Bucking the Trend: Capacity

Valkman said:
I've carried a 1911 since 2003, never fearing that I didn't have enough capacity. I also carried one spare mag in case of malfunction. The gun was a Kimber Compact CDP.
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I had to look that up. Those are beautiful. Have you ever had any hiccups or issues with yours?
 
What is the point here if not a capacity debate?

I mostly CCW a S&W 442 (5-shot) with one reload. The second most carried CCW is a Remington RM380 (6+1) usually with 1 reload. Even when open carrying on the hunting property its usually just a full size 6-shot revolver of some type with one or two reloads.
 
I've been going through a slow-motion upheaval in my carry choices for the last year or so.

I've carried this S&W Model 19 for many years:
full.jpg

It's a trusted old friend, worked over by one of the top S&W men in the world, and has gone hunting with me, competing with me, and wandering all over the country with me. I really like this gun.

But times change. Nuts with rifles are shooting up the public square, requiring accurate and repeated reply at long distances, and I'm not getting any younger: I don't see the open sights quite as well as I used to, so I can't hit with them at 50+ yards as well as I used to, and besides, my back is tired of carrying around all that iron.

So I was dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century:
full.jpg

No more DA trigger, no more iron sights, the maximum amount of ammunition allowed by state law, all in a relatively light and compact package. But I just can't make it work. Many, many hours of intense training haven't made me any faster with it than I am with a good DA revolver, and I just can't master than trigger: slowfire from a rest, the gun is about as accurate as I am, but offhand, in a hurry? I'm better with a tuned revolver, almost every time. And when I'm driving as hard as I can, I still revert back to revolver habits - which makes things like magazine changes amusing for onlookers.

Perhaps I have the wrong auto. Perhaps I should have followed my gut and gone with a compact 1911. Or perhaps you just can't teach an old dog new tricks. Regardless, I find the old revolver in my holster more and more often, and in fact have even been heading in the other direction:
full.jpg

I bought this 340PD solely for trail running, as I have been bumping up my mileage and often finding myself quite far from, well, everything. I wanted the lightest possible "big bore" available, and this thing completely disappears in the shoulder strap of a running vest. I bought an OWB holster for it just on a whim - though I probably am lying to myself; my subconscious was practically screaming at me to do it - and find that it disappears on my belt every bit as well as it does in my running vest. So these days I wake up, decide exactly how much my back hurts, and then strap on the appropriate gun - which, more and more these days - ends up being the silly and vicious 340PD.

As for the 50 yard shot at the nut with the rifle? Someone else is going to have to take it, I guess.
 
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Primarily, most of the time, I'm carrying a 32 mag 6 shot.

When I am traveling, my primary carry gun is usually a 15 shot or so 9mm, like a Beretta 92D or Sigma.
 
mcb said:
What is the point here if not a capacity debate?

I mostly CCW a S&W 442 (5-shot) with one reload. The second most carried CCW is a Remington RM380 (6+1) usually with 1 reload. Even when open carrying on the hunting property its usually just a full size 6-shot revolver of some type with one or two reloads.
Click to expand...
The RM380 is a nice. I wish someone other than Remington took it over. I still have one that I purchased to replace my Taurus 738.
 
I used to carry a 6 shot snub nose revolver, then I got the original m&p shield, but I carried the 7rd mag with pinky extender.

Sold both guns, now I carry with 13rds
 
.38 Special said:
I've been going through a slow-motion upheaval in my carry choices for the last year or so.

I've carried this S&W Model 19 for many years:
View attachment 1148222

It's a trusted old friend, worked over by one of the top S&W men in the world, and has gone hunting with me, competing with me, and wandering all over the country with me. I really like this gun.

But times change. Nuts with rifles are shooting up the public square, requiring accurate and repeated reply at long distances, and I'm not getting any younger: I don't see the open sights quite as well as I used to, so I can't hit with them at 50+ yards as well as I used to, and besides, my back is tired of carrying around all that iron.

So I was dragged kicking and screaming into the 21st century:
View attachment 1148223

No more DA trigger, no more iron sights, the maximum amount of ammunition allowed by state law, all in a relatively light and compact package. But I just can't make it work. Many, many hours of intense training haven't made me any faster with it than I am with a good DA revolver, and I just can't master than trigger: slowfire from a rest, the gun is about as accurate as I am, but offhand, in a hurry? I'm better with a tuned revolver, almost every time. And when I'm driving as hard as I can, I still revert back to revolver habits - which makes things like magazine changes amusing for onlookers.

Perhaps I have the wrong auto. Perhaps I should have followed my gut and gone with a compact 1911. Or perhaps you just can't teach an old dog new tricks. Regardless, I find the old revolver in my holster more and more often, and in fact have even been heading in the other direction:
View attachment 1148224

I bought this 340PD solely for trail running, as I have been bumping up my mileage and often finding myself quite far from, well, everything. I wanted the lightest possible "big bore" available, and this thing completely disappears in the shoulder strap of a running vest. I bought an OWB holster for it just on a whim - though I probably am lying to myself; my subconscious was practically screaming at me to do it - and find that it disappears on my belt every bit as well as it does in my running vest. So these days I wake up, decide exactly how much my back hurts, and then strap on the appropriate gun - which, more and more these days - ends up being the silly and vicious 340PD.

