Home Invaders beat up pregnant women.

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compmanio365 wrote:

Tell me more about a "davey bar"......

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It an adjustable bar that has a forked end, which goes right underneath your doorknob, and a rubber footed end, which goes on the tile or carpet.

You jam it under there real good and it exerts all the force put against the door onto the floor. There's all kinds, I think I picked mine up at Target. I tried it out and I had to stop for fear of breaking the door. They won't get in quiet that's for sure.

It's the travel version of more permanent iron ones that you can install with slots built into both your door and the floor (ala Whoopi Goldberg's in the movie Burglar).

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I live way down a long driveway and we keep doors unlocked when we are home. and at night some are unlocked for me, but when I am going to bed I lock them. I keep my 2 buildings locked when I am not in them.

We do have 4 dogs though, 2 of which are aggressive cattle dogs. They are fat, but verystrong and weigh in the upper 60's. My mother gets paranoid though and sometimes locks me out of the house at night or locks doors she doesn't really need to. I think it would take a really crazy criminal to get through 2 mean dogs, then even if they do I have my 9mm in my room when I am sleeping and home alone. Dog ruckus will wake me up very fast.

Not answering the door and being untrusting and rude acting can save many a life out there. There is a case of 2 teenage boys from some little Vermont town who decided to kill and rob for the heck of it. They first tried a man at home with his son, and the man did not unlock his door, but spoke through the glass, and he says he even showedhis gun by lifting it up enough to be seen. He was wary from the start and was holding his Glock in one hand. Then he said he would call the local auto garage for the guy since he claimed his car broke down, but his ph was dead- the line had been cut. The guy outside left at this point. This was in a rural sort of area of either VT or NH not far from the town the boys lived in. The man did not seem like some "paranoid gun nut" either, just a regular guy concerned for his safety and mostly his son's safety.

The next time the2 teenage boyswent out huntingthey picked a house lived in by a college professor and his wife- he was a prof in enviro science and the boys claimed they were doing a school project on green alternatives or something, so the guy let them right in, even though he had no idea who they were, never met either before. He and his wife ended up stabbed to death/ blugeoned, and robbed.

So yes, you never know where this crap might happen. I was sure happy to be a "gun totin lady" after watching that show. But since I have a business here I HAVE to see who's outside during normal hours, and let people in here, but if its late at night, there will be no nice lady if you show up. I have debated carrying all the time at home, but feel like its silly, that I am falling into the "gun nut paranoid" category. I have never had a problem with any customers or potential customers thus far. Is this stupid?

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Much of the ease of kicked in doors can be solved by changing the way we build. I would never allow a builder to install the traditional in swinging exterior doors. Doors that swing out are much more difficult to kick in however the hinges need to be either hidden or of a type that the pin can not be removed when closed. There are other methods to keep the door in place when closed with the pins removed as well as other ways to strengthen the framing attachment. Besides in a panic during a evacuation as with a fire all you need to do is turn the knob and push.
For ground accessible windows I am a big fan of architectural films...they work good for cars too!!
Plus if there ever is a mistaken no-knock raid done on your house they will be greatly slowed in making entry; giving you valuable time to identify the intruders as police. You will come out fine and they will be baffled and sore from trying to get in.
Most breaching techniques depend on the faults of typical construction common to the area.

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"...like its silly, that I am falling into the "gun nut paranoid" category. I have never had a problem with any customers or potential customers thus far. Is this stupid?" -- XD40coyote


I wouldn't say "stupid," but like most people out there,you're counting on the law of averages -- that it "won't happen to you" or, you won't encounter an "emergency" when you are NOT carrying. Neither mindset is desirable.

BTW, actual "gun nuts" (mental cases) are rare. The rest of us are just "prudent."

-- John D.

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Ah, thanks for the insight Rey.....I'll have to see if I can picka couple of those up. Never can have too many locks and bars on the doors/windows.

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Sure you can.

Besides,if you need that many security devices where you live presently, you might want to move elsewhere if you're not stuck there for some reason. Who would want to feel like he/she is living in a prision?

-- John D.

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There's this company...dang it I forgot the name. But anyway, they replace your wooden doorframe with a metal one and drill that into the studs. SO basically, in order to kick down your door, they would have to kick six (6) three inch wood screws out of the studs, or two out of your door that hold in your deadbolt. or your hinges.

I think they charge like 130 bucks for the steel plate.

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I did something similar in the mid-1970s when my apartment complex was being hit by some "knock, no answer, kick in the door" thiefs making their rounds and I was invited to take home security more seriously. Went to a home-improvement store, got some flat steel bar stock (thickness of your choice), long screws and reinforced the door myself...drilling lots of screw holes in thick steel stock was tedious though.

Anyway, if you're handy with tools (rare nowadays) save lots of $$ and DIY.

-- John D.

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cloudcroft wrote:

"...like its silly, that I am falling into the "gun nut paranoid" category. I have never had a problem with any customers or potential customers thus far. Is this stupid?" -- XD40coyote


I wouldn't say "stupid," but like most people out there,you're counting on the law of averages -- that it "won't happen to you" or, you won't encounter an "emergency" when you are NOT carrying. Neither mindset is desirable.

BTW, actual "gun nuts" (mental cases) are rare. The rest of us are just "prudent."

-- John D.

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So what do you call "us"? Hoplophiles? LOL

I've seen on the XD boards, the term "gunnies".

So am I being a paranoid hoplophile or paranoid gunny? Is "paranoid" an incorrect term to use? Perhaps " obsessively cautious"?

Is "nervous sheepdog" better?

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My house is configured such that if someone knocks on my front door at night, I can see and speak to them from my bedroom window. This makes it easier to assess what or who is out there, and whether I want to actually answer the door or not. If I don't like what I see, I can call the police from the bedroom and still see outside. If you decide to actually break into my house, get a good look at the pretty trees and beautiful sky before you do, and think twice about what you're about to try. There's more than just a telephone in that room with me.



(No, that's not mine, image for dramatic effect only)

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I recently had new doors installed at my home. Installed with all 3" screws, 2 of the 4 hinge screws in each of the 3 hinges are 3" screws. The 2X4s in the frame were screwed together with 3" screws, the strike plates are installed with 3" screws, etc. It could obviously still be broke open, but it is going to take a while and my dogs and sidearm are always readily at hand and my Mossberg cruiser is not far away. If I am not home, the valuables are locked up safely and my nearest neighbor is one of my best friends, carries and works from home.

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Rey wrote:

There's this company...dang it I forgot the name. But anyway, they replace your wooden doorframe with a metal one and drill that into the studs. SO basically, in order to kick down your door, they would have to kick six (6) three inch wood screws out of the studs, or two out of your door that hold in your deadbolt. or your hinges.

I think they charge like 130 bucks for the steel plate.

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Yeah, this is just a rental house, so not interested in spending the money required for that. Good idea for your own home though.....once I get my own house, it will be secured quite sufficiently.... I would like to also make my own alarm system and hook it up to the home network, so I will get an email/text/IM alert if any sensors are tripped, with cameras so I can verify if there is a break-in or not......forget the police, I'll take of business, thanks.

And in terms of what happens if they get through the door/window while I/my wife ishome, I've got a "little friend" ready to go at any time:

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XD40coyote,

Woof!

-- John D.