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I've read MANY posts on this forum and other CCW type forms that have post like this

1. I got a new XXX <insert pistol name> at the gun show this weekend and it's now my new carry weapon.
1. I got a new XXX <insert pistol name> and took it to the range and shot a a box of shells, and it's now my new carry weapon

The point being, is that someone gets a new gun and will little to no experience with it, they automatically promote it to their daily carry status. I won't call anyone out, but just read the threads and you will see that this happens VERY often. Now, I don't know about you, but the weapon I carry would have to prove to me that it is absolutely reliable and accurate for me to trust my life with it. Personally, I have a 500 round criteria that I use before I make a judgement call on if the gun is worthy for me to carry daily. 500 rounds may be too high, or too low for you, but for me it's enough where I feel comfortable that the gun is broken in and any reliability issues due to machining tolerates in new parts should be resolved. After 500 rounds I will make my assessment of accuracy (which quite frankly most guns shoot more accurate than the shooter), comfort and reliability.

So the question I ask you, is what is your criteria for promoting your new weapon to daily carry status?

BigBlueDodge wrote:I've read MANY posts on this forum and other CCW type forms that have post like this

1. I got a new XXX <insert pistol name> at the gun show this weekend and it's now my new carry weapon.
1. I got a new XXX <insert pistol name> and took it to the range and shot a a box of shells, and it's now my new carry weapon

...
So the question I ask you, is what is your criteria for promoting your new weapon to daily carry status?

After I have taken it to the range, shot a few hundred rounds, including some carry ammo. And can shoot a target using rapid fire (10 shots in 15 seconds) to look like this at 10 yds.

BigBlueDodge wrote:So the question I ask you, is what is your criteria for promoting your new weapon to daily carry status?

When I find something I love more than my Glock 19. Hasn't happened yet....

It varies, depending on the reputation of the gun model, and what my range experience with it is. A quality revolver, a Glock, or an XD, I might carry after a 100 rounds of practice ammo, plus a couple mags of my preferred SD ammo...if I experienced no failures, and I could already shoot it pretty well. Almost anything else, I would shoot 200-500 rounds, including a couple magazines full of my carry ammo.

One exception has been my Ruger LCP. I've put about 80 rounds of FMJ through it (with no failures), and I am now carrying it (with the FMJ) in some situations where previously I was not able to carry at all. However, I will rectify this situation on my next range trip, by running another box of FMJ through it, and verifying that my preferred SD ammo runs OK in it. I like the way it shoots, and I can hit center of mass at ten yards on a silhouette, so I think it's OK to carry...definitely better than a sharp stick for those places where I used to have nothing.

For a semi-automatic handgun, I would follow this protocol as closely as possible to proof it before daily carry.

Crossfire wrote:

BigBlueDodge wrote:So the question I ask you, is what is your criteria for promoting your new weapon to daily carry status?

When I find something I love more than my Glock 19. Hasn't happened yet....

I knew there was a reason for our friendship!


I rarely carry anything that has less than 1K reliable rounds through it.

Jason

When I have shot it enough to validate its accuracy and reliability. I have three carry guns. A Kimber CDP Pro that has been with me for along time, a Kahr PM9 that was added for deep carry for summer last year, and a Glock 19 that could be the best all around carry gun I've owned. However, I recently installed some XS 7/24 Big Dot sights on the G 19 and I haven't got my accuracy up to the level I demand (center head shot, no misses at 15 yds).

I make no pretenses about my skills, which are merely adequate. I carry a new gun when I feel reasonably certain that it will function reliably, but my standards are apparently lower than others. I take a new gun to the range, and I fire enough rounds through it to familiarize myself with its general operation - perhaps a 100 rounds or so - plus a magazine or two of my preferred defense load to make sure it will function in the gun. That's pretty much it for semi-autos for me. The one exception was my H&K USP Compact, which I already owned before I got my CHL, and which I had fired a few hundred rounds through before I got my plastic. With a revolver, I make sure I can shoot reasonably well with it, and I carry it.

I continue to practice frequently with each pistol I carry, and that seems to have helped my ability with each one a bit, but what has really improved is my shooting ability overall - not my mastery of any one pistol.

The last thing I want to do is have to shoot someone. There's too much paperwork to fill out plus the legal fees of defending your actions, etc., etc.

It depends on what happens with the gun initially.

Before the purchase of any weapon, I research the weapon and common issues people have, as well as the overall reliability of the gun.

My first carry gun was my PA-63, which had probably 1000 rounds or more through it before it was ever carried. As 9x18 is limited in choices for defensive ammo, I had to find something that I knew fed flawslessly in it, which took a while. I finally found that Hornady XTP feeds beautifully, and after putting a few boxes of it through the gun with no issues, I decided that the gun was ready for carry. This was probably at least a month before my license arrived, so i had plenty of testing buffer available.

My second (and current) carry gun is my FM Hi-Power. The Hi-Power has a reputation for reliability, and it only took one range session for it to be named my new carry (as soon as I got a holster for it). I ran probably 300 rounds of different types of ammo (including my planned carry ammo) through it on the first range trip, with no failures whatsoever.

My third (and current BUG) carry gun is my Ruger LCP. I did the research on this, and as it was new at the time, range reports were limited but overwhelmingly positive. I bought it and took it to the range the next day, where it put 75 rounds of varying manufacture downrange with no issues. Given more time, I would have put more through it on the first session, but I had a limit to the time I had to shoot that day. It became my BUG that day, and I contnued to test the gun at the next couple of range sessions. It has since run flawlessly, so I have had no reason to question it, after around 400 flawless rounds so far.

