Do you carry with a round chambered?

[Donnelly]

Like I've said, I trust myself. If I were on my own, it would be carry with one in the chamber. With the family, especially an emotional teenage girl thrown in the equation, I feel safer with the chamber empty.
I haven't had any confrontations with any bad guys yet, but the teenage girl...
Someone please tell me these teenage years end soon?!?!

 

[Caleb]

Like I've said, I trust myself. If I were on my own, it would be carry with one in the chamber. With the family, especially an emotional teenage girl thrown in the equation, I feel safer with the chamber empty.
I haven't had any confrontations with any bad guys yet, but the teenage girl...
Someone please tell me these teenage years end soon?!?!

I'd think 19-21 sounds about right....but it depends how fast they grow up.

 

[BloodEclipse]

XD 45 and chambered anytime it is on my person.

 

[Wabatuckian]

Pistols are always chambered; long arms aren't chambered (but mag is loaded) unless I'm carrying the long arm.

Josh <><

 

[DRob]

Always

I can't imagine carrying a gun that must be manipulated, other than by massaging the trigger, in order to get it into action.

 

[agentl074]

...Always trained to carry hot.

 

[Integraholic]

Cocked and locked 24/7

 

[Sailor]

I am the only one who has voted "never" so far. I still stand behind that. If a BG comes rushing into a gas station and I don't have the extra half second it would take to chamber a round, so be it, I guess it really was my time to go. Plus, let's face it, most of us are situationally aware that this time of scenario is pretty unlikely to happen. I figure I am more prepared than 98% of all the sheeple walking around anyway, and that extra half second it would take me is inconsequential.
I have a toddler at home and would feel like I have to unload the chambered round every time I am around home to feel like I have made the gun safe. I trust myself, but live with three women (one wife, one teen, one toddler), and don't feel like it would be safe enough at home with them thrown in the equation.
I have heard enough about bullet setback that I don't want to constantly re-chamber the same round and have a "catastrophic" failure in my Glock one day.
Finally, I am not espousing this for anyone else or trying to convince them that they should do it. It just works for me in the situation I am in. Maybe someday something will happen that will cause me to change my way of thinking as well as my style of carry. In the meantime, this works for me.

I would suggest you then practice racking the slide one handed, as you may not have use of your off hand when you need it. Also practice one handed mag changes.

Everyone should be doing this anyhow, but if you carry unloaded, then it is especially important.

 

[turnandshoot4]

Always one in the tube. I can get another in the mag that way

 

[SavageEagle]

I'm another one of those never. I've played with this for a long time now, even before i got my LTCH. I decided against it for now until I've become comfy with the idea. Also, having 4 small children affects my decision. I have one on ADHD meds, soon to be on herbal supplements instead since she's showing signs of self-violence ( ) and another that's emontionally unstable. Plus I roughhouse alot with my kids. Beyond it all I live with my mother who is barely ok with me going IWB around the house.

If I need one in the pipe at home I'm in trouble anyway and I'm not going to have time to even pull my gun. I'm still playing with the idea of chambering when I leave, but my concern lies with Donnley's (?) statement about chambering, emptying, and rechambering. It would be aweful to try and fire that round and it blow up in your face.

I do practice alot of draw, rack, shoot. I've gotten decent at it although I'd like to practice with real bullets instead of snap caps. Those things are GREAT training tools. Yes it would be faster and easier to pull and shoot, but until I'm comfortable carrying with a round in the chamber I'll take my chances having that extra half second to rack the slide.

 

[WestSider]

Wow nobody here carries revolvers? lol

We got a big 0 for that one on the vote.

I thought some people still carried them... interesting.

 

[Bigum1969]

Always carry with a round chambered.

 

[mustangmaniac92]

What's the point of not having one chambered?? I thought that's why they had safetys and stuff. And also... If you jack one in the chamber before you shoot somebody, defensivly or not, it's pre-meditated!!

 

[Turtle]

I usually do! And everything a person does is Pre-meditated. Why else would I carry my gun unless I planned to defend my self. (given the need) And having to cock my gun gets in the way of pulling the trigger. And is seen a liability.

 

[jeremy]

Kinda defeats the purpose of having the gun if you have to load it first.

 

[SavageEagle]

How does it defeat the purpose? As long as it's there and it only takes a half second, then it's still there. That's like saying you might as well not have a gun on you if it's not chambered. THat's just stupid talk.

 

[Soundslikejosh]

It defeats the purpose in the sense that you unnecessarily added another step to the process of saving your own life. Sure, an unloaded gun is better than none, but there is no justifiable reason to carry empty. If there is one that I have neglected, I will gladly eat crow.

What might be termed "stupid" is the irrational fear that a loaded gun might go off. I, like many others, admit to having been uneasy at first. I am not advocating that the new guy do something he is uncomfortable with. The reason he is very likely to get over it and started carrying a loaded gun is the fact that he will, it time, confront his concerns and realize that they are irrational.

There are plenty of people willing to argue against the "it only takes a half second" thing. I am not one of them. In my opinion, that idea is faulty at its very core, and does not deserve any more bandwidth. You are welcome to carry as you please.

 

[ashylarry]

How does it defeat the purpose? As long as it's there and it only takes a half second, then it's still there. That's like saying you might as well not have a gun on you if it's not chambered. THat's just stupid talk.

I think your signature is a little more "stupid talk". Pretty dumb statement about doctors.

 

[SavageEagle]

Ok here's my options in carrying as I see them. I can carry with
1) one in the chamber, safety off, hammer down.
2) one in the chamber, safety off, hammer in upright position.
3) one in the chamber, safety on, hammer in upright position.
4) Not one in the chamber, safety off, hammer down.

My reasonings:
1) Cocked and locked and in SA ready to fire? No. Too easy for a good jolt to set the hammer flying or an AD
2) Locked and in DA ready to fire? Probably more safe. Choice of cocking hammer back for easy trigger pull and better accuracy or DA TP for down right "MUST FIRE NOW" scenario.
3) Locked but safety on? Most safe, but could be dangerous too. Could fumble for the safety, or forget about it. That would be bad. Safe way to carry, but for the time it takes to flic the safety off I could rack it just as fast.
4) Safety off and the hammer cocked but no bullet in the pipe is how i carry, especially around the house. With the hammer cocked there is less resistance on the slide making it easier to slide back. Is actually faster than fumbling with the Slide safety. Also a good "Hey I just chambered. Stop or I'll shoot you!" indicator to the BG.

Look, maybe it's not the "Best" way to carry, but I'm still carrying. I'm not defenseless and those around me are more safe because of that. Whether there is one in the pipe or not, there are 15-17 right there and another 10-12 right beside it waiting to go.

Maybe it's irrational to "fear" the gun going off. I've tried to explain that to the women of the house, one of which would feel more safe if it was locked in a safe, upstairs. I don't fear it going off because I know my pistol and I know how it will be safe to carry it. But I don't carry it loaded because a half-second isn't going to make much difference. This isn't the matrix and I can't dodge bullets, but I can jump for cover as I'm drawing my pistol if that's the case. Otherwise I will more than likely have time to draw, rack, and aim.

 

[SavageEagle]

It's something I copied from a Lars post in the break room. You'd have to read it before you call that stupid talk.