Do you keep a weapon by your bed?

Uncle Pierre wrote: »

I've a baseball bat under the bed too - one that I brought home from the States nearly 30 years ago.

Only time I've ever picked it up in "intruder alert" circumstances was a few years ago when my wife woke me in the middle of the night to say she was sure she'd heard noises downstairs. As I got to the top of the stairs, clad only in my boxer shorts, I remembered hearing somewhere that it's a good idea to confront an intruder in the nip, because then you'll introduce a real element of surprise to proceedings. Also, they're less likely to attack you, out of fear they might grab a handful of something.........let's say "undesirable".

So, I whipped off the shorts and proceeded downstairs as nature intended. Didn't find anybody or anything there. Was almost disappointed, as on one level, would have liked to have seen the reaction......

Hahaha, brilliant.

Same though, on a serious note. Steel baseball bat I have from the States from many years back, perched in the bedroom. I've picked it up once or twice for a late night inspection of the the abode. I would have no hesitation in smashing some bastard if they dared breaking in.

We were broken into twice at family home, once when we were there. Vividly remember being woken many years ago by my Dad thundering down the hallway giving a roar from deep inside him that scared the living **** out of me, and also the little cnuts that broke in. He chased them a few hundred meters down the road with the hurl.

quokula wrote: »

Is this a thread to show your hard man credentials or are that many people really that paranoid?

I've a lock on my door and I can call the gardai if needed. In 36 years I've never needed to. I'd imagine the stress of thinking you always need a weapon at hand would take more years off your life than the vanishingly unlikely attempt that somebody decides to break into your house and attack you for no reason.

If they're just breaking in to steal stuff (which has also never happened), then like I said, I've a lock on my door, I've got insurance, and I can call the gardai afterwards.

it's not as unlikely as you might like to believe. Also we had many family heirlooms stolen during one of our break ins, not stuff that can be replaced. It's also very disturbing to walk through your house seeing the devastation left in the wake of these scrotes.

Judging by the answers on this thread...
The number of baseball bats and golf clubs, out sell the number of baseballs and golf balls by 20:1

A maglight 6d and 2 large carabiners looped together with a paracord globe knot with steel ball bearing inside.

Maglight is heavy and long enough to swing and do damage, plus blind your attacker, it is not "designed" as an offensive weapon making it a legal item to use in self defense.

Same for the carabiners, use 2 large ones as they can fit your hands as improvised knuckle dusters, and the paracord globe knot will do damage too with ball bearing inside.

To improvise something yourself, i also toyed with idea of a very small zip lock bag (about size of balled fist) filled as tightly with compacted sand while closed and stuffed into the end of a sock. Can be used as a cosh/blackjack and receiver will feel like they got a smack of a rock.

XsApollo wrote: »

I keep my weapon in my bed.

That’s your gun, a weapon is for fighting, a gun is for fun

SAXA wrote: »

Only a 32 inch hurl.. only had to use it once in anger when I retired from hurling... Still at my bedside

For playing hurling with?

At night?

A bottle of warming lube.

Anything long like a bat or golf club isn't going to be mush use in the confines of a house/hallway/landing scenario as you need swinging room to do any damage with it.

A Garda once told me to get myself a decent mag light torch - 4 D Cells. Made of aluminium & weigh about two pounds with the batteries.

The head is bulbous (ooh matron) & provides good grip when swinging according to him & the end is nicely rounded so it will split skin and also break bone.

Hopefully never have to use it, but I sleep naked so the sight of my flabby pale body coming at them in the middle of the night swinging a torch like it was a lightsaber, should hopefully convince them to leave before having to fight.

Also have a very large dog that has full roaming of the house, so there's that too.

All this talk of mag lights ffs, unless you're well up for a fight they're absolutely useless and 95% of you will nearly wet yourselves if you hear someone on the stairs in the middle of the night!

I had 2 junkies come in one night, me and the gf were in the attic room (single story attic converted). She woke me up and said she could hear whispering, I couldn't hear a thing.
I got as far as the top of the stairs and fok me I was frozen when I heard them. Then the adrenalin kicked in and I crept down, picked up hammer left in the hall from work I'd been doing, ran into the kitchen and hit one of them a bit too hard in the head and other parts of the body, the other one legged it, gone like the wind.

