Should chamber be cleared when putting gun away for the night?

[Shibadog]

So are you saying that you know you'll have time to draw, but not to rack? Or that the adrenaline dump will interfere with racking, but not with trigger access? Why does a second to draw not matter, but a second to rack guarantees death?

I'm using all the same arguments as the chamber-full guys. Aren't they still valid, when all I did was take it slightly farther?

Of course I'm not serious about carrying this way. But it ought to make you think about whether those arguments are really valid for anything but an encounter that you've "pre-planned" as to what the perp will do.

Let me try another one. You are standing on a park pathway and out of the bushes pop four attackers - two with submachine guns, one with a 12 gauge, and one with a flamethrower. Should you have your chamber loaded?

Umm-perhaps you're in the wrong park….. A handgun with an empty chamber is a small awkward club. As a general rule you'll need two hands to rack the slide (yes I know there are tacticool one hand rack methods). If you need a weapon, you need it NOW, not seconds from now. If you're not comfortable carrying with a loaded chamber- don't. Just recognize you've added an extra step to the defense process. For SD all the plastic wonder guns with the flipper in the trigger safety leave me cold. Give me a DA revolver or pistol or a 1911 YMMV.

 

[sotexas]

For me it's simple, if I will be using for self defense then hell no. If it is not my defense gun for the night then I unload it box the ammo and back into the safe. To each their own.

 

[sotexas]

Back to the OPs question.

Yes, loading and unloading daily/nightly is unnecessary and potentially hazardous.

If not mentioned above, to me keeping the gun in its holster for carry and storage when at home is a good idea. One less opportunity to have your hands on a loaded gun just for storage purposes.

Do you actually store loaded guns

 

[Cal44]

I have several semi autos that have magazine locks and can't shoot unless there is a magazine in the gun.

In those guns, I feel it's safe to keep a round in the chamber, remove the magazine, and put the gun in the safe.

 

[Mike in Reedley]

The more you monkey with it, the greater the chance of something going wrong. Negligent discharges most often happen during loading, unloading, dry firing, or showing off your pistol.

I load the gun (s) I'm going to carry when it comes out of the safe and leave it loaded until I'm through with it. I can't imagine a scenario where my loaded carry gun would be out of my control, either it's on my person, or in a locked compartment that only I have access to.

At Gunsite, you check the chamber and magazine to make sure it's topped off at the, "Make Ready" command. Other than that, I don't fiddle with my pistol unnecessarily.

Carrying with an empty chamber, is like driving without your seatbelt buckled- thinking you'll have time to fasten it right before the impact of the collision.