I only have one gun, and it is either on my hip or within arm's reach at all times.
Staging or carrying at home
I was talking with a few friends and the topic of staging guns around the house or carrying while in the house came up. So I was wondering what everyone else does, jump in and share your thoughts.
The discussion had valid points on both sides. One buddy has small children so he keeps all but his carry gun in the safe at all times, and carries his "home gun" all evening. Another buddy has no children so he has guns all over the house.
I practiced the two step rule (never more than two steps away) for a while, then just started carrying my gun until I took a shower and went to bed. I keep it extremely close while I shower and on the night stand while in bed.
The discussion had valid points on both sides. One buddy has small children so he keeps all but his carry gun in the safe at all times, and carries his "home gun" all evening. Another buddy has no children so he has guns all over the house.
I practiced the two step rule (never more than two steps away) for a while, then just started carrying my gun until I took a shower and went to bed. I keep it extremely close while I shower and on the night stand while in bed.
1 - 11 of 11 Posts
I carry my 26 all the time, nightstand at night. Various other weapons hidden in Shadow box "type" picture frames, ie, shotguns, pistols, etc. I do have 2 kids, both know gun safety and shoot on a regular basis with me. They know all guns are loaded in the house and KNOW not to touch them or divuldge locations to visiting friends, etc. No weapons are left out in plain sight other than a .177 pellet rifle.
I carry while at home. With all of the home invasions there have been lately I have no plans on altering this, either. I have a concealed "bed gun" in reach while I sleep that I can get to if needed but the kids can't. I also have a shotgun and my oldest knows where the ammo is and how to load it. I actually just drilled with him last night on clearing weapons to make them safe and tactics to use if someone is trying to break in.
Hmm, I may start a new thread with that.
Hmm, I may start a new thread with that.
That would be a great thread to start.I carry while at home. With all of the home invasions there have been lately I have no plans on altering this, either. I have a concealed "bed gun" in reach while I sleep that I can get to if needed but the kids can't. I also have a shotgun and my oldest knows where the ammo is and how to load it. I actually just drilled with him last night on clearing weapons to make them safe and tactics to use if someone is trying to break in.
Hmm, I may start a new thread with that.
The home invasions is what started this conversation, a break in in another town where the parents were killed and the daughter was injured while escaping was the starter. We regularly talk about the recent criminal activity, trying to stay abreast of what is happening locally.
I stage several handguns in the living room/kitchen area, all in condition 1. Also a 16" M4 (semiauto) with 100-round drum and steel-core bullets in it and holo sight, near the top of the stairs, a 12-gauge with birdshot near master bedroom door, a 12-gauge with sabot slug and XD in master bathroom together with a compressed gas air horn (for summoning help, if the gunfire does not do that already). In my daughters' rooms they have another M4 and a pistol each (9mm and .380). Both my daughters shoot, and we practice break-in scenarios. My EDC G26 (G30 in winter) gets unholstered when I walk into the house, and I carry it upstairs when to change from street clothes, and they go on the night stand.
Two handguns I stage are located in places where I would run to if there was an intruder already inside the house (such as in a holster screwed into the back of the love seat, or in a holster screwed to the inside cabinet wall underneath the sink). My logic is if you are runnig for cover, have a weapon in the place you will cover at.
Oh, and the wife has a CCW and carries, too!
All my cars have a holster screwed into the center pillar (in the space next you drivers' right leg) and when entering a vehicle I transition from strong side carry to that holster. If I needed to draw while driving, I just lean forward slightly and reach for my peacemaker, no dicking around with seatbelts.
I have multiple surveillance cameras covering the entire perimeter of my house as well as multiple angles of each entryway (front door, back porch, and garage). We have a policy that it is not "polite" to visit someone unannounced after 8PM, and when the door is answered (after viewing the visitor on-camera), a gun is always at the ready.
Readiness condition goes from White to Yellow when the cameras show the motion-detector lights have come on, then from Yellow to Orange when someone is seen at or near the door. If necessary to answer the door, do not undo the chain bolt, have shoulder and foot pressing on the door to shut, handgun in hand with trigger finger high on frame. Strange persons or strange reason to be knocking? Speed-dial local PD non-emergency dispatch to report suspicious persons/activity, or press and hold 9 to autodial 911. If they barge in, recoil backwards, leap over the love seat where there is a solid oak bookcase and another gun underneath while yelling to other occupants of the house about the danger. Address the intruder and begin servicing the target. Nevada law permits the automatic use of deadly force in defence of the domicile, even absent a deadly force threat from the intruder. Surveillance cameras covering the foyer and living room also record everything.
