Think a solid door would stop a bullet?

[AndeyHall]

Any of you guys ever wonder about how effective a door would be against a bullet? I've always wondered. Well this weekend I got to test it out and turns out I wouldn't ever trust a door for cover. I mean I knew most hollow household doors wouldn't cut it, but here where I work we use solid 1-3/4" wood doors, heavy as hell. We recently took out a wall to open up some space and the door was sitting out by the dumpster so I picked it up and took it to the range. Now I knew pretty well it wouldn't stop a rifle round, but I thought for sure it would stop most any pistol round. I hit it with the .40 and it didn't even slow down. I also hit it with a .22 mag and that didn't even slow down. Here's some pictures. I hit the door with everything you see in my arsenal here...

 

[missoak]

I did the same thing to an old door from my cabin. Same results, even with slugs & oo buck.
Don't be fooled by "Steel" doors either. Just a skin over wood. A steel commercial door may
give you some protection.
Best cover in your home would be a bookcase.

 

[Seeya]

Just blew $200.00 door up on the recycle circuit. Wood just doesn't stop small projectiles. That door appears to be a veneer over paticle board.
Steel doors: commercial no protection, residential: no protection. I have tested several suposed secure rooms over the years. Layering of materieals is the best at stopping projectiles. My 2 cents.

 

[Axeanda45]

Even trees smaller than 2 ft dia wont stop most rifle rounds in the thickest part of the tree.... very sobering to think about....

Although, there arent very many people who will try to shoot you through them, the same even goes for a sheetrock wall.... Most shooters have a mental block (thank goodness) that if they cant see you they cant hit you.... I wouldnt bet my life on their ignorance though.... MOVE TO (effective) COVER and return fire!!!!

 

[BC1]

Just blew $200.00 door up on the recycle circuit. Wood just doesn't stop small projectiles. That door appears to be a veneer over paticle board.
Steel doors: commercial no protection, residential: no protection. I have tested several suposed secure rooms over the years. Layering of materieals is the best at stopping projectiles. My 2 cents.

I'm looking to replace three external doors with something a little tougher. Any recommendations where I should look?

 

[BC1]

The same even goes for a sheetrock wall....

We shot-up an old sheetrock/wood frame wall with 00 buck to see what would happen. Just blew it apart. Gonna need some spackle.

 

[Seeya]

Have the Doors custom made. Pivit Hinges work best for the weight of the doors. Price goes up with level of protection. What the walls are made of makes the doors useless if their not better or the same level of protection. It can become expensive.

 

[S&W645]

The doors where I used to work may have stopped those rounds. But at several thousand per door, heavy enough that one person could not move them if off the hinges, and with a composite construction including lead sheets inside. Doors were supposed to be tornado driven debris proof.

 

[AndeyHall]

The doors where I used to work may have stopped those rounds. But at several thousand per door, heavy enough that one person could not move them if off the hinges, and with a composite construction including lead sheets inside. Doors were supposed to be tornado driven debris proof.

Oh god lets not get into Tornados. My town here in upstate SC had 2 tiny tornados touch down here today that didn't do anything more than f-up a couple people's backyard fences and down a couple trees, but if you were to watch our local news you'd swear they were gonna try and get Obama down here this week to survey the damage. We get mild versions of every type of severe weather you can think of so we have to blow it out of proportion when we get it to make ourselves sound important or something. If our weather channel threatens an inch or 2 of snow, the price of stock for milk and bread goes through the roof.

I think ONE house had a couple shingles get pulled off their roof today and they've been on the news since 5 o clock this afternoon.

But anyways, I digress...I wouldn't really worry about bulletproofing my doors as much as I'd just want to make sure they're not easily kicked in. Cause it's like I told a friend of mine a while back who was trying to do all this ridiculous stuff to make sure his car wasn't broken into, if somebody wants in bad enough, they're getting in. And as my granddad always said, "a lock only keeps an honest man out."

 

[escapedthematrix]

I'm looking to replace three external doors with something a little tougher. Any recommendations where I should look?

Are you just looking to make it more difficult to break down the door? I am considering this and found Easy Armor. Did not purchase it yet but reviews look favorable. It reinforces the week points of your door at the handle/bolt and hinges making it very difficult to break in. If you already have solid doors then you wouldn't need to replace unless you're looking for something that would stop bullets. Steel plates maybe?

 

[yuppor]

insure your stuff with homeowner's or rental insurance. Insure your loved ones with skill with your pistol. have earvalve earplugs, a flashlight and body armor where you can don them any time you feel at ris

 

[BC1]

Are you just looking to make it more difficult to break down the door? I am considering this and found Easy Armor. Did not purchase it yet but reviews look favorable. It reinforces the week points of your door at the handle/bolt and hinges making it very difficult to break in. If you already have solid doors then you wouldn't need to replace unless you're looking for something that would stop bullets. Steel plates maybe?

I have four steel external insulated doors but I don't believe they'll stop a round. They do pretty well against forced entry because they're in steel frames with extra long hinges and strike plate screws and deadbolts (always use four-inch screws to secure hinges and strike plates... even on inside safe-room doors). The font door is solid Walnut but I don't think this it will provided too much security. I'll check out what you recommend. Thanks.

