Firearm Choices

[nobb4u]

Just getting my 2 cents worth in but I think if you have a contract with a company I will almost bet they have a clause in there about carrying a weapon.
All regs from different states I have read about carrying you cannot have the weapon where it is accessable from the passenger compartment nor can it be loaded. Does anyone else here see the problem.
Also please remember the last Amendment to the Constitution....
"Truckdrivers NONE of the above apply"

 

[dhalltoyo]

Dear EO Members and Visitors,

I certainly appreciate everyone's input regarding the legalities, but I never said anything about carrying a weapon in the truck.

If you can offer information regarding your choice of "concealed carry" weapons, that would be a great help to me.

If your lease does not have a no carry clause and we already know that the FMCSA has no regulation either; hence, one would be governed by state laws...as it should be.

As far as, risking one's career as opposed to risking one's life...well, as the Bible says, "Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind."

As Dirty Harry said, "This is a 44 magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world and can blow your head clean off your shoulders; so the way I see it, you have just one question to ask yourself...do I feel lucky today? Well, do you...punk?"

So far, I am thinking a 9mm Glock. Light weight, high tech materials that are resistant to the elements, good operational track record, smooth sides for quick exit from holster...

Anybody got a favorite dealer? Most large dealers will arrange to ship to a local gun shop.

 

[ejtrucker]

22LR, at close range can do debilitating damage. Ammo is cheap so you can go to the shooting range and learn to use it. Additional clips etc, are reasonable But as I have been told the element of surprise is against you. Meaning if you are getting for protection the aggressor with a knife may have one up on the victim. Wasp spray is really good, right in the eyes, it will shoot up to 15 feet away.
For home and not truck protection, not that it would not work in a truck, but the legalities is a different story, a shotgun short barrel for optimum spray, you can get one for under $200. It is like the 44 just loading one in the chamber can intimidate the assailant.
I LOVE GUNS

 

[greg334]

a shotgun short barrel for optimum spray

I think if you use number 9 shot, it doesn't tear up the walls as much.

 

[LDB]

A shotgun can be good for home defense if you have one room everyone can gather in. It should be strongly secured. A good way to do that is to drive nails into the door frame on the hinge side every 3 inches and clip the head off leaving about 1/3 inch of nail exposed. Drill holes into a solid wood door for the nails so when you close the door it's like a bank vault with the nails every few inches top to bottom. Put a pair of long throw deadbolts in the other side 1/3 and 2/3 from floor to door top. Have a bed in the room that everyone can get behind and be behind it with your shotgun. DO NOT rack the slide once they are in the house. That tells them what you have and where you are. It also reduces the capacity of shells by one unless in that worst of all possible scenarios you are going to remember to replace that round. Have the gun charged and fully loaded with the safety lever being pressed as the only requirement for putting the gun in service. Secure everyone in your safe room and sit it out. Everything outside that room is between them, insurance and police. If they manage to breach that door, and it's not likely, it's between them and the shotgun.

DO NOT take a .22 or .25 to a fight and think long and hard before taking a .32 as well. They are NOT personal protection calibers. Yes, they are lethal. The problem is they are not effective quickly. They may be fine sometimes but there are cases of guys high on drugs being shot with them and spending 10-15 minutes beating the you know what out of the person who shot them before being incapacitated.

Glock is the number one choice for dependability and proven record. The torture tests they've been subjected to and continued to function are numerous. It is hard to imagine they could function but they do. There are others equally good as far as quality but they aren't as capable of reliable functioning in adverse conditions. Granted, a prudent person isn't going to let their gun get near the level that would cause a stoppage however there's nothing wrong with having the one that is most resistant. Glock also has one of the most easily mastered trigger pulls of any pistol. 9mm is an excellent choice. It doesn't hit as hard as some but it hits plenty hard enough and is easier to control for follow up shots. Three controlled hits from a 9mm in the same time as 2 hits from a .40 or .45 is every bit as good and probably better.

 

[greg334]

DO NOT take a .22 or .25 to a fight and think long and hard before taking a .32 as well. They are NOT personal protection calibers. Yes, they are lethal. The problem is they are not effective quickly. They may be fine sometimes but there are cases of guys high on drugs being shot with them and spending 10-15 minutes beating the you know what out of the person who shot them before being incapacitated.

Leo,

I have solid proof that a 22LR will not stop anyone. I carried a H&R 22 9 shot revolver that I used to kill rats with in the buildings we had. Some of the rats were not easy to kill, Detroit rats, you know what I mean? Well I was assaulted in front of one of the buildings we were tearing down. The guy came after me with a bat, drunk and pissed off at the idea we were going to close his favorite bar at another location. After getting hit a couple times, I struggled to get my weapon out and ended up putting four rounds in him. He stopped swinging and a couple locals tackled him. It didn't even make it through his thick shirt that was under his leather vest that was under his leather jacket. When the cops took off his jacket, all four of the bullets fell out. I never worried about the locals, but the auto workers who went to the bar that leased a building from us were much more dangerous than the pimps and drug dealers who lived in the area I was in. I swear there was more stabbing and shootings at that bar by those auto workers than there was in the entire area.

