Slightly Different Consideration for What NOT to Carry

Bill_in_TR said:

Perhaps this has been brought up at times but I don't recall seeing it. Besides all of the usual functional and preferential reasons for choosing a carry weapon does anyone ever choose their carry gun based upon the possibility of losing it.

By that I mean that in the event you should actually need to use it in self defense you will likely have it taken at least for a certain period of time during an investigation. And I have heard stories of some of the mistreatment confiscated guns get. I would not want a prized and possibly expensive gun taken from me.

Do any of you use this as a final consideration in choosing that carry gun? Do you carry a gun that you would be less unhappy to part with for any period of time? I realize you would still want it to satisfy your personal criteria for a concealed carry weapon.

Comments?

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This topic HAS been discussed, usually within the parameters of cost (e.g. $1,500 1911 being lost to the evidence locker for ever).

My opinion? Carry what you want and can afford, and can afford to lose.

Yep, this gets covered every so often, sometimes heatedly.

Me? If it offers a performance increase I don't worry about cost. The chances of actually needing it are once in a lifetime, so on that occasion I want the best tool for the job. If a cheaper option performs just as good, then ease of replacement might be a consideration.

But if I need it and it saves my life, money well spent even if I dont get it back, IMO.

Carry what you enjoy. If it goes into evidence for saving your life, so be it. Things can be replaced. Lives can't. That said, I might think twice before using something of great historical or sentimental value. Then again, maybe not...

I do not at this time have anything I would not carry for that reason but, I have never been into "collecting". All the guns I own I shoot. I have a couple times past ended up with a "collector item" that was just passing thru. Those I would not carry for that reason. So if someone owns some gun that is collector, or maybe if it has some personal reason, like it belonged to a loved one who is gone or was a special gift? In that case I would not want to have it maybe sit in some evidence locker for a long time. The cost of the gun has never been a consideration to me but, I also do not own any hand guns that cost what a nice car costs

Darn it! Now I need to put my unissued Singer back in the safe. . .

If I owned a gun so expensive I'd worry about losing it, I'd probably be more worried about wear from practice and carry.

On the other hand, I have run into a guy who explained that he preferred those gosh-awful soft'n'silky Uncle Mike abomination holsters, because he carried whatever shiney new gun he'd bought that month and they didn't scratch the finish.

I can remember a thread or two recently plowing this ground. I'll say the same thing now as I did then. If I ever have to draw it 'I'm in it to win it'.... I carry what I shoot well...regardless of cost.

Fortunately production guns are very reliable and are(or were) relatively inexpensive.

In the event that I have to use my ccw to the extent that it winds up in custody, it will likely be the least of my concerns.

I carry something I enjoy handling. 100% chance I'm going to look at it, and ENJOY carrying it, every day. On the very slim,
off-chance I may have to defend my life with it, it's expendable. But I'm not going to look at that pistol every day, as I'm holstering it,
and think "What a POS."...

Sadly - this topic while worthy of consideration - ALWAYS ends up mired in the illogical, irrational extremes at either end of the hypotheticals.



Todd.

You carry to protect yourself and appropriate others. You don't carry a COS play gun. Reality on cost. It is estimated by those who do this that even for a no bill, you might be in for $5000 of legal costs. If you go to trial, you may go from $50 to $150K. If you need an expert (unless you have made arrangements previously) they can range from $1000 to $10000 a day.

The gun cost is trivial. Sentiment - if you are dead or seriously injured by carrying an less than efficacious gun, who is the wise person?

That's how these thread end.

As a side issue, we have had threads on what to do when the law tells you to drop the gun. Some folks say that I will tell the law that this is my Super Duper Limited Edition Wonder Bang Thing and I will put it down carefully.

The law says to you as you don't comply: Bang, Bang.

A similar effect has been shown in the shooting of undercover cops who when uniformed police arrive on the scene and can't parse it, say drop the gun. The undercover cop will say I'm blah, blah and doesn't comply. Bang, bang.

Is there more to say? I can replace most carry guns. Buy a spare.

I'm very utilitarian when it comes to SD guns. I definitely dont want to carry a dapper fancy one for that purpose. It's not just the thought of losing it. When I'm driving my piece often goes under the seat or in the compartment. Multiply this routine x365 days a year and you're bound to see some dings and scratches gradually build up. I dont often want guns that I have to baby. If I pay good money for a gun it will be more for functionality and ruggedness than showroom appearance.

But to really answer more directly, YES I also am concerned with somehow losing a prized investment. So military and police type guns, both old and new, are mostly what I tend to carry. If I was an avid hunter I'd probably spend way more on a gun for that purpose than for self defense.

Realistic answers are sometimes blunt. Carrying a lethal weapon isn't a game of bean bag toss. I am more concerned with my stock market investments than losing my carry gun of a few hundred dollars.

As Armored Farmer said, most good quality guns are very reliable these days and you don't have to spend a fortune to get something decent. Carry what you want, but the days of having to invest more money into the gun beyond what it initially cost for it to be reliable and trust worthy, are pretty much gone, as long as you stick with whats known to work.

