At what age does a handgun become too old for a ccw?

Happy 4th.

I think I'll carry my grandfather's 3" Iver Johnson .32 today.



It's an old black powder era gun - note the forward facing owl's head on the grip.

Fwiw, my mother had it wrapped in 2 Kleenex in the cedar chest from 1982 when her father died to 2007 when my father decided it was time for me to move them to The Home. My father gave me all of his guns and ammo and here comes mom with the little .32. We didn't know she had it - she had shown no interest in guns in her life up to that point. She would go to the range every week, but sit in the car under the trees and read until it was time to go to the restaurant. Heck, with her Alzheimer's I wouldn't have guessed she knew she had it. She thought she still lived in Maryland and that her father was still alive.

 

Nice gun! I've been looking for a breaktop. 32 or. 38 but haven't found one in the condition I want yet.

 

HK P9/P9s is the first polymer handgun. It dates to the 1960s.
Remington Nylon 66 .22 rifle is also polymer and dates to the '60s as well.
These are just off the top of my head.

 

The p9 had a polymer trigger guard. The frame was steel.

 

The nylon 66 was introduced in 58 or 59.

The first use of a form of plastic in firearms was Tennite used by Stevens. This was a plant cellulose infused plastic that was made into stocks, introduced in 38-39. However, it did not age very well..

Hence the use of true petrochemical compounds used later in firearms..

 

I'd say age has nothing to do with it. Reliability and effectiveness are things you can determine in advance of the decision to carry a particular gun. If it meets all the other criteria for carry, age should not be a real factor.

Guns are machines and a properly maintained machine can last a very long time. Also, even the best maintained machines can fail at any time. There are no guarantees, but having confidence in the chosen tool set should let us concentrate more on the mindset and skillset aspects of self defense. If those are properly honed, the tool set may never need be unholstered.

 

Did anyone notice the transfer bar spur in the back of the trigger guard? That was patented before Bill Ruger was born, by the Bicycle Works. They also had Glock style trigger safeties on some DAO revolvers in the 1890s.

 

WRT the Nylon 66
It is made largely from nylon, but it is a rifle. I asked about handguns.

 

I carry a 1968 Charter Undercover that has not a 100 rounds through it in it's entire life. It was a night stand gun most of it's life till I got it.

 

The same technology goes into both handguns and long guns.

 

The same way a Glock has a steel skeleton under the polymer frame.

 

i would not feel under armed with this colt 1902 bisley in 38-40, this group was fired offhand at 45 feet with three cast lead 180gr bullet at 950 fps and three jacketed 180gr bullets at the same speed. i know 45 feet is not a great distance, but i think i could keep them all on the oil bottle at 25yards with a little pratice. eastbank.

 

I've read all these posts and quite frankly, some of them made me cringe.

Someone mentioned using an I-frame .38 S&W for CCW? And even a 1902 Colt Bisley single action??

With all due respect, pull one of those out in self defense in 2014 and the gangbanger holding you up etc. will probably laugh in your face before he kills you with his Glock or Springer XD or any modern gun capable of REAL combat.

Some people need to get a grip. This is the 21st century. Using things like ancient revolvers for self defense is simply laughable today. You aren't a cowboy. STOP acting like one before you get yourself KILLED. Go out and buy yourself a REAL gun like any modern tac pistol in 10mm or 5.7x28mm (preferably) and learn how to use it.

Your life is worth more than trusting it to such antiquated and frankly worthless junk "guns" like the above mentioned.

JMHO.

YMMV.

 

Yeah, the Kansas Gang Bangers gonna getcha!

 

God only knows were Tejas Norte is, but spend a night on the streets of Kansas City and tell me about gang bangers in the morning.

If you're still alive.

KC is one of the most dangerous cities in American for violent crimes, so while the rest of the state is pretty safe, KC most certainly is not. Similair to how Chicago is very dangerous but the rest of Illinois is much safer (for the most part).

But, back on subject, that's just another reason why I wouldn't be arming myself with ancient six shooters or decrepit auto designs like the 1911 etc.

I'm not a rootin' tootin' cowboy or a doughboy fighting in the trenches of WW1, I am a modern tactical operator and using the right tools for the job in today's environment is the only way to stay alive. Again, JMHO.

YMMV.

 

"Some people need to get a grip."