When I am working in the garage with the door open, or in the back yard, a handgun is always nearby. But I do not carry holstered when at home.
11 November last year, me and the kids were watching TV in the living room when at 10:45PM the doorbell rang. At the first ring, threat condition jumps from White to Red. We determined in an instant that there was only one person at the door, he had a dark uniform, ball cap, some kind of equipment belt, a radio remote on his shoulder...looked like a young decent looking fellow, but you never know. Two cameras showed several people (not in any kind of uniform) walking in the street, and a cruiser with lights flashing across the street. One daugher went to the base of the stairs ready to bolt up to get the C1 M4 in the hallway, another daughter had her hand on her cellphone, while I answered the door with my G30 in my hand. It was local PD doing a house-to-house in search of suspects or information on a home invasion+sexual assualt and robbery on my street, about 12 houses away and around a bend in the road. Said they would like to view my surveillance video.
I agreed, still at Condition Red. Asked to see his badge and ID (event though he was in uniform, because I wondered about the 2 guys in the street in civvies). Allowed him into the house, going to Condition Yellow. Shoulda seen the look on his face when I opened the door with a gun in my hand, at my side behind my thigh, and walked to the dining room, placing the gun on the dining table. After a few minutes my daughter (who had gone upstairs before I let the cop in) came down and winked twice at me, our signal that all is OK. I did not know it at the time, but she called the local PD dispatcher and was told that they are saturating the area in search of the perp. Put gun on kitchen counter. Still at Condition Yellow, just in case. Then I began to show cop the video on a slave monitor in the dining room area. We eventually had 5 cops and 3 plainclothes detectives viewing the video, and I offered to show them how to use it and for them to take it to the station to examine at their leisure. They were able to get a license plate number of a vehicle similar to one used at a suspected-related crime, and eventually identified the perp, who has since fled to Mexico. When they returned my surveillance equipment, I got a nice thank you letter from the chief of the Neighborhood Crime Suppression Unit.
But, yah, I do not carry holstered at home, and I do state C1 firearms around the house, and we practice and discuss scenarios with the kids (I call 'em kids, but they are 23 and 19 this year). And for home defense, a shotgun is your best friend.
It is not enough to know how to use a gun. Preparedness in the home is more than that: it is both mental preparedness (develop and practice a plan of action with specifics that would vary depending on the nature of the threat) and physical preparedness (remember the difference between cover and concealment, and plan accordingly). Have a backup for every plan. Use methods of early-warning, such as motion-sensor lights all around the home, and consider a video surveillance system. Being able to identify subjects on the video is as important is being able to see them before they enter the house....one works best after the fact, the other is your alert level trigger. I have a system that displays on a slave monitor in the dining room, and a second DVR recorder located there that does NOT record any of my interior cameras...the primary recorder is elsewhere and records everything, and the primary is programmed to miss-call my cellphone 3 times in one minute if motion is detected in "alert zones" when nobody is home, then I jump online on my Android, log into the web interface, and view the video from anywhere in the world via the internet. I have made a "suspicious person" call to local PD while I was at work because of a person walking around my house....PD showed up (I was watching live via my cellphone) and it turned out to be a power company meter reader who couldn't find my meter....or maybe he was casing the joint for someone else? And no, I do not subscribe to any remote-monitoring service.
Keep in mind that the people you share your home with need to be as mentally prepared and as physically capable (of carrying out your defense plans and of using your firearms or other methods/devices) as you are. If not, it will do them no good when something goes down and you are not home.
When I read in the news about home invasions in and around my city and elsewhere, I wonder how the victims now feel about preparing a viable home defense plan and what their thoughts now are on gun bans and gun restrictions and the public perception (encouraged by leftist media) that gun owners are all potential homicidal maniacs. But then again, the barn always get locked after the horse has gotten out.
Two handguns I stage are located in places where I would run to if there was an intruder already inside the house (such as in a holster screwed into the back of the love seat, or in a holster screwed to the inside cabinet wall underneath the sink). My logic is if you are runnig for cover, have a weapon in the place you will cover at.
Oh, and the wife has a CCW and carries, too!
All my cars have a holster screwed into the center pillar (in the space next you drivers' right leg) and when entering a vehicle I transition from strong side carry to that holster. If I needed to draw while driving, I just lean forward slightly and reach for my peacemaker, no dicking around with seatbelts.
