Anyone else torn on which gun to carry?

[IN1911]

I have had several different carry guns in the past three or four years to the point where I have kind of found out what I like and what I don't. I know I love 1911's and Glocks.

If I had to, I could carry my Glock 19 on me everyday from here on out and never switch. However, I find myself going back and forth between my Glock 19 and my 1911. If it was going back and forth with a Glock and M&P I don't think it would matter much but the Glock and 1911 have very different manual of arms and while I am pretty good at both, I have no idea what I would do under stress.

When I finally think I have made my mind up to only carry 1911's I'll be darned if I don't find a reason to carry the Glock, and vise versa.

Anyone else have this sickness?

 

[Sylvain]

If you are worried about use under stress I would carry the Glock, no safety to worry about.

 

[IN1911]

That's been my thought too, but Glocks are sensitive to limp wristing. What if I don't get a good grip? There are so many what ifs. I guess it's one of those things where, like I said, yeah I could just carry a plain ol' glock all the time but I want some variety for some reason. I know it's not the best mindset to be in but I can't help it.

 

[mrortega]

I have had several different carry guns in the past three or four years to the point where I have kind of found out what I like and what I don't. I know I love 1911's and Glocks.

If I had to, I could carry my Glock 19 on me everyday from here on out and never switch. However, I find myself going back and forth between my Glock 19 and my 1911. If it was going back and forth with a Glock and M&P I don't think it would matter much but the Glock and 1911 have very different manual of arms and while I am pretty good at both, I have no idea what I would do under stress.

When I finally think I have made my mind up to only carry 1911's I'll be darned if I don't find a reason to carry the Glock, and vise versa.

Anyone else have this sickness?

I HAD a beautiful Kimber Ultra Carry II in SS. I loved it and it was very accurate. However, I couldn't get used to carrying it cocked and locked. I eventually traded it in on a Glock G30 (that I've also traded). Now I'm sold on the safety features of the Glocks, especially the firing pin mechanical block that stays in place until the trigger is pulled a certain distance. I haven't carried anything other than my g22,23 or 27 for longer than I can remember. I mainly stick with the 27 or 23. The 22 is mostly hanging in my ready belt in the closet for after hours visitors. Choose what is most important for you. Besides the better safety features of the Glocks I also like the longer trigger pull than the 1911s. I don't ever want to inadvertently release the trigger and the Glock satisfys that requirement.

 

[Constructionist]

If you are worried about use under stress I would carry the Glock, no safety to worry about.

Agreed. Keep it simple. Fewer bells and whistles to worry about in a crisis situation. I carry a 1911 but have done so for so long that the muscle memory is there.

Go with what keeps you and all the bystanders the safest, and keeps the threat the most neutralized.

 

[mrortega]

That's been my thought too, but Glocks are sensitive to limp wristing. What if I don't get a good grip? There are so many what ifs. I guess it's one of those things where, like I said, yeah I could just carry a plain ol' glock all the time but I want some variety for some reason. I know it's not the best mindset to be in but I can't help it.

HAH. Variety is okay with wives and cars but not a daily carry gun. I strongly suggest you pick what you like and carry it exclusively for awhile. It's dangerous to call your wife the wrong name at that delicate moment but you don't want to forget who you brung to the fight when you reach into that holster.

 

[Sylvain]

That's been my thought too, but Glocks are sensitive to limp wristing. What if I don't get a good grip? There are so many what ifs. I guess it's one of those things where, like I said, yeah I could just carry a plain ol' glock all the time but I want some variety for some reason. I know it's not the best mindset to be in but I can't help it.

Just pick one gun and stick to it, train a lot with it, dry fire, practice draws from different position etc ...

I never had problems limp wristing a Glock.

If you want variety get a new hat for every day of the week.

But dont mess with your security, make the Glock your carry gun and enjoy your 1911 at the range.
The Glock will also be lighter, that's important for a dayly carry.

