What's your condition of readiness?

[expvideo]

I was watching the last 2 episodes of 24 season 5 last night and the badguy went to shoot jack bauer. His gun just clicked because bauer had given him an empty gun. I laughed because I couldn't see myself in the same situation, as I always check my gun before holstering it.

So my question to you is this: How often do you honestly check your condition of readiness (check to see if the gun is loaded). Every morning? More than once a day? Less than once a day?

And on a further note, do you just press check, or do you check the magazine as well?

Personally, I check to make sure that there is a bullet in the "15" hole of my magazine, and check the chamber before it gets holstered. If the gun leaves the holster, I check the condition of readiness before it goes back in, no exceptions. I don't care if it's in my site the entire time it's out of the holster and I'm alone in my car, I still check. Now that may be over-doing it, but I wanted to see how everyone else acts in this regard.

 

[2TransAms]

Actually, I check most of mine to make sure they're not loaded. The bedside guns, I really have no reason to believe that someone would sneak in and unload them so they don't get checked for that as long as they stay in the drawer.

 

[expvideo]

That's a good point, and I can understand, but I was reffering more to your carry piece.

 

[Plink]

I check mine before I holster it. When I take it off for the night, I remove the mag and empty the chamber. The next day, I cycle the slide, look inside to make sure it hadn't picked up any holster crud from the day before, load up and holster it. For the bedside gun, I clean it occasionally and that's about the only checking it gets.

 

[Ares45]

There is no avoiding the fact that the more you handle/manipulate a weapon the more likely you are to ND yourself.

People out there press checking a half dozen times a day are past paranoid, they need help.

My carry gun is loaded, period. It's either on my hip or locked in the safe. It's secure at all times. I see no logical reason to perform a status check prior to heading out. Any manipulation would be unnecessary and potentially dangerous.

IF the weapon leaves your care, custody, and control you should by all means investigate the weapons readiness when you retrieve it.

IF someone else hands you a gun, even over the counter of a gunstore, you should check to see if it's loaded. That's just responsible gun handling.

 

[Richmond]

carry gun

With my carry gun, I check it daily before heading out - often a J frame so I open the cylinder, check the load, re-holster.

I am often amused by this tactic in tv and movies - bad guy points gun, good guy smirks and holds up the mag. I mean, can't you tell the difference in weight with or without mag?

And why don't any of these BG have a spare? Slap it in, shoot that smirking dweeb.

 

[chipp]

I cary a revolver. Obviously its very easy to tell if its loaded just by looking at it. There isn't a chance in hell that I would ever carry it unloaded!

It happened to me once. I carried it unloaded don't know how it happened .
Please don't tell anyone cause its embarassing.
It almost gave me a heart attack when I saw it was empty.

 

[shadowalker]

I don't check to insure my weapon is loaded each time I holster it but I do insure the magazine is fully seated, that it is de-cocked and clean. There are very few times it does not have a round in the chamber, cleaning, dry firing or when changing magazines. After cleaning or changing magazines my weapon has a round chambered every time.

I do not really believe the frequency of safely handling a firearm has much to do with the likelihood of a ND. I think people prone to having a ND are going to have one if they handle their gun once a week or twice a day. A ND doesn't just occur, it happens when someone makes a mistake or chooses not to follow one or more of the rules.

In my opinion the more a person practices safely handling firearms, following all of the rules the less likely they are to make a mistake because safe handling becomes a habit.

 

[hexidismal]

Well seeing as nowadays I carry a gun with a loaded chamber indicator, it would be fairly hard to mistake as to whether the gun had a chambered round or not. Even if that weren't the case though, it seems silly to me to even question it. My system has always been to have the carry guns loaded and chambered, others unloaded with magazines/ammo stored separately. There's no need to check if its loaded when I holster it, I already know it is simply because it wouldn't ever be unloaded. I would actually think that was pretty common practice.

 

[sacp81170a]

I do a press check *every* time I holster. Takes a second, is very safe if done properly, and makes me feel better. To each his own, but a weapons and ammo readiness check has been ingrained in me by training.

 

[Snarlingiron]

Hmmmm. I guess I am a bit embarrassed. I am really an opinionated and strong willed cuss when it comes to my carry weapons. I don't like decockers, external safeties, etc. because I believe these things are a liability in a defensive situation. I think you should be able to draw your weapon, bring it on target, and take care of business. I like Glocks. I am embarrassed because I seldom check readiness. Obviously, I will begin to make it part of my daily routine. With all of the other stuff out of the way, it could be a lot more than embarrassing if I had to actually use the weapon, and it had an empty magazine, or an empty chamber. :banghead:
Thanks for the reminder.

