Tonight was one of the few times I've CC'd with my 1911 in "cocked and locked" fashion. I can not seem to overcome the psychology of this condition even though I know it is the safest and most appropriate way to carry a 1911. I still feel like I have a stick of volatile old 1800's dynamite strapped to my waist. Anyone here have the same inhibitions when first carrying a 1911 cocked and locked?
CC w/1911
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Tonight was one of the few times I've CC'd with my 1911 in "cocked and locked" fashion. I can not seem to overcome the psychology of this condition even though I know it is the safest and most appropriate way to carry a 1911. I still feel like I have a stick of volatile old 1800's dynamite strapped to my waist. Anyone here have the same inhibitions when first carrying a 1911 cocked and locked?
I did at first. Then I read a good suggestion on one of the forums that said to wear it unloaded around the house for a couple of weeks to see if anything happens. I did this, and it convinced me. At first, I found myself checking to see if the safety had slipped off more times than I could count. Nope, still on. Nope, still on. Good to go. After a few days of this, I was able to set it and forget it. With all of its redundant safeties, the 1911 is probably the safest pistol to carry loaded. I still get a little nervous during the second it takes to flick the safety off and unchamber a live round, though.
GatorFarmer
Member
No, I never had that problem. Even if you were carrying it condition zero, you'd still have to both depress the grip safety *and* pull the trigger to make it fire. If it is contained in a holster that covers the trigger guard, this would be a rather unlikely situation to have happen.
Spotteddog
Member
One caveat,
I feel fine carrying a 1911' in condition 1 if (as Gator mentioned) the holster will allow a covered trigger guard. And I've carried them a lot. BUT! With so many semi-custom guns being produced anymore with ambi thumb safeties, care should also be taken in holster selection that at least the towards the body side thumb safety is retained in the "on safe" positioning by the holster. Trouble is with an ambi and especially with the ambi's on steroids sized one's they install of late, the off side (away from the body) thumb safety can be knocked into the released position by clothing, leaning on something or shifting around in a chair. That is, unless the inside half of the thumb safety is being held in the "on" position by a dedicated area of the holster, while the gun is IN the holster.
JOMO?
I feel fine carrying a 1911' in condition 1 if (as Gator mentioned) the holster will allow a covered trigger guard. And I've carried them a lot. BUT! With so many semi-custom guns being produced anymore with ambi thumb safeties, care should also be taken in holster selection that at least the towards the body side thumb safety is retained in the "on safe" positioning by the holster. Trouble is with an ambi and especially with the ambi's on steroids sized one's they install of late, the off side (away from the body) thumb safety can be knocked into the released position by clothing, leaning on something or shifting around in a chair. That is, unless the inside half of the thumb safety is being held in the "on" position by a dedicated area of the holster, while the gun is IN the holster.
JOMO?
yugolovr
Member
I couldn't tell you how many thousands of rounds I've shot through a 1911. It sounds to me like you are just a little afraid of the gun. There is nothing wrong with this so don't worry about it. It's just part of becoming acquainted with the 1911. I would recommend that you get a lot of dry fire practice with the gun. Do all the practice coming out of your holster Just always make sure that the gun is unloaded. Eventually you find that you'll be flipping the safety on and off from memory. If you are still worried about it you can get a holster with a thumb break. It is kind of like giving your 1911 a third safety. Just practice, practice, and practice. Your fears and worries will go away. Then you'll wonder what you were ever worried about in the first place.
flop-shank
US Veteran
I'm going to offer a somewhat dissenting opinion here. Since you will never assemble a complete line up of carry guns that have the same manual of arms as the 1911 (ever see a snubnose revolver with a safety?), I would carry a different full size gun and go around the whole cocked and locked 1911 issue altogether. I prefer, so far as possible, that all my carry guns are point and pull. No safeties for me.
At the same time, if you are set on 1911s, they are fine weapons and those who posted upthread have offered excellent advice. DumS&Wguy suggested a great way to get comfortable and aquainted with a 1911, but if after following it you still have reservations, a revolver, or DAO auto with a heavy trigger might be better suited to you.
