In chamber or no?

[speedsix]

...thanks for calling a design I bought over 40 years ago "modern"...makes me feel less of a fossil!!! Wait'll I show the kids!!!

[donster5]

I carry my glock 36 chambered. I use a quality holster (supertuck) and i just dont mess with it. Try this. While you hanging around the house, rack the slide, take the magazine out first, the idea is to ready the firearm with nothing in the chamber. Every few hours, check to see if it has somehow let the striker go. If not, you are perfectly safe. If it did. get it to a gunsmith...NOW. Carry with one in the chamber is what I say. You cant mow the yard without gas in the tank.. Good Luck :)

[1s1k52]

My avatar would be enough to answer my question, but I will give you some input on two things.

My brother in law lives in the middle of no where goes back and forth with whether to carry on him or not. Also doesn't keep his Glock 22 loaded because he has kids.

ANIMAL ACTIVIST STOP READING..

Anyways so long story short he is a Nazi with his lawn and been waiting to blast the animal tearing it up. He was home alone one evening and mowing and either an armadillo or skunk can't remember appeared. He had to hop off the mower go into the house to get his gun, come out, pull NOTHING, Rack, bang, Point of the story. Had it been a serious threat or the animal was smarter he would be out of luck.

I carry my Glock 27 loaded and on me at all times unless I am at work.

I know a lot of people that have or WANT their CHL but don't and wont' carry on them most the time. I don't understand this. One guy that carrys his mostly in the car keeps it unloaded. UNTIL. Like you he is an XD fan. Well I told him awhile back they made them with thumb safetys, he finally found one so now he carrys with one in and safety on. Maybe this would be a middle ground for you. I had an XD for a small amount of time. They are drop safe.

[C-dub]

California Gun lab
Gun Drop Test Video (one failed and can't be sold in Cali)
http://www.intertek.com/product-safety- ... rop-video/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
you can always check

Effective January 1, 2001, no handgun may be manufactured within California, imported into California for sale, lent, given, kept for sale, or offered/exposed for sale unless that handgun model has passed firing, safety, and drop tests and is certified for sale in California ..

. http://certguns.doj.ca.gov/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I don't think you'll find many new guns that fail the safety/drop tests nowadays manufacturers don't like getting sued, and they don't like being forbidden to sell them...even in California.
Old guns, maybe.

If concerned, check the Cali list.

I thought I had heard the restaurant in Kingwood incident was an old derringer type thingy, or a Davis/Jennings cheapie; I could be wrong

That is amazing how many guns and from which manufacturers have been REMOVED from their list.

[Ftak]

I always carry with a round in the chamber but I also have a sig 220 which has a decock switch. So that makes it feel a bit safer but I used to carry a Glock 31 with no hammer or no safety devise really at all & that made me nervous especially with the deadly reliability of a Glock. If a Glock has a round in it will fire accidental or not. That was also In 357sig which is a loud hard kicking beast that would take out my privates & then my foot. Go get you a Sig or something with more safety features at least. Sigs are my favorite but they are expensive but I get what I pay for. I got rid of the the Glock not for fear of it but rather the 357sig ammo is really to high to target shoot therefore I didnt hardly ever shoot it. Coups have converted to 40 cal but I just sold it. Still have 300 rds that I forgot about but I will bet rid of them some day

[45 4 life]

Kimber when carried is cocked and locked
Glock 36 always chambered.
If you are trying to decide, try this. Make sure your weapon is empty, clip out. Have a good friend or family member stand 10 yards away, face 90 deg from their position, holster your weapon. Have them yell go, and start running toward you. If they touch you before you can draw, rack the slide, and ready to fire, you just got stabbed.
My wife and I have this conversation often, she has a colt mustang and is not comfortable carrying cocked and locked. She is starting to come around now because she has carried for 2 years with a empty chamber, hammer cocked, safety on. She has never seen the safety accidentally pushed to off in the day to day actiities.

[chamuiel]

I have not gotten my CHL yet (should be here in a few days). However, I have given some thought to this. To carry a gun without even a round in the chamber for what ever the reason seems to be a sure fire way of not being able to get the gun into action in a critical situation if needed. The time to "draw" and rack the slide, and then to get on target would to me seem too be too long to be realistically quick enough to protect my life or someone else's. I think (after some serious thought) the best way to go is with a round already in the chamber, and if possible with the safety off or like the Glocks without a manual safety, simply relying upon the trigger safety. My main carry weapon will be my Ruger SR40c which has the so called "trigger safety", is supposed to be drop safe and also has the "manual safety. I think I will more than likely carry it with the manual safety off and a round in the chamber. Anything which will save a few milliseconds in a life saving situation (mine) is to be desired.