 

[hexidismal]

I don't like decockers, external safeties, etc. because I believe these things are a liability in a defensive situation.

How could a decocker be a liability in a defensive situation ?

 

[Gocart]

Every time I holster I drop the mag to make sure it's full and do a press check to make sure I'm hot.

Every time. Just like buckling up. No exceptions.

 

[Snarlingiron]

How could a decocker be a liability in a defensive situation ?

If you have one, then you either have two different trigger pulls to learn, or you have a hammer to cock, unless you are carrying cocked and locked. In short it is just another thing to dilly-dally with, and is not present on the designs that I prefer. In my opinion that is a liability in a defensive situation. It's just my opinion. If you are ok with it, then so am I, but in isn't for me.

 

[TheSunDanceKid]

ah some carry a pistol i keep the locked and loaded ruger .300 in the truck of course

 

[hankdatank1362]

I press check and make sure that the "17" hole in my mag has gleaming brass behind it quite often, several times throughout the day. Actually, I think it's stainless steel, because I carry Remington Golden Sabers, and I believe the cases are stainless steel, or some other kind of silvery metal.

My friends tell me I'm gonna break my gun because I check it so often. Honestly, I just like hearing the slide slam into battery.

 

[mountainclmbr]

My carry gun is always loaded after practice and after cleaning. I do not assume that Chucky Schumer has sneaked into my house, past my dogs and unloaded it. Even though I know the Schmuckity would like to do this.

 

[ctdonath]

Checking it is certainly a good idea.
Checked once, and there was ammo - but no barrel.
Didn't help this was discovered while showing unloaded when entering a gun show.
Oops.

(Had flown with it by commercial airline, and had removed the barrel to annoy anyone stealing the gun while in transit. Blitzed upon return, had failed to re-assemble the thing.)

 

[Gocart]

That's exactly why I confirm a full mag and a hot chamber every time I holster up.

 

[CAPTAIN MIKE]

Better Safe Than Sorry

Since having one single incident of a Negligent Discharge years ago, I have never since that time ever NOT known exactly and precisely what the condition of my firearm is. Daily habits - especially good ones - should become basically 'second nature' to us, but it never hurts to be safe rather than sorry.

When I prepare to start my day and am putting on my belt, the next thing I do as a standard practice is to put on my cell phone clip holster (with cell phone turned on), then my double mag spare ammunition on the support side, then my paddle holster on with my sidearm on the strong side. Before donning my jacket or sport coat, I always point the firearm in a safe direction and verify the status of the firearm, checking to see if the magazine inserted is loaded and then checking to see if a round is in the chamber, the safety is on and I am in Condition One. I always - I say again "always" double check the safety just to make sure, and then I am ready to go.

In my experience, we should be 'creatures of habit' when it comes to firearm safety and readiness. The two go hand-in-hand, in my opinion. You are not being responsible if you don't pay attention to both.

Safety and Readiness should be constant companions in our daily frame of mind and in practice at all times.

 

[longtab]

I check my guns everytime I pick it up. Force of habit. I'm also that ass who calls people on not doing the same...

 

[expvideo]

Just to clear something up, I don't press check multiple times a day because I'm paranoid. I do it becuase I think it's a good habit to be in. I have no delusion that someone has messed with my gun while I'm home alone and it's sitting in the nightstand in the next room, I just think it's a good habit for me to always check before re-holstering. Now to each his own, and I'm not here to judge, but can we stay away from the "p" word please?

 

[boerseun]

Completely unload and load a fresh magazine each morning. No I don't wear a tin hat, but I had some magazine failures in the past - due to spring being worn out. Never unloaded a magazine - it was always in the gun and never fired.
So now, I rotate magazines.

 

[ripcurlksm]

I store my relatively new .45 in C3. I will randomly rack the slide and load/unload daily.

I slept with it in C1 last nite for the first time, as our 2nd story backdoor was left intentionally unlocked for a good reason in the night. Woke up this morning, unloaded it and put it back into C3.

 

[Alexfubar]

Mines loaded. If I am going to follow the rule and assume it's always loaded - I may as well KNOW it's always loaded.

Primary gun is a Sig 228 sa/da ( with frivolous decocker ... I like it ) I don't re-check much if ever , but I will check the hammer isn't cocked or the mag unseated frequently. never found the hammer back by mistake - and want to keep it that way. The mag will occasionally get released when I drive .... I may look into a new holster if that issue doesn't get sorted out.