoors during house clearing. I was wearing electronic ear pro. What were you wearing cause I wish I had them in Iraq?

  105. Same as my carry gun–I take it out of my pocket or whatever and put it by my bed. P-64, with that stiff trigger I ain’t about to set it off picking it up in a sleep-addled state. Also have a bobbed Stevens double-barrel 12-ga standing in the corner.

  106. An old (but fine running) Colt detective special in 38 special. Easy to use and in theory it will allow me to get to something with more firepower if zombies are on the march.

  108. There’s nothing wrong about the nightstand Glock 43. About half the time, my nightstand gun is a Glock 42.

    The alternative is a full-grown CZ. The rest of the guns sleeps in a safe some two steps from our bed and we do live in a peaceful neighborhood, so I’m not particularly worried and therefore not eager to place a rifle next to my bed.

    What I do keep next to my bed is earmuffs, though. I know it takes time to put them on but should that time be available, I’d like to do that before I might have to shoot.

  110. Mine’s a CZ P-09 duty. Though in the hall between my room mate’s and my room, we have a maverick 88 12gauge. Long distance from the only way in or out of the apartment though.

  111. Ruger Gp100 Match champion. Coincidentally the same gun that is on my hip 90% of the time. It is locked in a drawer safe when my other carry piece, an SP101, is being carried instead. They are both backups to the 870 that sits in my “stud locker”.

  112. Glock 21C on the nightstand. Mossberg 500 12 gauge leaning on the wall beside the night stand. I used to be a boy scout.

  113. Used to have a Glock 34 gen4 MOS long slide 9mm with an RMR red dot and a rail mounted OEM laser and flashlight.

    However the the RMR started spontaneously not working one day and I’m not relying on anything that can fail electrically on a self / home defense gun again. For now just a bone stock glock 17 gen4 with a couple extra 30 round mags.

    I’d use the PS90 with fifty five seven rounds and a flashlight but don’t have a quick access place to store it away from kids… One day that will be it though. Also want to find frangible ammo for that, and not sure it exists?

  115. Are you serious??? I am a liberal and afraid to have a scary gun in the house! Just kidding, sometimes it’s my EDC S & W Shield 9mm or swapped to the digital lock box for a Bersa thunder 9 with 17 rd mag, 124 gr. gold dots in both.

  116. a Scorpion sbr with streamlight tlr-1s, aac tiRant 45 and a 30 round clipazine with 30 federal hst 147gr tictacs

  118. G17 with Surefire X300U-B, 18 rounds of 115 gr Critical Defense, and 32 more rounds in a backup mag. Surefire G2X Tactical as well.

  119. Springfield XD9 with a Streamlight TLR-3 mounted on the rail Loaded with Hornady 115 gr Critical Defense – one mag in the gun, 2 more in the drawer. My 870 is a couple of steps away loaded with 00 buck. Momma has an old Charter Arms Pathfinder .22 mag on her side of the bed and a 12 gauge Stoeger coach gun (the nickel plated one because it “looks pretty”) loaded with #4 buck close at hand.

  120. A Star Megastar in .45 ACP Gold Dots. It’s built like a tank, is double action, and is heavy enough to use as a club. I know it’s been out of production for at least 15 years but it gets regular exercise and would definitely get the job done. To back that up is an 870 Stainless Marine in 12-gauge.

  122. SIG Legion 226 with 20-round mags and a Streamlight TLR-2 HL G and a RMR in a holster behind my head. Tactical hearing protection sits on top of the bed lamp, if there’s time for that.

    Two steps away are an 870 XCS with candy-caned buck & slugs, a Mini14, and a 32″ Angus Trim sword, which works like a straw into a milkshake against kevlar (good guys aren’t the only one who can buy armor).and plate-carriers don’t protect your arms, legs, head, or groin. Both long guns sport Streamlights and red dots. Also a “dump” man-purse with spare mags and shotgun ammo.

    No-knocks, home invaders, the next civil unrest. It’s only paranoia until you need it.

  123. My 9mm SA/DA autoloader, 15+1, stays on my hip, with a round chambered, as long as I’m wearing my pants or until the situation dictates otherwise. At home, when it is not on my hip, it’s in its holster in my hand or in arm’s reach.

