I just set my flaptop up with a scope (no BUIS) and while it is nice for shooting distance, I realized this really isn't going to work for home defense/CQB now. I cannot afford an EOTech type device and I'm not even sure they are suited for home defense (I never used one) so I'm wondering what's left for setting up a flat top AR for home defense....Would a carry handle/flip up front sight be the best option?

if you cant run an Eotech/other red dot for HD/CQB, stick w/ the old school irons--they work just as well up close as long range

heck, if you have a std FSB, you wont even need a flip up front sight probably, even w/ the scope, so i say just keep the sight you got now

add a BUIS--fold down (ARMS 40, KAC, GGG, etc) or a sturdy detachable fixed one (LMT, A3 handle cut down)

You can use Iron Sights for CQB.  It has been done for a century.  While red dot sights are wonderful for making off-hand hits, they are not essential.  What is essential is a white light.  A good white light.  I would recommend anything from Surefire.  They are pricey units but they are the best.

The reason you want a white light is both tactical and practical.  Tactically, they are extremely useful in blinding an attacker, even during the day.  But, they really prove their worth at night.  When an intruder's eyes are adjusted to the darkness, they have an advantage.  But, you can turn that advantage into a distinct disadvantage by shining 120 lumens in their face, effectively blinding them and owning your target.  It is entirely possible that the confrontation can end from there with no shots fired.  

The practical reason is target identification.  Accidental shootings of loved ones can easily occur at night because it is hard to see and you are already jones up on adrenaline and fear because you think an intruder is in your house.  Was that noise made by an intruder or your teenage son sneeking back home after a late-night back-seat booty call?  Without propperly identifying your target before firing, you are breaking one of the cardinal rules of firearms safety.  And, if you do have to shoot someone after making proper ID, it will look better in court if you had the right equipment and were prepared to ID the suspect rather than just firing blindly into the darkness at shadows.  

A good Surefire dedicated weapons light can be had for under $300.  There are other brands out there and they work, but I drink Surefire kool aid and cannot recommend anything else.  Call Calvin at Brightflashlights.net.  He is the man when it comes to lights and can hook you up with whatever you need for the best price in town.

As for EoTechs and Aimpoints, these devices were designed for CQB and have proven themsleves all over the world.  They are fantastic, but pricey.  I would recommend saving up for one instead of purchasing something of less quality.  Don't bet your life on something that was made as a cheap alternative.  You can probably find some very good used units over in the Equipent Exchange.

Iron sights are fine for home defense, just add a weaponlight.

What you need is a mounted light that will ID/blind your subject, and a laser that will designate your point of impact. Set the laser for about 15 meters and you'll be good to twice that distance for impact and be within 1.5" of POI.
P.S. (sorta) the light is appriciated by the Court, as you took the time to ID your target, and the Court will like the laser too, as it prevents errant rounds that may endanger neibors/bystanders. Remember that after you have to shoot, you'll have to justify everything in the situation....Perception of threat to life/great bodily harm...inability to use lesser means of defense- or retreat.....verbal warning/direction from you to the intruder....the weapon accessories/ammo used-even the trigger pull weight will be checked-too light of a trigger and the Court may say you had an unsafe weapon, and are covering for a reaction pull of the trigger......wether or not you could have called 911 prior to engaging the subject....did you leave the room to seek the engagement rather than remain in a defensive position....were there other family members in the home that may be in danger....ect.....ect.....
The worst part of the fight comes after the shoot.

Quoted: Iron sights are fine for home defense, just add a weaponlight.

PLUS 1

BTW Calvin at Brightflashlights (a site vendor) has good package deals on lights & mounts. It doesn't have to be a dedicated SureFire forend for it to work well.

I will say that due to ease of use compared to iron sights, an EOTech or Aimpoint is a solid investment. Buy used if you feel the need. It's not as necessary as a light though. Whatever you're comfortable with.

Just because we have gear-queers here that have the latest and greatest doesn't mean that's automatically what is right for you...

At least that's what I keep telling myself!

Trijicon makes a set of iron sights(the post and aperture...not the entire sight) I want.
Beyond that, as has been said, a light...and a mount of course. Pentagon lights also seem to get good reviews and are less pricey.