 

[BC1]

insure your stuff with homeowner's or rental insurance. Insure your loved ones with skill with your pistol. have earvalve earplugs, a flashlight and body armor where you can don them any time you feel at ris

Never wear earplugs in a PP situation. Learn to shoot with both eyes open. In PP situations do not impede your senses of peripheral vision or hearing. Insure your loved ones with an alarm system, a dog, security doors, motion lights and cameras where affordable. Setup one safe-room on each floor of the home. Use four-inch screws to secure door hinges and stroke plates on safe-room doors. Use a master-lock security bar for safe-room doors ($25 each). The LAST line of defense is the gun. The first line of defense is avoidance, deterrence, awareness. Everything about the house should say "GO AWAY!"

 

[yuppor]

insure your stuff with homeowner's or rental insurance. Insure your loved ones with skill with your pistol. have earvalve earplugs, a flashlight and body armor where you can don them any time you feel at risk. Don't bother with the house. It's easy to break thru the roof. window-shutters, etc, end up costing you a fortune. If you are home, you stop them. If you are gone, an alarm and insurance is the best you can do. If your spouse is there, see to it that she ccw's a little pistol everywhere around the house. the attack will be by stealth, subterfuge, or sudden break in, there is not likely time to run and get any sort of weapon. It will take you 2 seconds to recover from the shock and draw, and normally, the sight of ANY gun suffices.

 

[TAC]

Well, I recall a .22 LR fired from a 4” pistol bbl going through a 2X4 (cant remember whether it went through two of them or not). If a 2X4, which is 1 ¾” of solid wood does not slow down a .22, I am not surprised that a 1 ¾” door, that is probably particle board or composite, did not stop it either.

 

[Gatherer]

Oh god lets not get into Tornados. My town here in upstate SC had 2 tiny tornados touch down here today that didn't do anything more than f-up a couple people's backyard fences and down a couple trees, but if you were to watch our local news you'd swear they were gonna try and get Obama down here this week to survey the damage. We get mild versions of every type of severe weather you can think of so we have to blow it out of proportion when we get it to make ourselves sound important or something. If our weather channel threatens an inch or 2 of snow, the price of stock for milk and bread goes through the roof.

I think ONE house had a couple shingles get pulled off their roof today and they've been on the news since 5 o clock this afternoon.

But anyways, I digress...I wouldn't really worry about bulletproofing my doors as much as I'd just want to make sure they're not easily kicked in. Cause it's like I told a friend of mine a while back who was trying to do all this ridiculous stuff to make sure his car wasn't broken into, if somebody wants in bad enough, they're getting in. And as my granddad always said, "a lock only keeps an honest man out."

Right around the corner from ya. We got just about 3 in. of rain in that short time. But shootin up that door...you had to have a good time! Thought I heard someone shootin.

 

[AndeyHall]

Oh god lets not get into Tornados. My town here in upstate SC had 2 tiny tornados touch down here today that didn't do anything more than f-up a couple people's backyard fences and down a couple trees, but if you were to watch our local news you'd swear they were gonna try and get Obama down here this week to survey the damage. We get mild versions of every type of severe weather you can think of so we have to blow it out of proportion when we get it to make ourselves sound important or something. If our weather channel threatens an inch or 2 of snow, the price of stock for milk and bread goes through the roof.

I think ONE house had a couple shingles get pulled off their roof today and they've been on the news since 5 o clock this afternoon.

But anyways, I digress...I wouldn't really worry about bulletproofing my doors as much as I'd just want to make sure they're not easily kicked in. Cause it's like I told a friend of mine a while back who was trying to do all this ridiculous stuff to make sure his car wasn't broken into, if somebody wants in bad enough, they're getting in. And as my granddad always said, "a lock only keeps an honest man out."

Right around the corner from ya. We got just about 3 in. of rain in that short time. But shootin up that door...you had to have a good time! Thought I heard someone shootin.

Yeah I'm not sure where you're at but I was out off 187 near the Villager gas station. If you did actually hear me it probably sounded like I was running full auto. I ran it as fast as I could for the 10-15 rounds. Before I actually shot my AR I was hoping to find some way of doing full auto. Now that I realize just how fast you can shoot in regular semi-auto, I'm not worried about it anymore.

 

[Gatherer]

Sandy Springs. Just kiddin about hearing you shoot. Where I live A lot of people shoot around me. Plus I hear a lot off in the distance. Depends on how the wind is blowing.Getting a wee bit expensive to do all the shooting I used to. A lot of fun with that AR I'll bet. Fortunately I got quite a bit of surplus ammo with my C&R several yrs. ago. Still...........

 

[AndeyHall]

Sandy Springs. Just kiddin about hearing you shoot. Where I live A lot of people shoot around me. Plus I hear a lot off in the distance. Depends on how the wind is blowing.Getting a wee bit expensive to do all the shooting I used to. A lot of fun with that AR I'll bet. Fortunately I got quite a bit of surplus ammo with my C&R several yrs. ago. Still...........

Oh ok. My uncle lives off Silo Ln back behind the Michelin plant.

 

[jcreek]

insure your stuff with homeowner's or rental insurance. Insure your loved ones with skill with your pistol. have earvalve earplugs, a flashlight and body armor where you can don them any time you feel at ris

Earplugs? Horrible idea. You think we wear earplugs in combat? Fck no. Why would you impair your senses and give the enemy that much more of an advantage? Especially if you have more than one person in your house, clear communication in a life or death situation is way more important than preventing minor hearing damage if you have to fire.

Body armor is more of a personal choice. I have my issued flak jacket sitting in my closet but personally I wouldn't waste time putting it on and I'd rather have the increased mobility. I'd rather spend the 15-20 seconds it takes to put the flak on, getting my wife and daughter to a safe place and making sure the wife is armed.