Other than a gun?

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russp1

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In my CHL class, the instructor mentioned and recommended carrying something along with a firearm for self defense. He liked tactical pens and I've seen books that recommend a knife. What do you guys carry if anything?
 
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Pepper spray if I have a jacket...I'm a firm believer in having something a little less lethal for the escalation of violence scale, just like an LEO has on his belt. And I always have an assist knife on me.
 
A knife is an essential item for daily carry but should be used for defense only as a last resort, especially if you are carrying a firearm.

Intermediate force is a very tricky proposition. Pepper spray does not always work, as I once found out the hard way. As a citizen, you will be expected to do your best to avoid a situation. If the situation happens to find you and it escalates to lethal force, then use of a firearm will be justified. And you (or your lawyer) will need to be able to articulate why it was justified.

Dave Sinko
 
I carry a full sized lock back knife on my belt on the opposite side. I also carry pepper spray in the opposite side front pocket, a standard pocketknife and a sturdy all metal ink pen like a Zebra or Cross. Since I have a bum ankle I also carry a cane as needed.
 
sipowicz said:
Looks cool...but what is the advantage of the angled blade? I know it must be shaped like that for a reason but they don't say why in the press release....:confused:
Click to expand...

You grip it like a pistol with the tip of the blade acting as the muzzle. The idea is to use it to stab an attacker trying to disarm you; that's why it's worn on the side opposite the gun.

As for me, I usually have a pocket knife clipped to my left pocket. As a last resort I can use it in a disarm attempt. It's usually used to open packages.

I don't see a need for "tactical" pens; just carry a sturdy pen, like a Zebra (which, btw, is probably less than 1/10th the cost of a "tactical" pen). It writes nicely, too.

I also have a bright flashlight handy. In darker surroundings the light can momentarily stun an attacker, giving me the chance to run away. I can also use it for strikes, but again that's a last resort situation.

I've looked into pepper sprays, but haven't decided on what would suit me best. I'd prefer something that had a trainer version available, and one that's not likely to blow back in my face. I'm rather partial to the pepper foams I've seen.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned are first aid kits. I keep a small one in my pocket that has band-aids, gauze pads, gloves, and Cellox. I have a larger, more comprehensive kit in my car and an intermediate level kit in my backpack.
 
dsc06749o.jpg
 
I usually carry a 3 1/4" knife, but that's mainly as a utility. I've also been thinking about some kind of spray. These days I make a pretty inviting target with the bum hip and knee, but I think the Bubba Stik helps make up for that;):D
 
I have more edged weapons than I ever let my wife see. I almost always carry some sort of folder that I can open quickly with one hand, and I picked up one of those TDI's a year or so ago. Very slick, very concealable. I don't carry spray (used to) but after seeing buddies get it blown back in their face on windy days, I prefer not to take the chance. When I'm travelling the neighborhood I carry a stick, and it looks like I'm using it to walk with. I also have a walking staff for the woods when I'm hiking that has a 32" katana blade in it, just to keep me safe from ninja's. Got one of those slick little ti-lite knives as well, but that one doesnt travel with me much. My preferred folder is of Benchmade origin and assisted opening so it's darn quick. Great steel too, takes a heck of an edge. The blade is half serrated for rope/line cutting. I also make sure I have a quality small flashlight with me. Not only is the light great for disorienting someone, it fits my fist well as a substitute roll of quarters in case things get real close. And, dont forget to study some sort of martial art (don't care where it's from, boxing, karate, ju-jitsu, kung fu, or just plain old street fighting), so you can have confidence if things get physical. My .02.....oh, and I forgot about my little Cold Steel Culloden that sits in my lower back most of the time. Light, thin, and you can carry it all day without even noticing. To plagiarize another forum member, "cogito, ergo armatum sum"
 
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Watch the movie 'Hitman'. Dual swords in back scabbards. Really cool. How you sit down, I have no idea. But it would probably freak out anyone you encountered. Of course if you need that then you're handgun is useless, so at that point I would feel pretty much screwed.
 
I always take some common sense along with me. Never considered taking a knife to a gun fight. Those of us that have used pepper spray will attest to the fact it will have nearly the effect on the sprayer as the sprayee.

Of course, books on Conflict Resolution would be good to read before going out with knives, spray, tazers, tire tool, tow chains, brass knuckles and a body guard.