I have multiple surveillance cameras covering the entire perimeter of my house as well as multiple angles of each entryway (front door, back porch, and garage). We have a policy that it is not "polite" to visit someone unannounced after 8PM, and when the door is answered (after viewing the visitor on-camera), a gun is always at the ready.
Readiness condition goes from White to Yellow when the cameras show the motion-detector lights have come on, then from Yellow to Orange when someone is seen at or near the door. If necessary to answer the door, do not undo the chain bolt, have shoulder and foot pressing on the door to shut, handgun in hand with trigger finger high on frame. Strange persons or strange reason to be knocking? Speed-dial local PD non-emergency dispatch to report suspicious persons/activity, or press and hold 9 to autodial 911. If they barge in, recoil backwards, leap over the love seat where there is a solid oak bookcase and another gun underneath while yelling to other occupants of the house about the danger. Address the intruder and begin servicing the target. Nevada law permits the automatic use of deadly force in defence of the domicile, even absent a deadly force threat from the intruder. Surveillance cameras covering the foyer and living room also record everything.
When I am working in the garage with the door open, or in the back yard, a handgun is always nearby. But I do not carry holstered when at home.
11 November last year, me and the kids were watching TV in the living room when at 10:45PM the doorbell rang. At the first ring, threat condition jumps from White to Red. We determined in an instant that there was only one person at the door, he had a dark uniform, ball cap, some kind of equipment belt, a radio remote on his shoulder...looked like a young decent looking fellow, but you never know. Two cameras showed several people (not in any kind of uniform) walking in the street, and a cruiser with lights flashing across the street. One daugher went to the base of the stairs ready to bolt up to get the C1 M4 in the hallway, another daughter had her hand on her cellphone, while I answered the door with my G30 in my hand. It was local PD doing a house-to-house in search of suspects or information on a home invasion+sexual assualt and robbery on my street, about 12 houses away and around a bend in the road. Said they would like to view my surveillance video.
I agreed, still at Condition Red. Asked to see his badge and ID (event though he was in uniform, because I wondered about the 2 guys in the street in civvies). Allowed him into the house, going to Condition Yellow. Shoulda seen the look on his face when I opened the door with a gun in my hand, at my side behind my thigh, and walked to the dining room, placing the gun on the dining table. After a few minutes my daughter (who had gone upstairs before I let the cop in) came down and winked twice at me, our signal that all is OK. I did not know it at the time, but she called the local PD dispatcher and was told that they are saturating the area in search of the perp. Put gun on kitchen counter. Still at Condition Yellow, just in case. Then I began to show cop the video on a slave monitor in the dining room area. We eventually had 5 cops and 3 plainclothes detectives viewing the video, and I offered to show them how to use it and for them to take it to the station to examine at their leisure. They were able to get a license plate number of a vehicle similar to one used at a suspected-related crime, and eventually identified the perp, who has since fled to Mexico. When they returned my surveillance equipment, I got a nice thank you letter from the chief of the Neighborhood Crime Suppression Unit.
But, yah, I do not carry holstered at home, and I do state C1 firearms around the house, and we practice and discuss scenarios with the kids (I call 'em kids, but they are 23 and 19 this year). And for home defense, a shotgun is your best friend.
It is not enough to know how to use a gun. Preparedness in the home is more than that: it is both mental preparedness (develop and practice a plan of action with specifics that would vary depending on the nature of the threat) and physical preparedness (remember the difference between cover and concealment, and plan accordingly). Have a backup for every plan. Use methods of early-warning, such as motion-sensor lights all around the home, and consider a video surveillance system. Being able to identify subjects on the video is as important is being able to see them before they enter the house....one works best after the fact, the other is your alert level trigger. I have a system that displays on a slave monitor in the dining room, and a second DVR recorder located there that does NOT record any of my interior cameras...the primary recorder is elsewhere and records everything, and the primary is programmed to miss-call my cellphone 3 times in one minute if motion is detected in "alert zones" when nobody is home, then I jump online on my Android, log into the web interface, and view the video from anywhere in the world via the internet. I have made a "suspicious person" call to local PD while I was at work because of a person walking around my house....PD showed up (I was watching live via my cellphone) and it turned out to be a power company meter reader who couldn't find my meter....or maybe he was casing the joint for someone else? And no, I do not subscribe to any remote-monitoring service.
