I carry a single stack 9, and almost never carry a second clip.
I am good with that.
Me too. 7 rounds in the mag, one in the pipe of a hammer fired Ruger LC9, that's it and I don't feel unprotected.
I carry a single stack 9, and almost never carry a second clip.
I am good with that.
Me too. 7 rounds in the mag, one in the pipe of a hammer fired Ruger LC9, that's it and I don't feel unprotected.
I see your point OP, however my theory is if you need 35 shots you are either A) a really bad marksman, or B) facing way more people than you could take out before they return fire.
I used to be tempted to buy small, concealable handguns, and certainly there are quite a few quality ones on the market in respectable calibers. The LC9s, the PPS, the XDs, the Shield, the GLOCK 43, and many others. They are compact, easily carried, unobtrusive, lightweight, and convenient.
However, the reason I will no longer even consider buying one is simple: because I might be tempted to carry it rather than a full-size, high capacity handgun. After all, the reason I carry a handgun is because I believe I might actually NEED it to defend my life or the lives of my family or friends. And I don't carry a particular weapon primarily because it is lightweight or concealable or convenient. I primarily carry a particular handgun because it can contribute significant firepower in my efforts to survive a hostile encounter. Small, single stack handguns and revolvers just don't offer the same amount of firepower as full-size, double stack handguns.
Me? I carry a Smith & Wesson M&P in 9mm with an APEX Flat Faced trigger and Trijicon HD night sights. It gives me 18 shots before I need to reload and 35 shots with one extra mag on my person. It is (relatively) lightweight, has a fantastic trigger pull, has wonderful contrasting night sights, and feels great in the hand. It is made to contribute significantly to my survival in a bad situation, and I cannot imagine ever finding a better pistol than the one I currently carry.
No more small guns for me. Just too many disadvantages.
Vanguard.45
I get that I am lucky that I can carry at work and almost always can dress around the gun. Not everyone can do that. More don't want to than can't but that is beside the point. .
This is why I carry a Para Warthawg.To that end, I'm willing to give up on capacity for an improved caliber. But, the G30 kind of lets me have both. It gives me 10+1 rounds of .45 in a package that can be taken in 80% of the places I go.
Well big happenings at work yesterday. My company is going through a merger and management and new roles are beginning to be announced. My current employer has a no weapons policy. But....The CEO of the new company and my existing company are both pro concealed carry and have attended my into personal protection course with their wives, VP of operations has bought pistols at my urging and went through basic pistol with me, one of the new board of directors has been through intro personal protection with me, the new sales director is a marine who likes guns and having guns close at all times. I have been told my position will be less customer facing and more operational. So depending on the dress code my options for handguns might open up a bit this fall.
While more ammo is always good, if you worry too much about limitations of a particular class of firearms, then you'll ultimately be led to try and carry an AR15 with 120 rounds of ammo, right?
I have been told that more ammo is always better. Realistically most gunfights stop when the attacker "stops" or the gun runs out of ammo, at which time the attacker usually "stops". Reloading almost always happens after the confrontation is complete. I don't want to speak in absolutes and I will still advocate having a reload available. But you will run out of time before you run out of ammo. Maybe
I don't have any fantasies about engaging a mass shooter with my carry gun. I view it as a tool either to immediately defend myself against a single attacker, or to help me get out of a bad situation. I consider the odds. Most defensive shootings occur in homes, so I've got plenty of firepower there, even though again, I believe in most situations, only a few shots are fired, if any. I believe the odds are overwhelming that I'll never need to use a firearm in self defense, but that in the vast majority of situations, a single stack has more than enough to get the job done, so comfort and convenience becomes an important part of the equation.
Truthfully you don't know what you will be faced with but the role of the civic minded person carrying a weapon is different then law enforcement or military. Be careful about comparing shootings in or around the home. Yes much of defensive firearm use happens around the home but most violent crime happens outside the home. So why the disparity? Simple answer is because people keep guns in the home and tend to view that as acceptable where as most people do not carry a gun. My guess is that the personal protection forum is full of people who discuss carrying a handgun but do not on a regular basis. This is relevant to this thread because the small 9mm more easily allows for a person to carry a gun even though it might not be the most effective or appropriate.
So, for me, I'll carry what is most comfortable and concealable for the situation and clothing I'm wearing. I'd say 80% of the time, it is my Glock 42, and probably 18% of the time, my Glock 19. I'll occasionally, probably 1 percent, carry my Glock 43 (I like the 42 better...slightly smaller and I'm more accurate with it) and when in bear or hog country, another 1 percent, my Glock 20, sometimes concealed, semi concealed, or open.
Choose the most appropriate guns for your situation.
You can do a LOT of damage with a few or even one shot. Often, attackers can be dissuaded by just the sight of a defensive firearm. If it is a rushing attack, then it is folly to think you'd get more than a shot or two off, anyway. I don't recall reading too many situations where a concealed carry civillian dumped a large mag in a fight. Don't cite police shootings, because then the argument turns to carrying a full size weapon, which is what cops carry most of the time, plus back up. Again, to defend myself is not to enter a major engagement or firefight. That's so remote a possibility that it borders fantasy land, IMO.
Just my 2 cents. I doubt I'll ever have to defend myself with a firearm. Heck, I've lived all my life in tornado country, and I've NEVER laid eyes on one. I think the odds of seeing a tornado in Indiana are better for me than the odds of using my firearm in self defense. Honestly, when I carry, I do it more because I enjoy firarms and like having one with me, than because I fear any attack. I just don't really feel fearful in life, except when I do something to upset my wife, and a firearm is worthless in that situation.
Careful my friend! You simply do not know what your fight will look like. I think that is the OPs point. Carry the most effective firearm that you can and try not to fall victim to convenience. To quote a tired old saying "It is not the odds it is the stakes". Now what are the chances for a person in Indiana to be involved in a violent crime? I will tell you it is not remote, it also depends on your lifestyle and extracurricular activities. But in everytown USA Seymour, IN home of John Cougar and Katie Stam Miss America it was something like 1 in 232 in 2012. A gun is not a talisman and just because you point one at the bad guy does not mean they will be intimidated. Might not even be the first time someone has pointed a gun at them.
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As for carrying a small first aid kit, aren't you doing so already? You have a belt on, right? You have a t-shirt, right? Even if you're out in shorts and flip flops you have a drawstring on those shorts, no? "But slim, you can't use a string as a tourniquet." ORLY? Where are we, Fallujah? Are you going to have to stabilize the patient (or ourselves) for hours before medevac arrives on scene?
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