Meprolight and Trijicon both also make reflex sights that nver need batteries.
For my shtf rifle I am adding the parts I just listed...

Light/mount
Trijicon iron sights
Reflex sight

IMHO..
KISS HD AR=
16", 14.5 or 14.7 w/perm FH or shorter barrel.
A1 sights
whitelight, laser optional
suppressor if possible/affordable.
no need deafening the loved ones or yourself in an HD situation.



Full pic HDMOD Kit
11.5" SBR 5.56 w/CAR HG, 1/2 of CAA M33 HG w/TLR-1 & CAA FFVG and YHM QD suppressor
AIMPOINT CH mount w/Burris XTS-135 Speeddot
2 LE/Mil 30rd mags w/75gr. TAP, 2 20rd mags probably more practical.
Sig P228
S/A Operator w/TLR-1
Mossberg 590 w/Surefire G2 in a CAA mount...S&B OO Buck

Quoted: You can use Iron Sights for CQB.  It has been done for a century.  While red dot sights are wonderful for making off-hand hits, they are not essential.  What is essential is a white light.  A good white light.  I would recommend anything from Surefire.  They are pricey units but they are the best.

+ many.

I have MANY Ar15 , in lots of different configurations.

My home defence rifle is a 10 inch LW piston driven M16 with Trijicon night sights and a Surefire 900 , with 30 round HK mag full of 62 grain TAP.  

Do the EOTechs work in the dark? how about in the dark with a flashlight/surefire setup? or are they just for daylight use?

Quoted: Do the EOTechs work in the dark? how about in the dark with a flashlight/surefire setup? or are they just for daylight use?

They work even better in the dark than in the day! This goes for both EOThings and Aimpoints.

They work even better in the dark than in the day! This goes for both EOThings and Aimpoints.

I'm assuming the area being aimed into should be lighted with a flashlight though correct? Or are you saying the EOtech helps you to see in the dark as long as you are looking through it?

For a pure HD gun, if you're concerned about spending too much money, my suggestion would be to go for a LMT 14.5" M4gery with a permanently pinned Phantom, i.e. a short, easy to aquire, Title 1 legal weapon, and an LMT cut carry handle fixed back up iron sight.  For a light, I'd suggest the Insight Streamlight M3X Long Gun, and a mounting solution.  The tape switch version will be better for most HD purposes.  Decide where to put it based on your own comfort, but ensure that it's repeatable under the worst of conditions.  

The beefed up light of the M3X is supposed to have throw and output that rivals Surefire's lights, at a lower price.  I have the standard M3 version, but I'd like to get my hands on one of the M3X's, so I will qualify that.  However, many military units are issuing M3X's rather than Surefires, and a version of that light is intended as the new visbile lighting system for the SOPMOD Block II program.  I've also got a Surefire, and for tactical purposes, I won't play favorites between the two, but for simple HD, I would pick the Streamlight.  

That being said, more specifics than that will differ greatly based on your own situation, budget, and desires.  For example, if you've got a large amount of property to cover, you may not need an CQB optic, for distance = time.  Just get some night sights, and drop 'em in.  On the other hand, if you live in a single bedroom apartment, where, by the time an intruder is in your door, they've already closed the distance between you to twenty feet, you might want a reflex or CQB sight with long battery life so it can be kept on at night, or possibly even a visible laser.  Considerations like these are going to be very important in determining your choices for a dedicated home defense rig.  

I will most likely never have a dedicated HD carbine, I use them to train, and they pull double duty as HD.  The HD carbine I described to you does not resemble any of mine, but it is what I would build if HD was the only thing that interested me, and I could not afford an optic.  

As the others have said, a bright white light is going to be non-negotiable, you an choose almost any other combination of anything else, and argue forever on ARFCOM about it, but a solid light, the advantages of which have already been described, will be essential.  If your HD rig ends up being a full length clone of an M16A1, so be it, as long as you've got a visible bright light.  

Again, though, I would say solid, and standard iron sights, leave the FSB, and an LMT CCH BUIS, change the sights out for tritium, if you feel the need.  The Phantom on the end of the 14.5" will not only let you get as short as possible, but the Phantom is well known to have great muzzle flash reducing capabilities.  I would bolt a rail segment to the handguards, and mount a solid VFG, as well, and an ITI M3X long gun with remote tape switch.  

