The tactical reload
The tactical reload and the reload with retention are very controversial to some people and I'm not sure why. It is the topic of frequent conversation on various Internet forums devoted to the defensive application of firearms.
I think some people don't understand it's intended application. I also think that some people have very fixed ideas about what form confrontation will take. I think being rigid in predicting the dynamics of confrontation is counter-productive. While it is statistically likely that the problem may be solved with one magazine or cylinder full of ammunition, it is hazardous to presume that all situations will be resolved so quickly. Clint Smith of Thunder Ranch has a saying something like: "Your gunfight will not be what you expect it to be. It will be something else".
Private citizens with a CCW permit acting in self defense and cops working patrol often have confrontational situations that are somewhat similar in that they are sudden & unexpected. Members of a police SWAT team or soldiers engaged in military operations in urban terrain usually face different dynamics of confrontation.
Confrontations that private citizens or LEOs on patrol encounter are often sudden, close, dark and fast. If there is an exchange of fire, both sides are probably moving. After the initial volley, the survivors retreat to cover or run away. The trained survivors will reload their weapons. They may just reload or they may perform a tactical reload or reload with retention, depending upon the circumstances, their training and their evaluation of the threat.
Often times the incident ends right there and one cylinder full or magazine full was enough. But it may not be.
A tactical reload or reload with retention allows you continue on with a fully loaded weapon. With an auto pistol, it allows you to retain unexpended ammo in that magazine for future use if required. With a revolver it allows you to face continued danger with a fully charged cylinder without tossing live rounds on the ground where they will be lost & unavailable if needed.
A tac reload is a secondary technique appropriate to a limited & specific set of circumstances that are somewhat uncommon but still quite possible.
I have big hands & long fingers. I can do a tac load with thick double column magazines. Still, if my hands are cold, if I'm wearing gloves, or I'm running an AR-15, I find the reload with retention to work the best for me.
Shooters with smaller hands & thick magazine may find the reload with retention to be their preferred technique.
In an IDPA or IPSC match, we can usually look at a pre-published course of fire and evaluate it and figure out where best to do reloads. Real life doesn't have course descriptions and you don't know when it's over or how many rounds may be required . . .
In a military situation, if you're dropping your rifle mags all over without retaining them, you may soon run out without possibility of timely resupply. I believe that was an issue with the Rangers in Somalia involved in the book (and movie) "Black Hawk Down".
So in summary, a tactical reload or reload with retention is a secondary technique applicable in certain specific situations.
