... when I go out into the world, I almost feel naked if I don't have at least 8 rounds in the gun (preferably 10 or more) & a re-load.
For those that just carry a 5 shot, why do you feel that's enough gun in today's crazy world? In most of the real life videos I've seen, 5 rounds just doesn't seem enough. ...
I used to carry a 6-shot revolver on-duty for several years in the 80's as a younger cop, so a 5-shot snub revolver only "cost" 1 round of capacity.
Back in those early service revolver days I often carried a 6-shot revolver or a 1911 with 7rd mags on my own time, and finally transitioned to 5-shot snubs for the convenience of carrying something lighter (like a 3" M36, or an older 649 Bodyguard .38 or a .44SPL Charter Arms Bulldog).
When I put away the revolvers I transitioned to a 3913, which uses 8rd mags. Although I was carrying an issued 6906 on-duty for a while, I preferred the slimmer frame of the 3913 on my own time, even though it lacked 4 rounds compared to the 6906. I later carried a CS45 (6rd mag), an early 4513TSW (6rd mag) and CS9 (7rd mag), too, so it's not like I was a particularly enthusiastic proponent of hi-cap guns on my own time.
Sure, nowadays I own some 9's, .40's and a .45 that use 9, 10 or 12rd mags (my single "hi-cap" pistol is a 12+1 .40), but I still prefer to carry one of my many 5-shot snubs as retirement weapons ... if I'm not carrying one of my pair of LCP's (6rd mags).
In older days it was pretty common to find LE firearms instructors carrying one or another 5-shot .38 snub on their own time, even if they carried a higher capacity pistol on-duty. The most common answer heard to the question "Why a 5-shot snub?" was usually that they were only carrying it against the potential need to defend against 1-2 attackers.
Now, something to also consider is that it's been said by some folks that a 2" snub revolver is more of an "expert's weapon" than one easily mastered by a novice.
Well, to be fair, the very attributes that make the little snubs so popular are also usually the very reasons that they can be harder to shoot accurately and controllably. Small grip, heavy DA/DAO trigger pull and greater felt recoil (due to the light weight), especially if the gun is rated for the use of +P loads. And even more especially if one of the Airweights, Airlites or PD models is being used.
As a longtime revolver shooter, though, and having carried revolvers on & off-duty as a cop, and then as a LE firearms instructor being able to spend a lot of time at a LE-Only range to practice my skills, I grew to appreciate the virtues of the small 5-shot snubs increasingly more over the years.
Modern ammunition improvements have given us better JHP ammo, too, meaning some bullets and loads tweaked for better "performance" (some potential for expansion) out of the short-barreled guns.
Given my druthers, I'll only get out one of my 9, .40 or .45 belt guns if I feel my planned activities are going to involve places and circumstances where I suspect a higher risk potential. Otherwise, for most of my "normal" retirement days/nights and activities, pocket-holstering one of my many J-frame snubs (or one of my LCP .380's) satisfy my perceived needs.
I don't presume to be able to make such decisions for anyone else, though. Not my business.
It's just that having carried one or another badge for 34 years, and having served as a LE firearms instructor for 26 years, I've acquired what I consider to be a sufficient amount of experience and training to be able to form an opinion about what makes me feel comfortable making such risk assessments and decisions for myself.
BTW, a couple of my last issued duty weapons were a 7+1 compact .45, and then a 8+1 compact 9, followed by a 15+1 .40 (when compact weapons were basically phased out with new full-size pistols in 9, .40 & .45, for ease of inventory control, procurement, etc). While I've previously carried some hi-cap pistols, I didn't invest as much attention to them on my own time as some other folks.
But then, I never felt exactly under-equipped even when carrying an issued .357 MAG revolver, either. For me it was more about being able to shoot accurately, and handle manipulation and loading smoothly and easily enough.
As an instructor, I've seen at least my fair share of folks who couldn't fire hi-cap duty pistols as quickly or as accurately as I could use my 5-shot snubs ... although granted, they didn't have to reload as often I did in the same courses-of-fire.
It's more about risk assessment, and hopefully also involves a frank self-appraisal of one's handgun foundation skillset.
It's just a handgun.
