"I've never felt outgunned with my 5 shot snubbie."

[XSubSailor]

The difference between a cop and Joe public is that Joe public can leave. Fire off your 5 rounds and run like hell. The cop has to stay until the cuffs are on.

I carry 5 in the gun and 10 in speed loader. And in 29 years of packing a pistol I haven't had a need to pull it out. Had my hand on it a few times. But so far those 5 are working.

If you can leave, why would you be shooting in the first place? If you're being shot at and can't return fire because you're out of ammo, you can't "leave" fast enough...unless you're faster than a speeding bullet. "Those 5 are working"...only because they've never been relied on.

A 5-shot j-frame is a great BUG, but if a shooting turns into a gunfight, a double-stack semi-automatic pistol is the minimum requirement.

Like the cop said, practice head shots.

 

[Mark W.]

OK I give up. I'm obviously insane for not humping around 20lbs of ammo with me all the time. And I guess I'll have to buy another firearm since the only handgun we have in the house that holds more then 10rds (which is a Ruger MKIII 22-45) is the Wife's Astra A-90 which is an 18+1 9mm.

Now what ugly black plastic pistol should I buy? And I guess I should pickup some cool tactical suspenders to try to hold up my pants when I put all that pistol and ammo on my belt.




Most of the time I carry a Bauer .25automatic (looks like a Stainless version of a Baby Browning) OH the HUMANITY OF IT.

 

[joe bratch]

The difference between a cop and Joe public is that Joe public can leave. Fire off your 5 rounds and run like hell. The cop has to stay until the cuffs are on.

Actually no. It goes like this. You and a cop pull up to the mall at the same time, people are running out. Your wife calls and tells you that a nut is walking around shooting everyone...here's how it goes down.

You grab your CCW and try to save her
You do nothing, hoping the cops save her
The cop waits for back up.
The back up, waits for SWAT
SWAT shows up and chucks a telephone in

Everyone is dead and the shooter killed himself.

I was even coached on a police exam: 'if you saw a bank robbery going down' to answer 'wait for back up'.

 

[Mark W.]

Actually no. It goes like this. You and a cop pull up to the mall at the same time, people are running out. Your wife calls and tells you that a nut is walking around shooting everyone...here's how it goes down.

You grab your CCW and try to save her
You do nothing, hoping the cops save her
The cop waits for back up.
The back up, waits for SWAT
SWAT shows up and chucks a telephone in

Everyone is dead and the shooter killed himself.

I was even coached on a police exam: 'if you saw a bank robbery going down' to answer 'wait for back up'.

Nice theory. But if the wife is in the Mall she wouldn't be calling me she would be exiting while covering her 6 with her Astra A90 and the 36+1 rounds of 9mm she carrys with it. Or she would shelter in place with her back to a wall with a view of the approach while covering her position with the Astra.

Me running into an active shooter situation would just be a great way for me to end up full of .223 from some crazy cops AR.

 

[XSubSailor]

Hey, any gun is better than none, but you can't intelligently dispute that more firepower is better when you need to draw a weapon.

I carry a H&K P2000 in 357Sig with a capacity of 12+1. I keep a spare mag in my vehicle and drop it in my pocket if I'm in a less than desirable part of town. I also have a spare pistol in a gunvault in the center console with a spare mag also.

If your professional attire does not allow concealing a full size pistol, then you have to make do with what is allowable...if that's a mousegun, so be it...practice headshots.

 

[Phillyfan]

"I've never felt outgunned with my 5 shot snubbie"

Well, by that standard, I've never felt outgunned when I didn't have a gun. Never have been, and never want to be, in a gun fight. It's like those whistles that people in the midwest put on there cars to warn animals that they are coming. Never hit a deer so it must work.

When it comes down to it five shots is better than no shots, and when those are gone you will wish you had more. Will you need more? Who the hell knows. Better to have some bang in the pocket than none though.

 

[Blitzkrieg]

OK I give up. I'm obviously insane for not humping around 20lbs of ammo with me all the time. And I guess I'll have to buy another firearm since the only handgun we have in the house that holds more then 10rds (which is a Ruger MKIII 22-45) is the Wife's Astra A-90 which is an 18+1 9mm.

Now what ugly black plastic pistol should I buy? And I guess I should pickup some cool tactical suspenders to try to hold up my pants when I put all that pistol and ammo on my belt.




Most of the time I carry a Bauer .25automatic (looks like a Stainless version of a Baby Browning) OH the HUMANITY OF IT.

An EMT once told an emergency first aid class I attended about a 25 shooting..

Seems a little guy with a 25 started trouble with a big tough guy.. the little guy emptied his 25 into big guys chest. big guy got mad then and nearly beat little guy to death, then found some paper towels, made plugs for the holes and sat down to await medics.. he never passed out, survived and fully recovered

Now imagine if big guy had a knife or gun

I really like revolvers and recently bought a 45 LC Peacemaker.. for fun shooting, not to pack. It's still better than any mousegun

 

[fireninja13]

Yeah, I had a Bauer .25 as well. Past tense. Not only was it a jam-o-matic, but the last time I took it out shooting, the little FMJ .25 ACP rounds wouldn't even penetrate the bark of a tree, they just bounced off. . . now I carry my S&W 442 or my Colt Agent loaded with Golden Saber .38 spec. +p.

