When checking to see if your 1911 is loaded, as if it were ever not loaded, do you use the open chamber method or do you use the Loaded Chamber Indicator?

I am not accustomed to having the LCI with my older 1911 guns and cannot get used to having one on the newer 1911 models. It would be safer and quicker but I forget it is even there.

Do you use yours or, like me, use the old fashioned method?

i open the chamber about half way and look.

Press check - none of mine have loaded chamber indicators and I've done it by habit for almost 40 years . . .

Slide pincher....

I pull the slide back just far enough to see the chamber.

If it is cocked, then it is loaded. If the hammer is down, then it's unloaded.

But my 1911's are target guns. They aren't loaded unless I'm at the range shooting them.

I don't use the LCI either. If my 1911s are loaded, they will be cocked and locked.

When I am unloading the pistol, I drop the magazine, and rack the slide to eject the chambered round. Then, before dropping the hammer, I do a press check to make sure there is no round in the chamber. I do not put the empty magazine back into the pistol until the slide is fully forward in battery and the hammer is down.

The only "loaded chamber indicators" on any gun I own are tactile, auditory, and olfactory --- there's a jolt to the hand, a loud bang, and the smell of burned powder. Some guns also offer visual indication, by way of a bright flash. For 1911s, and other semi-autos, a press check.

I do the "old" method. Just used to it. And my eyesight isn't what it used to be to trust a loaded chamber indicator.

Do the same on all my guns.

I've been pulling the slide back a bit for 50 years. I want to be sure of what I'm seeing.

If it is in the gun safe it is unloaded. If it's not, it's loaded period.

I don't have anything with a loaded indicator.. I press check to confirm it is loaded.

press check for uniformity with all arms.

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it just needs more voltage

I always press check all of my autos LCI or not! Visual verification is a MUST! I don't trust a mechanical device to tell me if it's loaded or not. I was trained from an early age to check the chamber, and it's one old habit that I don't intend to break! Dale

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"Long live the S&W 3rd. Gen.!"

Bad, the LCI gives a visual on the chamber. I can see a shell if it is loaded. My problem is I forget the LCI is there.

The gun is always loaded. I do not check to see if it's loaded, all guns are loaded. If for some reason I want it unloaded I drop the magazine, rack the slide a couple of times to eject any loaded rounds that might be in the chamber, then visually check to make sure it's empty.

If you have doubts about a gun being loaded sooner or later something bad is going to happen.

Yup! That keeps the bullet fairy away.

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Bob

1911s have loaded chamber indictors!?!? I must have missed that on my Series 70. I always pull back the slide and have a look inside at the chamber.

The new S&W 1911s do; a small notch.
Quite handy, actually, when I'm loading to do a timed stage and want to be sure it chambered. Really embarassing to do your best quick presentation followed by "click."

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Science plus Art

The S&W guns have a LCI similiar to this,



Some aftermarket barrels have them as well. I press check them all out of habit.

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NRA Patron
MSSA Life Member

Evidently you guys have yet to meet the bad bullet fairy.

That's the only kind of bullet fairy there is...

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Bob

Press checks are used by many to insure the gun is loaded and a round is chambered before going into harm's way. As far as the original question, press check works for both, guns that do and guns that do not have an LCI. This is why I keep it the same for both types.

I don't think I OWN a gun with a loaded chamber indicator, certainly not an M1911. I partially retract the slide to check the chamber.

Here are two photos of the LCI on a S&W 1911. One with a round in the chamber and one without.

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	DSC_3115.JPG (104.7 KB, 43 views)

Okay, forgive my ignorance. I've been around handguns about 35 years and have never heard the term "press check" what exactly is this? Thanks......

thats just where you open the slide / bolt for a peek inside to see if anyone is home

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it just needs more voltage

Thanks, that's how I check my 1911's, I had just never heard the phrase before.

I had not heard that exact term either, but figured that's what it meant.

I have LCI on all my pistols and generally ignore them. I will "press check" to see if a round is there if I need to verify before using/firing. If I plan to manipulate the weapon for any other reason (cleaning, presentation drills, etc) I drop the mag and rack the slide all the way back and give it a good inspection just to be absolutely certain. Usually, I will even stick my pinkie in the chamber for extra good measure. Paranoid: maybe, but I'd rather be 110% certain.

It's second nature by now. Every time. Without fail. Especially since my brother put a hole in the garage ceiling because he didn't.


Bullseye

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Five screws and 3-1/2 inches.

I've never done just a press check to ensure the pistol is unloaded. For that I drop the mag and pull the slide back all the way.

Just another reason I shop the consignment cases. Not so much I object to an LCI, but like a Hillary Hole it would be a constant reminder of what lawyers have done to my country..

The best safety device will always be the one between your ears.

Having said that, my new 22/45 has an LCI & I honestly don't really notice it's there.

I have also used the term "Chamber check". Sorry if I confused anyone.

you could call it a Hillary hole, Im a tad suspicious of it myself as any notch in a breach forms a stress point and should be avoided. On the other hand, we are talking about a century old design that was due some evolution as it soldiers on into a marketplace that has undergone a few generations of evolution. LCI's .. I dont have any guns with them and wouldnt rely on the LCI if I did due to being brought up oldschool. I can however, see how LCI's would appeal into subsequent generations within the market, and as lame is it may seem, a gun might not sell to a noob without it.
Alas, as a testament to the design, the evolution list is shockingly short which says something about just how far ahead of its time it was a century ago.
I see them holstered on the hips of on duty police today .. talk about standing the test of time

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it just needs more voltage

All of my guns are loaded...regardless of their age, value, or if they are in the safe or not...that way there is no question. I have been carrying a 1911 Cocked and Locked for 30 years. That condition at one time was mandatory for horse mounted Cavalry troops and was even in the manual. I believe it was to help prevent shooting your mount while trying to rack a round and ride at the same time.