A 12gage shotgun rested next to the door leaning against the frame. We NEVER touched it and NEVER even thought about touching it.

Iys the No Touch rule…

Actually, I think any poster suggesting such a thing is first, quite correct,

No, and that’s crazy talk. They are flat out wrong. Assuming otherwise is a good way to end up with a DEAD KID.

I never disagreed that education and other precautions are necessary, I just wanted to make sure that no-one reading this thread would get the impression that if they just got a handgun with a stiff return spring, then they can leave their firearm otherwise unprotected and care-free.

The entire point is that kids are NOT trained with a weapon from birth, and as such if they get a hold of one, they’re not going to intuitively actuate and handle it as you would being a familiarized operator.

Just because they’re not strong enough to arm the weapon in the same manner you would, doesn’t mean there aren’t other less conventional methods. Let’s face it, when a kid plays with something, he’s not doing so with a single thought towards “efficient motion” or you’d never have a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in a VCR.

When I was little, my brother had a lever action airgun rifle (just noise, no ammo) that I wasn’t strong enough to work with one hand while holding it. I was two young to have any conception of what a gun was or did, but I still remember setting it accross 2 dressers and hanging from the lever to make the neat toy click and bang.

“My weapon is stiff” means exactly NOTHING when it comes to gun safety, so it isn’t really a helpful comment on this thread.

I store my Glock 17 loaded in one of these

http://www.americasafes.com/Page2.html

Quick easy to use and in the times I have needed to access my weapon I never had an issue with opening.

Those posters claiming that their handgun’s action is too stiff to worry about a kid being strong enough to work it are missing something obvious…

Actually, I think any poster suggesting such a thing is first, quite correct, second is giving a reason beyond that of education and thirdly is not suggesting this as the only safety measure involved. If you have a child that is smart enough and creative enough to be “playing” with your gun and trying to figure out how to get the “slidey” part to move, than you are missing that point of educating them. The real point is that children are extremely intelligent and catch on to things fast. There is no reason to not begin education as soon as possible.

If people have children that are too inquisitive and just can not be trusted with this, then, as I suggested before, get a dog and forget the guns thing. Guns are too serious and only for responsible people.

If your fear is home invasion while you sleep, then a pump shotgun is the best choice. The sound of a shotgun being pumped is unmistakable, and will make any sane person think twice.

In a home-defense scenario, a shotgun has serious advantages over a handgun for other reasons: it shoots a pattern of shot, so you are much, much less likely to miss. If you are in the kind of situation that you actually need to pull a trigger, God forbid, you don’t want to miss. If you shoot a light shot, like #9, it’s more than enough to stop whomever it hits (at those ranges), but less likely to penetrate walls with lethal force. Bullets, even fired from a handgun, will go through interior walls with plenty of lethal momentum left over.

From close range, btw, any weapon will plow through a plaster-board wall, an interior door, etc. See my last comments…

It’s a lot easier to get a shotgun permit than a handgun permit. Most states don’t require anything for a long-gun (shotgun), or perhaps just an FID.

The gun should be secured in a safe at all times that you’re not there. I prefer a key-safe, with me having the only key on my key ring – and I keep my key ring with me at all times. Take the gun out of the safe when you go to sleep, and put it back in the morning when you get up.

I strongly recommend that you keep the safety on, and don’t keep a round chambered. Pumping a shotgun and removing the safety takes a fraction of a second and, again, that’s the sound that you want everyone to hear.

One other thing to consider: if you live in an area that is *that* dangerous, why not move? I’m a huge supporter of a person’s right to defend themselves, but only insane people keep themselves and their families in harm’s way.

A gunfight in a house is one of those “avoid at all costs” kind of things. Bullets go through walls and kill people still in bed. Accidents *do* happen where a child is getting up for a glass of water, but you hear “a break in.”

Be prudent, sure, but the #1 rule is to avoid the conflict…

Kids are creative with their toys, and they won’t necessarily handle the firearm in the same manner you would assume.

For example, if a kid notices the “slidey part” and wants to treat it like a pogo stick, he can put the slide on a bedrail or similar hard object and put his full weight into the handle.

Unless it takes 50+ lbs of pressure to cock your weapon, you might want to rethink the “child-proof” assumption.

(I emailed my serious suggestions to see-dub)

I also don’t trust my judgement immediately after waking up.

So I don’t keep a weapon near my bed. I don’t like the odds of danger versus the possibility of having an intruder.