 

[AMProducts]

So having a gun is better than having no gun. However after reading that article I'm not leaving my house without an M203, 10 mags, 3 grenades and at least two guys with M249's to back me up.

 

[cookie]

How many people we been shooting lately that 5 shot isn't enough for low risk carry? I would agree on more is better and an AR or AK maybe even a shotgun with )) buck would work best but who wants to carry a rifle when going to the store? Not including the certain times when a rifle would be properly armed.

 

[ArgentineSteel]

I don't hang out in drug crazed addicts neighborhoods. I've had the revolver that started misfiring, had to change the springs out before it ran again. Still I used to carry that revolver until I stepped out of a tent one night to find out who emptied a whole glock mag into a rural park I was in during a drive by. I did not feel adequately armed. I carry semi-autos now for more rounds.
If you get a misfire, Tap and rack. Practice it until it's natural

 

[Mark W.]

25acp out of a pocket automatic.

Ballistics Test - 25 acp - Colt 25 through wet pack and denim - penetration test - YouTube

 

[fireninja13]

25acp out of a pocket automatic.

Ballistics Test - 25 acp - Colt 25 through wet pack and denim - penetration test - YouTube

D*mn -- that is far far better performance than I ever got from my Bauer .25 acp -- perhaps the test gun had a longer barrel. . . if my Bauer had demonstrated penetration like that (and fired reliably) I would have kept it.

 

[Mathmattx]

I often wish I felt more comfortable with a revolver because of simplicity, and function, but I just never have. There's a great set of YouTube videos (I'll see if I can link) that are actual defense scenarios caught on CCTV. In each one....the best being a combat vet defending his life in a jewelry store robbery, the 6 shots are gone in the blink of an eye and people keep trying to fire the revolver, obviously needing or wanting more than 6 shots. Then again I don't subscribe too the theory that I need 30 rounds, nor do I carry multiple mags for my g17. I have a good buddy who wont go anywhere without 2 mags...and while I think its a pain, i am glad he's on my team if the SHTF! Good thread, I suppose the gun you carry and use is better than the one you dont. Plenty of people get the job done with a revolver

 

[RBid]

OK I give up. I'm obviously insane for not humping around 20lbs of ammo with me all the time.

Now what ugly black plastic pistol should I buy? And I guess I should pickup some cool tactical suspenders to try to hold up my pants when I put all that pistol and ammo on my belt.

You don't have to buy anything, and you're not necessarily crazy. You don't even have to carry a pistol, if you prefer not to.

It is up to each of us to learn as much as we want to learn, and to evaluate how much investment in defense is worth it to ourselves. The facts are simply that additional rounds increase the likelihood that a person will have "enough". Statistically, you'll probably never need 1 round.

At the end of the day, the question is:

How much are you willing to do to prepare yourself to survive an encounter that may never take place?

The trap to avoid is rationalizing a choice because it's the one you wanted to make. If you were to say something about that .25 being enough for all occasions, you would be lying to yourself. At the same time, it would be a lie to say that you need more gun. None of us knows today what we'll need tomorrow.

Personally, I believe in carrying as much gun as I can commit to carrying on a daily basis. My daily carry is a Glock 19 (Gen 4) in a Galco King Tuk holster. It conceals easily under shorts and a tshirt, on a 6'2", 185 pound frame. I do not require tactical suspenders, a tactical fanny pack, or any other FDE or OD green carry aid. It's a comfortable system.

What YOU carry is up to you. A second question would be, "What do you want to be holding, if you have to shoot to live?"

 

[Bon Sauvage]

At the end of the day, the question is:

How much are you willing to do to prepare yourself to survive an encounter that may never take place?


What YOU carry is up to you. A second question would be, "What do you want to be holding, if you have to shoot to live?"

Succinctly put. My own decision was to carry my five shot revolver, when walking the dog in my immediate neighborhood, and my G17 or 1911 with two additional magazines everywhere else.

 

[Mark W.]

D*mn -- that is far far better performance than I ever got from my Bauer .25 acp -- perhaps the test gun had a longer barrel. . . if my Bauer had demonstrated penetration like that (and fired reliably) I would have kept it.

The test pistol is made on the same Browning pattern as the Bauer. In 25 years of owning my Bauer I have to the best of my memory never had it fail to feed or fail to discharge. I happen to use the same Blazer 50gr round nose slugs as the test. I also have some 40gr HPs and some nasty exploding tips that were once legal to buy and sell. Sadly no more. So I only keep them to look at.

 

[Certaindeaf]

If someone carries a derringer or one of those dinky .22 NAA revolvers, I couldn't care less. What the f ever. What I have a problem with is preacher punks / busybodies saying their way or the highway. get a life

 

[Brutus57]

I like this thirt.... kinda says it all, don't it??

Brutus Out!

 

[RBid]

There's only one right way to decide whether or what to carry: Get educated, and weigh the pros against the cons, based on your own value system.

If a person decides they prefer the comfort and convenience of not carrying a firearm every day, I'm OK with that. If a person looking at the same information decides that they want to carry a Springfield TRP Operator and 5 spare mags every day, that is also OK. The important thing is getting good information, and thinking things through.