2021 National Firearms Survey

[Pb]

This is the largest survey on gun ownership ever done, the sample size is huge.  I am sure there are lies being told to the surveyor, but the results are interesting. 

Among other results:
31.9% of adults reported owing guns
1.67 million defensive gun uses per year claimed... if true, that's a huge number.  I am agnostic about the number.
There are a lot of interesting numbers in here, especially the racial background and the huge number of guns reported owned.

Oh yeah, and 44 million or so AR-type rifles owned too.   

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4109494

[WLJ]

This is the largest survey on gun ownership ever done, the sample size is huge.  I am sure there are lies being told to the surveyor, but the results are interesting. 

Among other results:
31.9% of adults reported owing guns

If a survey asked me if I own a gun(s) there's good chance I would answer no and I suspect a rather large % of people would do the same. Number could, COULD, be quite low.

Edit: Thinking about it some more I may say I have handgun for defense but no to anything else.

[HankB]

If a survey asked me if I own a gun(s) there's good chance I would answer no depending on who's doing the survey and I suspect a rather large % of people would do the same. Number could, COULD, be quite low.

(Telephone rings. Man answers.)
"Hello"
"Good evening sir, this a survey. Do you own guns?"
"Sure"
"Do you own jewelry, computers, cameras, or gold?"
"Of course."
"Do you have an alarm, a big dog, or will someone be home tomorrow between the hours of 10 am and 2 pm?"
"No to all of those."
"Thank you sir, no more questions."

[RoadKingLarry]

If a survey asked me if I own a gun(s) there's good chance I would answer no and I suspect a rather large % of people would do the same. Number could, COULD, be quite low.

Edit: Thinking about it some more I may say I have handgun for defense but no to anything else.

If a survey asked me if I owned any guns there is no chance I would answer the question, truthfully or otherwise.

[Brad Johnson]

Good info to have, especially should some unhinged lib devolve into FAAFO territory during a debate.

Agree with WLJ that the numbers are likely low due to gun owners' distrust of surveys and surveyors.

Brad

[dogmush]

If a survey asked me if I own a gun(s) there's good chance I would answer no and I suspect a rather large % of people would do the same. Number could, COULD, be quite low.

Edit: Thinking about it some more I may say I have handgun for defense but no to anything else.

If a survey asked me if I owned any guns there is no chance I would answer the question, truthfully or otherwise.

Why lie?  This was an online survey.  Assuming it was even halfway anonymized, wouldn't the whole US, and especially 2A advocates, be better off being shown that gun ownership was pretty mainstream?

I wouldn't provide an address, but demographics and gun ownership and use rates from folks like us only helps our narrative.

I am gratified to see this part:

Demographically, gun owners are diverse. 42.2% are female and 57.8% are male. Approximately 25.4% of Blacks own firearms, 28.3% of Hispanics own firearms, 19.4% of Asians own firearms, and 34.3% of Whites own firearms.

I'd like to see higher numbers, but am happy to see a broad swath of America using their rights.

[WLJ]

Why lie?  This was an online survey.  Assuming it was even halfway anonymized, wouldn't the whole US, and especially 2A advocates, be better off being shown that gun ownership was pretty mainstream?

I wouldn't provide an address, but demographics and gun ownership and use rates from folks like us only helps our narrative.

I am gratified to see this part:
I'd like to see higher numbers, but am happy to see a broad swath of America using their rights.

Why I added my edit. My owning a gun (handgun) adds to the % but anything beyond that...?

[dogmush]

True that.

Personally I want to see M4's reported as "common use".

[WLJ]

True that.

Personally I want to see M4's reported as "common use".

More than likely there's a somewhat solid figure on number sold. and unless they want to claim only a small number of people bought a hundred or more M4s each that should get you in the ball park about as well as a survey with all their known shortcomings.

[HankB]

. . . I wouldn't provide an address, but demographics and gun ownership and use rates from folks like us only helps our narrative . . .

And since it's now accepted you can be part of any demographic you feel like at a given time, you might give some thought to pumping up select numbers, making for a more diverse sample set.   

[WLJ]

And since it's now accepted you can be part of any demographic you feel like at a given time, you might give some thought to pumping up select numbers, making for a more diverse sample set.   

I identify as American

[Perd Hapley]

I identify as American

I'm semifascist-American.

[Perd Hapley]

True that.

Personally I want to see M4's reported as "common use".

And I want the fed.gov to legalize cannons, but that'll never happen...

[WLJ]

I'm semifascist-American.

The left would consider you a Semi-Fascist Fascist then.

[Hawkmoon]

Why lie?  This was an online survey.  Assuming it was even halfway anonymized, wouldn't the whole US, and especially 2A advocates, be better off being shown that gun ownership was pretty mainstream?

I wouldn't provide an address, but demographics and gun ownership and use rates from folks like us only helps our narrative.

I am gratified to see this part:
I'd like to see higher numbers, but am happy to see a broad swath of America using their rights.

If they have your telephone number, they either have or can get your address.

While I am extremely happy to see such high numbers, I agree that they are almost certainly still way too low. Like RKL, I don't do surveys. I mostly let all calls to my home go to the answering machine. If I answer because I'm expecting a call, and the caller is conducting a survey -- I just hang up.

[dogmush]

If they have your telephone number, they either have or can get your address.

While I am extremely happy to see such high numbers, I agree that they are almost certainly still way too low. Like RKL, I don't do surveys. I mostly let all calls to my home go to the answering machine. If I answer because I'm expecting a call, and the caller is conducting a survey -- I just hang up.

No telephones were used in this this survey.

I guess I'm a little confused about who you are keeping the info from. The fed.gov has this much data and more just based on internet crawls, meta-data analysis, and financial records.

I doubt gun thieves are buying nationwide lists of the dark web, even if the survey company has some data breech.

The survey company itself could, I guess, be selling lists but the big ones make a big deal about not doing that for just this reason. 

I'm not saying you have to answer, or answer truthfully, I just think the whole "I'd never answer a survey about guns" is a particularly Boomer-esque response that probably doesn't protect your info in any meaningful way, and probably does make it a little harder for the folks trying to mainstream 2A culture.

You do you though.

[HeroHog]

And I want the fed.gov to legalize cannons, but that'll never happen...

You ARE being factious, right?

[dogmush]

And I want the fed.gov to legalize cannons, but that'll never happen...

[Perd Hapley]

The head of the executive branch has referenced the long-standing federal prohibition on cannon on numerous occasions. Come on, man.

[Ben]

Come on, man. Even dummy me got Perd's joke.

 

[Perd Hapley]

Come on, man. Even dummy me got Perd's joke.

 

You know the thing.

[WLJ]

You know the thing.

[Ben]

You know the thing.

I do, but it seems the forum has been inflitrated by dog-faced corn pop soldiers.