Extra CCW weapon ammo/mag. yae or nae?

Being very new to carrying myself, I just can't see any reason NOT to carry a spare mag.

It’s been said the most likely thing to fail on your gun is the magazine. So I always carry a spare

Since I can't carry on the job, my gun spends most weekdays locked in my car, at which point having a second mag along for the ride is easy enough. If I'm just stopping at the store on my way home, I don't typically grab the spare, but I'm thinking of switching to a smaller carry gun with singlestack mags, and may revisit the idea of carrying a spare mag. As far as spare ammo is concerned, I keep a "get home bag" in the car as well, which includes a box of spare ammo in a Zip-loc bag.

I found this on another forum and as far as I'm concerned it's the end of the discussion

Massad Ayoob said:

Two complete reloads was standard equipment for most police officers before any of us here were born. If I was asked in court why I carry spare ammunition, my answer would probably be the same as my answer for why I load with hollow point ammunition:

"Sir, if the police determined it was the best thing to use to protect people such as myself and my family, it seemed obvious that it was the best thing for ME to carry to protect myself and my family."

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Just my 00.02 cents

IF --- your ever called upon to use that smoke pole you have in your pocket or on your belt.

The chances are you wont have ANY control as to where,when and HOW MANY ASSAILANTS you will face.

That being the facts,I carry a spare mag at ALL times and practice reloading from a dry gun ,AND fronm a 'tactical' reload [ not run dry ].

I have no idea how many I will face,or how long it could go on.

Imagine your in a mall ,and the WORST thing that could happen does = Mumbai attack with multiple assailants and you are not close to a door [ leaving would be my FIRST choice ].

I have only 1* ,and I don't plan on leaving in a body bag.

I can't see in a SD shooting having time to reload or changing a mag because of a problem. Just isn't enough time . 99% of time your spitting distance and its over in few seconds.

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So, your plan is to just give-up and stop fighting for your life and/or the lives of your loved ones simply because your gun is empty or you experienced a stoppage?

I've carried with no spare, 2 spares and one spare, I've never felt more or less well armed with any of them. I've settled into one spare for reasons best described as because.

Shawn Dodson said:

So, your plan is to just give-up and stop fighting for your life and/or the lives of your loved ones simply because your gun is empty or you experienced a stoppage?

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I think he's saying that he believes a reload would require more time that he'd have. If he is correct, he's smart enough to not waste that time and prepare for hand-to-hand combat instead. A 1911 makes a dandy impression on a skull....a Glock, not so much....

I usually carry a spare mag. I usually carry at least two more in my vehicle. Saves space in my safe that way.

My carry guns are all Glocks. I have practiced with my carry ammo, and attempted to cause a failure but never succeeded - the plastastic POSs just refuse to stop running if ammo is available...

Back when I carried 1911s, typical loadout was 4 spare mags.

Always have an extra mag.
Having one extra mag DOUBLES your weapons effectiveness. Its just too easy not to.
Plus you then have the option to implement a tactical reload if a situation calls for such.

Redlg155 said:

I've carried concealed for the last 15 years or so in 2 different states, so the notion of carrying is not new to me. What I have never done is to carry extra mags/ammo/speed strips while carrying concealed. In fact, I sit here in a nail salon with a Sig P238 in pocket with just a full mag and one in the chamber.

Anyone else carry only the weapon filled to capacity, or am I alone?

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I'm sorry...I'm having problems getting past the part where you said "...I sit here in a nail salon..." without having an image of Frank Burns coming to mind...



Seriously, though, I usually carry 7+1 in my Colt 1991A1. Why? Because I never got around to finding and buying a spare magazine holster that I like. I tried carrying one in a pocket, but didn't like it.

I carry a spare mag for my PF9. I may never need it, but I carry it anyway. Cheap insurance, in my book.

Two is one and one is none....it always has been, it always will be.

I carry a spare mag for my carry pistol, a small revolver as a backup gun, an automatic knife, and a white light.

Yes. It's about clearing a malfunction, not having more rounds.

Yes, always. I usually carry, as an example, a either a G17 or a G19 as primary, and a G26 as backup. Too, I carry at the least 2 spare G17 magazines. All magazines are loaded with Winchester Ranger +P+ 115 grain HPs. Regardless of my primary, even if it is my Ruger SP101 .357 Mag, with spare speed loaders, and I still carry the G26 as backup. Anything mechanical will eventually fail.

Geno

I always carry a North American Black Widow then my regular weapon. Sometimes I carry either a speed strip or extra magazine but always the BW. For me a second gun is faster than trying to reload. In the real world I have never had to depend on extra ammo but the 22mag BW has been useful for rabbits and such.

I'd have to vote yes. I almost always carry an extra magazine or speedloader/speedstrip along with my gun of the day. I'll probably never need it, but the extra inconvenience on top of carrying the gun in the first place seems trivial.

I CCW with a snub revolver, so no magazine worries on my part.

Generally I do not carry extra ammo. But occasionally, if I feel that where I'm going or passing through is more code yellow than code green, I will carry an extra cylinder's worth (or two) of loose rounds in my pocket.


I also always keep a few loose rounds inside the car, and a few in the trunk in an ammo can.

I carry a reload, generally one spare magazine (don't own any revolvers). If the S has HTF to the point where you need to use your gun at all, it's not too much of a stretch that you'll shoot it dry and need a reload. A case could be made, too, for immediately reloading (known as a "'tactical' reload") after the initial action is over, as you won't have been able to count your shots in the heat of things.

Always carry a spare

I usually carry a compact semi-auto in a pocket holster and carry the spare in the opposite pocket along with my wallet which hides the outline of the magazine.

I may never need it, but I would much rather have it and not need than the alterative. Also, when I do a jam clearing drill, I usually rip the mag out and go for a reload. It is faster for me than messing around with dropping the mag, clearing the jam and then reinserting the mag.

The most important thing to remember is not to drop change in the pockets that hold the gun or the spare mag.

Jim

I have to admit that in the past I have not carried spare magazines very often. The reason for this is that I have spent more time acquiring solely firearms rather than ensuring I have a good system set up for carry (IE, holster, mags, mag pouch, med kit, pick your gear). I am in the process of remedying this slowly, and intend to carry spare magazines (at least one) from now on.

I call it my "Gear" every day all day I carry, Two 357 Snubs. Two Speed Loaders and Two Speed Strips. A Scorpion Flashlight with extra Batteries.A small knife. Pepper spray. Phone,Wallet and Moneyclipp.

I carry two spare magazines.

I bet that nail salon was in a mall? There was recently a little dust up in a mall in Kenya that had a few Americans involved on the wrong side. Times they are a changin and I am more likely to have a spare and it is because of capacity more than malfunction.