How foolish would I be to keep a realistic-looking toy BB gun at home to deter intruders?

[glee]

@DrDeth

Home Invasions are a global phenomena. Latin America, UK…

Firstly there aren’t a lot of home invasions here in England.
Secondly intruders won’t be armed.
(Even our beat police are not armed.)

[LSLGuy]

Very much this.

I’ll add that things unfold very quickly in a 1 bedroom apartment.

People who live in 8,000SF houses might have time from the alarm tripping to getting into their safe room or closet or at least bolting the bedroom doors before the bad guys are in their shit.

When your bed is <15 feet from every exterior wall, door, and window of your residence, they’ll be kneeling on your chest before you wake up.

Different but related point …
Some folks are required by dire economic straits to live in dangerous violent crimey neighborhoods. Others are not. What is motivating the OP’s desire now. What’s different than a month or a year ago?

[Velocity]

I did move a few months ago into a different neighborhood. It’s not as bad as some other places I’ve been, but there are still residents nearby who’ve written online about various skeevy encounters with folks and I do see some teens/early-20s folks around here at night who look like they aren’t exactly up to good. There are cop cars here quite often.

But yes, the statistical likelihood of a break-in is still pretty low.

[puzzlegal]

@Dallas_Jones

The original thread was asking about how foolish it would be to keep a fake gun for home defense. Highjacked by the usual posters.

Anti-guns and baseball bats were probably not what the OP had in mind when asking for advice.

Carry on as you see fit.

The OP has expressed interest in posts about dogs and baseball bats. You may have misread his intent.

[LSLGuy]

If the OP is even semi-serious about firearms for defense, this recent thread is good reading.

What's with the double trigger set up on semi-auto pistols

Because of the current political climate, my wife is considering a revolver. I have hand guns but they really don’t work for her. I would just like that she felt comfortable with firearms. And have something suitable for her. My question is in the title. What’s with the double trigger in pistols. I’m sure it’s some sort of safety, but that’s rediculous.

[msmith537]

@We_re_wolves_not_werewolves

@Crafter_Man

If you pull a gun, it means you’re in Condition Red. Shit just got real. Your life is in danger, and you’re thinking about using a BB gun? That’s a very bad plan.

This. And I think the OP is mistaken about how an encounter with an intruder is likely to go down. You don’t yell across the room, “I have a gun and I’m prepared to use it”, and the intruder immediately stops in his tracks, considers his options and then leaves. That’s just not realistic. Things are likely to happen much more quickly. A much more likely scenario is you wake up to a sound in the night. You get our of bed and see a person with their face covered coming down the hallway. They see you and immediately rush at you. If you have a gun in your hand you might have time to pull the trigger once or twice. Hopefully you have gone to the range to practice shooting and have good aim. You will very likely NOT have time to shout some kind of warning to the intruder, and even if you did, they are more than likely trying to neutralize you by coming at you at high speed. They are not stopping at your warning. A BB gun is not cutting it.

Yeah, I don’t think I would want to be in a position where I would need to test if my acting ability is greater than my marksmanship.

[Measure_for_Measure]

@Loach

It is an extremely bad idea to use that inside a closed space unless you just want to commiserate with the intruder about how much pain you are both feeling.

???

The pepper spray that I’ve tested shoots in a thin stream. I’d be more concerned about using it outside when there is wind. Does bear spray shoot differently?

I would recommend pepper spray training, if you can locate an instructor.

[pkbites]

@Measure_for_Measure

Does bear spray shoot differently

Yes. It shoots wider and towards the end creates a cloud effect.

Either way, spraying any pepper spray in a closed space can suck for both parties. I say this with experience having OCed dozens of people over the years.

I’ve also sprayed animals. I sprayed a husky once with some strong Fox Labs stuff and for whatever reason it had no effect. None.

@DrDeth

The only time a real looking BB gun might be a decent idea is if it is kids. In which case a blank gun would be better

Gotta be careful on that. Some states have laws regarding blank guns that are more stringent than those on real firearms.
Also, you can actually hurt or kill someone with blanks. For a few feet the wadding comes out as fast as a bullet and can penetrate.