What need might there be to go “hands on” with a intruder inside your own home when you are armed?
Could you being “slung up” make it easier for an aggressor to get leverage over you?
Great questions, yep it could happen. Yep, it’s possible he could use it for leverage. IMO, A lot less likely with the sling I’m using which is why I’m using it i.e. floating HK clip and fastex buckle.
Counter question:
Could he gain control of your unslung carbine during the struggle and use it against you either by shooting or as a club?
Yes, of course - a fight is a fight.
The questions I raise are going against the “you must have a sling on a fighting carbine” type… I’m not so sure.
I don’t think it’s a requirement if that is the only weapon you have. (no secondary) The two most common reasons for a sling are to carry the weapon slung and to aid in transitioning to a secondary weapon. You’re not slinging it over your shoulder in your house looking for an intruder and you have no secondary weapon; what’s it doing for you? Maybe it’s dogma; but I don’t think so. I think it’s one of those “it depends” questions.
i can think of some ways, at breath-distance, a sling could fuck you up… a butt-stroke would be pretty hard with a slung weapon- especially a single-point or similar… but think about the guy who’s now cracking you in the face with your own stock while it’s attached to you…
likewise, if you’re just plain out-matched, tired, whatever, retreat will be a lot harder if he’s got hold of your slung weapon.
i’m imagining this with my own sling- a 2-point run from the stock to the FSB would be a lot easier to get out of.
Bang - you nailed it with that statement.
Yes… I’m hoping I am causing some thoughts about this.
Vickers 2-point on a home defense gun!
I could keep the sling pulled tight when it’s just sitting here, so it doesn’t get in the way. Doesn’t dangle to catch onto things, and I wouldn’t have to fight with it to get it into a shooting position. Just pick it up and go.
But in the event that I would need to sling it to do something else (Grab kids, leave, etc), I can just pull the tab and add to the length. No problems. 
Theory!
So you are saying you have it snug to the point of being useless unless you have a bit of time to deploy it?
Exactly. Better to have a sling attached, doing nothing but not in the way, than it is to A) Have a sling that gets in the way (Might have to fight with it, twist it, etc to take up a shooting position), or B) No sling when you need it.
Pulling the tab on a Vickers sling doesn’t take much time, as I’m sure you know. So if the option is to yank a tab and throw it over your shoulder/neck/back, or put it down and leave it so you can carry your kids, I think I would want to take it with. In the event of a fire or something like that is what I’m thinking, but whatever purpose it suites will work.
As a LEO, I keep a VCAS 2 Pt on my carbine. But when I place it next to the bed at night, I pop it off. I figure inside my house I’ll have little reason to sling up (I’ll hold at gunpoint before cuffing solo on a home invader) and I really don’t want it getting snagged on anything as I stumble out of a deep sleep at 2AM.
Very interesting!
No sling on the handiest carbine and shotgun. I live in a small home and some of my HD scenarios involve surprise forcible entry while I’m sleeping. A sling seems an unnecessary complication.
I keep other long guns with sling attached, because some scenarios allow a bit of time to get gear in order and may involve lengthy waits before the situation is resolved.
On the subject of battle belts & “grab n go” I have an article submitted to SWAT outlining two of my solutions.
On the subject of slings on HD carbines, in my case no (I don’t even have BUIS). However the carbine is, in my plan, more of a modern shotgun and intended largely as the barricading weapon. If I have a need to leave the saferoom I’ll be taking a pistol (see the above re: grab n go).
I have, in the past, had a sling on the carbine that was folded up against the forend and secured with a rubberband in such a way as to be able to be quickly deployed if needed. This was mostly under the “better to have it and not need it” mentality. I don’t think it would take much for anyone to 'what if" their way into reasons a sling might be of use.
I would actually like to see someone develop a product designed to secure a simple sling (or even just carry stap) to the carbine.
I unfortunately was in a shooting in my home about 3 years ago. I used a handgun and one attacker went down in the kitchen and had to carry out a wounded friend. I had a handgun and light. After exiting the house there were 2 more attackers outside that had left the house and I did not know their location. It was dark and with a body in my arms and gun in one hand I could not get to the light and was wishing it was mounted on my handgun as I spun around wildly in lowlight looking for an attack. The scenario of having a body in my arms to exit the home and get medical help while possibly engaging more attackers was not in my pre-imagined HD scenarios. If I had used an M4 with out a sling it would have been even more difficult. I carried a rifle for work for years with out a sling in the bush in several African countries and the thorns there were the reason slings were not permitted, but I will use a sling on my HD M4 for retention, no thorns in the house.
Another thought if you have to carry out wounded or children can you carry your M4 with you? Carry safely or practically? Or do you ditch it and possibly leave it to be used against you?
good discussion.
IMO I dont want to be “tied to the gun” if I wind up in a hands on struggle.
The carbine question in my house has me grab the carbine and hold down the hallway up to our bedrooms from a right hand corner. My sons room is right across the hall and if need be I transistion into his room and am then looking down the same hall from an opposite corner/doorway. In this scenerio I think the sling gives no benifit, and would only complicate the matter without any added benifit.
If I need to actually enter the house there are some narrow corners and halls I would not want to be tied up to my gun in should an aggressor suddenly rush me and manage to get on me.
ETA: I will be taking my first 2 carbine courses this year, and while I have had plenty of pistol, H2H, and weapons retention and disarms training I have formed these thoughts based on that. There is a very real chance my opinions will change after I have more formal training with this platform.
Interesting discussion, I am thinking that another reason not to have a sling is for our significant others. You may be like me and have a wife who’s level of training/familiarity with the weapon is pretty low. It seems to me that a sling would be less helpful and more of a distraction.
BTW I vote this as sig line material!
Buckaroo
I keep my sling on my M4 all the time. I have a CQD plate installed and keep it clipped there single point style. I keep the M4 with a mag in it, no round in the chamber. I pull the sling up and drape it across the vertical grip.
I have run through drills where I get the rifle, work the charging handle, put the sling on, turn on the optic.
I have not been in a shooting so take my train of thought for whatever it is worth, but my reasoning for the sling is the same as the individual that had been involved in a shooting - you never know what is going to happen in a situation and having the sling on there gives you the option to free up your hands if needed.
Can you elaborate specifics and your thought process?
I keep a sling on on my home gun for weapon retention. Can also be used as a tourniquet if for some reason I can’t get to the med kit, and yes, I can still use the weapon if needed if the sling is tied around my arm or leg.
If you can shoulder a slung rifle, you can muzzle punch with it. It is all about the proper technique.