I have the decision to buy a hand gun. And it has come down to these two hand guns. Which one is better for home security? 
or…is a Mossberg 88 Maverick better?
Well, since you brought the shotgun… I would pick the Mossberg. Handguns are difficult to effectively employ in a home defense situation. I recommend that shotgun and a few classes on firearms safety and home defense.
If you have your heart set on a handgun (and it sounds like you don’t) I kinda like the CZ. No specific reason, really. It’s just a fine gun.
brought UP the shotgun, that is.
I have been reading several forums for shotgun and handgun owners and invariably someone will ask the most often asked question: “I want to own x or y handgun/shotgun for home security. Which one is best?” From also posting here, I have gotten a general idea that if it is a shotgun, a good cheap intro for a first time owner is the Mossberg Maverick. If it is a handgun, a good 9MM like the CZ 75 B or the Bersa.
Strictly speaking from a budget point of view, I can get a Mossberg 88 Maverick at my local Academy store for $139. At the same store, I can get a Bersa for $360 and a CZ 75 B for $400. As you can see, there is quite difference money wise. Nevertheless, I don’t to make my ultimate decision solely on budget.
Between Bersa and the CZ 75, I am also inclining towards the CZ 75 B.
If it is just for home defense, definitely the shotgun, and from everything I hear the Mossberg Maverick is a good gun, especially for the money.
If you have your heart set on a handgun, the CZ-75 is a good gun, and often mentioned as one of the best values in handguns.
Great! I’ll probably buy during this week the Mossberg and take it to my local gun club for instruction, usage, and safety. They rent guns, so I’ll take the CZ 75 for spin. 
Is it just for home security? If you go with the shotgun, consider finding a hunting/trap/skeet type barrel for it as well, that way you can practice at your local trap range.
Is this a first gun? If not, skip much of the mumbling to follow.
Make your way around your home with a 3 foot long hunk of wood shouldered and see if your place is large enough for a shotgun. Small rooms, tight halls, sharp turns? Or long wide corridors, expansive rooms, grand stairways? Also, if your main bedroom opens onto a hallway that travels to the right, and there’s an obstruction (or wall) inside-left of the door but you are right-handed, peeking down the hall with a long-gun is problematic. Opposite holds true for lefties, obviously.
Gotta find what’s best for your situation. The CZ or the Mossberg are good choices, but which will you practice with? Are you in a high-crime area and you are rushing to get this done? Do you have room for a shotgun? (gunsafe vs. a small lockbox). Are you going to consider a CCW? Does the scenario that caused this decision allow time to get up and walk over to the safe storage place to get your shotgun?
If you’re serious about classes, look to see what’s available in your area - maybe a bunch of scattergun shooters around and only a single NRA Basic Pistol class down in Brownsville.
Better yet, buy 'em both.
Shotgun, absolutely. There’s an old story that goes a gun owner is talking to someone who just happens to see the butt of his handgun sticking out from under his jacket. The guy points down at the handgun and says “Woah, carrying a gun huh? What, are you expecting some kind of trouble?”
“Nope”, says the gun owner, “If I was expecting trouble I’d have brought shotgun”.
I don’t know who said this first (I bet Jeff Cooper or Clint Smith has a claim on it) -
“A pistol is something you use to fight your way back to your gun”
Not only is it a good value, it’s just a damn good design, cost aside, which is why several extremely high grade pistols (Tanfoglio EAA Witness and Sphinx) are patterned after it. The rails-inside-frame is touted as being mechanically superior (meh), and the fit and finish of CZ pistols is vastly superior to most guns coming from the former East Bloc, and better than some of those made in Western countries. Plus, you’re more likely to find spare mags, parts, and add-on accessories for the CZ, should you need that. And it’s all around a superior, classic design, comperable to the Browning Hi-Power or the Sig Sauer pistols in handling and ergonomics.
However, the shotgun is going to be superior for home defense compared to any handgun, hands down.
Stranger
I read this after I went to Academy and checked out the Mossberg 88 Maverick. For some reason or other, I was expecting a small rifle. After all, for the price, $139, it didn’t seem to register in my mind as anything but a small shotgun. I asked the guy at the counter, “Ah. Let me check your Mossberg 88.” The guy went to the rifle and gave it to me to inspect.
HOLYMOTHEROFJESUS :eek:
That’s a big gun!
I didn’t buy it cuz I need to see if I can walk around with that shotgun comfortably. I am going to follow your advice and see how well I can travel in my house.
My house is not a studio apartment, but it does have tight corridors. You pretty much well described my bedroom.
So. If the corridors are tight, would you still recommend the Mossber? If not, then g for the CZ 75 B?
[quote]
Are you in a high-crime area and you are rushing to get this done? Do you have room for a shotgun? (gunsafe vs. a small lockbox).
What’s a CCW? I seen this in different gun owner forus & haven’t been able to crack it with my decoder ring. 
I have space in my bedroom to store a handgun, but I don’t have enough space for a rack or small lockbox. There is probably space in other areas of the home.
As far as classes, I will talking to these guys for classes and practice shooting.
LOL. I might!
CCW = permit to Carry a Concealed Weapon
Shotguns can be a bitch to handle in enclosed spaces, but they give a larger cone of fire than you can get with a pistol. Both will require lots of practice. If you go the pistol route, I recommend a laser-sight. Hitting a target under stress, in the dark is problematic at best. Add to that the necessity of positively identifying your target before you shoot, and a laser-sight becomes a must. Load the 9mm with Glasers and practice, practice, practice.
:smack: Ah! Yes!
…and as a Texan, yes, I am considering the CHL classes.
But wouldn’t that give out your position?
Thanks for your and everybody’s advice!
The odds of your intruder being 1) armed with a firearm, and 2) out to do you immediate bodily harm are minimal. You are more likely to be dealing with a burglar rather than a rapist, for example. Personally, if I can reach the light swith without revealing my torso, that’s what I’d do. Barring that, I have a SureFire taclight that will blind anyone I shine it at. You’re not a sniper or soldier, fer crying out loud. You’re a homeowner trying to prevent theft or harm to you and yours. Scaring away the intruder is better than shooting them. Better legally, better karmically. Be prepared to kill if you have to, or don’t buy a weapon. But it is still the last resort.
A little off subject, but I do own an original Tokarev TT-33 my grandfather brought back from Europe. I enjoy shooting it, but chambered for 7.62x25, it is a little expensive to shoot and kicks like a mule.
As far as the ergonomics of the pistol, it fits my hands well.
<hijack> A Marine Master Gunny once told me man owns a handgun so he can fight his way to his shotgun. Again, I’m sure he didn’t coin the phrase, but it seems to be a widespread belief. </hijack>
I just happened upon this little gem -