    O. Lee James, III
    CPT, US Army (Retired)
    Honorable Order of St Barbara

  126. Ruger SR40 in the nightstand, Mossberg 12 ga. under the bed. The lady has my old Remington 1100 20 ga. on her side, plus she’s decided she really likes the old Star 9mm I got for a bargain. A hound dog and a runt pit mix sleep at the foot of the bed some nights and out in the living room other nights.

  128. So many semi-autos… In a high stress situation, for me, I don’t need the complexity. S&W Model 10 in .38 SPL. If more firepower is needed for zombie hordes, than I can get to that too.

  130. Used to be a S&W Model 66 loaded w/ 38 Spl rounds, switched to an ASAI One Pro .45 because of round count and trigger.

  131. Long long ago in a land far far away, my option was a 357 S&W model 19 loaded with 2 bird shot, 2 dumbdumbs, 2 hollow points.
    My thinking was there would be 2 intruders so, slow them down with the bird shot so I could get 2 good shots off with the dumbdumbs and then 2 hp’s to finish the job. …And a trip to the dumpster.
    Now days, it’s the CZ P-01 on the way to the 18″ 7round 870 loaded with LE132B #1 buck.
    People forget that it takes 2 hands to operate the 870 so, to me, it’s much easier to roll over and grab the handgun 1st until you can wake up enough to deal with the bang stick.
    My dog is in his urn so, he can’t help.
    Then on my lazy days, there is always the flare gun that never gets put away and the ever present knife.
    I wouldn’t even think about the AR for an intruder situation. I like my neighbors.

  132. 1974 Colt Detective Special snubbie loaded with .38 special frangible rounds so I don’t hurt my best friends next door. Reliable, easy to use in the dark, and zero chance of a misfeed. Its also my EDC so I am very comfortable and familar with it. Colt Defender 1911 in .45 is under the bed in the safe if needed.

  133. XDm 3.8 45acp. 16 round mag (13 round w/ +3 extender)
    Alternately loaded with 78gr 117gr ARX and 230gr ball every other round.

  134. P226 in 9mm in quick access safe as per my country’s laws. Loaded mag of hydrashocks next to it. 12ga coach gun (12.5″ barrels) under the bed with a combo lock with an easy combo. Smallsword and parrying dagger right next to bed and my flashlight and assisted opener on the nightstand itself.

  135. Mine is a full sized M&P 9mm with 17 in the mag. Used to be my Shield with the extended mag, but hey, if you got’ em, use ’em.
    My wife, on the other hand, has a Governor bedside. Her home defense load is 2 .45 long colt HPs followed by a .410 minidisk shotgun round. Repeat as space allows. She has fired a few of the .410 rounds at an outdoor range into paper targets to get used to them.
    To quote a shooting friend “I will not be breaking in to your house, thank you” after seeing the results.

    Really, she scares me sometimes……

  136. Sig P229 Legion with 15 rounds of Hornady Critical Defense. I’ll deal with the 10 round mag limit after the threat is stopped.

    • You will not have to worry about magazine capacity when the junk MIM cast hammer or sear snaps off on the first shot out of the barrel.

  137. S&W R8 with a Crimson Trace laser. 8 rounds of .357 plus two more full moon clips ready to go should be adequate. I like the revolver’s simplicity and lack of mag spring fatigue issues (even if that’s an entirely theoretical problem).

  138. Same as my carry gun, Walther pps 9mm, and then a mossberg 500 in 12 gauge directly behind my bedroom door.

  139. Full size USP tactical .45 +TLR2s+Silencerco Osprey. Loaded with Remington Golden Saber. Sits on my nightstand at night.

    Locked to the wall is a 12 gauge Mossberg 500 tactical.

    The wife has a Glock 21 tactical with the same can as my USP and a Glock light and a Mossberg M590A1.

    That firepower supports the 300 pounds of Plott Hound and German Shepard wandering the house.

    If you commit a home invasion here, you’ll be the one dialing 911 so the cops can come save YOUR ass.

  140. Nightstand gun is an AR-15 with a weapon light and red dot sight (if I have time to turn it on), loaded with law-enforcement rounds that tend to break up on contact with something solid. There is also a J-frame but I am grabbing the AR first. Nothing beats the accuracy that you get with a carbine and three points of contact. Most people lack the skill with a pistol and the rounds do not have the potential that a rifle round has.

  141. My side of the bed has 2 guns. My EDC Sig-P938 and a Ruger GP100. My wife has a Taurus M85 on her side.

Comments are closed.