Keep in mind that the people you share your home with need to be as mentally prepared and as physically capable (of carrying out your defense plans and of using your firearms or other methods/devices) as you are. If not, it will do them no good when something goes down and you are not home.
When I read in the news about home invasions in and around my city and elsewhere, I wonder how the victims now feel about preparing a viable home defense plan and what their thoughts now are on gun bans and gun restrictions and the public perception (encouraged by leftist media) that gun owners are all potential homicidal maniacs. But then again, the barn always get locked after the horse has gotten out.
Another thought: part of your home defense plan should include what to say and do after the fact. First thing I taught the kids, years ago, if there was an intruder in the house and they had to fire upon them, call 911 and yell for help, then drop the phone if they need to but keep it with them if they can. A 911 hangup with a child screaming generates police units rushing to your residence at warp speed, especially if it is coupled with independent 911 calls of shots fired.
Develop the skill set needed for viable defensive use of a firearm. Have a baseball bat handy, if the kids can handle it (otherwise, it becomes a weapon for the bad guy). Know and practice retention and takedown techniques.
You must learn the laws on firearms use, possession, use, and application of deadly force, and it is up to you to teach your family members. Know your non-emergency dispatch numbers for local PD or SO (useful for "suspicious person" and "suspicious activity" calls).
Consider an alarm system and/or a video surveillance system. If you go video, plan to locations of the cameras carefully (I have 16 cameras, so it is really more than I need for minimum coverage). Also, consider what you would do in any situation if the cops were watching you...this will happen after the fact, when they watch your video. It could be used in your defense, or it could be used against you. They can impound it as material evidence, and you cannot stop them. If you use monitored video surveillance, consider this: people you do know know are watching you thru the cameras in your house.
Think about and practice what to do after the shot, with a body lying on the floor and the front door busted in or a window shattered. Never relax until the cops arrive, and practice what to tell them. Be intentionally vague about how many shots you fired. Remember: you are a civilian, and do not have LEO training, so it is normal for adrenaline to screw you up after the fact, this is an advantage LEO does not have. You will need time to think and to assimilate what just happened. Never ask for an attorney, this has the unfortunate effect of making it look like you have something to hide.
I do not keep spare ammo or spare loaded magazines staged about. There are enough loaded firearms to fight off a horde of zombies, and you will never have enough time to load a magazine. If the bad guys can't hit-and-run, they will just run. I taught my kids, and teach it in our firearms classes, that you are legally not shooting to kill, but shooting to STOP a threat. If the bad guy expires, we often think, then that's just too damn bad for him, we think, but unless you have taken a life, and seen the body up close and personal, ask yourself this one question: do you really want to live in a house where you killed somebody in?
Think about flooring and carpets, and think about blood contamination, and think about the expense of hazmat cleaning. Doors, windows, holes in the wall, that can all be fixed. But bloodstains and bits and pieces of meat and bone fragments that begin to smell the next day....on top of the wet-metal coppery smell of blood and feces (a dead body smells thus: blood, and ****...the muscles relax, and the dead pee and poop). A shotgun round to the head will not take the head off. You may have an open eyeball looking back at you from a shattered head. Images like that never go away. Never. And a head shot on a perp on a hard floor will create a huge bloodstain, and the dried black crustiness of it will not go away in your mind and the minds of your family members. It may very well be that you will need to move to another home, just to get rid of the physical reminders. I moved into my home 6 years ago from somewhere else. I do not plan on having to buy another house and move again, but I will if I must.
Home defense is more than having a gun at the ready. It is having a mind that is ready as well. Helpful quote from a movie (Under Siege 2)..."CHANCE FAVORS THE PREPARED MIND"
Develop the skill set needed for viable defensive use of a firearm. Have a baseball bat handy, if the kids can handle it (otherwise, it becomes a weapon for the bad guy). Know and practice retention and takedown techniques.
You must learn the laws on firearms use, possession, use, and application of deadly force, and it is up to you to teach your family members. Know your non-emergency dispatch numbers for local PD or SO (useful for "suspicious person" and "suspicious activity" calls).
Consider an alarm system and/or a video surveillance system. If you go video, plan to locations of the cameras carefully (I have 16 cameras, so it is really more than I need for minimum coverage). Also, consider what you would do in any situation if the cops were watching you...this will happen after the fact, when they watch your video. It could be used in your defense, or it could be used against you. They can impound it as material evidence, and you cannot stop them. If you use monitored video surveillance, consider this: people you do know know are watching you thru the cameras in your house.
