Preparing The Citizen Gunfighter | Weapons and Equipment Selection

This is the second article in our 3 part series; Preparing The Citizen Gunfighter | Weapons and Equipment. Part 1 covered Mindset and Conditioning.

Evaluate your environment and what you intend to use that firearm for. From that evaluation, select the best tool for the job. Many people immediately turn to a handgun for self-defense. A handgun may not always be the best tool for the job. Personally, when I was a first-time gun owner, I felt pressured into my first purchase. I wished someone took the time to guide me. Below is my advice to you.

Ask yourself the following questions and answer them honestly

• What are you protecting?
• Are you planning concealed carry every day?
• Are you planning solely for home defense?
• Are you physically strong and healthy?
• Do you live alone, and or in close proximity to neighbors?

Let’s pair the answers to a few of these topics together in order to help highlight their importance

If you reside in a structure, surrounded by a large open rural area, do not plan to perform concealed carry, live alone, and are distant from neighbors, odds are a 16” barreled AR-15 chambered in 5.56MM with Low Power Variable Optic (LPVO) and a flashlight would be ideal for you. The barrel length is enough to maintain maneuverability in close spaces while maintaining ballistic efficiency. The LPVO can act similarly to a red dot optic at 1X, and as a more precise instrument at 6X magnification out to 600M.

If you are older and in poor health, plan to perform at home self-defense only, live in close proximity to neighbors, and do not plan to perform concealed carry, consider this. An AR-Pistol with SBA-3 brace, flashlight, and a red dot (if you can afford a good one), chambered in 9mm may be the choice of the day. You do not need to be strong to manage the recoil of a 9MM AR platform. 9MM is also a solid consideration if overpenetration is a legitimate concern, and it should be if you live in close quarters with other people. A durable red dot optic is fast and accurate at close distances, yet effective at 300 meters.

If you are healthy, live with a family and near others, and plan to carry concealed daily, then a high-capacity handgun like the Glock 19 or SIG P229 with a flashlight, are more appropriate selections. You may also want to consider a pistol red dot, do not shy away, they are the future.

The answer to your personal weapons and equipment selection will not be the same for everyone. Tailor your selection to your needs and be honest with yourself. I have had friends who are older and in poor health say “I really prefer this small pocket-sized handgun. I don’t plan to conceal a weapon, but I really think a high capacity AR-15 is just too much.” What if multiple assailants enter your home? How fast can you shoot multiple targets accurately? Can you conduct a quick combat reload?

An AR-15 style rifle is easy to maneuver, does not require very much recoil management, and is a high-capacity weapon. 30-rounds in a relatively soft-shooting platform can be the answer to your needs. Consider the practical situation you live in, rather than an idea of what you think would be adequate.

Be a Student of Weapons Craft

When you become skilled with the tool you have chosen, learn to use other weapons and equipment. Clint Smith said it best. “There’s nothing that says you are going to fight with just your gun.” Find a range that allows you to rent and fire other platforms. Learn to use Double Action/Single Action, Single action only, and striker-fired semi-autos, revolvers, and rifles. If you are unlucky enough to find yourself in a fight with an armed assailant, learning to load and clear a malfunction is far easier if you are familiar with that weapon. This is something you won’t want to figure out on the fly. Imagine fighting your attacker, and gaining control of his loaded weapon, only to die because you didn’t know how to operate the safety.

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Jonathan Fietkau is a former SOTACC from 1st Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group, and a graduate of the Special Forces Advanced Urban Combat Course (SFAUCC). He is a combat veteran of Iraq, and other theaters of operation, with previous service in the 101st and 82nd Airborne Divisions.