At the same time, if you are set on 1911s, they are fine weapons and those who posted upthread have offered excellent advice. DumS&Wguy suggested a great way to get comfortable and aquainted with a 1911, but if after following it you still have reservations, a revolver, or DAO auto with a heavy trigger might be better suited to you.
cmort666
Member
For about 1/2 hour, the time it took me to walk to the office the Sunday after I got my Ohio CHL.
I do a lot of walking for exercise. One Sunday I walked to the office. I had my Norinco M1911 in a Fobus paddle holster, under an untucked long sleave t-shirt (exercise being the only time I wear untucked shirts). I wanted to make sure that there wouldn't be any problems with the safety working its way off, so I carried cocked and locked without a round chambered. When I got there, everything was fine, so I showed my boss (who's usually in the office) my firearm. When I was ready to leave, I chambered a round and put the safety on. I've never carried it any way but cocked and locked ever since, mostly in a Don Hum IWB.
Good advice from flop-shank. I don't switch to a weapon with a different MO without at least a range session in between, and mostly I don't switch at all. I don't think that I would go back to carrying my autos without several sessions to get me used to both drawing and firing. I base this decision on my actual experience of using my 1911 after many months of revolver use. I found that I could shoot well, but not as quickly, and the gun just didn't feel as familiar as it had in the past.
OFT
Member
I've carried 1911s locked & cocked for about forty years. The only time I had any concern was shortly after buying a Bianchi shoulder holster years ago. About the third or fourth time that I used it I found that the thumb safety had been disengaged when pushing the pistol into the holster. I had carried it for several hours with the safety off. I found someone with a Roy Baker pancake that wanted a shoulder holster and a trade was made after I told him to be careful when sliding a 1911 into his new rig.
TwoGunsStanding
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All the above is WHY I raised the issue of "cocked, no safety", or "empty chamber". We all love the 1911, but the safety, especially oversized ambi-types, can and do get pushed off, so you are then in Con Zero. All modes are options, and no particular one is for EVERYONE. Hence the lively discussions!
G
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I was lucky enough to go through the Small Arms School at Aberdeen Proving Grounds before I had the change to begin "carrying" anything on a regular basis. Part of that Class included the 'History' as well as the 'Mechanics' of this gun. Even if the 1911 is closing on 100 Year old it is still a very well designed gun and is as safe as any other and safer than many handguns to carry the way it was designed to be "Cocked & Locked".
I do suggest a good holster that will keep the Thumb Safety from being swiped off by 'accident' but as long as the Grip Safety is still functional the gun is still "SAFE" to carry.
I do suggest a good holster that will keep the Thumb Safety from being swiped off by 'accident' but as long as the Grip Safety is still functional the gun is still "SAFE" to carry.
Thanks for the advice guys. I'm actually following dumS&Wguy's advice today just to get a confidence level. Thanks for that.
I probably didn't articulate myself properly in my original post. I DO want to get to the point where I'm comfortable carrying it cocked and locked. I have a ton of range time with a 1911 and am familiar with its mechanics and safetys....the flipping off of the safety is not an issue for me (at least not practice-wise). It's that I haven't CC'd a 1911 much at all and there's a little discomfort here, early on, with the C&L condition because I'm not yet used to it. I'm an engineer so I start thinking about the potential energy the hammer spring has stored. Like I said, it's not necessarily a rational concern, but my first few times have been a bit uncomfortable from a psychological standpoint. I DO want to get to the point where I am comfortable with it...hence this thread.
I have other options that include weapons similar to others' suggestions above....and for lack of better term they are "deployed" for duty most of the time.
Any other suggestions for holsters? Mine does have ambi safety (a Colt Commander) so I'd like to find one that's got that in mind....
Thanks again!
