Poor man's home defense

You willingness to do honest work for a low wage is appreciated, Silver. You've got backbone.

 

Well it seems he now has a rifle for defense and that is a huge step in protection. Make sure your child cant get to it.

I would have donated money but wouldn't feel right lending him a gun until I got to know him...that could take years.

I travel the entire state of KY for my job. From the larger Northern cities to the lakes of the west to the "hollers" of the east, I've been there. If I'm correct, this guy is from the eastern part. Appalachian country is very beautiful, but can be depressing at the same time. It has some of the nicest people in the world, but can be a scary place to be when pulling up in a vehicle with official seals on the door. Talking about getting eyeballed.

I wish the best to ya my fellow KY'ian. Ever need to chat, lemme know.

Go Blue!!

 

My vote would be brownies or cookies. Easier to make en masse. Fantastic idea though

 

That Mossberg does look clean. With the ammo, and under your needs, I think you did OK price wise.

 

you could try a game/trail camera for the outdoor troubles.

 

You say that the area is known for drugs/pills, maybe someone was storing their supply there while the house was unoccupied. Talk with the local Law Enforcement agency, see about having the Canine talk a walk through (as long as you don't have anything illegal!).

As mentioned before, get to know your immediate neighbors and the Game/Trail camera is an excellent idea, if you can borrow one.

 

Dang it, I can't get to the pic. What model rifle is it? Just remember what I said in an earlier post about being outside at night with a gun. You will be in dangerous territory. One wayward shot and one wrong unarmed person hit or killed and you go straight to jail. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Straight to jail. Bye bye mommy and baby for a long, long time. I suggest you think real hard about this. I know it's gettin to ya, but at this stage your much better off getting the local sheriff more involved looking for tracks, fingerprints and any other evidence. At this point you've been through enough crap that I would think you'd have their interest. You might even tell them you've purchased a firearm to protect your family for you fear for their lives. This should peak their interest. If not, at least you advised them of a potential outcome if they don't get involved.
To me, it's sounding more and more like young punks than anything else. There's a good possibility they won't be armed. Ya never know. You go popping off rounds at an unarmed person on your property or not, odds are you will be in deep doo doo. Think real hard before doing anything stupid. Just sayin

 

Did somebody else want to live in that house?
How did you go about renting it?
Are you in the hillbilly boonies and you're not considered "one of them"?
You too close to a still or a stash?
What's going on here?

 

He's got a Mossberg 702 Plinkster.

 

Sorry to read about your issues, sounds like your making good choices and taking the correct steps. I have used game cameras and they work great, I recommend them over security cameras... You can mount the game camera outside on a gutter or eve point away from the house, maybe toward your car... If you have a home computer, look at getting a SD card called Eye-Fi, this card gives you Wi-Fi between your computer and your camera. If you ever get internet you can set up a photobucket account and have it send you a e-mail anytime a picture is loaded... So the camera shoots a picture, sends it to the computer, computer automatically loads it to the net, you get a message and can view it from anywhere... Then you get to decide your needed action (threat or not)...

If you do go the game cam route, make sure you get one that has IR flash. That way you don't have a strobe flash that will give away the camera location.

The only problem I see is if this guy somehow finds out your getting pictures of him, he will go one of two ways... 1) he will run off into the shadows and hopefully go away; or, 2)he will become much more aggressive.... just be prepared..

I'm praying for you/your families security, good luck...

 

Just a thought, but look at shotguns, you can often times pick them up rather cheaply. Also, if you don't have them, get a couple of dogs and good external lighting is a must for keeping prowlers away.

 

Something else I thought about after I went to bed... Since you have a lighting issue...

Do you have a decent tactical style flash light?

I have had really good luck with UltraFire flash lights from Amazon, they aren't SureFires, but they are very bright and VERY cheap... Make sure to get the ones that run on 18650 batteries. If you shop around you can usually buy them in a pair or just get a couple. Give one to the wife, keep one on yourself, and mount one to the barrel of that .22 using a cheap mount you can get off the self from walmart... The good thing about the lights is that they can also run on CR123 disposable batteries in a pinch (but that's the expensive route).

The lights I have are:

UltraFire C8 (to big of a reflector for pocket carry, but great for a nightstand)

UltraFire WF-502B, great light fits in pocket very well and tough as heck. I use one of these everyday, beat the heck out of it, lost it in the river/under water for 2 days, found it and it still works...

UltraFire XD-98s, this is the light I like the most because of the adjustable focus and very wide beam pattern that can light up a small room, but I am not sure it would be as waterproof as the 502B...

TrustFire TR-3T6, not an impressive light (don't let size fool you), my C8 shines almost as bright and 1/2 the size.. this one might make a better club then a light...

If it was me and I could afford it, I would get a pair of XD-98s give one to the wife, mount the other on the gun, then grab a WF-502B to keep on yourself at all times..

This is what I called my XD-98s:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CE1EFCM?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00

Here is my WF-502B:
http://www.amazon.com/UltraFire®-WF..._23_img_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=0CENNN3ER20JRBWEN5BP

Batteries for the lights:
http://www.amazon.com/Ultrafire-Li-...bxgy_60_2?ie=UTF8&refRID=1F9XS2ZMKK47N9R412J6


The nice thing about these tac lights is the brightness and strobe feature... If you walk into a dark room with someone in there, you light them up (and your still dark), really puts the advantage in your favor and buys you an extra second to make a decision on your response.

 

Get a nice, Childs Sized Aluminum Baseball Bat...for now. Then save for the Hi Point.

Nothing says: Get away from my property---like, the "TINK" noise from hitting some dirt bag with it.

20-30---TOPS

 

The 702 plinkster is a good gun. I've had one before (though sold it recently due to lack of ammo in my area). Accurate, low recoiling, and reliable. Give it a few drops of oil, and it won't fail you.

I'd advise reinforcing your entry points. It doesn't have to be an expensive prospect either. The window can be sealed shut by driving a screw through the frame along which it slides, and is easily reversed.

Doors also can be strengthened. The place where an exterior door usually fails is the frame, not the door its self. The strikeplate which the door locks into is usually held to the frame with very short quarter inch screws. With a solid kick the screws will either strip out or take a thin layer of the frame with them. Take those out and replace them with 4 inch deck screws. Those should be long enough to go entirely through the door frame and secure to the stud. It makes the door much stronger and does a lot more than a simple deadbolt. After all it doesn't matter how good a lock is if it's not mounted to something solid.

 

Agree with all of the above. Now as far as the gun. If you're faced with an intrusion in progress, abide by the USMC rule which is to fire at the first good opportunity. Aim for the face and throat. Keep firing until he's no longer a threat. Protect your loved ones.

 

Shooting is and should always be the last resort.
In the dark in a state of panic don't go for the smallest target, go for the largest. Center mass.