>All that said, I would not consider a self-loading rifle to be an >optimum choice for an emergency firearm.<br><br>I am a real newbie to this forum, but an oldtimer, who has been handling guns since Iwas 9 years old; so that's 52 years of shootin', off-and-on. I would think that the *optimum* choice for an emergency firearm would be that one which you are most proficient in using, and more importantly, the one you actually have available to you when it is needed.<br><br>Remember the old saying: "Beware the man who owns but one gun".<br><br> >As mentioned before by others, rifle ammunition is just too >dangerous to use for defense in dense living environments.<br><br>That might be too much of a generalization. There are many rifles that use *pistol* ammunition, and the ammo is available in *light* loads. These could conceviably be less of a *problem* than many full-load pistol or revolver rounds.<br><br> >Also, practice with a bolt action rifle is very necessary >before mastering a semi-auto.<br><br>Again, too much of a generalization. I grew up with single shots and pump actions. My transition to semi-autos was no different than if I had practiced with a bolt-action. I personally know a few fellows who started with semi-autos and full autos, and may have never even picked up a bolt action rifle in their *shooting* life. I would stack their profeciency with firearms up against anyone you would like to pick. <br><br>>I also personally would not choose a shotgun<br><br>And I, and many others, would disagree with you, and would choose a shotgun. What is riding in the rack in the front seat of most police units today; shotgun or rifle? Why?<br><br>If the guides, and the people in exploration camps situated in *bear* country aren't carrying Marlin 444s or 45-70 lever-actions, then guess what most of them perfer to have around.<br><br>> as shot >patterns become wider over distance and this >increases the chances of your hitting things you are not >aiming at.<br><br>What is the diameter of the shot charge, for a round of bird shot, fired out of a 12 gague at 10 feet? At 15 feet? At 20 feet? What is the average distance involved between victim and perp in a confrontation, in an urban environment?<br><br>Now... what would most likely be the confrontation distance between you and a bear, in bear-country?<br><br>> People who prefer shotguns try to get around this by >loading birdshot in a home defense shotgun. However, >birdshot may not incapacitate a potential attacke<br><br>At what distance are you assuming that a round of birdshot becomes a non-stopper? Ever fired #6 or #8 birdshot at a door, at close range?<br><br>>Hence I recommend a handgun for home and camp/trail >defense. If you choose a revolver, you're pretty much >limited to types that chamber .38 Special+P, .357Magnum, >or .44 Special caliber ammunition,<br><br>Did they suddenly stop making the 44-40, 45 Long Colt, 40 S&W, 44 Rem. Mag, 9mm (yep, they can be used in revolvers), 41 Mag, etc.?<br><br>> and to 5" or shorter barrel >lengths. The previously mentioned Ruger SP101 is >anexcellent choice. <br><br>What happened to all of those revolvers that wore barrels of 5 1/2, 6, 7 and 8 inches. [censored]... did they stop making all of those also?<br><br>>For a self-loading handgun, your choices are limited to 9mm >Luger, .357 Sig, .40 S&W, or .45 ACP.<br><br>Does this mean my .40 S&W in my Kimber is not made anymore. I just bought it! And what about that 10mm my partner carries? And there are more...<br><br>> Virtually all pistols in this class have barrel lengths of >between 3" and 4"<br><br>"Virtually all"... This is not an accurate statement.<br><br>>If weight is a factor, a longer barreled revolver in .45 Long >Colt can be used for defense against bears and hostile >people in the field as well as for hunting, but makes a poor >choice for home defense. Modern .45 LC loads are >essentially magnum cartridges.<br><br>Are you really sure about this statement? Do you know what max. pressures the manufacturers load for in the .45 Long Colt, which might be stuffed into a revolver that was made last week, OR one that was made in 1880?<br> <br>> The .44 Magnum also falls in this category. <br><br>Where do the *soft* .44 mag loads fall?<br><br>Personally, if I could grab only one gun for home defense, or carry with me for long-term survival, it would be the one (of my many) that rest beside my bed, in this remote, non-urban, area. It's a 12 gauge Mosberg pump *Home Defender* with the 18 1/2 inch barrel.<br><br>Same kind of gun we kept around as bear protection in our exploration camps.<br><br>Consider this: my ammo belt has a mix to fit that gun. It carries #6 and #8 birdshot, 00 and 000 buckshot, 1 ounce slugs( rifled and sabotted), two white and two red signal flares, two illumination rounds, and two rounds of *animal crackers*.<br><br>I can also, with the addition of very little weight, throw an 18 1/2 inch rifled barrel, with rifle sights, into my packsack, and have the gun barrels switched out in approx. two minutes if I desire to use some rather accurate slugs for some deer meat. Accurate to 100 yards and beyond, too.<br><br>You have to go some to find a rifle, or pistol, or revolver, that can give you that versatility, when conditions may tend to be unpredictable, and probaly will always be different than that which you *planned* for.<br><br>I may carry a little more weight in ammo, and a little more weight on the sling, but I can react to changing conditions with a more properly-applied firepower than most other systems.<br><br>Prospector