What "Odd" Guns Have You Seen Used On Duty By LEO, Security Guards, Etc.?

In the early 70's, a local part-time deputy carried a 32-20 Colt Police Positive.

At least all his ammunition matched. I saw a couple cops with M&P .38's loaded with the classic "random order - no two rounds the same" pattern: one factory 158 RNL, one WC, a SWC reload, etc.
 
Back in the late 70s, while working in Detroit PD, I happened to work with a senior and very "seasoned" scout car partner who carried a 4 inch nickeled Python. Nothing strange about that until I got to take a good look at it. Not very clean, wear, freckles of rust on it and after I got the cylinder open, with more force than one should have to use, I found it to be loaded with two or three 38 wadcutters, a Super Vel 357 round and several Remington or Winchester 357 SWCs.
That particular officer eventally got fired.
 
Israel: Soldiers mostly had M16s, M4s, and the occasional Galil. Plain clothed "tourist security" guys had the Uzis. But in old Jerulalem there were a great many police (?) in blue uniforms carrying M1 Carbines. Logical choice in the close confines of the old city. I felt very secure there.
 
One security job I worked here in Alabama was the guy that toted a replica Remington 1858 Cap-n-ball revolver. He said a buddy loaded it and loaned it to him about 2 months ago!!
 
From my past as a firearms instructor/supervisor for a security company, circa 1997.


Grog said:
No, you cannot replace the factory fresh xxxx .38spl ammo I issued to you with three rounds of Federal .357 Magnum, two rounds of Remington .38spl ammo and one round of Winchester .357 Magnum ammo.
Click to expand...
 
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While working the UN police mission in Kosovo, I saw African cops carrying M10s loaded with lead 158 gr RNL Blazer ammo. I talked to Fiji Island officers with 5" Victory model M&Ps in .38 S&W. I Met a Greek Army officer who was carrying a 1911 Colt that dated to 1914.

I have seen security officers carrying RG .38s and Rossis. One guard was working a bank and didn't have a sidearm visable. I asked if he was armed and he pulled a Raven .25 out of his pocket!

A good friend, who started his police carrer in 1980, first carried a post WW II 1926 .44 Special. His father was a security guard at an Interstate rest stop and he often carried a 6" Colt New Frontier in .22 Magnum.

I have carried a .32-20 S&W, a .45 Colt Ruger Blackhawk, a couple of 1917s, both Colt and S&W, a .455 Smith converted to .45 Colt, and a Webley MK V converted to .45 ACP, during my police career.

Yes, I know I'm a bit different. :)
 
The company I am working for has a contact to Uncle Sam. If you don't have your own gun they issue you a Ruger P89 or P95 in 9mm. I started carrying a S&W 4566 and just switched over to a S&W 4563TSW. When I first started on the job I wanted to use my S&W 681 but didn't have the duty gear for it. I shoot better with a revolver! We have all kinds of different guns being used. One guy has a Ruger Security Six in .357 mag and as far as I know he is the only one in the company using a revolver. He did buy a SR9 last year, but doesn't work armed very much any more. Colt 1911 Officers Model, S&W 915, Sigma, 5906, 4006, Glock 19 & 23, Browning High Power in .40S&W, Sig P220 & a Sig Pro are the ones I have seen.

When I worked for the Sheriff's Department a number of years ago every one had personally owned autos but one Captain. He still carried his Department issued S&W Model 66 with 2 1/2 inch barrel. In 2001 he was forced to use the newly issued Sig P226 in 9mm.
 
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30 to 35 years ago the bus station in Junction City Kansas, which was just off base from Fort Riley, had an ex-drill Sargeant working security. This guy was a black gentleman, about 6'6" and probably weighed about 280 pounds, solid muscle. He carried a model 60 on his belt but it also had a lanyard ring in the butt and was hooked to his belt. I really don't think he needed the gun, he could scare the stink off doo doo.
 