 

[IN1911]

Well I have shot 1911's more than any other type of handgun but I can shoot a Glock just about as good as a 1911. I probably have about five years behind a 1911 and a little over two with Glock. I feel equally confident with both. In some ways, I love having that big single stack .45 on my side but other times I think a lighter gun with more ammo makes more sense, then it's the manual safety vs. no safety thing and so on.

 

[IN1911]

Just pick one gun and stick to it, train a lot with it, dry fire, practice draws from different position etc ...

I never had problems limp wristing a Glock.

If you want variety get a new hat for every day of the week.

But dont mess with your security, make the Glock your carry gun and enjoy your 1911 at the range.
The Glock will also be lighter, that's important for a dayly carry.

Good point. I have never had any problems limp wristing a Glock either but both my step brother and I have made a couple fail by simulating a bad limp wrist and sure enough two Glock 19's did fail to feed. No big deal if you are holding the pistol correctly, but in a self defense situation, who knows where exactly your hand will go. You can practice until you can draw and fire in your sleep and still fail big time in a self defense situation. It's very hard to simulate a massive adrenaline dump.

 

[Sylvain]

Well I have shot 1911's more than any other type of handgun but I can shoot a Glock just about as good as a 1911. I probably have about five years behind a 1911 and a little over two with Glock. I feel equally confident with both. In some ways, I love having that big single stack .45 on my side but other times I think a lighter gun with more ammo makes more sense, then it's the manual safety vs. no safety thing and so on.

For me a manual safety is a bad thing for a carry gun, it's something you may forget to remove under stress (that happend to many officers) or that you may activate by mistake.It's just one useless part that adds more complexity to the gun and that can faill.
If you have a good trigger discipline you should be fine with a Glock.
But if you really need a safety to feel safe then carry the 1911.

 

[mrortega]

Limp wristing would be a problem with any semi-auto. (Do they just have revolvers in Key West?

 

[clt46910]

I been shooting for over 40 years. I don't mean once or twice a month or even once a week. Think daily for many years.

Your muscle memory can be trained to more then one gun. You just have to spend a lot of time handling each gun. In time you can walk up to a table of guns and when it hits your hand, your muscle memory will take over to the feel of the firearm in your hand.

I started on 1911's and S&W revolvers. Now I shoot those, glocks, sigs, SA revolvers and a few others. I can pick up a handgun and do not have to think what to do. My muscle memory will take over. Just from the feel of it in my hand.

Don't think you have to shoot hundreds of thousands of ammo to learn this. Mostly it takes handling your firearms daily and often. If you want to carry more then one gun, just spend as much time as you can to handling and shooting your firearms. We can do a lot more then we think we can, just takes the effort and time to do it.

Glocks do not have safeties. They have blocks to keep the firearm from going off if dropped. Anything catches on that trigger and a glock will go off.

 

[Hooker]

Keep in mind that any gun you ever have to use in a self defense situation
will be confiscated, and who knows what will happen to it then. If I really
loved my 1911 for its look and feel, I might carry the Glock instead.
Sounds like a strange justification, I know, but I do know people who carry
Glocks for this reason.

 

[clt46910]

Keep in mind that any gun you ever have to use in a self defense situation
will be confiscated, and who knows what will happen to it then. If I really
loved my 1911 for its look and feel, I might carry the Glock instead.
Sounds like a strange justification, I know, but I do know people who carry
Glocks for this reason.

That is why you get more then one gun for your carry gun. My brother wanted to buy a 1911 for defense. I told him he needed to buy two about the same.

The reason is because they will take your firearm in most shootings. You want to be left without a firearm when you just shot someone? His family and friends are going to be pretty upset with you regardless of the right or wrong of it.

 

[Sylvain]

I been shooting for over 40 years. I don't mean once or twice a month or even once a week. Think daily for many years.

Your muscle memory can be trained to more then one gun. You just have to spend a lot of time handling each gun. In time you can walk up to a table of guns and when it hits your hand, your muscle memory will take over to the feel of the firearm in your hand.

