Musings on Compact AR's (CQB/Home D/Truck/BoB/etc.)

[Todd.K]

Nobody knows what a GL/SSC is, much less how to copy the spec.

Lasers. Have you used one in a shoot house?

[Warp]

I'm majorly hung up on the noise, maneuverability, and readiness condition of the carbine over the pistol for night-time home defense. My G19 with Ameriglo tritiums stays on my person all day and then transitions to my nightstand at bed time, staying in the kydex holster. I've woken up to several "bump in the night" situations and all of them have played out with me lying in bed with my G19 in hand trying to confirm if I actually heard something or if it was a dream that woke me. I've gotten out of bed and done some stealth looking/listening with all the lights still out and once I figure out something isn't going down I ease back to bed.

I don't see that playing out well with any long gun, and the only way to do it properly would be sling-less with a round chambered with a rifle so light it can be held only by the pistol grip while I work my way around using my off hand for tactile guidance on walls/door frames, etc.

Super bright weapon lights? No way. I have a ProTac 1L that I have to trigger the lowest light setting at first. I've accidentally tapped the high beam at 3am in my bedroom with it once and was nearly blind in the dark for 5+ minutes.

I dislike the noise of shooting my 6920 at the indoor range even with solid in-ear plugs and can't imagine how bad that would suck for me and all my family members to experience inside my house. The G19 sounds like a pea shooter at the indoor range, but I have a good cop friend who had a gun fight inside a fast food restaurant with his 9mm Sig many years ago and he wears a hearing aid to this day. The G19 is still going to suck in a house.

I'm not and never was a cop or military, and I've never shot at anyone. However, at this point the AR is a hobby/toy for me. Of course like everyone else I have it for the inevitable Walking Dead doomsday gunfighting I plan to be doing in my rural neighborhood when it goes down but that's a different story.

I'm sort of like Firefly in that I keep considering downsizing and letting all my stuff go except a primary and spare G19 and support gear for them.

I can't imagine, personally, not having an alarm system with sensors on all doors/windows, and optionally other sensors where appropriate such as glass break/motion...the bump in the night is a lot less of a worry when there's no alarm sounding (and, of course, when the dogs don't care about it)

Having enough light in the house to be able to walk around at night without having to feel the walls with my hand is another thing I really like, and always make sure is the way it is. That way you can walk around the house while holding or carrying something with two hands, or one thing in each hand, you don't step on stuff that's on the floor, can identify quite a bit without any supplemental lighting, etc.

Clearly much different situations.

Just because you have a rifle available for HD doens’t mean you can’t have a pistol too.

Depends what you do, who you are, where you live. I have had to shoot pigs on my property with zero notice and a limited engagement opportunity. While a methhead was on a home invasion / murder spree this spring within 5 miles of my house, my rifle was primary for quite awhile.

It’s a free country - do what you deem best for you, and live with the consequences of your actions.

Absolutely. I always have access to both.

[1168]

Lasers. Have you used one in a shoot house?

I have. What are you getting at?

[Outlander Systems]

In the given scenario, guns are simply a medium for bullet delivery.

There isn't a "right" tool for the job. Zach Peters burned 3 scum****s down inside his house with a 20" Musket and iron sights.

[26 Inf]

If something I have stated is incorrect, by all means, speak up

I think Fly was remarking on your adamant stance regarding rifle/SBR in home defense. There are no absolutes.

We all view the battle as it takes place in our dreams. Bad guys have dreams, also. Their dreams aren't necessarily the same as ours.

Speaking for myself, if I had to limit myself to one weapon for home defense it would be a pistol.

From a purely subjective point of view, I've always found the the unsuppressed 9 or .45 to be more pleasant than the suppressed AR. It could be that my Omega just sucks, though.

[RVTMaverick]

I'm sure there's more to the puzzle than what I have here, so any jog of my memory, suggestions or refinements on what I have so far would be appreciated--bear in mind, I'm trying to write this for people who generally aren't Gun People, like your typical Word/Excel "computer user" versus a more in-depth "technical user," and the goal is kind of a "Compact AR's For Dummies" general framework while leaving latitude to adjust for individual needs and preferences. Goal is to publish next Wednesday, but I can kick the can down the road as needed until it's ready.

Hey Diamondback,
I'm just wondering WHY,... why are you writing this, for this group of people you mentioned?
Is there a goal to try and turn these peps or? Again, just wondering.... Also, the way you wrote (or I read it, Scary LOL) all the information seemed very well informed, much more so than Me... Which leads me say, I must misunderstood the whole thing I guess... I was taking the write up as, more or less, a How To/Suggestions for Builds.... Then as I am reading the replies You already have received, I realized I completely Missed the Boat.

[Todd.K]

I have. What are you getting at?

It's a question for the OP. Wondering what experience made him recommend one.

[1168]

It's a question for the OP. Wondering what experience made him recommend one.

Roger. I misunderstood where you were going with that.

[Averageman]

Every job has it's "best tool." like many States have "different laws" and every place has"different dimensions."
I might prefer a SBR or a quality AR pistol based on the above-mentioned differences.

[Warp]

I think Fly was remarking on your adamant stance regarding rifle/SBR in home defense. There are no absolutes.

We all view the battle as it takes place in our dreams. Bad guys have dreams, also. Their dreams aren't necessarily the same as ours.

Speaking for myself, if I had to limit myself to one weapon for home defense it would be a pistol.

From a purely subjective point of view, I've always found the the unsuppressed 9 or .45 to be more pleasant than the suppressed AR. It could be that my Omega just sucks, though.

I know there are no absolutes.

I also know that a suppressed 5.56 is less loud than an unsuppressed 9mm, so it doesn't really make sense to pick the louder unsuppressed 9mm because the less loud suppressed 5.56 is too loud.

Maybe that is an 'absolute'? Louder is louder, it's a quantifiable thing, and the difference is not insignificant.