one in the chamber and full mag?

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KDS

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Hey guys, I have a question about concealed carry. I have been carrying for about a year now so I guess I am still new. I carry a variety of semis depending on what I am wearing, etc but I have always carried with one in the chamber and a full mag. I always thought that would give me the most shots, should I need it. But sometimes I want to unload and clear and I always have an extra loose round I have to deal with. I have been thinking of taking a round out of the mag so I have a place to put the chambered round when I unload.

Do you guys carry this way or do you carry fully loaded? What do you do when you need to unload your carry gun?
 
Personally, I don't use the +1 carry....I prefer a rack giving me a feeling that everything is okay....Mental, of course, but that's just the way I do it...:)
 
If you are going to carry, then one should be in the chamber. Your situation may not allow you the time to chamber a round. Or, there may be something that precludes the use of your other hand in racking the slide. Also, evven though there are ways to rack a slide one handed, you may not have the capability to do that when the time comes. Having a round chambered alleviates those issues.
 
fully loaded, locked and cocked (1911), safety on. I don't usually do +1 cuz it really doesn't matter to me if the weapon is topped off, I really only expect to use 2-3 shots and carry a full spare mag just in case.

when it comes to self defense time is of the essence, the likelihood of a perp giving you an opportunity to rack the slide is slim.

tactical operators learn to draw, disengage the safety, point and shoot in one fluid movement and in a specific amount of time. civilian schools teach you to do this in 1.5 seconds, typically.
 
If you are going to carry, then one should be in the chamber. Your situation may not allow you the time to chamber a round. Or, there may be something that precludes the use of your other hand in racking the slide. Also, evven though there are ways to rack a slide one handed, you may not have the capability to do that when the time comes. Having a round chambered alleviates those issues.
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I think the OP is referring to a +1 rd or racking one off the mag; rather than Condition 1 vs 3.... Or, I misread the post...:confused:
 
I'm sorry for the confusion. I definately intend to carry one in the chamber. The question is whether the mag is topped off or not. If you have a 12 round mag, do you carry with the mag full or with 11 rounds so if you need to unload and clear your weapon, you have a space to store that round in the mag? Does that clear things up?
 
It does clear it up, though I thought your point was pretty clear to start with, KDS! For myself, the answer is: depends. I sometimes carry a 1911 with 8-round mags. When doing so, I go through the extra administrative trouble to top off--and yes, it is a bit of extra administrative trouble. That extra round is one more thing to look after, and I have lost track of it for a short time before. When I carry a Glock 19, OTOH, with 15 round capacity, I just leave it at 15. So I guess my comfort zone is somewhere between 9 and 15 rounds ;-). You just have to decide where your comfort zone is. You might find it's different with different guns or situations (my 1911, for instance, is a duty gun; the Glock is for concealed & plainclothes carry). And lest you get too stressed about it, think about all the folks out there carrying 5-shot j-frames!
 
I don't top the mag off in my carry gun for the exact reason you specify: full mag +1 leaves nowhere to put the extra round when unloading. I unload at the range, or at matches in order to switch to non-carry ammo for practice, and just like the ability to stick the extra round in the magazine to keep track of it. When loading back up, I just insert full magazine, rack slide, holster.

I carry a full extra magazine (G19) so I've got 15 in the gun (14+1), and 15 in the extra mag... good enough for me.
 
for the record, I tried to do a search but it always timed out and I wasn't able to see any results. Nalioth, I'm sorry that you are so offended by the question that you just had to post.

To everyone else, thanks for the help!
 
Let's place an absolute ban on duplicate topics. We'll all have lots more free time on our hands and save tons of bandwidth.

Full mag plus one. When I download for whatever reason, I place the gun in a bag and drop the loose round in one of the pockets.
 
Quote:
"Let's do a search next time, eh?
This subject is a pile of horse bone fragments."

Hmm... Let's see...

OP's original question... "Do you guys carry this way or do you carry fully loaded? What do you do when you need to unload your carry gun?

Sounds like he WAS searching to me...Fellow High Roader looking for info from more "seasoned" carry folks.
KDS, welcome, and as stated above by ChristopherG, it's all about your comfort zone. Determine what that is, and practice that accordingly.
Tac
 
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KDS said:
for the record, I tried to do a search but it always timed out and I wasn't able to see any results. Nalioth, I'm sorry that you are so offended by the question that you just had to post.

To everyone else, thanks for the help!
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I'm not offended, just trying to help you out.

There are potloads of excellent responses in the prior threads, but over time, those responders get tired of answering the same question week in and week out. .

Let me help you with your search: one in the chamber - THR
 
Let's place an absolute ban on duplicate topics. We'll all have lots more free time on our hands and save tons of bandwidth.

Full mag plus one. When I download for whatever reason, I place the gun in a bag and drop the loose round in one of the pockets.
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and with the exception of the occasional "new gun" post this forum would die. got my vote....
 
Welcome to the forum KDS.

A wonderful thing about the forum is the wealth of info available, whether from search function or the members.

I am a new user myself, so I am well aware of the value of the 'old timers' sharing their knowledge.

I am new enough that I still think it is valuable to respond to the duplicate posts which ask the same questions repeatedly. To encourage the new posters as much as anything. It is easy to not view duplicate threads if we don't like them.

I do not take/have time to do a lot of posts. I envy those that do.
 
Except he wasn't asking about one in the chamber...
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HA! Guilty as charged. Hmmm that's an interesting idea. Personally I'd still rather have all the rounds and just throw the extra one in a pocket if it comes time to unload and clear (which isn't common for me anyway).
 
I always carry full mag +1. When I have to unload I just put the +1 in my pocket or set it on the table next to the mag, I haven't had one run away on me yet. IMO it is such a small thing to put up with there is no way I would trade an extra round to not have to deal with it occasionally.
 
KDS, is the loose round really that much of a burden?

IF you end up running the gun dry, you are really gonna miss that last round.
 
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