Yes, there are other better options out there, some might suggest Noveske brakes, and the like, or SBR's or suppressors, but I got the impression that you don't want to spend that much for an optic, much less for a tax stamp, and exotic muzzle device.  

You may later though...

HTH,
~Augee

Quoted: They work even better in the dark than in the day! This goes for both EOThings and Aimpoints. I'm assuming the area being aimed into should be lighted with a flashlight though correct? Or are you saying the EOtech helps you to see in the dark as long as you are looking through it?

Yes, the area you're aiming into needs to be illuminated... All I meant by that statement was that you'll be able to see the reticle even better in a low light situation than you would in a noon-sunlight situation. EO/Aimpoints won't help you see in the dark; they'll free you up to identify your properly illuminated target... How? Because you won't have to align sights at all, you put the dot on what you are concerned about, put the light on it, and if it's a bad guy, so long as the dot/reticle is on the target, you hit it.

A weapon light and M203.

Home defense must be the topic of the day.

Unless your "Home" has rooms or hallways longer then 50 feet, use a pistol for home defense.  Forget about lights, lasers, dots, etc...   at 20 feet, the average shooting distance for home defense, you will be much more likely to hit your target effectively with a pistol.

Quoted: Unless your "Home" has rooms or hallways longer then 50 feet, use a pistol for home defense.  Forget about lights, lasers, dots, etc...   at 20 feet, the average shooting distance for home defense, you will be much more likely to hit your target effectively with a pistol.

I guess you never saw some of the cop videos where they are a couple of feet away from each other and miss.

I'll give the short version on what you need for a SHTF/Home Protection AR

1.  Weapon Light.
2.  Weapon Sling of your choice (1, 2, or 3-point sling)
3.  Aimpoint or Red Dot Sight.
4.  BUIS.
5.  Appropriate ammo.

I'm not going to guess, because you've obviously never seen 99% of the video of cops, and soldiers, effectively taking down combatives with pistols.  One bad video hits the media, and everybody thinks law enforcement officers are innept.

I don't disagree about the pistol for close quarter home defense situations, but my concern is still short range where a rifle would be better than a pistol but not a rifle with a high power scope.

Sandman67

I cannot afford an EOTech type device and I'm not even sure they are suited for home defense (I never used one)

Then how do you know if there suited for Home defense if you have never used one....

Get a weapon light and use your Irons and you have the right tool for the job..

Jeepjohn

Unless your "Home" has rooms or hallways longer then 50 feet, use a pistol for home defense. Forget about lights, lasers, dots, etc... at 20 feet, the average shooting distance for home defense, you will be much more likely to hit your target effectively with a pistol.

You ever measure how far a Pistol is away from your body vs, the end of a barrel on a 16" carbine?

Pretty much about the same.. and now you have rifle power vs Pistol power  doing  a potential "Fight for your life"  

That's the kind of fight you only get one chance at winning at... I like to stack the odds in my favor.

And it's a lot easier to miss with a pistol then you think.

I'll take 28 rds of 5.56 vs 17 rds of 9MM or 8 rds of .45ACP

And don't fool your self that the majority of LEO's have a better skill set or better training then the average civilian... They don't, and FBI shooting statistics bear that out.

Quoted: Home defense must be the topic of the day. Unless your "Home" has rooms or hallways longer then 50 feet, use a pistol for home defense.  Forget about lights, lasers, dots, etc...   at 20 feet, the average shooting distance for home defense, you will be much more likely to hit your target effectively with a pistol.

snort!

My HD AR has a 14.5" 1/7 twist barrel, with a permanent Phantom flash suppressor. Iron sighted A1 upper, LMT carbine stock, and a Surefire M500 tac light. It is loaded with 30 rounds of Federal TRU 64 gr. softpoints. I sighted it point of aim/point of impact at 50 yds.  

Quoted: I'm not going to guess, because you've obviously never seen 99% of the video of cops, and soldiers, effectively taking down combatives with pistols.  One bad video hits the media, and everybody thinks law enforcement officers are innept.

I've seen more than one video.  Matter of fact, I was in the military and I am a cop and a firearms instructor and I can tell you that a handgun is nowhere as accurate as an AR.