Snub Relevance?

1. Does low crime mean that you have only low intensity gun fights in your area? Are your criminals more vulnerable that high crime area criminals?
2. This has been discussed into the dirt. Snubs and LCPs (and similar guns) are basically one opponent guns.
3. J frames are carried by many as primary due to dress circumstances and/or accepting that they take the risk of a one opponent, harder to shoot gun. Not the low crime mantra which is silly. Is a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado a high crime area?
4. Many who carry those smaller guns don't practice with them. Have you shot the gun in an intensive FOF training session or in a competition such as IDPA or USPSA (never seen the latter - folks do try in the former). Try that and make your evaluation. Shooting paper at the range at 7 yards is fine but not much of a test.

So, I know plenty of experts who will go out with J frame or smaller pocket auto but are well aware of its limitations, not the low crime silliness, and train with them.

I often carry 5 and 6 shot S&W snubs, in both .32 S&W-L (6 shot) and .38 Special (5 shot). I practice from 25 yards out to 3 yards in with both - often. I've never felt "undergunned" or not adequately armed/prepared.

As far as a "primary weapon" I carry it concealed and mostly one at a time (I have carried 2 J frames at once before).

I used to carry a J frame as my primary with 2 speedloaders due to dress and work conditions. I was very confident with my choice.

I do not carry on my person now as I legally cannot where I live. Feel blessed that you can carry. Practice often with your J frame and practice with the ammo that you intend to carry.

Just as an aside. I carried a 442 with the factory boot grip. I carried standard velocity loads, not +P because of three things.
1. Quick follow up shots weren’t possible for me with +P
2. My gun was more accurate with standard velocity .38s
3. I was confident in hitting where I aimed and I was confident in doing it quickly and accurately.

I frequently carry a snub, but as GEM mentioned, I am very aware of its limitations and the limitations of my abilities with it. My thinking regarding a snub as a backup gun is that the gun is already the last resort backup option. The limitations of a 5 (or 6 shot 327 mag) snub are somewhat shared by other pocket size guns, so when comparing apples to apples the snub is not as much at a disadvantage as it might seem for its category.

July 1 I will legally be able to carry in TN under constitutional carry laws. I will make my decision daily on what to carry, but the primary options are a charter undercover 5 shot 38, a Miroku Liberty chief 6 shot 38, a S&W 30-1 6 shot 32 long (loaded hot for caliber) or a Glock 42 7 shot .380. I have carried the 380 a lot back when I was in Kentucky and maintained my carry permit. I have also carried revolvers numerous times, all the way up to a 6” 44 mag in a shoulder rig. I have faith in all of my options, and consider each to be adequate for defense. If I keep going at the rate I am then I will likely never use the weapon in defense and therefore all of the years of carrying will have been for nothing and I hope for that to be the case.

I frequently carry a snub as primary.

The "What If" brigade will always provide commentary, and poo-poo any choice except a > 10 round 9mm polystriker.

GEM said:

Is a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado a high crime area?

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In actuality, yes, the Aurora Century Theater is located in a high-crime area. The I-225 corridor has been problematic for decades. However, the theater shooting was accomplished by a single shooter, NOT an ex-spetsnaz team, and return fire from a snub could have proven instrumental on stopping the attack. The problem with the theater event, and our most recent grocery store shooting in my town, is that the perps picked ideal times to attack- when probabilities of an armed citizen were low.

Avoid - Detect - Escape if Possible - Counter if Required

If you put as much effort into the first three steps then I submit a snub revolver will do fine, if needed, in the last step.

-Stan

I pocket carry a J frame as primary edc
I live in a small town that is fairly peaceful. Been 1 murder in town in the past 70 years, no gangs or gunfire on the streets

My back went south a decade ago ... I have found I have carried small frame revolvers more often ...
Charter 40 S&W , Charter 44spl , Taurus 856UL &
S&W 642 ... and LCRs in 327 & 357mag
Handy and dependable... Im very comfortable with my skills with revolvers...