For me, Ive always been pretty hard on what I carry, as I mostly worked in fairly harsh environments and gear and guns, and everything else on me suffered right along with me. Im not putting a $2500 Nighthawk into my daily carry holster, when a $500 Glock actually fares much better to hard abuse and shoots just as well.

I basically have at least multiple duplicates of what I carry, just as a back up and practice guns. Cant have just one, and all of them are the same. And it didn't cost me $7500 either.

Buy a spare before you need it. Glocks were cheap and sold everywhere before the panic. It was pretty easy to have three different Glocks that all fit the same holster and any one of them could be considered a good carry gun. If the gun saves my life from an attacker, the police can keep it for all I care. I’ve got another.

Armored farmer said:

Fortunately production guns are very reliable and are(or were) relatively inexpensive.

In the event that I have to use my ccw to the extent that it winds up in custody, it will likely be the least of my concerns.

Click to expand...

This!
Least of my concerns.

I have first-hand experience in losing a weapon... but with a twist.

I was carrying a Colt's Government .380 for a while; I didn't particularly like the .380, but it was the smallest concealable pistol I had at that time. Replacement costs for that pistol was around $800-1000... that was the going rate for a full-sized stainless Gov't .380 at the gun shows... and I decided that I didn't really want to lose that pistol in the event I had to use it, and there were other considerations, too. I wound up with a $325 Kahr CW9, and just in time... a few months later, it was stolen out of my truck. Although I was glad it was a $300 pistol that was easy to replace, I wasn't happy about it... but it was better than losing my Colt .380, or my Kimber .45... my other carry piece. I went out the next weekend and bought a CM9 to replace it, and moved on with my life.

The stolen Kahr was recovered about 2 years later, during a bust in Dallas. The pistol spent something like 7 years tied up in paperwork... and I had pretty much just written it off. About 6 months ago, I get a call from my local PD... 'hey, you want your pistol back?' It was not much worse for the wear, but, again, I was glad it was a $300 pistol.

I have since taken steps in case of a handgun loss. If one is none, and two is one, I've got 5 Kahrs... so I've settled that question.

I've decided my carry piece is a tool... not a fashion statement. I'm not an Operator or Mall Ninja, so I don't need the latest and greatest. I chose the Kahr for a number of reasons as my carry piece, the fact it has a low cost of admission is a bonus. Truth be told, if the Kahr was a $1000 pistol, I'd probably still pay the money... it's that good... but I wouldn't like it, and 4 spares would probably be out of the question.

Bill_in_TR said:

Perhaps this has been brought up at times but I don't recall seeing it. Besides all of the usual functional and preferential reasons for choosing a carry weapon does anyone ever choose their carry gun based upon the possibility of losing it.

By that I mean that in the event you should actually need to use it in self defense you will likely have it taken at least for a certain period of time during an investigation. And I have heard stories of some of the mistreatment confiscated guns get. I would not want a prized and possibly expensive gun taken from me.

Do any of you use this as a final consideration in choosing that carry gun? Do you carry a gun that you would be less unhappy to part with for any period of time? I realize you would still want it to satisfy your personal criteria for a concealed carry weapon.

Comments?

Click to expand...

I don’t really own any cheap guns, so no.

I went with a Kahr CM9 for my CCW mainly because it was fairly inexpensive, is dependable, accurate, and lightweight, has great ergonomics, possesses a nice, smooth double action trigger, and is easily replaceable should the need arise. I could say the same thing about at least a dozen or more polymer frame semi-autos that would likewise check all the boxes and be worth considering for concealed carry.

Kleanbore said:

If you are involved in a use of force incident, that will be the least of your concerns, by far.

Click to expand...

Except... If the valued ones remain after the cheapies are gone you still have something substantial to hock for legal fees.

GEM said:

You carry to protect yourself and appropriate others. You don't carry a COS play gun. Reality on cost. It is estimated by those who do this that even for a no bill, you might be in for $5000 of legal costs. If you go to trial, you may go from $50 to $150K. If you need an expert (unless you have made arrangements previously) they can range from $1000 to $10000 a day.

The gun cost is trivial. Sentiment - if you are dead or seriously injured by carrying an less than efficacious gun, who is the wise person?

That's how these thread end.

As a side issue, we have had threads on what to do when the law tells you to drop the gun. Some folks say that I will tell the law that this is my Super Duper Limited Edition Wonder Bang Thing and I will put it down carefully.

The law says to you as you don't comply: Bang, Bang.

A similar effect has been shown in the shooting of undercover cops who when uniformed police arrive on the scene and can't parse it, say drop the gun. The undercover cop will say I'm blah, blah and doesn't comply. Bang, bang.

Is there more to say? I can replace most carry guns. Buy a spare.

Click to expand...

I've heard that $36,000 in legal fees is quite average for the person who has shot in self defense. That's probably not the end of life as I know it, but I sure don't want that kind of trouble.