Originally posted by Princess Tong Po:

we do have a security system. they cut the phone lines outside the office and shattered the camera's so the system was virtually useless. this is all being taken care of though. they stole almost $24,000 worth of equipment this time, so boss is going all-out on the system.

Ugh; good luck with the new system. See if he will pony up $$$ for a security service to do hourly drive-bys during the wee-hours of the night every hour.

Originally posted by Princess Tong Po:
i've got average size hands i guess. recoil doesn't bother me (from the guns i've shot before). not sure if that last part about wandering is a gun-term or not, but i sit at my desk...



Sorry about my wording, but you answered my poorly thought-out question; you sound like you are mostly stationary so I would consider a shotgun over a sidearm. Personally, I'd have both handy, but I'm the type that believes that too much firepower is just about enough.

Some folks sound like they are talking up the "scare factor" of a firearm; screw that. If you are going to pull on someone, you are NOT doing it to scare them. You are doing it to end their life because yours is in danger. I'd rather have a small-caliber pop-gun that I can pump multiple shots out of over a hand-cannon that may give you 1-2 rounds out the barrel vs. the 5-6 out of mine.

Shotgun gives you the best chance if hitting someone in close quarters (Ok, it does have the scare factor, but that isn't what it's about) and if you are recoil-sensitive with small to mid-size hands (like me on both counts), run with a lighter caliber of sidearm. 40's and .45's in small, compact frames can get to be too much on consecutive rounds; large-frames are not so bad (mass helps negate recoil, but the flip-side of that is a lack of concealability)...

You're going to get 200 different answers here because everyone is a different body-size, different strength-level, some more sensitive to recoil than others, etc., etc., etc...

...so .380, 9mm, .38 or .40 should round the discussion out on calibers for the most part. Guns? Pick your poison, though I personally don't skimp on something that holds the potential to save my life. I'd pick a well-inspected used Sig over most brand-new "cheap" firearms, but that's just me.

JaTo e-Tough Guy Missouri City, TX 99 Contour SVT #143/2760 00 Corvette Coupe