How does everyone set up their home defense AR?

[15kiserc]

How does everyone set up their home defense AR and why do you do it that way?

I currently have a 16 inch barrel home defense AR but like most people can find it cumbersome to get through doorways and turn corners. I had a red dot on mine along with a stream light flashlight with a touchpad on the lower 45 degree angle opposite my support hand.

Should I just get a shorter barrel/upper? To be more mobile?

 

[Cameramonkey]

How does everyone set up their home defense AR and why do you do it that way?

I currently have a 16 inch barrel home defense AR but like most people can find it cumbersome to get through doorways and turn corners. I had a red dot on mine along with a stream light flashlight with a touchpad on the lower 45 degree angle opposite my support hand.

Should I just get a shorter barrel/upper? To be more mobile?

Dont forget to go shorter you either have to SBR it and get a tax stamp, or get an AR Pistol instead*. But a pistol as we have seen is fraught with the peril of the ATF's whims.

*once the receiver is a rifle on a 4473, its ALWAYS a rifle. A receiver transferred as just a receiver or as a pistol config can switch to a rifle and back. But if it started its life as a rifle, its permanent. (unless you SBR it)

 

[DadSmith]

How does everyone set up their home defense AR and why do you do it that way?

I currently have a 16 inch barrel home defense AR but like most people can find it cumbersome to get through doorways and turn corners. I had a red dot on mine along with a stream light flashlight with a touchpad on the lower 45 degree angle opposite my support hand.

Should I just get a shorter barrel/upper? To be more mobile?

Train with it a lot. You will overcome the problems you are having.
If need be take a class on it.

 

[92FSTech]

.223 gives up a lot ballistically as you shorten the barrel. The fireball and blast out of a shorter barrel can also be disorienting, especially in the dark or in an enclosed space. 16" provides a good compromise of performance and mobility without having to get into the legal complications of an SBR or pistol. Anything shorter and you're going to need a pinned and welded muzzle device and/or a tax stamp, depending upon how much shorter.

I think you have a pretty solid setup already. Red dot, backup irons, and white light covers most of the "must-haves" that I want on a defensive rifle. Maybe add a sling so you have a way to free up your hands while still retaining your rifle.

Put in some time working with that gun. Do some shooting with the stock completely compressed, or even over the shoulder. Practice maneuvering and clearing corners with an unloaded gun. I think you'll be pleased with how effective you can be with what you've already got there.

 

[duanewade]

Just my opinion but I won't use an AR for home defense. I've watched many videos (both good and bad instructors) and the flash and blast are beyond what I want to have as I believe it would be very disorienting to me in a time where I need all of my senses working when under duress.

My home defense weapon of choice is a 12 gauge pump gun

 

[Bugzilla]

Similar to duanewade but 20 gauge so the better half can shoot it.

 

[dudley0]

Mine is an SBR. 10.5 barrel with a can on it. RDS and a light.

The light has a laser on it. I have the laser set up for in house ranges.

The can reduces some flash and a little sound but the pressure is still there.

A sling for sure. I also have a double mag attached, just in case I have a failure that is mag related or heaven forbid I need more than 30 rounds on a home invasion.

I have practiced with it and taken a class for carbines. I have shot it inside going out a window to see what the pressure was like in confined spaces. Not a perfect set-up but it is right next to the bed and I am somewhat comfortable with it.

I also have LVL IV plates in a carrier with a couple spare mags and a TQ. This would be for a situation where I knew ahead of time before a breach.

My EDC is available as well and would be handed off to the wife as we head to the safe room. More armor and firearms are down there as well.

We have a security system in place as well as cameras inside and out. We have a panic button on a fob in the safe room. I plan to plug a cell phone in down there for 911 calls if it gets to that.

 

[Pepi]

With a shotgun

 

[INP8riot]

An AR is a fantastic home defense gun. With 5 or 6 people rushing into a house, I would not want to cheat some of them to only 1 round each using a 7 round shotgun! Use fragmenting rounds or something like a vmax bullet that will come apart or deform if hitting drywall. A regular bullet will tumble and lose a ton of energy, but if you live close to anyone, better safe than sorry.

A shotgun with any decent sized shot like buckshot or a slug will go through multiple walls. A rack of a shotgun will not deter anyone, now they just know you have a gun and only have 7 rounds! You give up tactical advantages with that simple but very identifiable sound. There are firm believers in shotguns so the argument will go on until the end of time. But use whatever you are comfortable with. I like more rounds at the ready when dealing with the unknown in a groggy state if I just woke up.

16" is fine. As stated a shorter barrel gives up velocity but gains maneuverability. Your set up looks solid! Now just get it a little brother if you want another one! I keep the short barrel by the bed and my long barrel with an LPVO by the rest of my equipment if it is a "go outside and see" mission. Lol My short barrels have a Noveske Pig style flash suppressor that directs all blast forward.

I don't prefer lights that hang off like that for inside the house because it could get caught on something. I bump my front sight back and put a Streamlight TLR1 HL in front of it on the top rail or I also have the Streamlight RM2 on a couple in the same configuration. It keeps enerything mounted vertically rather than horizontally to the sides.