Don't fall off your soapbox and hurt yourself. I love that touch with the Real Combat stuff. You want real combat, get a rifle.

Where's that pic of my 19-shot 9mm X-5 TAC?

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John... still alive after 40 years in downtown Richmond, one time murder central. Heck, I grew up in downtown Baltimore and D.C.

 

if you catch a 38-40 or a 45acp slug in the center of the chest at 45-50 feet,i don,t think you will be operating very long and you will be tactical at room tempiture very quickly. if you do what the wiz kids want you to do, you will look like a swat member ,carrying ten 15 round mags and the rest of the crap they wear, and don,t forget to shave your head. carry what you want(be good with it,a hit is worth 100 misses) and let others worry about what they carry. i don,t cc a colt bisley,but it still will get the job done if called on. eastbank.

 

Said gangster can laugh his face off all he wishes while I fill him full of holes with whatever I have, be that a .38 S&W, a 1902 Colt Bisley single action, or whatever else he may think is funny.

"modern gun capable of REAL combat" my eye. It's not the GUN who needs to be "capable of REAL combat", but the user.

Whatever "REAL combat" may be.

 

Tejas Norte is northeast of Sur Califas.

I have been to Kansas City. It was nice, relatively speaking. For Kansas. But that's not the point.

The point is, you are either trolling or woefully ignorant. And, given that this is your second pass through this thread to claim that anything but your preferred flavor of pistol is dangerous, I'm leaning towards troll.

 

I am NOT trolling.

I just DO NOT understand why ANYONE would want to use such outdated technology when something like a used Glock 26 can be had for less than $350 and is tremendously more effective in every possible way. Why do some people insist on tempting fate??

As a .mil operator and Sheepdog, I carry a gun to save myself or others who might get in harms way. I want the most effective weapon I can possibly obtain in order to meet the goals. Things like that might not be important to you, but they are to ME.

JMHO.

YMMV.

 

A .mil operator and a sheepdog? OK, got it.

Assuming your lack of understanding is honest:

The primary factor in effectiveness is user skill. A skilled person with a cap and ball revolver will beat an unskilled person with a Glock every time. Choice of weapon does not indicate user skill.

The difference in these various weapons is not effectiveness. A cap and ball revolver can send 5 or 6 .45 inch lead balls through a body in a couple of seconds. Any one of those bullets would be enough to incapacitate, if aimed properly. A modern Glock can increase the number of holes slightly but is otherwise no more effective. It is smaller, lighter, and requires less care...all good things, but not things that make a weapon more effective.

There is nothing wrong with liking the latest gear, but don't fool yourself that carrying a 5.7 will make you as effective as a girl with a 1911.

 

Maybe that's true, but someone skilled with a Glock (read ME) could probably kill 20 people skilled with a cap n' ball revolver before they even get within range to shoot me with one of those toys.

See where this is going buddy?

Use whatever you want to protect your life with, I'll use whatever I want. And guess what? I'll have the most effective tactical weapons system I can get ahold of in my holster/hand if and when it comes down to protecting myself from a hostile tango.

What will you have? Will you have a better gun than the threat? What if he's better than you, and his gun is better than yours? What will you say then?

Speak if you're able.

 

To a place called Fantasyland. Twenty skilled guys with cap and balls means 100-120 holes in your body within 2-3 seconds. The typical cap and ball comes sighted at 100 yards and they are effective at that range. Did you think about it before you claimed you could shoot 20 people in under 3 seconds from 100 yards? Because I am dubious about your claim.

Which is like Kansas City: Nice, but.

I will have what I like. Whether my gun is better than "the threat" has nothing to do with its age. I am not concerned with whether "his gun is better", only about my ability. I will probably say, "Please send an ambulance, He was the perpetrator, I will sign a complaint, there is the evidence I know of, those people witnessed the events, and I will give full cooperation after speaking with my attorney." ... Or some variation as seems appropriate.

 

Mindset-Skillset-Toolset

 

in most gang shooting its a hail of bullets that kill most people and a lot are bystanders and its over in seconds as the car drives by. so what you are carrying will not save you in a shooting like this, only if you are on the edge of the shooting scene and can react quick enough. in most regular shootings(if i can say regular) involving civilians the amount of shots fired is mush less. so i would be happy to be carrying a 1911 45acp,a S&W 686 .357mag, a S&W 3913 9mm