Gun Thread

[TeXJ]

My wife has a m500 as well. She uses it for clay busting.

I would say have her shoot it and then see if you have a friend with a pistol grip and let her shoot that.

What ammo are you gonna use for HD? Can she take a training class with it?

For me, a pistol would be a more viable option as it's easier to weld.

I would try and get a shorter barrel as well. For me, I bought an 870 knock off gun for about the price of a shorter barrel. That gun came with a 18 1/2' barrel.

Is the barrel on your m500 ported? My wife's m500 is from the factory and that makes a huge difference in felt recoil.

[TeXJ]

^reading what I posted...I'm all over the place lol

[Ryan...]

My wife has a m500 as well. She uses it for clay busting.

I would say have her shoot it and then see if you have a friend with a pistol grip and let her shoot that.

What ammo are you gonna use for HD? Can she take a training class with it?

For me, a pistol would be a more viable option as it's easier to weld.

I would try and get a shorter barrel as well. For me, I bought an 870 knock off gun for about the price of a shorter barrel. That gun came with a 18 1/2' barrel.

Is the barrel on your m500 ported? My wife's m500 is from the factory and that makes a huge difference in felt recoil.

She has never shot anything other than my G43 pistol. She'll likely never develop into a "shooter" in any sense, she simply doesn't like the experience of firepower. This is going to be a "oh shit, someone's in the house that doesn't belong" type of tool. We have inner and outer security cameras that have great night vision as well, so that combined with working on announcements ("identify yourself, I have a gun" etc) to prevent any sort of accidental shooting is likely the route we have to go with her.

Haven't decided on ammo yet, still researching that aspect of the gun.

If I do end up having to go the route of new stock, new barrel, etc, I might be better off buying a new gun altogether, which I would like to avoid :D


She currently has my G43 with streamlight in her nightstand, but I would prefer she have the shotgun so it's more of a "point in the general area" and pull the trigger vs having to aim and fire multiple times at a moving target.

[TeXJ]

She has never shot anything other than my G43 pistol. She'll likely never develop into a "shooter" in any sense, she simply doesn't like the experience of firepower. This is going to be a "oh shit, someone's in the house that doesn't belong" type of tool. We have inner and outer security cameras that have great night vision as well, so that combined with working on announcements ("identify yourself, I have a gun" etc) to prevent any sort of accidental shooting is likely the route we have to go with her.

Haven't decided on ammo yet, still researching that aspect of the gun.

If I do end up having to go the route of new stock, new barrel, etc, I might be better off buying a new gun altogether, which I would like to avoid :D


She currently has my G43 with streamlight in her nightstand, but I would prefer she have the shotgun so it's more of a "point in the general area" and pull the trigger vs having to aim and fire multiple times at a moving target.

Pattern your gun with the ammo you want to use in the most extreme distance you have. You will see that the shot(pellets) will be maybe size of your fist. You will still need to aim with a shotgun.

Try and teach her how to hold the gun, i.e. lean in, keep away from corners, use distance. You know all of this stuff as a LEO.

I have a shotgun and a bat by my bed lol plan A and plan B

If you can shoot outside, take a watermelon or something and have her shoot that at the most extreme distance that she would encounter in the home. Most likely would be about 20-25ft.

Then again, she is only going to have to use this in the most dire of situations so having to make it "comfortable" doesn't really matter. Just as long as she knows how to use it, rack it, clear a malfunction, hold it and aim...these are the most important.

[Ryan...]

Pattern your gun with the ammo you want to use in the most extreme distance you have. You will see that the shot(pellets) will be maybe size of your fist. You will still need to aim with a shotgun.

Try and teach her how to hold the gun, i.e. lean in, keep away from corners, use distance. You know all of this stuff as a LEO.

I have a shotgun and a bat by my bed lol plan A and plan B

If you can shoot outside, take a watermelon or something and have her shoot that at the most extreme distance that she would encounter in the home. Most likely would be about 20-25ft.

Then again, she is only going to have to use this in the most dire of situations so having to make it "comfortable" doesn't really matter. Just as long as she knows how to use it, rack it, clear a malfunction, hold it and aim...these are the most important.

We're definitely going to be doing some practice shooting, clearing jams, etc. I don't think she can comfortably hold the gun for more than 5 seconds with how big it is in her hands. My comfort statements should have been explained better, I want something she can realistically aim/hold if she ever needed to. My starting point with her is simply going to be getting her to hold it, rack it, practice clearing jams, etc For that she needs to be able to hold it or she'll give up.

With her, it will be for sitting in the master bedroom or bathroom with the barrel pointed at the closed door until the polis show up, so realistically any spread the size of a large fist at 20ft would suffice.

Between the racking of the gun (if they're within hearing distance), the announcements, and the shrieking alarm I can't imagine anyone would stick around too long.

[myinfernalbmw]

Then again, she is only going to have to use this in the most dire of situations so having to make it "comfortable" doesn't really matter. Just as long as she knows how to use it, rack it, clear a malfunction, hold it and aim...these are the most important.

To an extent, true. But if it's too huge and clunky to even handle she's more likely to miss entirely and/or hurt herself trying to shoot it awkwardly. I just went through this with my wife who is 5' 1.5" and we concluded that my AR was a lot easier for her to shoot than my shotgun. That said, with something that fit her better and with more practice, we could have made a shotgun work.