 

[92FSTech]

Found an older pic of mine. I'm still using basically the same setup, but changed the stock for a similar magpul design that has built-in sling swivel sockets, as it makes it easier to separate the halves for cleaning, and running the sling strap through the stock as seen in the photo prevents you from completely collapsing it. The sling is a 2-point Blue Force Gear that I like for the quick-adjust capability.

The light setup looks a little hillbilly (just a Streamlight polytac in an appropriately-sized scope ring), but It's there because I prefer it, not because I couldn't afford something better. It's cheap, light weight, doesn't stick out too far from the gun to interfere with stuff, and the "buttonology" is simple and intuitive. I had a TLR-1 on there for a while, but found myself having trouble remembering which way the toggle switch needed to go for momentary or constant. I've also got the tape pressure switch on other rifles, and found it's a lot easier to accidentally activate than the tailcap on my setup, plus there's extra wires and complexity that come with it.

Yes, it also has a fixed front sight base and no free-float handguard. At HD ranges (and even out to 200 or so yards) with irons or a red dot, I've never noticed a difference in accuracy between this rifle and one with a free-float tube. This setup is probably a little more durable. IMO it really doesn't matter...if I was building one all over again I'd probably go with a free-float handguard since there are so many options out there and I prefer a slimmer profile, but it doesn't matter enough to me to make the change.

There's a million things you can do with the AR platform and you can optimize it for pretty much any situation that you want, but IMO for a basic home defense gun, simpler is better. Set it up however works best for you and practice with it enough to be proficient. And if while you're practicing you find something about your setup that isn't working, make a change.

 

[firecadet613]

Train with it a lot. You will overcome the problems you are having.
If need be take a class on it.

I second this. Take a carbine class with Revere's Riders to test your gear and get more proficient with your AR.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Trigger, sights (I have PA 1X prism), sling, light, Surefire 300X IIRC). I have medical tape on the FSB and extra mag banded to stock, but I am old.

Some guys don't like slings but I will likely need both hands free so I have the holster on mine.

You should also have training. More. The software is to the hardware as 3 is to 1 (yes, I am ripping off Napoleon, no, I do not care).

 

[Gabriel]

Trigger, sights (I have PA 1X prism), sling, light, Surefire 300X IIRC).

I think having a trigger on your AR is a bit excessive.

 

[Gabriel]

16 inch barrel is good to go and shouldn't be cumbersome. You just need to take a class and train with it more.

I set up most of my rifles the same way unless it has a magnified optic. I try to keep them pretty basic with a dot, sling, and pistol light mounted on the top rail forward of the front sight (if it has irons).

 

[OutdoorDad]

If you're not willing to pony up for an M203 attachment... I question your commitment.

 

[JTKelly]

I set mine up with a sling, hanging on the back of the door with two 30 rnd mags taped together.

 

[Titanium_Frost]

I used a mid-length 16 with a true front sight and A1 flash hider so I could mount a bayonet properly.

 

[nipprdog]

Found an older pic of mine. I'm still using basically the same setup, but changed the stock for a similar magpul design that has built-in sling swivel sockets, as it makes it easier to separate the halves for cleaning, and running the sling strap through the stock as seen in the photo prevents you from completely collapsing it. The sling is a 2-point Blue Force Gear that I like for the quick-adjust capability.

The light setup looks a little hillbilly (just a Streamlight polytac in an appropriately-sized scope ring), but It's there because I prefer it, not because I couldn't afford something better. It's cheap, light weight, doesn't stick out too far from the gun to interfere with stuff, and the "buttonology" is simple and intuitive. I had a TLR-1 on there for a while, but found myself having trouble remembering which way the toggle switch needed to go for momentary or constant. I've also got the tape pressure switch on other rifles, and found it's a lot easier to accidentally activate than the tailcap on my setup, plus there's extra wires and complexity that come with it.

Yes, it also has a fixed front sight base and no free-float handguard. At HD ranges (and even out to 200 or so yards) with irons or a red dot, I've never noticed a difference in accuracy between this rifle and one with a free-float tube. This setup is probably a little more durable. IMO it really doesn't matter...if I was building one all over again I'd probably go with a free-float handguard since there are so many options out there and I prefer a slimmer profile, but it doesn't matter enough to me to make the change.

There's a million things you can do with the AR platform and you can optimize it for pretty much any situation that you want, but IMO for a basic home defense gun, simpler is better. Set it up however works best for you and practice with it enough to be proficient. And if while you're practicing you find something about your setup that isn't working, make a change.

My Spikes is set up like yours. Not showing in old photo is a flashlight mounted like yours.

 

[Bigdog357]

I have a small house, an AR is not my weapon of choice for home defense. I have several weapons close at hand, but my XD 45ACP with 14 rds and light is my first choice. Along with a 9mm Sig P320 with 21 rds and if I run out of ammo. There is a XDM 5.25 9mm with another 20 rds at the ready. I prefer the 45's, they are short, fat and powerful just like me

AR's are in the safe ready for the Zombie apocalypse, they move slow so I should have time to retrieve them

 

[Hkindiana]

I set mine up with boolits, lots of boolits