Alternative tactic: Use a handgun to hit, not shoot.

[surprise_i'm_armed]

Recently I read an article in a contemporary gun magazine, but I could not remember
which one. So I am unable to post the link. If anyone knows where to find this article, please
post the link.

I will try to give a high level view of an alternative self-defense tactic:
That is the idea of using your handgun to pistol whip your attacker, rather than shoot him.

Why not use the handgun to shoot him instead of pistol whip him?
Maybe you have emptied your handgun of ammo and are empty. There's no time to reload.
Maybe there are other people in the line of fire and you don't want to risk hitting an innocent person.
Maybe your semi-auto has gone out of battery, or has a FTF, or a jam.

Some ideas to consider here:
If your gun still has ammo in it, using it to strike the threat could very easily result in a negligent discharge.
You could possibly avoid that by using all 4 fingers of your dominant hand on the grip so that your trigger finger
is not on the bang switch.

Using your handgun as a striking weapon could damage it, so be aware of that.
A revolver's ejector rod could be damaged.
If you have a semi-auto, strike the threat with the side of the pistol, or hold the gun in a firing position,
but jam the barrel straight into his face.

If you use a semi-auto to hit someone hard on the top of the head, with the semi-auto's buttplate,
you risk damaging your magazine's butt plate, and the smooth operation of the mag up and down into the mag well.

Hitting someone with the side of the weapon on the ear could result in "ringing the bell" of the bad guy, disorienting
him, and giving him balance problems.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pistol-whipping

The above link is more about pistol-whipping.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butt-stroking

The above link is about "butt stroking" and details how to use a rifle to neutralize an opponent.

I present the above information as something to expand the range of defensive tactics which
you may put into your bag of tricks. YMMV.

SIA

[texanjoker]

I have had to hit people with my glock before... happens for various reasons. I have had people charge me while at gun point.. yup... that sure catches you by surprise.

[surprise_i'm_armed]

Now that I've had a chance to think about this issue some more,
I believe that, although there are chances to damage your handgun during
such a self-defense use of a handgun..... we should not care!

Look at it this way - If you are involved in a hand to hand life or death encounter with a bad guy,
winning the fight is the first priority. So hit that bad guy with your pistol in any way that you can stop his threat.

Whether you have a $250 Taurus M85 snubbie, or a $2500 Kimber,
it doesn't matter if the cylinder never locks up again, or the ejector rod won't eject rounds,
or the mag never goes into the 1911's mag well again.

Winning is the aim of hand to hand fighting. You can always fix your handgun, or buy another one.
But you can't buy another life.

SIA