I'd go to a local gun store and have her hold an 18" Mossberg 500 just to see if it feels more comfortable for her. If she likes it, I'd find a replacement barrel or chop the current one down and have a gunsmith install a new bead sight. If the stock is still too long, you can find cheapo used 500 youth model stocks that have a shorter LOP. I'd avoid pistol grips on 500s as the top mounted safety makes mechanics clunky and they really don't make it easier to aim/shoot in general, especially for inexperienced shooters and with anything other than low brass loads.

[naplesE30]

From what you describe I would have suggested a shockwave for her.. However you can just as easily shoot the 500 from your hip as well. No need for her to shoulder the gun based on your needs, sitting/standing static in a corner waiting for perp to break down the door. Work on the load/rack/fire/clear the gun properly and she should be fine. Have her practice with some 7/8oz number 8 birdshot to get her familiar with the firearm without scaring/beating her up to much....(but she isn’t going to enjoy it if she is like my wife) Buy her a padded shirt so she doesn’t say the hell with it after the first 3 shots if your set on firing from the shoulder.
Like you said the key in your situation is going to be verbal commands/responses so she doesn’t blast just anyone who walks through that door.

My wife is tiny as well, unable to rack most 9mm pistols. We’re going to go the tried and true wheel gun route for her when she is ready. Maybe an option for you. Especially if you think her having to take more than one shot may be a possibility. That said if she can operate the G43 let good be good, it’s already setup with a light.

[Ryan...]

To an extent, true. But if it's too huge and clunky to even handle she's more likely to miss entirely and/or hurt herself trying to shoot it awkwardly. I just went through this with my wife who is 5' 1.5" and we concluded that my AR was a lot easier for her to shoot than my shotgun. That said, with something that fit her better and with more practice, we could have made a shotgun work.

I'd go to a local gun store and have her hold an 18" Mossberg 500 just to see if it feels more comfortable for her. If she likes it, I'd find a replacement barrel or chop the current one down and have a gunsmith install a new bead sight. If the stock is still too long, you can find cheapo used 500 youth model stocks that have a shorter LOP. I'd avoid pistol grips on 500s as the top mounted safety makes mechanics clunky and they really don't make it easier to aim/shoot in general, especially for inexperienced shooters and with anything other than low brass loads.

All good advice, didn't even really consider the pistol grip/safety configuration..

From what you describe I would have suggested a shockwave for her.. However you can just as easily shoot the 500 from your hip as well. No need for her to shoulder the gun based on your needs, sitting/standing static in a corner waiting for perp to break down the door. Work on the load/rack/fire/clear the gun properly and she should be fine. Have her practice with some 7/8oz number 8 birdshot to get her familiar with the firearm without scaring/beating her up to much....(but she isn’t going to enjoy it if she is like my wife) Buy her a padded shirt so she doesn’t say the hell with it after the first 3 shots if your set on firing from the shoulder.
Like you said the key in your situation is going to be verbal commands/responses so she doesn’t blast just anyone who walks through that door.

My wife is tiny as well, unable to rack most 9mm pistols. We’re going to go the tried and true wheel gun route for her when she is ready. Maybe an option for you. Especially if you think her having to take more than one shot may be a possibility. That said if she can operate the G43 let good be good, it’s already setup with a light.

I like the idea of low recoil/smaller weight rounds to get her used to it.

The 43 is a good fit in her hand, but I miss having my CCW :-(

[TeXJ]

keep us posted as to how it goes.

[myinfernalbmw]

All good advice, didn't even really consider the pistol grip/safety configuration..

I like the idea of low recoil/smaller weight rounds to get her used to it.

Yeah that is the main reason I went with a Tac14 (870) vs the shockwave (500) as I knew I'd be adding a brace with a pistol grip. While you can train around the top mounted safety with a pistol grip, I don't see the reason to start yourself off at a disadvantage. Pistol grip only shotguns are unwieldy and really aren't a good option outside of a few niche roles.

[naplesE30]

Picked up a new frog gig for the cane toads around the house. Dispatched 5 of those little bastards last night with my son doing the flashlight work.

Sent from my SM-G930P using Tapatalk

[varg]

Would probably work for Iguanas too if they let you get close enough.

[naplesE30]

Would probably work for Iguanas too if they let you get close enough.

I don’t know man. I was on your coast earlier this week and saw a huge iguana on the golf course I was touring. That sucker had some beef to it. Thankfully they have not migrated across the state enough to be a big problem on the west coast yet.

[varg]

How big are your toads and what is the velocity of those pellets? Some of the Bufo toads around here are big suckers too. A pellet rifle would probably be better for iguanas but it's just like hunting anything else, shot placement is key.

[naplesE30]

Most of them are about the size of a softball or smaller. The velocity of my pellet gun is 450fps. I wanted a handgun because I live in a development close to other homes. Much easier to walk around the house with handgun than rifle as far as causing a stir. Also the buffo toads let you basically put the muzzle almost up against them for shot placement. Like you said I would think a rifle would be a must for iguana plinking, both for accuracy and velocity.