Spare mag 100% of the time??
- Thread starter GoBigblue
- Start date
I've never been an LEO, and I've not been carrying for all that long. But I have put a great deal of thought into it. It's all about degrees of preparedness. I carry everywhere. But I don't carry a spare mag. I don't expect I'll ever need to pull my gun. But according to my research, the vast majority of defensive encounters are resolved without firing a shot. I have 10+1. I am sure that even if I carried 2 or 3 full size mags as spares, someone would say It isn't enough. James Yeager carries 3 guns, and probably spare mags for them all. I think being prepared, for me is more about proper mindset, situational awareness, and staying out of harms way.
I've had magazine malfunctions more often than firearm malfunctions. If you only have what is in the pistol, you can be reduced to a single shot if the worst happens. Is it rare? Yes, but people do win the lottery.
mcoe74
US Veteran
Depends on clothes worn and firearm, I carry at least one extra magazine.
Jim1392
US Veteran
When I carry my Shield 9 I carry the spare 7 round magazine in my weak side front pocket.
Lee in Quartzsite
Member
Always carry an extra mag in a horizontal mag holder. Never even know it's there.
Horizontal MagHolders
Horizontal MagHolders
I ran out of spare ammo during an on duty gun battle a long time ago so I always carry one spare speed strip or mag no matter where I'm going. When we take a road trip an extra box of ammo (50 rounds) goes along with a spare J frame in the car.
OK So, I'm apologizing in in advance because this is going to sound like I'm trying to be insulting and I'm not.
It's not surprising that you don't carry a spare mag because you've made it pretty clear by your posts that you carry your gun as more of a good luck charm than any kind of self defense tool
The problem with playing those odds is that you're betting with the thing most likely to fail and render your gun all but useless. The solution is so simple and easy that it makes no sense to me to go without a spare.
The other thing about the arguments against carrying a spare mag is that they always revolve around a gun fight. Sometimes things happen that just happen. I was sitting in the cruiser one time a few years ago when the base plate on the mag in my sidearm let go and pinged off into oblivion for some unknown reason and ammo went everywhere. Since I couldn't find the base plate I couldn't reassemble the mag, if I hadn't had a spare I'd have been SOL.
A more recent situation didn't even involve a failure. I had a couple of live traps set up on a guy's property to try and catch some domestic rabbits that he'd let loose. I stopped on my way to work at the hospital to check the traps and found a skunk in one of them. With no way to get it out of the trap except by dispatching it first, I took out my Kel-tec .380 to pop it in the head. Naturally, I was shooting from outside the skunk's range, about 8-10yds. Skunk heads are pretty small at that distance, I hit it on the third shot. Now, if I didn't have a spare mag I would have had to go through the rest of the day carrying a 4-shooter to protect myself against whatever might happen.
A spare reload is cheap, easy insurance that can come in handy even when you're not in a gunfight. Too easy to leave behind.
Of course, if you are in a gunfight, what are you going to do when the smoke clears and you're (hopefully) standing there with an empty pistol? Maybe the guy you just shot has friends or family that someone called and are on there way to take care of business. Maybe he's not quite out of the fight yet. Anything can happen, are you going to be ready for it?
And what. Its wrong to carry a gun occasionally or when I feel like it just because you feel like you NEED it so therefore im stupid and use it as a good luck charm? Not everyone thinks like you smokes. Thank god.
I never said you were stupid. What I was trying to say was it the way that you carry a gun indicates that you don't think you'll ever really need to use it.
If you don't think you'll ever really need to use it why bother carryinga spare magazine?
All of this indicates to me that ,with all due respect, the gun is a good luck charm to you
Last edited:
Faulkner
Member
Statistically speaking, spare magazines are the least used item carried on a LEO's duty belt.
Even so, I never leave home without 'em.
Even so, I never leave home without 'em.
Rastoff
US Veteran
The reason for carrying an extra mag is not for more ammo. Obviously more ammo is a good thing, but the first reason is in case of a malfunction. So yeah, the 8 rounds in the gun is plenty for the vast majority of situations. However, if most gun fights are over in 3 rounds or less, I at least want to get all 3 rounds.Very interested to compare answers here with those in the current 1911 thread where some felt that if eight rounds doesn't cover you, you weren't coming out on top anyway.
Yes, I always carry a spare.
I would never presume to advise an LEO on how much ammo to carry on duty. Were I in that line of work, I'd want all I could carry. However, as someone who does his best to avoid trouble, I have to weigh the benefits of being armed for any scenario against the inconvenience of carrying an M4 and a full combat load of ammo. But seriously, I choose to carry just in case I need to defend myself and my family. I chose an M&P for its reliability, but I'd feel just as safe with a Glock or Sig. I take meticulous care of it and only carry quality ammo that I have thoroughly tested in my gun. Yes I know that any gun can fail, and if mine does I will be screwed. My point is, no matter what I carry, I could easily imagine a situation where it wasn't enough. I have to draw the line somewhere. I have several mags and they are all loaded, but if I ever find myself needing to go somewhere that I feel I'll need to bring extra mags and maybe some body armor, I think I'll stay home. And I would never bring a Kel-tec to a skunk fight.
9 or 45.....then
9 or 40 or 45
spare mag......... or not
maybe 2 spare mags is better................
any universal truth...................................
No
Good night and may God bless............................
9 or 40 or 45
spare mag......... or not
maybe 2 spare mags is better................
any universal truth...................................
No
Good night and may God bless............................
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More often than not. More frequently since I discovered a Galco mag holder without clip, straps or anything else on closeout at the LGS. It now rides in my weak side hip pants pocket, replacing an Ace comb that is less necessary with each passing year.
Always. 1 spare magazine or speed strip seems such a minimal increase to the loadout, in comparison with the benefits.
I quit not carrying a spare after the first time I had to dispatch a crippled doe on the side of the road. As I got back in the car, I thought, hey, having my magazine full again would be nice.
This is nothing compared to how much ammo I carried in Afghanistan or Iraq. But then, we had ammo cans full of loaded magazines in each vehicle, too. 1 spare 8 round magazine, or 5 round strip? Yeah, that's easy.
I quit not carrying a spare after the first time I had to dispatch a crippled doe on the side of the road. As I got back in the car, I thought, hey, having my magazine full again would be nice.
This is nothing compared to how much ammo I carried in Afghanistan or Iraq. But then, we had ammo cans full of loaded magazines in each vehicle, too. 1 spare 8 round magazine, or 5 round strip? Yeah, that's easy.
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