Riots are raging across the United States – and have been for days. Consequently, I’ve had a number of emails come in from readers who are looking for the best self-defense pistol on a budget. Let’s not forget that the government lockdowns from the health crisis have left many people in a tough financial situation.
Fighting for your life is likely the most stressful event any person can experience. That stress affects your performance: some of it good, some of it bad. This is the first in a series of articles that will explore what this stress is, and what it does to your body.
Survival stress is caused by a perception of an imminent threat of harm. The seriousness of the perceived threat causes a proportionate amount of stress on the body. Additionally, if the individual is surprised, or has very little time to react, the amount of stress increases.
For example, willingly entering a MMA competition will likely cause a moderate amount of stress, whereas being attacked suddenly in the parking lot by a knife-wielding thug will probably cause an extreme amount of survival stress.
Survival stress is also referred to as “body alarm response” (BAR) in some of the literature. Regardless on what you call it, it causes some pretty predictable reactions in the body.
When it comes to choosing the right defensive handgun, there are many “right” answers and a few wrong ones. The best defensive handgun for you will likely be different than my choices. But the criteria in picking a handgun for self defense is fairly universal.
Let’s take a look at some of the things you should consider when buying a handgun for personal protection.
When picking the right handgun, many people obsess about what caliber to choose. Generally speaking, handguns are poor choices for stopping a violent attacker. Handguns launch a fairly small projectile at relatively low velocities, and bullet wounds to areas other than the central nervous system (CNS) generally take time to work.
So, two things are important when considering which caliber. First, bigger is better…to a point. A high-quality .45 hollowpoint is more likely to be effective than a .25 ACP anything. The .45 delivers more energy and momentum, and it makes a significantly larger wound channel.
In Largo, Florida in 2002, an 88-year-old man and his 86-year-old wife were attacked in a daytime home invasion style robbery. The couple was attacked in their condo by a 19-year-old convicted drug dealer as they returned from a nearby supermarket.
The 88-year-old victim was able to retrieve his .38 Special revolver (loaded with +P hollow points) and placed two well aimed shots on the attacker. The first shot hit the convicted felon in the face. As the attacker fell, the second shot struck him center mass in the back.