If you’re still defending your home like it’s 1994—baseball bat by the bed, a barky dog named Fluffy, and your trusty flip phone ready to call 911—then I’ve got bad news…
… the bad guys have upgraded!
Criminals these days are using tech, tactics, and teamwork like they’re auditioning for the next Mission: Impossible.
Meanwhile, when most folks suddenly find themselves facing a nighttime home invasion, they left fumbling around in their boxers, tripping over laundry baskets, and praying their smartphone’s flashlight app loads before the intruder loads them.
This ain’t your grandpappy’s home defense plan anymore, Warrior!
If You’re Ready To Fight Fire With Frickin’ Laser Beams (Okay, Not Actual Laser Beams), Then Buckle Up, Batman…
Here Are 4 “Space-Age” Home Defense Gizmos To Help You Get The Drop On The Bad Guys…
1. “Plastic” Knives
Non-metallic “knives” have come a long way since the days of the trusty toy pig-sticker I carried for my Tarzan lion-wrestling sessions when I was 5 years old.
Today, there’s an assortment of super strong “stabbers” that are made of materials such as kydex, Zytel, and fiberglass.
These handy “shivs” make great Christmas gifts for any family members who aren’t “into guns” (and cousin Steve currently serving time in Folsom Prison).
But they’re also so cheap and easy to conceal that you can buy several to hide throughout your home as quick-access weapons to use in an instant ambush where you don’t have access to a firearm.
(I really like Cold Steel’s “Delta Dart” because it’s small but super strong and easy to wield!)
And since they’re not made out of metal, they’re super handy to hang right next to your “soap on a rope” in the shower!
2. Bluetooth Headset
Cell phones don’t automatically tell 911 your location, so using one to call for help isn’t as effective as a good old-fashioned telephone.
But can you imagine clearing your home of bad guys while holding your handgun… a flashlight… and a telephone scrunched between your shoulder and your ear?
Of course you don’t want to set your phone to “speaker mode” and telegraph your position… so make sure you have a wireless “bluetooth” earpiece for your smartphone that allows you to go “hands-free” while still being able to communicate your location and situation with 911 and responding officers.
Just be sure to make it a “wraparound” version that will really hug your ear to avoid it popping out of your earhole at the worst possible moment!
3. Video Glasses
Whenever you go to the shooting range, you know that one of the items you’re required to wear are protective eye-ware.
It’s a basic safety precaution to avoid an eye injury from an expended casing, or just dust, debris, or kick-backed powder from your smokewagon.
Well, same goes if you’re in a firefight with a bad guy in your living room…
You can’t shoot what you can’t see and so slipping on a pair of protective eye-ware can offer you the same protection so you can stay in the fight if you’re trading lead with home invaders.
But why stop there?
Slipping on a pair of video “spy-glasses” will save your eyeballs, but can also capture the whole thing on camera should you need the footage as backup evidence in court if you need to justify your actions.
(Of course, if you pulled an “oopsy” in your response, you could always just hide the glasses so as not to incriminate yourself. )
4. Noise-Amplifying Headset
Ok, this is a tip I got from one of our readers who had a really good point…
If you already have your spouse on the line with a 911 backup, he suggested wearing a “noise-amplifying” headset that increases the sounds around you, but instantly switch into “hearing protection mode” at the first sound of a gunshot.
(These are the only headsets I and my buddies use at the range…)
We always carry these for the range because you can easily hear an instructor’s or Range Safety Officer’s commands without having to take them off, yet they’ll still protect your eardrums once you start pulling the trigger.
If you’re checking out that noise from the living room that woke you out of your slumber, slipping these babies on instantly gives you “super hearing” capabilities that can tell you if it’s a home invader or just your sneaky teenager raiding your liquor cabinet.
Your sense of hearing is one of your best ways to tell where a threat is and you might want to consider keeping a set of these near your nightstand for a high-tech helper if you’re checking out your home.
Unless your door is conductive you can install a capacitive alarm to alert you to someone trying your door knob. There are also passive infrared remote sensors that can be adjusted to trigger if anything comes toward your house. I prefer wired so signal jammers can’t be used. There are also circuits that are not tuned but use near field detection for transmitters. (Think of bug detection) however remote read thermometers can trip these as well as Bluetooth and cell phones.
My scanner has most handheld rf devices in it. Sometimes I temporarily lock out kids channels. Daytime I lock out CB (skip gets annoying).