Carbine vs handgun

[GJM]

Over the last day or so, in light of current events, Mr_White and I have been discussing the relative effectiveness of a handgun vs a carbine in an active shooter/terrorist situation. Not discussing the difference in terminal ballistics, but rather how quickly can you put hits on a target with a handgun vs a carbine. He did some testing in a class, and this afternoon my wife and I got some data when we ran a Colt 9mm AR on the same targets arrays we shot in a regular handgun session.

I am interested in opinions on how folks think a service pistol stacks up against a carbine, in terms of placing hits, in the distance envelope attacks happened in Paris and CA?

[Luke]

Me and a buddy were talking about this today. One thing that I think a carbine offers is distance. Purely speaking of a mass shooting type thing. That's about the only scenario I can come up with being a civilian to justify action from a distance. If your in a parking lot leaving commiemart and see ala bagdadi the white supremacist mowing folks down you could grab your trunk gun and put him down from farther range than a pistol/you could hit with a high probability.


This is all super way out there and about as far as I've been into Timmyville.

[MVS]

No contest for me, I can get more hits on target with better accuracy in the same time frame with a carbine. Reloads are a little slower, but that is something more practice would fix.

[Malamute]

A carbine would be much easier to shoot well under stress. The main factor is what you'll have with you the moment it all happens.

[Lomshek]

Still kind of hard to comfortably wear an AR IWB much less AIWB. Chances are for any of us civvies it's gonna be run what you brung without armoring up in the parking lot.

ETA - I imagine the hit speed depends on the level of practice with each (duh). I spend a lot more time shooting my pistol and at "CQB" distances am able to put quicker, more accurate multiple rounds on multiple targets with a service handgun than an AR. My AR's just a plain old DD M7LW with a 1-4 scope so not exactly a gamer set up with a comp that might help.

[johnson]

I've never done any formal testing but would think that anything shouldered would give you faster precise hits on target the farther you go out.

edit: It would be nice to have a KEL-TEC SUB-2000 in the trunk/backpack if you carried a Glock.

[Kyle Reese]

Unless you're carrying a long gun during the course of your daily routine, the chances are you'll have to fight with what you brought to any sort of active shooter / in extremis situation. As such, I predicate the bulk of my training on the handgun, since it's with my every day.

[Malamute]

I am interested in opinions on how folks think a service pistol stacks up against a carbine, in terms of placing hits, in the distance envelope attacks happened in Paris and CA?

An interesting point regarding Paris, the 3 Colombian Cartel guys that were hanging out in a cafe that was hosed down with AK fire returned fire and killed the shooters with their pistols. They probably wouldnt have had a chance to retrieve long guns even if parked on the street 30 feet away. Not that I have a problem with keeping long guns in the car, but I figure the odds are that whatever you have on you is what you get to try to solve the problem at hand.

ETA Dang I type slow,...

[LSP552]

Without a doubt, I'm faster and more accurate with a carbine at the ready than a pistol. This increases with the distance and stress involved. I don't think you will find many people who would purposely pick a handgun to fight with outside of some specialized environments that don't fit this discussion.

Bad guys (and gals) don't stand still, they move; and you may need to also. I've done enough moving target and force on force work to know I'd much prefer to fight with a carbine. The square range and static targets won't provide an accurate comparison. Start working force on force and you will have a different picture.

Having said that, I don't walk around with a carbine strapped across my chest and one in the trunk is probably going to be worthless. IMO, the keys are being situationally aware, mentally prepared, and skilled with what you routinely carry. The ability to get hits at greater than ATM distance is important.

[Maple Syrup Actual]

I think a carbine offers a massive advantage but now that I'm experimenting with the particular red dot/MOS glock combo I'm using, I feel that the gap has narrowed a little.

But man, it's a pretty significant gap.