In this week’s mailbag I’ll discuss rifle options, air pistols, self-defense for children, frangible ammunition, wellness checks and more.
Let’s dive in…
I’m surprised you didn’t mention a .22 caliber rifle. I used to have a Beeman .177/.22 switchable. The .22 worked so well, I never switched them out.
–Ken G
Answer: .22 caliber rifles are great and I own several. But, a .22 is a real rifle that falls under gun laws compared to an air rifle. Also, air rifle ammo is dirt cheap and an air rifle is great for training new folks.
Hi Jason, I usually like your emails and I really appreciate most of your observations. However, I find your conclusion to that story to be insane.
That is obviously a tough situation, but I cannot possibly agree that the best case scenario is for a 9 year old to be pointing a pellet gun at a criminal. That boy is lucky to be alive.
Suppose the criminal had had an actual gun and shot that child because he thought it was a real gun?
–David D
Answer: The 9-year-old child would have been kidnapped and possibly murdered if the criminal had carjacked the vehicle with him in it.
So, I think he did a great job of protecting himself. I hope my kids would do the same and not let some criminal take them.
What is your take on air pistols; there are a lot of them on Amazon, all kinds. They have obvious advantages in certain contexts over rifles.
–Fred R
Answer: The reason I prefer an air rifle over an air pistol is because most air rifles tend to be a lot more powerful compared to the pistols.
In addition, if I need to use my air rifle in an emergency it would most likely be for hunting small game, which I would rather do with a rifle than a pistol.
I do like air pistols for force on force training and dry fire practice to practice the fundamentals. You can get a decent air pistol on Amazon for around $80 and one that I own is the Walther P99 replica.
Back in 2004 I purchased ammo called air freedom used by Air Marshals. I understood it did not go through the aircraft skin. I wanted to use in home defense because living in a mobile home. It is no longer available, is there something that I can use instead?
–Don B
Answer: It sounds like you want to check out some frangible ammunition. This will not penetrate through your home. Do an Internet search for “frangible ammunition” and you can check out the various types and see what makes sense for you.
Have you heard about the new room-to-room “Wellness Check” performed at hotels in response to the Las Vegas shooting? We came face to face with it in Orlando and moved out of the hotel because of it.
The “security team” visits your room without your permission looking for guns and any other weapons… The policy is mandatory and there is nothing you can do to get around it! We left because I don’t want anyone in my hotel room going through my stuff when I’m not there.
–Susie R
Answer: I have not heard of this and it hasn’t happened to me at any of the hotels I’ve stayed at. However, that sounds crazy and I agree with you. I’m not staying anyplace where they can barge into my room without my permission.
Jason, I have to take issue with your advice about the PPK. I have a pre WWII PPK that is dead reliable; I also have a PPS as my primary CC gun, a P99 as my home defense gun…
–Jonathan W
Answer: My personal experience with the PPK was not good. I found it unreliable. But, that was just one gun so it could have been a dud. I do love Walther handguns though and own several including the Creed, which is a great gun for concealed carry.