Think about and practice what to do after the shot, with a body lying on the floor and the front door busted in or a window shattered. Never relax until the cops arrive, and practice what to tell them. Be intentionally vague about how many shots you fired. Remember: you are a civilian, and do not have LEO training, so it is normal for adrenaline to screw you up after the fact, this is an advantage LEO does not have. You will need time to think and to assimilate what just happened. Never ask for an attorney, this has the unfortunate effect of making it look like you have something to hide.
I do not keep spare ammo or spare loaded magazines staged about. There are enough loaded firearms to fight off a horde of zombies, and you will never have enough time to load a magazine. If the bad guys can't hit-and-run, they will just run. I taught my kids, and teach it in our firearms classes, that you are legally not shooting to kill, but shooting to STOP a threat. If the bad guy expires, we often think, then that's just too damn bad for him, we think, but unless you have taken a life, and seen the body up close and personal, ask yourself this one question: do you really want to live in a house where you killed somebody in?
Think about flooring and carpets, and think about blood contamination, and think about the expense of hazmat cleaning. Doors, windows, holes in the wall, that can all be fixed. But bloodstains and bits and pieces of meat and bone fragments that begin to smell the next day....on top of the wet-metal coppery smell of blood and feces (a dead body smells thus: blood, and ****...the muscles relax, and the dead pee and poop). A shotgun round to the head will not take the head off. You may have an open eyeball looking back at you from a shattered head. Images like that never go away. Never. And a head shot on a perp on a hard floor will create a huge bloodstain, and the dried black crustiness of it will not go away in your mind and the minds of your family members. It may very well be that you will need to move to another home, just to get rid of the physical reminders. I moved into my home 6 years ago from somewhere else. I do not plan on having to buy another house and move again, but I will if I must.
Home defense is more than having a gun at the ready. It is having a mind that is ready as well. Helpful quote from a movie (Under Siege 2)..."CHANCE FAVORS THE PREPARED MIND"
With kids - Carry EDC at home, when going to bed locking the EDC in a pistol safe on night stand next to bed with key secured around my wrist while sleeping. Get up in the morning carry the weapon again and hide the key. All other weapons locked up in Fort Knox gun safe.
Small kids wonder into the room at night to climb in bed with you. You don't want a weapon unsecured or get in the habit of leaving a weapon unsecured in a scenario like that. You have no idea what they are going to do either intentionally or accidentally. You will have no control over the situation because you'll be sleeping.
Small kids wonder into the room at night to climb in bed with you. You don't want a weapon unsecured or get in the habit of leaving a weapon unsecured in a scenario like that. You have no idea what they are going to do either intentionally or accidentally. You will have no control over the situation because you'll be sleeping.
the children are grown............and shooters as well...
matter of fact the little gremlins have taken over a significant part of my arsenal.....i did not mind...........
as for me, in the home as on the street, there is always a "j" 38 in my pocket. it has become an "always" item over the decades.
i do not subscribe to staging guns 24/7...........we are away from the house often so i like to keep weapons secured in a safe. Should circumstances dictate, as in the past, a couple of shotguns will come out........one for the living room and one for the bedroom.
the wife prefers the single shot.
matter of fact the little gremlins have taken over a significant part of my arsenal.....i did not mind...........as for me, in the home as on the street, there is always a "j" 38 in my pocket. it has become an "always" item over the decades.
i do not subscribe to staging guns 24/7...........we are away from the house often so i like to keep weapons secured in a safe. Should circumstances dictate, as in the past, a couple of shotguns will come out........one for the living room and one for the bedroom.
the wife prefers the single shot.
I have a almost 2 year old and one on the way. I keep my G30 on my hip all the time. At night I keep my Glock next to me safely and my Kriss by my bed. I will have to reconsider this when he is out of the crib but for now it works.
If I'm going to be involved in a home invasion, that is where it's going to happen, at home. (quote from another member on another forum)
If we're going out and about shopping or whatever, I'll usually carry all day in the house too. Not much for staging guns, one usually by the back door and a couple in the bedroom. All easily accessible. (quick safe)
If we're going out and about shopping or whatever, I'll usually carry all day in the house too. Not much for staging guns, one usually by the back door and a couple in the bedroom. All easily accessible. (quick safe)
1 - 11 of 11 Posts
- This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Glock Forum
A forum community dedicated to glock owners and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about optics, holsters, gunsmithing, styles, reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more!
Full Forum Listing
Explore Our Forums
Recommended Communities