Back in time to the late 60's, in Matherville ,Il. the "marshall" carried a Colt 4in. Woodsman with one extra mag.. Fast forward to central Mo. "small town,can't remember the name" got caught in a local money maker speed trap doing 25 in a 20 zone. The "officer" wearing jeans and t-shirt carried a Ruger Single-Six. Paid a $20. fine to the City Clerk who lived behind gas station that her husband owned. The only good thing about the whole incident was , the clerk had just finished baking a cherry pie so after paying my fine, the officer, clerk and I all had hot cherry pie, ice cream and a fresh cup of coffee. You just have to love "small town Missouri".
 
While working at Shooter's I had the opportunity to watch the instructors teach and qualify security guards. One was an older gentleman and he was using a nickel New Service in .45 ACP. It was a Military gun that had been replated. Said he had it for years and couldn't find a reason to buy another gun.


We also had a customer come in with his Dad's WWII issue revolver. According to him his Dad was a anti submarine pilto in the Carribean flew a B-25 or 24 can't remember exactly. But he had a Colt D Frame in .32 New Police.
 
In Chicago in the '70s, Continental Bank guards downtown wore spiffy brown uniforms with high peaked caps that looked remarkably like the Nazi party officials' dress uniform. There was a guy who I think was the supervisor who carried what looked like a 2" Model 36 with adjustable sights. With that flashy uniform and the tiny gun in a belt holster, he looked like the mayor of some little German town, circa 1938.
 
Rural County Deputy Sheriff that I worked with carried a Desert Eagle
.44mag.
Security Guard carried an issue Taurus .38spl revolver that the barrel was so loose in the frame that the barrel wiggled back and forth.
 
A couple years ago i went to a local casino to buy a pair of grips off a forum mrmber who ran security there. He recently switched from an auto loader to a S&W 25-5 .45 Colt with a six inch barrel in a typical cop rig. This was very refreshing nowadays and a very practical choice. I liked this guy's style and own one of those myself.
I really didn't expect to see so many weird guns pop up here. Various .22's, blackpowder, a Webley RIC (!), and the most interesting, a Broomhandle Mauser. Wow!
 
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When I was a kid in the 50s I saw a cop or more likely a security guard at a sports show in green bay wisconsin that was packing a double gun rig of two colt single actions. Another time many years ago I knew a guard who packed a nickle .45 colt new service.
In 1977 I was flying my plane cross country from california to wisconsin. The weather forced me to land at murdo south dakota for about four days. Somehow I hooked up with the county sheriff "Mac" something. He had no deputys, drove a old red comet with springs sticking through the seat, had a old single barrel 12 gauge ratteling around and best of all, wore bib overalls with a nickle colt .45 single action army strapped on. I rode around with Mac for about three wet days out of boredom. The same time I was forced down a FBI agent also had to land. He was more of a "Hotshot" and chose to hang with the younger murdo city cops. My radio antena had malfunctioned over the black hills, I didnt check weather and was caught over the clouds. Whats the statue of limitations? I chose to sink down at about 400 fpm instead of flying far back out of my way. I knew that country from haveing drove it with trucks and motorcycle trips and knew it was flat as a skillet. I finaly broke through, found the murdo watertower and air strip. In those days there wasnt anything there but a phone booth, a pawnee crop duster and a 172 that turned out to be the FBI agents. I was water planeing over the strip when I landed. Everything had flooded! I stood there in ankle deep water checking the phone book for a taxi when a old 4 wheel truck came up. It was the crop duster. He had seen me circleing the town. He first asked me how I was able to get down. I admitted I came down just on my basic instruments. He said, "What would I have done if I met someone!" After that we got along well. We share the same odd ball first name. His name was Merril Rust.
 
An academy classmate carries a Hi Point 9mm while working parttime as a deputy constable. Mostly serving papers, thankfully. A reserve at the SO has a Taurus 24/7 9mm, and another still carries an old blue M59. He has a factory 20 rounder that he uses during qualification.
 
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