People cannot predict what they will encounter each day. Carrying a gun is more than what most will ever need. Just as with my car, every time I have a breakdown, I never have the exact tool I need even though I have almost every tool Craftsman makes. Common sense goes a lot farther than weapons.
 
I've been retired for 8 years. I always carry a pistol/revolver when out of the house. I also carry OC......

I want to be able to tell the Grand Jury that I really didn't want to Kill Anybody and that why I carry OC to try to stop violence upon myself or other innocents if possible.

I once took a life in the line of duty during a Robbery.
Even though I was plain clothes, a member of the Grand Jury said that they were impressed that I carried OC as an alternative to deadly force, ie. I just didn't carry a gun and soley rely on that.

Rule 303
 
Well, I thought I was satisfactorily armed until I read these posts!!

A person should probably give a lot of thought to the potential risks (violent crime) that he/she is exposed to within his/her own environment (where you walk, where you drive, locations you visit, etc.). Also give a lot of thought to your OWN CAPABILITY to handle other types of weapons/defense tools.

My guess is that 10 different people would come-up with 10 different answers to these questions. And each answer might well be correct for that person in his/her circumstances.

In my own situation, I have concluded that ONE firearm that I am experienced in handling is the answer. If this were to fail (e.g., an attacker "got to me" first), I rather doubt that a backup weapon would do much good for me (considering what I can do and what I cannot do).
 
Not to fuel paranoia, but we all have spare tires (I hope) in our vehicles. Firing pins and extractors break and ammo factories have their share of rounds that weren't put together exactly as the drawings specify.

This suggests that a "Plan B" is a really good idea since, if you need any of this stuff in the first place, your day isn't going well anyway and you're already on the wrong end of the probability stats.

I've made it a practice to have a knife available to either hand since getting entangled in a rope and not being able to reach my knife with my free hand. Fortunately, the critter that got us both in a fix was a fairly placid one and we managed to solve the issue, but it could have been ugly.
 
azalea said:
My guess is that 10 different people would come-up with 10 different answers to these questions. And each answer might well be correct for that person in his/her circumstances.

In my own situation, I have concluded that ONE firearm that I am experienced in handling is the answer. If this were to fail (e.g., an attacker "got to me" first), I rather doubt that a backup weapon would do much good for me (considering what I can do and what I cannot do).
Click to expand...

You are correct.

What most people do not understand is that in self defense, seconds count. The time you spend using spray may be the seconds someone needed to get the upper hand on on you. I have seen trained officers get the snot beat out of them by someone they used spray on. I have also seen officers get more spray than they were giving. If you want to get killed, do so by angering someone with something other than spray.

A knife is virtually worthless unless you intend to kill someone with it. I was trained that at 20 feet, a knife IS a deadly weapon. If it comes to pulling a knife as opposed to a gun, I will pull a gun. If someone kills a knifeweilding opponent, a jury will see it as self defense. I do not want to anger someone by pulling a knife when a gun would do much better.

Are there better choices than using a gun? I guess so but I would say leave those choices to someone who may be opposed to using a gun or does not feel they could use a gun. My daughter carries some agency issued spray to and from work with her at clinics and hospitals. At home, she has one of my Model 66 with a four inch barrel. If she is walking her dog, she has gun in the pocket of her scrubs.

It may come down to if a gun is always possible for someone. In court houses, schools and such where guns are not permitted, then something else may be fine. Yet when I am faced with a SD situation, I want a GUN.
 
@oldman45

THANKS SO MUCH for the "like". Much appreciated !!

There was a time when I thought about carrying other defensive gear. But through experiences shared with me by others, I concluded that, in my world, a single highly reliable firearm was best and anything else was unnecessary confusion/weight.

There was a YouTube video shared by a security professional on a 1911-specific forum in relation to the "reaction time" question. It was a horrific video to watch -- six to eight policeman in Guatemala, each armed with both semi-auto handguns and AR rifles, were attempted to surround and arrest one (just one) "bad guy" individual who was wielding a knife. At the end of the video, four of the police officers were dead or dying. It only took seconds for the "bad guy" to do this.

As much as I was pained by watching this video, I realized by studying the officers' "mistakes" that in most criminal assault situations, the defending law-abiding citizen - or officer - likely has only 1-3 seconds to react. I've chosen my carry weapons (just one at at time!) and holster with this in mind. These specific carry 1911s are ultra-high end 1911s ... and they won't fail if ever called upon.
 
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