I started on 1911's and S&W revolvers. Now I shoot those, glocks, sigs, SA revolvers and a few others. I can pick up a handgun and do not have to think what to do. My muscle memory will take over. Just from the feel of it in my hand.

Don't think you have to shoot hundreds of thousands of ammo to learn this. Mostly it takes handling your firearms daily and often. If you want to carry more then one gun, just spend as much time as you can to handling and shooting your firearms. We can do a lot more then we think we can, just takes the effort and time to do it.

Glocks do not have safeties. They have blocks to keep the firearm from going off if dropped. Anything catches on that trigger and a glock will go off.

I agree, I think dry fire practice is a good way to build muscle memory.
Cheap too.That's a great way to get a feel for the gun and get used to it.
You can do that with more than one gun without having to spend hours at the range.
Of course you need real range time too, but dry fire practice can help build up the muscle memory much faster.

 

[IN1911]

Great points everyone. The manual safety has been a big factor in whether or not I carry the 1911. I know the platform very well but under stress your fine motor skills tend to go out the window.
Another thing I have been thinking about is the possiblity of a polymer .45 like a Glock 30sf or 36... totally different subject but I think it would ease my mind at times when I want to carry a .45 even though I trust 9mm just fine... maybe that would solve my problems, then even if I switched, it wouldn't be night and day different...

 

[71silverbullet]

Think about this... If it truly is the safety that concerns you carry the 1911's with the safety off... Wohw I know big negative response from all glock fans...you can't do that. I never would carry that way but in reality you still have adt least one more safety than you would with the glock. practice with both guns carry both when you are comfortable shooting each one. I have owned two glocks and could not get comfortable shooting them. I carry 1911's (with the safety on) that's what comforts me. I also have a xd40 that I feel proficient with, its my woods gun, but that's all. As I said I can't get comfortable with a glock, but I think they are good guns, probably the next most reliable thing to a revolver. I know this was not intended to be a glock vs 1911 post, but really its a coke/pepsi thing, get comfortable with both, find reasons and scenarios to carry each one.
Ok that's the long answer...short answer, yes I have been torn on which gun to carry, but its usually commander or defender

 

[Garb]

I am very torn on which guns to carry, basically for the same reasons you are. I like revolvers, just cause they're awesome, I like glocks for the reliability and capacity, and I like the 1911's for their ergonomics and trigger pull. Of course, I've only shot a glock once, so I haven't really formed a full opinion of them yet, but it should be whatever makes you feel the most comfortable. I feel very comfortable with both a 1911 or a revolver in hand.

 

[EdC]

First off, it's a worthwhile issue to think about and discuss.

I carry striker fired, like Glocks, Walther PPS and XD's some of the time, 1911's some of the time, and a revolver some of the time. Most of the time it's the Walther PPS or KelTec PF9 (DAO). I dry fire and handle all my carry guns a lot, and I think clt46910 said it well: " In time you can walk up to a table of guns and when it hits your hand, your muscle memory will take over to the feel of the firearm in your hand."

I'm not saying I'm an expert by any means, it's just not something I'm worried about. It boils down to this: I'm confident that if I'm carrying a 1911, I'll remember to flick the thumb safety off if I need to shoot it.

 

[Jay]

You will perform as you practice. If you can't, or don't want to deal with a thumb safety, then buy something else. I don't have any issues with dis-engaging a thumb safety under stress, and I've carried a 1911 for many, many years, but to each his/her own. I've found that polymer framed guns tend to jam more often than not when gripped too loose, but my steel-framed 1911's have never presented that issue.

The fact that after 100 years, the 1911 platform is popular enough to continue to be one of the most sought after, speaks for itself.

I wonder why the Ferrari's weren't denigrated because they had a manual transmission?

Carry what you want, but don't try to convert anyone just because you can't deal with their choice of carry guns.