Issue 08 Preview – Safe House Patrick Vuong Join the Conversation Illustration by Ced Nocon Think owning a gun is enough protection? Think again. Your home is your castle, so harden it with these additional common-sense security measures. Pop quiz, hot shot: You’re in deep REM sleep, making a nice little pool of slobber on your pillow, when you’re awakened by a window being smashed. Is it a burglar? Or, worse, a home invasion by an armed robber — or three? What do you do? What do you do?! Finding the typical “get a gun and learn how to use it” advice woefully inadequate, RECOIL interviewed some of the industry’s most experienced security experts in search of a more comprehensive home-defense plan. We learned that you don’t need to install a moat around your property or a .50 BMG turret on your roof — but you do need a proactive mindset. “A homeowner’s biggest mistake is saying, ‘I live in a good neighborhood. It won’t happen here,’” says Kris Sutton, co-founder of and firearms instructor at Shoot and Move, LLC. “Newsflash: criminals aren’t going to steal from places that offer them nothing to gain. Complacency is a huge mistake.” After serving as a U.S. Army Ranger, Sutton became a police officer in the greater Atlanta, Georgia, area, working various assignments that included SWAT and undercover narcotics. As a former lieutenant, Sutton says that burglaries are crimes of opportunity, committed by crooks who seek easy prey. Home-invasion robbers, on the other hand, select their victims in advance. In either case, taking some common-sense precautions can go a long way in making your dwelling a hard target for either bad guy. First Line of Defense Hardening your home isn’t as difficult or expensive as it sounds. In fact, a trip to Home Depot could take care of many of the security measures recommended by our panel of experts. Mike Pannone, a world-renowned firearms instructor and owner of CTT Solutions, says that many humble abodes are soft targets because of a confluence of obvious weaknesses that people fail to address, from flimsy doors to poor lighting. For the rest of this article, subscribe digitally here: RECOIL Issue 8 Explore RECOILweb:[SHOT 2017] New FLIR Thermals: More Features, More AffordableFriday Night Gun Porn - Grey Ghost Precision "Specter"SilencerCo's New Blast ShieldGear, training and firearms in LA - S3F Solutions NEXT STEP: Download Your Free Target Pack from RECOILFor years, RECOIL magazine has treated its readers to a full-size (sometimes full color!) shooting target tucked into each big issue. Now we've compiled over 50 of our most popular targets into this one digital PDF download. From handgun drills to AR-15 practice, these 50+ targets have you covered. Print off as many as you like (ammo not included). Click here to get IMMEDIATE ACCESS to a digital PDF of this target pack!