As for the 50 yard shot at the nut with the rifle? Someone else is going to have to take it, I guess.
Click to expand...
I have all the new micro nines, old single strikers, the heigher capacity subcompacts, lasers, lights, red dots, etc, but I just like and prefer old school metal handguns and revolvers. I prey that I don't ever get to the point to where I can't physically carry them anymore. I'm really not into the polymer pistols as much even though I own dozens.

I'm sure you'll be a better shot at 50 yards with your 340PD than most modern day gun owners at 10 yards. I've seen people at the range miss the human silhouette with a few of their shots at 7 yards at the range on many occasions. I wouldn't worry about it if I was you.
 
Styx said:
I have all the new micro nines, old single strikers, the heigher capacity subcompacts, lasers, lights, red dots, etc, but I just like and prefer old school metal handguns and revolvers. I prey that I don't ever get to the point to where I can't physically carry them anymore. I'm really not into the polymer pistols as much even though I own dozens.

I'm sure you'll be a better shot at 50 yards with your 340PD than most modern day gun owners at 10 yards. I've seen people at the range miss the human silhouette with a few of their shots at 7 yards at the range on many occasions. I wouldn't worry about it if I was you.
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I can carry the M19, I just don't want to! And honestly - without commenting on the general state of handgunnery in 2023, upon which we likely agree - I have no hope of hitting anything much smaller than the barn door, with the 340PD at 50 yards. I just have fallen into the trap of acquiescing to convenience while convincing myself that I still am at least technically armed.
 
I’ve been carrying a 642 for a few years. I like to carry in my back pocket. It sticks up just a little and that bugs me a little so I’m thinking about going to an LCP Max. Not so much for the extra rounds, a plus for sure, but because it sits just below the top of my pocket and is a lot thinner.
 
The number of cartridges while still on the list of consideration is way way way down. Even in handguns that have higher capacity magazines I often choose the lower capacity options over the higher. For example I have both ten and fifteen round magazines for my Ruger Security 380 but most often choose the ten round rather than the fifteen.
 
jar said:
The number of cartridges while still on the list of consideration is way way way down. Even in handguns that have higher capacity magazines I often choose the lower capacity options over the higher. For example I have both ten and fifteen round magazines for my Ruger Security 380 but most often choose the ten round rather than the fifteen.
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Why is that? Because the magazine length?
 
S&W PC Sheild 9mm 8+1 or SP101 357 with 5 rounds + 1 speedloader. Sometimes both with SP 101 as BUG. "Sometimes" is when I've got to drive through the waterfront area of a major city at 3-4am to get to the boatyard. Some locals use the stop signs for targets.
 
I’ve played. Vacillated. Tried different things. I love pure horsepower. I like the DAK trigger, because I appendix carry. Basically, a very flat 8 shot .357 Magnum revolver with a good trigger that doesn’t hurt to shoot.

Sig P239. 357 SIG. Homemade holster and back pocket mag pouch.

I have small hands. I can shoot just about anything. But, I prefer single stacks. We were issued Glock 35’s and Glock 22’s. (I had to give up my 1911…). And, I shot them well. But, someone could wrest a double stack out of my hand much more easily than a single stack.

A6056FBF-699C-4248-81FB-FF4B6E510971.jpeg 75060B69-2C00-4EED-92DA-0F6D67888F83.jpeg
 
Summer time: Kahr PM9, 6+1. Sometimes with a spare 7-rd mag.

Winter time: Either a Commander-sized 1911, 8+1, usually with two spare mags (simply because the shoulder holster has room for two, and helps balance the load), or a 4" N-frame, 6+0 LOL, again with two speed loaders, for the same reasons.
 
I carry a PM45, so six rounds there and/or a LCP.

Fwiw, I don’t think the trend is above 8 rounds. I don’t really think there is a trend so far as capacity is concerned. I think you’d find a lot of people carrying anywhere between 5 & 15 rounds.
 
Styx said:
Why is that? Because the magazine length?
Click to expand...
Partly magazine length. Partly weight. Mostly I'm OLD, past 80. If I ever get into a Self Defense situation it really needs to be resolved to the extent I can slink away in the first few seconds. Anything that lasts longer than that and my best hope is to be a reliable and informed spectator rather than a participant.

In some cases there's an additional really silly reason. When I carry one of my HP or HP clones I often choose the ten round over the thirteen or fifteen round magazines I have for the format. Here the biggest reason is rattle. All but the ten round HP magazines I've ever found rattle.
 
I carry a ruger LC9. On occasion i’ll carry my wife’s ruger LCP II. Although I did buy 9 round mags for the LC9 last month.
 
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