Do you carry more than one gun at a time?
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snakeman32
US Veteran
I usually carry just one but it can vary from day to day. I make the decision on a day to day basis depending on what I am doing and what areas of town I am going to. If my travels take me on the road or thru a bad area of town I will carry my Glock 19 or 22 and my Ruger SP101. Most of the time I carry just the Ruger.
snakeman
snakeman
44forever
Member
Actually, a committee chairman who wouldn't let the bill out otherwise but what I meant was I don't see that a pair of J-frame .38's is any more dangerous than a Glock with 17 rounds in the magazine.
Bratastic007
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44: Yeah, and tell me the last time a gun control measure proposed by a politician stood up to common-sense scrutiny.
Dave from Pa
SWCA Member, Absent Comrade
Only one,if more than one gun is needed you better hope the calvary is on the way. No substitute for a well placed first shot. I focus more on that approach than more lead.
Jonahjr
Member
Even though I've fired about 2000 rounds with my 9mm without an ftf problem....it could happen. So I have an 8 shot .22 mag. 2" barrel for a bug. I'm more accurate at 10-15 ft. with it than I am the 9mm anyway. I've put a lot more rounds through it. Was cheap to shoot at one time. Now the .22 mag hp's are over $10 for a box of 50. Guess I'm getting cheap in my old age.
Glock 'em down
Member
Yes, you should.
I wear both. I have no ass...I suffer from white man syndrome - a back with a crack.
I have to admit that I've been carrying for about 20 years and have never carried a BUG, but I've been thinking seriously about it lately ever since I saw the Desbiens Badger Reload. It's a great idea and would make carrying a BUG very convenient for me. Now I just have to buy a small gun...
I REALLY like that rig!
Probably 99% of the time, I carry two - a Glock 22 on the hip in a Galco "Combat Master" OWB holster along with a spare mag and a Surefire G2 in a Galco "MFP" pouch and a J frame model 38 Airweight Bodyguard in a Milt Sparks "PCH" pocket holster and a speed strip in my other pocket.
While on duty, I carry the exact same setup along with a Colt "Cobra" snubbie in my duty bag and my Mossberg 590 on the front seat with me.
Of course, there is that 1% of the time where I'm just making a quick trip to the store for a bag of ice or something. If that is the occasion, I just grab the Bodyguard and stick it in my pocket. I've also got another gun in the truck - a K frame model 65-2 with a 3 inch snout.
I guess you could say that there is basically 7 items that are in my pockets each and every time I walk out the door. No exceptions.
Smith & Wesson J frame model 38 Airweight Bodyguard.
Loaded (5 rounds) Bianchi Speed Strip.
Uncle Henry (Schrade model 55UH) folding knife.
Surefire L4 "Digital Lumamax" flashlight.
Looper Leather wallet/badge case.
LG Titanium cell phone.
Cotton hankie.
These 7 items are in my pockets each and every time I am vertical. They are my constant companions and I carry them...
Every. Single. Day.
BarbC
Member
I could not carry more than one. I figure between my purse at 6-8 pounds and another 2+ pounds of gun and ammunition, I'm pretty much maxed out on my tonnage.
38-44HD45
Absent Comrade
Right, but I still call "Weasel" on committee chairmen, just like any other politician.
More unsolicited commentary: I am a CHL Instructor, and have been since 1995. I've taught defensive shooting since 1983. Here's what I tell my students: Comments like, "If I need more than (fill in the blank) shots, I'm not going to make it anyway," represent preparation to die, not to survive. If that's your attitude, why carry even one gun? Mindset is as important as shot placement, and might help avoid the necessity of placing a shot.
Carrying two guns, or even just a spare magazine or speedloader is not a "belt and suspenders" approach, but rather simple recognition that firearms are mechanical devices, mechanical devices fail, and we can't always predict when they will fail. For instance, several years ago, I reached in my vest pocket for a spare .45 mag. It was a high-quality magazine from a reputable manufacturer. Unnoticed by me, at some point the welds on the baseplate had failed, so I had a mag body, baseplate, follower, spring and loose .45 rounds in my pocket when I reached. The first big IPSC match I ever shot, I was using a 1911 that had never malfunctioned in over 3000 rounds fired. It jammed on a time-limited standard exercise. Mr. Murphy, welcome to the match!
Additionally, as Flop has pointed out, there are often tactical reasons for a spare gun that have nothing to do with having "enough" ammo or gun failure. And it's not that the concept of "enough ammo" should be ignored. Sometimes, even with well-placed shots, it takes a lot to stop an assailant. But, you guys do what you want; it's your lives, not mine.
Bratastic007
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38-44HD45: Respectfully, I don't think it's accurate or honest to say that a mentality that one gun is enough is tantamount to "preparation to die, not survive." I carry one gun, because one gun (and the limited rounds it contains along with the training I've put in to become proficient in its use), should be enough to extricate me and my loved ones from 99.99% of situations I could encounter by accident. If it isn't by accident, I should have brought a rifle.