JCooperfan1911 said:

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Does anyone here carry a snub nose 5 shot as a primary weapon, not just as a backup gun?

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Me. A SP101. (2 1/4" barrel)

A snub is fine if you are truly proficient with it. It’s a dependable option.

If I had no or very little experience with a 5-shot snub, I would:
Buy 2 snubs---shoot the snot out of one to become proficient with it and shoot the other one to "check it out" and become familiar with it and carry it.

It’s so hard to imagine every scenario possible. I’m comfortable with 5 shots of .38spl +p....far less likely to hang up in a panic situation (although certainly possible). If I thought I’d be attacked by a pack of rabid dogs, I’d want any one of my higher capacity auto-loaders....especially if I had time to draw, get in a proper stance, and make sure my grip is firm. For the split-second draw and fire...likely from a horrible stance...maybe from the ground...maybe with a loose grip...I’d prefer the hammer-less revolver. Much of the time, I have my PPS on me, some of the time, it’s my 640, and some of the time it’s the 642 in the nemesis pocket. And when I’ve watched too much news, I’ll throw on my G19.

The never ending argument between those who say "five is fine" and those who think that you are a fool to leave your front door with less than 18 rounds in a pistol backed up by three extra magazines.

The truth is that most of us will never have to draw a weapon, and if we do we will probably not fire a single shot. Having a handgun, any handgun, will put you miles ahead of the majority of people. Knowing how to handle that handgun, whatever it is, will keep you going forward.

Not to completely discount the thought that you might end up in a "Max Max" situation where nothing less than a belt-fed will save your bacon, but we need to live in the realm of probabilities due to the fact that nobody can plan for every possibility.

I carry my SP101 quite often.

I carry a S&W 66 quite often.
The Sp101 carries easier.
The 66 shoots easier.

I suppose you have to decide what you're planning for. Youre best or your worst case. Or just maybe luck.

If you shoot a couple of basic courses of fire, its not too hard to figure out. As soon as the difficulty of the drill, and/or the number of opponents increases, the favor of the 5 shot snubby decreases pretty quick.

I guess its what your comfort level is, carry and otherwise.

Kleanbore said:

The question is, should the firearm be needed, that number of rounds would provide sufficient protection for one's desired risk mitigation requirement.

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The number of rounds is only one aspect of whether the firearm will provide sufficient protection for one's desired risk mitigation requirement.

My primary carry is a charter undercover with golden sabers. 1 speedloader and a strip. Colt king cobra on weekends.

I pocket carry both a Ruger LCP (semi-auto) or an S&W 340SC when a waist-band or holster carry is not preferred. Used to carry our Taurus 85 5-holer quite a little bit as well.



Todd.

Just for clarification for those who are new to guns and may not know, the Ruger LCP series are compact .380 semi autos, the more recent LCP II is made in 380 or .22.

The Ruger LCR is a small framed revolver made in a variety of calibers.

The LCR is a proven gun that is easy to operate and can serve many people very well. I see no reason it wouldn’t serve the OP as a carry gun well, too. Like any 2” revolver a fair amount of practice is needed to become proficient, especially with performing ammo reloads, so plan on working a bit to gain a level of confidence in your ability to draw, operate and load the gun... especially if you’re under stress.

I’m limited by my office to having only two off duty or back up guns so I don’t have a small frame revolver in my carry rotation, but I shoot the ones I own to maintain proficiency anyway. (In fact I took a new-to-me restored 3” J frame S&W 36-1 to the range last Friday .)

Once one understands and accepts the limitations the 5-6 shot revolver has compared to a modern 10-12 shot subcompact semi (Hellcat, 365, Max9, Mossberg, Shield, etc) a 5 or 6 shot revolver is perfectly adequate for daily carry. Honetly, carrying almost any firearm is better than leaving a bigger or more capable gun in the console of your car because it’s too big or uncomfortable to tote.

If an LCR fits your want, wallet and waistline... I say go for it.

Stay safe.