I understand that some carry with the manual safety on and without even a round chambered. If that is what makes you the most comfortable, then go for it. But for me I want every advantage I can get so that if I somehow, against all odds end up in a shooting situation, I want to be able to think that I am going to give myself every advantage I can.

[xb12s]

If you are a fan of YouTube, LimaLife does a video of reaction time with knife attacks in a holstered situation. She is attacked in two scenarios - one with the chamber empty and another scenario with a round ready to go. The reaction time is based on a fairly close (maybe 3 to 5 feet?) assualt. In both cases she gets stabbed. The chambered case results with her stabbed a couple of times before getting shots off. The case without a chambered round results in what would probably be her death before getting the gun into action (or maybe she doesn't even get the gun into the fight before he takes her down).

[SQLGeek]

I always carry with a round in the chamber but I also have a sig 220 which has a decock switch. So that makes it feel a bit safer but I used to carry a Glock 31 with no hammer or no safety devise really at all & that made me nervous especially with the deadly reliability of a Glock. If a Glock has a round in it will fire accidental or not.

Glocks have three safeties on them, an integrated trigger safety, a firing pin safety and a drop safety. Only one of them is external and none of them will keep you from actually pulling the trigger.

Not to be flip but I would hope a Glock with a round in the chamber would fire when I pull the trigger, that's the point. It's up to me to not put my finger on the trigger unless it is time to pull it. A Glock isn't just going to "go off" without pulling the trigger. Neither are the vast majority of modern firearms.

[C-dub]

I always carry with a round in the chamber but I also have a sig 220 which has a decock switch. So that makes it feel a bit safer but I used to carry a Glock 31 with no hammer or no safety devise really at all & that made me nervous especially with the deadly reliability of a Glock. If a Glock has a round in it will fire accidental or not.

Glocks have three safeties on them, an integrated trigger safety, a firing pin safety and a drop safety. Only one of them is external and none of them will keep you from actually pulling the trigger.

Not to be flip but I would hope a Glock with a round in the chamber would fire when I pull the trigger, that's the point. It's up to me to not put my finger on the trigger unless it is time to pull it. A Glock isn't just going to "go off" without pulling the trigger. Neither are the vast majority of modern firearms.

No kidding. I specifically went with Glock because of the lack of a manual safety. KISS I'm such a goober that I just knew I would need my gun, pull it out, and forget to disengage the safety. I've carried four different Glocks over a 10 year period and none of them have gone off without me pulling the trigger.

[emcee rib]

Not every modern pistol has a drop safety.

Series 70 1911, for example.

A series 70 1911 is about as modern as a Karmann Ghia.

[ghostrider]

A series 70 1911 is about as modern as a Karmann Ghia.

true, but some of us like our 1911's "retro" :-)

[Reds45ACP]

I'll toss in my mutual agreement. One on the chamber.

I carry a Kahr CW45. I though about getting a Glock 36 (What my Dad carries; great pistol) but I was just more comfortable with the DA feeling trigger pull. Either one is perfectly safe in a proper holster but knowing myself that longer trigger stroke made me feel better.

I practice with dummy rounds (drawing, dryfire, and clearing drills) and I have never had it go "bang" without me pulling the trigger. Same is true at the range and all the time I have carried it with live ammo.

[johnson0317]

Sorry I do not have the link to this, but it is a YouTube vid by LimaLife. This is a woman that does a lot of reviews from the perspective of a woman. Does a pretty good job. She did one on how not carrying one in the pipe can affect the outcome. She started with one in the pipe (using an airsoft pistol) against her assailant that was using a rubber knife. Her one rule was that she could not attempt to engage until she felt threatened. With one in the pipe she was able to get off a shot as she was being stabbed the first time, and a second shot off as she was getting stabbed the second time. Not great results, but chances are she could have been saved. In the second instance, without one in the pipe, she was unable to ready and fire at all. Her "assailant" stabbed her multiple times without her even being able to reach her pistol. I think we can put the Tueller Drill aside for the most part as most of us will not be fortunate enough to have a 21 foot warning track. Most assaults will come when the assailant is close enough they think they can finish it off quickly. Your choice, but one in the pipe is the only way I carry.

RJ