You are right to say that even the most well-manufactured firearm can malfunction. I carry either an HK or a S&W--both quality firearms that I trust with my life to work when needed. But things can go wrong.
Along those same lines, I drive a quality dependable vehicle, and carry a spare tire. But my storage space isn't clogged with spare belts and hoses or cans of transmission fluid. I could, but I do not. I wear my seatbelt and trust my airbags to work, but I don't also wear a helmet. One can only be so prepared, but one can never be 100% prepared.
My decision to carry one firearm reflects my conviction to stay alive. I support your right to carry as many firearms as you feel necessary to reflect your conviction to do the same.
Be safe out there.
You are right to say that even the most well-manufactured firearm can malfunction. I carry either an HK or a S&W--both quality firearms that I trust with my life to work when needed. But things can go wrong.
Along those same lines, I drive a quality dependable vehicle, and carry a spare tire. But my storage space isn't clogged with spare belts and hoses or cans of transmission fluid. I could, but I do not. I wear my seatbelt and trust my airbags to work, but I don't also wear a helmet. One can only be so prepared, but one can never be 100% prepared.
My decision to carry one firearm reflects my conviction to stay alive. I support your right to carry as many firearms as you feel necessary to reflect your conviction to do the same.
Be safe out there.
Glock 'em down
Member
Yeah, I call the Airweight J frames the "no excuses" gun, because of their super lightweight, there shouldn't be any excuse to ever go unarmed.
38-44HD45
Absent Comrade
No, one beats none, to be sure (sorry Clint, I know, I know, "One is none..."), and I'll heartily second your opinion that if it is planned, I shoulda' brought a rifle. (And friends with rifles, and maybe shotguns, and if possible, crew-served weapons.) If you'll go back and read my post, I didn't say that carrying only one gun is the problem. The mindset problem becomes evident when I hear platitudes like, "If I can't solve the problem with 5 shots, I'm not going to make it, anyway." The correct mindset, if you personally feel comfortable with carrying only one gun, is, "If 5 (or 6, or 7 or 17) shots won't get it done, I'll run, or transition to my knife, or do whatever it takes to survive." That shows both will to survive and recognition that one firearm, with one cylinder or mag-full, may not be a sufficient tool to solve Problem 1, whether or not the gun, ammunition or a component part fails.
I choose, as do many others, to carry a backup firearm most of the time. I can do so comfortably, without "clogging up my storage space." At the age of 55 going on 70, I've had Mr. Murphy ride unnoticed on my shoulder, making himself known by unpleasant surprise, enough times that I'm not at my maximum comfort level carrying only one. If you are, then I'm happy for you.
Frizzman
US Veteran
Always
I have carried at least two since I became a LEO in the 70's. I have never found it to be a problem to carry another compact, lightweight handgun in addition to the primary. When I was a LEO, I liked that I could keep my hand in the pocket of my coat with a snub in it when someone I didn't know approached me. I also always carry extra ammo for both. I certainly never found that in a shooting situation I wished I had LESS ammo.
I have carried at least two since I became a LEO in the 70's. I have never found it to be a problem to carry another compact, lightweight handgun in addition to the primary. When I was a LEO, I liked that I could keep my hand in the pocket of my coat with a snub in it when someone I didn't know approached me. I also always carry extra ammo for both. I certainly never found that in a shooting situation I wished I had LESS ammo.
oneminute
Member
I carry two pretty much all the time on duty and off. Exception being the occasional assignment where I can only carry one and at those times it is the 37-2.
You never know when your primary will lay down. You may not be able to access your primary due to injury or it may be trapped during a fight.
If you are comfortable carrying one weapon and have a plan for when it doesn't work then at least you are thinking about your options. For those of you that believe that if you can't solve the problem with x number rounds and it is "your time" then I would submit that you have lost the fight before it ever began and offer this quote from Dr. Alexis Artwohl for your consideration "You need to train hard to prevail, not just survive. Even then if you can't prevail you should do everything you can to survive, if you can't survive you need to take the ************ with you. Don't put your family through a trial"
You never know when your primary will lay down. You may not be able to access your primary due to injury or it may be trapped during a fight.
If you are comfortable carrying one weapon and have a plan for when it doesn't work then at least you are thinking about your options. For those of you that believe that if you can't solve the problem with x number rounds and it is "your time" then I would submit that you have lost the fight before it ever began and offer this quote from Dr. Alexis Artwohl for your consideration "You need to train hard to prevail, not just survive. Even then if you can't prevail you should do everything you can to survive, if you can't survive you need to take the ************ with you. Don't put your family through a trial"
It's not about lead. It's about being prepared for a mechanical failure that can happen at any time.
Respectfully, I think some folks are kidding themselves. Mechanical failures and/or user error can and will happen at the worst possible time.
So, why don't we make a list of reasons why some of us think it's a good idea to carry two or more guns?
Those that disagree can list thier reasons.
But let's leave out responses like "because I can" or "I'm too lazy".
So, why don't we make a list of reasons why some of us think it's a good idea to carry two or more guns?
Those that disagree can list thier reasons.
But let's leave out responses like "because I can" or "I'm too lazy".