I probably didn't articulate myself properly in my original post. I DO want to get to the point where I'm comfortable carrying it cocked and locked. I have a ton of range time with a 1911 and am familiar with its mechanics and safetys....the flipping off of the safety is not an issue for me (at least not practice-wise). It's that I haven't CC'd a 1911 much at all and there's a little discomfort here, early on, with the C&L condition because I'm not yet used to it. I'm an engineer so I start thinking about the potential energy the hammer spring has stored. Like I said, it's not necessarily a rational concern, but my first few times have been a bit uncomfortable from a psychological standpoint. I DO want to get to the point where I am comfortable with it...hence this thread.
I have other options that include weapons similar to others' suggestions above....and for lack of better term they are "deployed" for duty most of the time.
Any other suggestions for holsters? Mine does have ambi safety (a Colt Commander) so I'd like to find one that's got that in mind....
Thanks again!
Spotteddog
Member
If it's a feature on the holsters you look into, a safety lever cradling pocket, notch, etc. will be a prominently noted feature. They're typically found more so on the thumb break types. Personally, the ambi safety levers on the carry 1911's I use have all been mowed down to a just slightly larger than G.I. sizing. The extended one's they're installing anymore are nearly the size of a diving board and just too damned big and square for a carry gun, IMHO?
R-Tex
Member
For my money, Milt Sparks is tops. The 5 or 6-month wait is well worth it. All my MS 1911 holsters have molded-in indentations for the thumb safety. An added feature that provides a bit more peace of mind for many.
HTH,
That's funny!
I always respected his opinion, but it did not cause me to distrust the gun. Thinking back, while a young man at home with him, he might have forbidden me to carry the gun C1, but in his usual way, he left it to me to do as I thought best, without overriding that with a direct order. Fortunately for me, there were never any problems.
One thing that has a similar effect on me is more a matter of how the gun is carried - ex. a horizontal shoulder holster.
Similarly, a gun carried in the pants pocket that is pointing at the person sitting across the table from me while I am seated makes me much more nervous than any mechanism or feature of any handgun. Much better to have that barrel pointed down at the ground, no matter how safe the pistol. Funny how we develop, or fail to develop, these little phobias.
LoboGunLeather
US Veteran
As a holster maker with 36 years experience, please allow my little bit of input on this subject. Anytime you are selecting a holster you should make absolutely sure that all of the pistols "controls" are not affected by the holster, including the safety. Making a holster with built-in provisions for keeping the thumb safety locked REQUIRES that the holster be fitted to YOUR PISTOL (or one of exactly the same model, same safety profile, etc); DO NOT RELY ON A "GENERIC" DESIGN, since it is highly unlikely to be a proper fit to your safety's profile.
Captain38
Member
I WISH I had a nickel for every person back in my days as a State Police detective supervisor who noticed I was carrying cocked and locked and asked if I knew my "pistol is COCKED"?
Considering that the Browning Hi-Power design OMITTED the grip safety in 1935, I even went so far as to pin down the grip safety on my Colt Combat Commander all the time that I carried it!
Oh, holsters? I used, and still would use, a Milt Sparks Summer Special or Summer Special II IWB model!
Considering that the Browning Hi-Power design OMITTED the grip safety in 1935, I even went so far as to pin down the grip safety on my Colt Combat Commander all the time that I carried it!
Oh, holsters? I used, and still would use, a Milt Sparks Summer Special or Summer Special II IWB model!
Joel C
Member
I carry my Para P12-45 cocked and locked. Is there another way of carrying such a weapon? I'm open to suggestions. Just being funny, but seriously, if your holster covers the trigger guard, then there is no need to panic. As long as you keep the booger hook off the bang switch you'll be OK. Hope you have a wonderful weekend.
Sledgehammer
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I never had a problem carrying cocked and locked. My original pistol training 40+ years ago included a 1911 and the instructor was a seasoned professional. He taught me the why's and wherefore's and C&L was never made out to be the 'terror' it is in today's gun magazines.
As noted by an earlier poster, a good holster is a must.
Like sex, carrying a 1911 gets better as one gets more experience.
As noted by an earlier poster, a good holster is a must.
Like sex, carrying a 1911 gets better as one gets more experience.
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