Talking about the 25, a friend was robbed at his store while he was locking up, he fired three rounds into the guy with his 25 S&W and it didn't do a thing. They both stood there looking at each other until he hit the guy square in the forehead the butt of the gun. The guy got up and ran. He sold that the next day and started to carry his Beretta. The guy came back a few months later to try again but this time he didn't walk away alive.

 

[sjbr549]

the first polar bear killed with a firearm was with a .22cal. a .380 will put baseball size holes in a person. sister n laws mother was killed by a boyfriend with one

 

[LDB]

I'm not familiar with killing polar bears and it's possible that in some cases a .380 will create a fairly large hole but since a baseball is about 3" it isn't going to be that large every time, and in fact very few times at all. The minimum reliable round for personal defense is the 9mm which coincidentally is the best round for personal defense for all but the most serious and hard core. If one decides to spend several hours per week every week practicing and competing in IDPA and other defensive pistol competitions then another caliber might be an equally good choice or possibly better. For most the 9mm can't be beaten.

 

[ThibodeauxBayou]

I;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

 

[arkjarhead]

What a dumbarse.

 

[LDB]

Yes, a .22 can and does kill people. I no longer can find the link but if I could I'd give you a link about a 105 pound woman rescued from beneath a 310 pound dead man. He broke into her home to rob her for drug money. He was high. She got her .25 pistol and shot him. He turned on her and attacked her. For 15 minutes he beat her, threw her against walls, drug her by the hair and terrorized her. During that 15 minutes she managed to shoot him 3 more times. For some reason there were only 4 rounds in the gun. It's questionable if she'd have had an opportunity to shoot him again even if there had been another round in the gun. After 15 minutes he fell dead on top of her. The autopsy revealed the first shot fired was the lethal shot. So yes, these mouse guns will kill people, if you don't mind waiting who knows how long for the results. The woman had 63 broken bones and needed over 100 stitches and more than one plastic surgery to repair what he did to her in those 15 minutes. Had she used a 9mm instead of the .25 her ordeal would have been far shorter than 15 minutes. Using anything less than a 9mm pistol or .38 revolver is a mistake that could cost you your life.

 

[arkjarhead]

I say a .45 right between the eyes will do the trick everytime.

 

[Steady Eddie]

I carry a Rugger P94 .40 cal. with 2 Mags of Hydr\ Shock hollow points.

 

[LDB]

Anything in .4x caliber can work well however, especially for beginners, the recoil is more than they can quickly master and it makes it more difficult for them. The 9mm doesn't have as great kinetic energy however once mastered it is the quickest back on target. That time savings between shots can offset the energy differential. It also reduces the possibility of over penetration. Overall, with all factors accounted for, you just can't beat a 9mm. You can only equal it.

 

[arkjarhead]

Leo isn't 9mm ammo cheaper than some of the others? I mean it would only make sense that it would be cheaper than the higher caliber rounds.

 

[LDB]

Yes, 9mm ammo is less expensive. In some cases far less than the other calibers. That can allow far more practice which also will improve one's lot in the event of a need. The last time I bought ammo 9mm was 1/3 less than .45 but when you buy thousands of rounds at a time things can change between times. I suspect it's still similar though. You can't beat a 9.

 

[arkjarhead]

Most law enforcment agencies and the miitary carry the 9.

 

[dragontrans0304]

A .45 just about anywhere will do the trick.

 

[dragontrans0304]

Yes, a .22 can and does kill people. I no longer can find the link but if I could I'd give you a link about a 105 pound woman rescued from beneath a 310 pound dead man. He broke into her home to rob her for drug money. He was high. She got her .25 pistol and shot him. He turned on her and attacked her. For 15 minutes he beat her, threw her against walls, drug her by the hair and terrorized her. During that 15 minutes she managed to shoot him 3 more times. For some reason there were only 4 rounds in the gun. It's questionable if she'd have had an opportunity to shoot him again even if there had been another round in the gun. After 15 minutes he fell dead on top of her. The autopsy revealed the first shot fired was the lethal shot. So yes, these mouse guns will kill people, if you don't mind waiting who knows how long for the results. The woman had 63 broken bones and needed over 100 stitches and more than one plastic surgery to repair what he did to her in those 15 minutes. Had she used a 9mm instead of the .25 her ordeal would have been far shorter than 15 minutes. Using anything less than a 9mm pistol or .38 revolver is a mistake that could cost you your life.

Had she aimed at his head it would have been over in 1 or 2 shots 3 tops.

 

[LDB]

A .45 "just about anywhere" doesn't do the trick. Her shot that was fatal actually cut one of the artieries, about as serious as it can get. Many head shots do fairly minimal damage because mouse guns can't penetrate the thicker parts of the skull. Head shots against a 310 pound doper with a mouse gun are not very effective. Both of the aforementioned notions are old wives tales. It takes good shot placement with an adequate caliber to do the required job of personal protection.

For any given amount of money, $xxx, you get the most practice in an adequate caliber in 9mm. "Practice makes perfect" or in the case of defensive pistol it makes better.