Airsoft gun for home defence

[callumbagshaw]

I own several airsoft guns, and two .177 pstols (one is a dian wesson revolver, one is a government issue 1911), both look very real and both fire a C02 propelled metal BB (or pellet in the revolver's case).

If someone broke into my house, I would (illegally, as mentioned above) point one of those .177 pistols at them, not the airsoft rifles/pistols.

If they "called my bluff" (as also mentioned above), I'd shoot.

Several 177 metal bbs coming at 350-400FPS will put a man down I reckon, with a small likelyhood of extreme/fatal injury.

That's not my advice as that would be highly illegal, but it's what I'd do.

As the guy at the top said: a man's home is his castle, if you choose to defend it as I would, then you'd have to deal with whatever consequences the law would throw at you.

 

If this was America, you'd just kneecap 'em

[AJWest]

I own several airsoft guns, and two .177 pstols (one is a dian wesson revolver, one is a government issue 1911), both look very real and both fire a C02 propelled metal BB (or pellet in the revolver's case).

If someone broke into my house, I would (illegally, as mentioned above) point one of those .177 pistols at them, not the airsoft rifles/pistols.

If they "called my bluff" (as also mentioned above), I'd shoot.

Several 177 metal bbs coming at 350-400FPS will put a man down I reckon, with a small likelyhood of extreme/fatal injury.

That's not my advice as that would be highly illegal, but it's what I'd do.

As the guy at the top said: a man's home is his castle, if you choose to defend it as I would, then you'd have to deal with whatever consequences the law would throw at you.

 

If this was America, you'd just kneecap 'em

you make a good point, I also own airguns but they're rifles so very unwieldly and difficult to use around the house hence why I'd use a blunt tool, and as for the bluffing with an airgun its a bit different to an airsoft gun because airguns can actually do damage whereas if they called your bluff and you were holding just an airsoft gun and you decided to shoot anyway I have a feeling they'd probably just laugh at you, that might distract them enough for you to go for them if you were that way inclined though, who knows but there was a story in a paper a while back of some bloke using his air rifle to defend his home and the judges said it was perfectly reasonable I'll have a quick google and see if I can find it.

 

Edit: There we go didn't take long http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1357901/Burglar-dialled-999-shot-air-rifle-breaking-family-home.html now this just goes to show some judges have got some common sense and that we aren't completely screwed when it comes to defending our homes

Edited January 18, 2016 by AJWest

[Sacarathe]

Several 177 metal bbs coming at 350-400FPS will put a man down I reckon, with a small likelyhood of extreme/fatal injury.

 

Rubbish.

[jcheeseright]

I own several airsoft guns, and two .177 pstols (one is a dian wesson revolver, one is a government issue 1911), both look very real and both fire a C02 propelled metal BB (or pellet in the revolver's case).

If someone broke into my house, I would (illegally, as mentioned above) point one of those .177 pistols at them, not the airsoft rifles/pistols.

If they "called my bluff" (as also mentioned above), I'd shoot.

Several 177 metal bbs coming at 350-400FPS will put a man down I reckon, with a small likelyhood of extreme/fatal injury.

 

Not a chance, I'd be amazed if it'd get through a leather jacket let alone put a man down! A 4.5mm BB, even a steel one, doesn't weigh anything at all and 400fps is nothing. If you shot them in the face you could do some damage to their eyes and teeth but as for any real injury you've got to be kidding.

[MrMcG]

Not a chance, I'd be amazed if it'd get through a leather jacket let alone put a man down! A 4.5mm BB, even a steel one, doesn't weigh anything at all and 400fps is nothing. If you shot them in the face you could do some damage to their eyes and teeth but as for any real injury you've got to be kidding.

I think he may be referring to the .177 pellet which I had in a gamo pistol it could punch through my fence from my door circa 61ft so I wouldn't be surprised if it could puncture skin but I agree with you in terms of causing fatal injuries I doubt that unless aimed at head

 

I'll see if I can find the video of it I used to fire at an oil bottle for a car and it's first shot went clean through that and then through my fence at the end of garden so I promptly stopped

[jcheeseright]

That'd just piss someone off. Some people complain that 5.56 lacks stopping power, a .177 pellet isn't doing shit unless it's travelling at the speed of light.

[Comicbook hero]

Gents,

 

Things like this make me smile. The press have made a good job of convincing us all we will end up in prison if protect ourselves or others. Its crap.

 

Common law allows for you to use as much force as YOU deem reasonable at the time, to defend yourself or another. That reasonableness can be on a mistaken belief. For example you thought he had a knife and beat him with a handy metal sporting bat, but in fact it was a set of keys he had. Things like size, number of bad guys or the fact your kids are upstairs and you are the last line of defence all add up to increase what you deem reasonable.

 

Basically, you can do what you think was necessary. If that means you beat them till they are unconscious and no longer a threat as you felt that was the only option you had, then that is a defence. Police Officers regularly use this to defend their actions when utilising defensive skills (or even having fatally shot someone.)

 

Yes you may be interviewed under caution or worse case be arrested. But how many cases have actually gone to court in recent years since the law changed?

 

You can legally posses things like bats etc at home, they only become offensive weapons if you take them outside. Obviously prohibited articles like CS Gas or Tasers are illegal even in your house.

 

But more importantly, why would you grab your airsoft gun to confront someone breaking into your home? A bluff should only be an option when its the only option. Other than that I'd be grabbing for a knife in the kitchen, a bat, or as a last resort his neck!

 

Don't be afraid to defend yourselves or your families.