How quickly the gun gets carry status depends on its initial performance and the reputation of the gun in general. With the Hi-Power and LCP, they had good (albeit limited with the L:CP) reputations to begin with, and as the initial range session indicated no issues after a minimum number of rounds, the guns were quickly placed into carry duty. Had either exhibited a failure of any type, the testing period would be extended until the gun proved itself reliable for several hundred consecutive rounds. This is what happened with my PA-63. At the time I purchased the gun, brass-cased 9x18 ammo was very difficult to come by, and good defensive ammo was almost impossible. Hornady XTP was the only quality SD ammo available at the time in 9x18 (and probably still is), and had to be found after extensive searching online and mail ordered. In the interim, I was using Silver Bear JHP ammo, which usually failed to feed properly once every mag or two. Once I discontinued use of the Silver bear and switched to different kinds of ammo (including considerable amounts of XTP as well as brass-cased S&B), I was able to put several hundred rounds though it without failure.

For a semi-automatic handgun, I would follow this protocol as closely as possible to proof it before daily carry.

I'm with Yerasimos on this one.

Putting a box or two of ammo through a gun and calling it good to go isn't testing - it's gambling, big time.

I've had many things happen with well regarded new guns from excellent manufacturers during the first few hundred break in rounds that would have been unacceptable (read: potentially fatal - to me) if they had occurred under circumstances where failures would have much more serious consequences than they did on the range. That's why I keep them in range queen status until I resolve all the kinks and they do what they're supposed to, first time every time, for several hundred rounds.

Some of those kinks are not mechanical failures - they're weapon system adjustments. An example would be a small frame, sharply recoiling weapon that requires an alteration of the grip you use on bigger guns to keep from accidentally activating either the slide lock or the magazine release at random times on the new one. I found this to be something I had to deal with recently on a new Kahr PM45. There's nothing at all wrong with the gun, but there is a right way and a wrong way to grip it in my hands, and the right way is different in some significant respects from other guns that are just a little bit bigger.

I found the semiauto function test protocol by the Firearms Tactical Institute that Yerasimos shared below to be carefully thought out, well organized and comprehensive. It also provides a guideline for analyzing and resolving issues that might come up during the test. It's well worth the time to check it out. You may find it worth adopting in full or in part if you agree.

To save those who are interested from having to scroll through the postings to find Yerasimos' link, the document is at:

http://www.firearmstactical.com/briefs25.htm

For a revolver, a box of ammo is sufficient for me. For something with an outstanding reputation for reliability, like a G... Guh.... Guh.... Block ( ), a hundred rounds of carry ammo would satisfy me that about that particular specimen. Another reason not to own one... less excuses for range time!

With semiautos, magazines are just as important a factor as anything else. Every magazine you intend to carry should be fired through several full loads.

I carry a gun after firing several hundred rounds through the gun and it shows that it will feed the carry ammo flawlessly,If it jams while feeding any ammo then I investigate the problem and try to rectify it,all my carry guns will shoot anything I throw in them without a hiccup,everything from cast lead reloads to SD hollowpoints

KBCraig wrote:For a revolver, a box of ammo is sufficient for me. For something with an outstanding reputation for reliability, like a G... Guh.... Guh.... Block ( ), a hundred rounds of carry ammo would satisfy me that about that particular specimen. Another reason not to own one... less excuses for range time!

With semiautos, magazines are just as important a factor as anything else. Every magazine you intend to carry should be fired through several full loads.

Agreed on almost all points.
I also consider revolvers in good condition to be reliable after 50-100 successful rounds.
By the way, I think the word your searching for is "Glock". Come on, say it with me... G-L-O-C-K.....

I have shot (and or shot and carried) Glock models 17, 19, 22, 27, 30, 34, and 35. Through hundreds of rounds, I have found Glocks to be very reliable and, frankly, cannot recall an FTF or FTE.

That being said, and to address the question of this thread, I will trust a new Glock for carry purposes after about 200-300 rounds and will trust a good condition used Glock after about 100 of the cheapest rounds I can find to throw in it.
My opinion...100 successful rounds through a thoroughly inspected, good condition Glock means it's a good weapon.

I have had my CHL for about a year now and prefer to carry a Glock, because I know how to handle these weapons, I know how to fire them accurately, and I know how to field strip and thoroughly clean any one of them.
Of course, I have nothing against other well-designed weapons, but for the price I am willing to pay, the very limited time/resources I am willing to spend tweaking a gun to improve its performance, and the reliability and accuracy I expect right out of the box, Glocks have just worked for me.

Of course, this is all just my experience/opinion and is worth roughly 2 cents.

(By the way, regarding magazines, I follow the practice shared with me by a LEO friend/neighbor...I rotate magazines so that one stays empty each month. He said it helps keep the springs in good shape.)

That being said, and to address the question of this thread, I will trust a new Glock for carry purposes after about 200-300 rounds and will trust a good condition used Glock after about 100 of the cheapest rounds I can find to throw in it.

I rotate magazines so that one stays empty each month.

Since a used weapon has an unknown number of rounds through it, I would suggest replacing the recoil spring assembly (which has a defined service life) so you have a known starting point before testing or carrying the gun.

Magazine rotation to "rest" the springs is unnecessary with modern spring construction, but, like chicken soup, it can't hurt anything either.