Glock and Concealed Carry: Round in chamber or no?

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jpruitt

jpruitt

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I have never considered carrying a semi-auto without a round in the chamber, but with my new Glock, the trigger is so much lighter than the DAOs I've carried in the past. The guy at the store that sold it to me carries the same gun, and he says he carries without a round chambered and racks it as he draws.

Do most other Glock owners/carriers carry with one in the chamber? I really don't see the problem if you've conditioned yourself to follow the four rules. Of course, in a perfect world where everyone followed those rules 100% all the time there would never be any AD/NDs. Is this something I should worry about?
 
What if somebody has grabbed you and you can only get one hand free?

If you carry in a holster that covers the trigger there's not much to worry about as long as you keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot.

BTW, you can get a heavier trigger pull for your Glock if it's that much of an issue. Look into the NY-1 and NY-2 triggers. But have it done professionally as there are certain combinations of parts that are a no-no.
 
Always carry a round chambered. You never know whether you'll have time to chamber one. A good holster that covers the trigger will protect it fine.

If he's that edgy about the Glock he shouldn't be carrying one.
 
imho, the only way to carry is with one in the chamber. if you don't feel safe with a loaded gun then you shouldn't be carrying.
 
It is fine to carry one in the chamber as long as its in a holster and you keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.

You will be lucky to see attempts on your life ahead of time, so believing you will have time to chamber a round no matter what is foolish.

If you are still not comfortable with this you would be better served carrying a gun with a manual safety.
 
The glock has many safety features built in to keep it from firing, however, at the end of the day something gets in the trigger guard it can go bang. A good, secure holster is a must, training with that holster drawing and re-holstering is a must.

When something happens, it usually happens instantly, so the thought that you'll have the time or the physical ability to rack the slide could be inacurate, so if it turns out that you just aren't comfortable carrying the glock, have a gunsmith add an external safety or go get a different model with an external safety.
 
Lots of people will tell you that they have always had time to rack the slide when drawing or that they had two good hands to do it with.

The people who Didn't have time to rack the slide, or Didn't have two good hands, or Didn't have two hands free because one was fending off a Goblin or had been disabled won't say anything; they're too busy being dead because they couldn't shoot back.


If you can guarantee that you will always have time, that you will always have two good, uninjured hands, that you will always have two hands available...then go ahead and carry with an empty chamber.
 
The guy at the store that sold it to me carries the same gun, and he says he carries without a round chambered and racks it as he draws.
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i would like to see this guy or anybody else for that matter that dosen't carry one in the chamber, do a tueller(sp?)aka the 21ft drill. that would be interesting.
 
I usually don't carry a Glock, but I have at times. If I do carry my Glock, I carry it with the chamber full. If you think the trigger is too light for your taste, you can easily fix that with a spring change -- no gunsmith required.

If you need a gun, you need it real bad, and you need it right now. As others have pointed out, your support hand might be otherwise occupied: fending off the perp, opening a door, pushing your spouse to safety, holding your child, etc.

There are techniques for cycling the slide with one hand. If you are willing to spend the amount of time it takes to become accomplished at cycling the slide with one hand, you could spend far less time to just become accomplished at safely drawing and holstering with your finger off the trigger.
 
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8 years and still have one in the chamber daily.

Ever think that if your shot and incapacitated that your significant other may have to pick it up your firearm to defend their lives (assuming they were not carrying one of their own). They my not know how to, or that they have to charge it before firing it? Just thinking outside the box.
 
An empty chamber is an unloaded gun. I carry a Glock everyday with a round chambered.
 
I recently had this discussion with an army major, who has been deployed to Iraq twice. He was convinced that there is never a reason to have a round chambered, as it is unsafe. I got him to admit that it's not the practice that's unsafe, it's the average undertrained soldier.

I then asked him, "Under what circumstances will you need to actually use that sidearm?" He thought about it, and said, if his (very comfortable) position (in the rear) was overrun, he would be forced to defend it. I asked him, "If that happens, when the bad guys are THAT CLOSE, and you arein THAT MUCH TROUBLE, do you know for sure you will have both hands free to draw and rack that pistol?" He wasn't sure what I meant. "Do you know that you won't be pushing a bad guy away with your left arm while you draw with your right, or that one of your hands or arms won't be wounded? Will you be applying direct pressure with your left hand while you draw with your right, and if you do, HOW WILL YOU CHARGE THAT WEAPON? Have you ever trained in racking that slide one-handed, or considered if such a thing is possible with your setup?" He said no. "Then it sounds to me like you better keep a round in that chamber."

Your sidearm is something you use when everything in the entire world around you is failing. You have no rifle. There are no police. You have failed to avoid trouble. The situation is bad enough that you need to shoot someone. You must assume that you are doing it not just with one hand, but very possibly with your WEAK hand.
 
If it bothers you so much, carry chambered, and use a Saf-T-Blok.
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Which requires you to manipulate something right next to the trigger in order to make the gun ready to fire, even if you don't want to fire right at that moment. Seems to me to be a solution that's worse than the problem. YMMV.

Not for me, thanks.
 
An unloaded gun on your hip is an expensive rock! Load it, holster it and keep your finger off the trigger, it really is that simple. If you are that afraid of an ND with a Glock, get a pistol with a manual safety. Keep your loose clothes away from the holster while reholstering.

Which requires you to manipulate something right next to the trigger in order to make the gun ready to fire, even if you don't want to fire right at that moment. Seems to me to be a solution that's worse than the problem. YMMV.
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Well put, like the 40S&W, an answer to a non existant problem.
 
Well put, like the 40S&W, an answer to a non existant problem.
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So the fact that most people hate 10mm recoil (most people are too wimpy to even take .40 S&W recoil!) wasn't actually a problem?

Anyway,

Do most other Glock owners/carriers carry with one in the chamber?
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Yep. Though one time I decided to Mexican carry in Wal-Mart, and that time the chamber was empty. :p
 
So the fact that most people hate 10mm recoil (most people are too wimpy to even take .40 S&W recoil!) wasn't actually a problem?
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Not when the .45 has been around for say...90+ years! :neener:
 
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