 

CBH

[proffrink]

It is man. I was kind of interested in people using the US as a justification for shooting people with BB guns, but we should really try to avoid politics in our toy guns forum.

[AJWest]

I think it's an absolute masterclass in going off topic, one of the best I have seen for a while (:

[proffrink]

Why don't we just go the whole-hog and start talking about that chap who wore that SS uniform to an airsoft game again?

[Pricey-1991]

I think it's just interesting to she what everyone's views on defending your home and families is. It has gone completely off topic though which is amazing

[Sacarathe]

I think it's just interesting to she what everyone's views on defending your home and families is. It has gone completely off topic though which is amazing

Did you see post #2? Forgot my "/thread" there.

 

! ! !

 

[Jedi_Master]

One advantage of having a dog, let's call him 'Rif', who will bark at strangers approaching the house and wake up the family inside. As far as Rif is concerned, anyone invading his pack's den is an immediate threat and will be dealt with appropriate force regardless of their age, size, sex, or creed. Meanwhile, I shall be phoning the local Constabulary and getting some doggie treats ready.

[callumbagshaw]

http://www.uttings.co.uk/p110013-crosman-destroyer-pellets-177-500-6-ds177/#.Vp4tWvmLR9A

 

Anyone who wants to do an experiment to see if one of these puts a man down or not can be my guest.

[callumbagshaw]

^ Correction, 6 of these.

[proffrink]

Posting about how you'd 'put down' a burglar with an airgun on a public forum is not a clever idea.

[Colonel Kurtz]

Had a chat with a drunken ex-copper once on the topic and got the following 'advice'

 

If someone is burgling you, and you run downstairs and jump in with a weapon and threaten/attack them, you're getting done.

 

You can only respond in self defense, if you have not been actually attacked, then you have to have been directly threatened with violence, them breaking into your home isn't enough to infer that threat like it is in the US

 

If you choose to use any kind of weapon to 'defend' yourself, you are likely to get done, as you probably chose to select that weapon before you knew exactly how much danger you are in, and it infers premeditation to a degree. Of course there's scenario's where it'd still be valid, but if you pick up a weapon and then move towards the burglar, for any reason other than there being other family members you do not know the state of and are seeking to verify, then you are effectively picking the fight and will get done.

 

If you end up in a fight with the burglar, you can only 'defend' yourself in a blow for blow manner. E.G. If they punch you and you punch them back it's fine, if you punch them several times then you get done. Same with a weapon, crack-head pulls a knife, you smack him with a bat - fine. You keep smacking him and you get done.

 

So what can you do? This drunk copper advised that essentially you barricade yourself in a room and call the cops. I second this, especially here, as I've not met many airsofters that i'd back in a fight vs a feral crackhead fueled by adrenaline & gear. Even if you got in a fight with them and won, you've not gained anything other than it being more likely you'll get a brick through your window / car set on fire later.

 

If you end up being attacked or threatened to the extent where you fear for your life, you should use a tool or other implement that is not a weapon, (but you want it to be capable of inflicting enough serious injury to well and truly disable the attacker with one hit). The one hit is key, so when they pull a knife on you, you smack them with the hammer once and once only, you have to wait for them to attack you again before hitting them again. Then you don't get done. When the cops turn up you say they attacked you, you grabbed this object as it was the closest thing to hand, and hit them when they lunged at you.

 

The most important thing here is not arming yourself before you know what the situation is exactly, and not using more force than necessary to prevent immediate injury to yourself or family. Property is irrelevant, you can't 'put down' a burglar to defend the honor of your Xbox One.

 

Anyone talking about what they'd 'put down' a burglar with is talking pointless bravado bullshit with no basis in reality (e.g. it's never happened so how do you know you wont just act like most people and sh*t your pants and shake in a corner) or you are dangerous sociopath, or at the very lest someone who enjoys indulging the idea of being one in the safety of the internet

[two_zero]

To me a mans home is his castle and if he has a family with young children in the house he should use reasonable force to defend it.

Not in the UK mate. If someone run at you with an axe you're suppose to call 999 - knock him cold and you'll probably be share a cell!

 

(yea im bitter)

[callumbagshaw]

Posting about how you'd 'put down' a burglar with an airgun on a public forum is not a clever idea.

Breaking into someone's home isn't a clever idea.

[proffrink]

Alright, but you'll be in jail with him if they can prove prior intent (which your posts help a great deal in doing).

 

Kurtz has explained it much better than I could though.

[two_zero]

*snip*

^this

 

disgusting and depressing, but very much the case.

 

Breaking into someone's home isn't a clever idea.

I was a victim of a burglary a few years ago. My means of income was taken away from me. The scum was later caught, proven guilty, and laid off because he was young and unemployed (much like me, thanks to him). And he probably had a real good time spending the money. Moral: crime pays, -especially in the UK.

 

 

 

I've been so damn scared at time walking the streets knowing if I'd get jumped I would have to choose between hospital or prison.

[proffrink]

Did he really not have to pay any compensation? That really sucks.

[two_zero]

Did he really not have to pay any compensation? That really sucks.

not a single penny.

 

thanks for the sympathy, mate!

[callumbagshaw]

Alright, but you'll be in jail with him if they can prove prior intent (which your posts help a great deal in doing).

 

Kurtz has explained it much better than I could though.

 

That's a bit sexist, women can steal stuff too.

[proffrink]

Who says the burglar has to identify as a man or woman? I for one think pan-sexual burglars shouldn't be afraid to carry out their work in the face of such persecution.