There’s a big disconnect between having a home defense gun and having a home defense gun that’s stored safely, but still quickly accessible in an emergency. The inconvenient problem with things that go bump in the night is that most of the time they don’t go bump in the night; they go bump in the wee small hours of the morning. Those hours when most of us are sleeping our soundest.
Predators, including the two-legged variety, know hunting’s easiest when the quarry’s least alert. Cheetahs and criminals aren’t looking for long runs; they’re hoping for quick hits followed by stealthy exits.
There are criminals that will commit crimes in broad daylight, but they’ve usually done enough rudimentary scouting to know that if/when they come a’knocking, no one will be home to answer the door. And the kind of criminal I’m talking about isn’t the garden variety crazy; it’s the professional thief.
Having a gun introduces a second problem: responsibility for your family’s safety and keeping your family safe while having a weapon close enough at hand you can properly greet those who bump in the night.
In the years since a Miami home invasion, I’ve used more than a couple of solutions I thought would let me protect my home from uninvited visitors while protecting the residents of my home from the gun I would use to protect them.
Early on in that process, I waited until everyone else went to bed, then put my revolver within easy reach of my bed. That ended the morning my youngest daughter woke me up trying to tug open the drawer of my night stand where the gun was “close at hand.”
At that point, my “last-in” scenario meant I would have to be “first-out” every morning.
Not always likely. My TV schedule often meant I was last one home, but the next morning I was definitely not the first one out.
So back to the proverbial drawing board. I have a biometric safe. Fine for a small handgun. But it’s not 100% foolproof when fumbling around in the dark. Honestly, nothing is 100% foolproof -and the chances of a fool operating it successfully increases exponentially if/when you add darkness and sleep to the process.
Which brings me to the next option -a “smarter gun” for home defense. No, not a smart gun- a smarter gun.
No biometrics. No electronics -unless you choose to add a light or optic.
Most importantly, there’s just no way someone can pick it up and use it against you unless they have disarmed you. If that happens, nothing’s going to help- unless you sleep in body armor.
I’m talking about the Pivot “ultracompact folding rifle” from Trailblazer Arms.
Josh Honeycutt showed good form and accuracy the day I first saw the PIVOT. Since getting my hands on a T&E unit, I’m more convinced the unique features give it plenty of practical applications. OWDN Photo.
I first wrote about it last year following a POMA/NASGW event at the CMP’s Talladega (Alabama) facility. When I first saw it, I was convinced that it had promise, primarily because one of my friends and colleagues who happens to be a sheriff in Arkansas immediately saw the attractiveness for his road deputies. A gun that was very small, very safe and very accurate is always attractive. The fact that it’s manual of arms would prevent anyone from simply grabbing it up and going is another plus.
The secret of the Pivot? The pivot. Literally.
The gun is stored with the bolt locked back and the barrel pivoted so the muzzle points toward the stock. When folded, it’s a minuscule 20.9-inches long – in the action mode, the sixteen-inch barrel gives plenty of length for accuracy and increased muzzle velocity. And the adjustable stock holds a Glock magazine at the ready. As an added safety feature, the magazine won’t lock into the mag well until the gun’s properly pivoted into its firing position.
The Pivot certainly isn’t inexpensive ($1795), but its unique features make it very appealing to anyone who’s concerned with safe, discrete at-hand storage without locks, cables, or safes. I wouldn’t recommend leaving it lying around, but I don’t hesitate to take it when camping.
Detail wise, it weighs less than six pounds, folds to 20.9” and with the adjustable stock fully extended, gives you a rifle that’s light, flexible and more than capable of making quick hits on targets out to 50 yards – without an arm brace or potential legal issue.
Fifty yards is my cutoff distance because this isn’t a hunting rifle, it’s a defensive/recreational carbine in a pistol caliber.
Could I hit targets further away? Sure, but I wouldn’t consider it for anything other than target shooting beyond 50 yards -although I’m not going to stand at 60, 70 or even 100 yards and dare you to shoot me.
I’ve mounted a older SIG Romeo 5 optic zeroed the little rifle at 20 yards. It’s fairly easy to quickly put rounds into an inch a half group at that distance. Again, I didn’t try to shoot “groups” – I consider the Pivot a defensive gun, not a bullseye rifle. Across the length of my home or limits of my yard, that’s more than sufficient accuracy.
The barrel’s threaded for a compensator or suppressor (1/2×28 threads) although either would add -significantly- to the overall length folded. I’d keep one nearby and simply attach when needed. Again, plenty of top real estate to mount lights, lasers, etc.
The top rail takes sights, lights or lasers (top). I’ve mounted a SIG Romeo5 red dot and an INFORCE rifle light. As you can see (below), the Romeo 5 clears the light easily -and the size of the rifle means your off-hand can easily operate the light.
My go-to light for low mounting is an older (Gen1) INFORCE rifle lights. It’s not the brightest and doesn’t have the longest throw for a beam because it’s an older light. But it’s tough as nails and reliable as a hammer. That’s all you can ask from a tool.
We shouldn’t lose sight of the fact that we are talking about tools –although they’re so well crafted they’re also manufacturing art.
Trailblazer Firearms got an inordinate amount of attention for their other offering: the LifeCard, a .22LR or .22WMR single-shot pistol that folds to the size of a (short) stack of credit cards. Trailblazer Firearms screenshot.
The Pivot carbine is yet another innovative gun from Trailblazer Firearms. Their other product: the LifeCard, is a folding, single-shot pocket pistol in either .22 LR or .22 WMR. It is a single shot, break-open pistol that folds down to an easy to carry package that’s essentially the size of a stack of credit cards -or a Ridge metal wallet.
In either instance, Trailblazer has taken existing ideas and added their own twist (or pivot) to them.