I spent the next 4 hours in a garda station. Gave statements, got released. The guy I hit had a broken cheek and eye socket and other injuries

They tried to make out I hit him from behind which wasn't allowed haha. The thing that save me was saying that the other lad with him had a huge machete looking type knife in his hand and lifted it as soon as he saw me so I just swung like a mad man to protect myself.

Be very very careful, it's easy to end up being the one at fault even though you're technically defending the home. Only for I was quick to lie I'd have gone to court.

Used to keep an 8mm blank firing hand gun beside the bed back when you could buy them here, pretty real looking thing and sounded 100% like a 9mm handgun when fired. The idea was when you let off the warning shot they’d think it was a real gun and flee. Never had to use it for that purpose thankfully and sold it a few years later to a mate.

OU812 wrote: »

Anything long like a bat or golf club isn't going to be mush use in the confines of a house/hallway/landing scenario as you need swinging room to do any damage with it.

A Garda once told me to get myself a decent mag light torch - 4 D Cells. Made of aluminium & weigh about two pounds with the batteries.

The head is bulbous (ooh matron) & provides good grip when swinging according to him & the end is nicely rounded so it will split skin and also break bone.

Hopefully never have to use it, but I sleep naked so the sight of my flabby pale body coming at them in the middle of the night swinging a torch like it was a lightsaber, should hopefully convince them to leave before having to fight.

Also have a very large dog that has full roaming of the house, so there's that too.

What is your dog called?

Mr.Crinklewood wrote: »

What is your dog called?

Defor

guitarhappy wrote: »

...

2) For distance work, a can of Raid, 50-foot Bee & Wasp Spray. Stronger than home self defense sprays, easy to explain.
...
/QUOTE]

Honestly, your honour, the amount of 50-foot Bees & Wasps we get around here during the summer is desperate....:pac:

^^^ go get me a cornetto and nobody gets hurt.

AndrewJRenko wrote: »

You should have told her to go fcuk herself.

Does anyone else worry about the fact that the lad(s) know where you live? If you did some serious damage, they can come back for round 2 at any time.

Remove battery from phone (s). Dig large hole. Insert scumbag (s). Fill hole.

Mr Meanor wrote: »

Feck the guard dogs,
I have a cat on night patrol with a history of mental illness

Ah them cats are as likely to scrape its owners face off while they sleep as attack an intruder! Our one would anyhow haha

darragh o meara wrote: »

Unless you can be guaranteed to hit them somewhere it will hurt and that’s harder than you’d think then you’d do more damage throwing it at them. My idea with the blank firing was more so to frighten them with the bang and “hope” they missed the fact that nothing came out the other end ��

I had a cousin who would fire a warning shotgun blast over the heads of trespassers. I don't think he was a good shot anyway.

What happens if a GSD or Rottweiler etc, savagely attack or kill an intruder?


Are they put to sleep? Can the intruder sue you? (if they survived)



Known my luck our GSD would lie on its back looking for belly rubs.

micah537 wrote: »

What happens if a GSD or Rottweiler etc, savagely attack or kill an intruder?


Are they put to sleep? Can the intruder sue you? (if they survived)



Known my luck our GSD would lie on its back looking for belly rubs.

A guard once told me "once the scumbag is laying on the path outside when we get there, he can't claim anything happened, and you can say he fell when running away"

corner of hells wrote: »

Wouldn't you think there would be a lot more burglars waking up in hospital with wounds from shotgun blasts , injuries from being bludgeoned over the head or more even reported missing judging from some of these posts.

Anyhow, I occasionally work with ex prisoners one of whom was a prolific burglar hitting commercial properties particularly around the Cabra/Finglas area breaking into factories at night.
He wouldn't break into private houses but did describe how a burglar he knew would break into houses through patio doors and then go straight to the hallway leaving a chair or phone table across the bottom of stairs never going upstairs so if the homeowners came downstairs he'd hear them move the furniture giving him time to escape.

Perhaps. Then again many disappear every year some aren't missed. See the case of the body in the freezer in Galway. Nobody knew he was missing until the place changed hands.