What have you changed your mind on?

[bradsteen]

For those who carry a gun, much of our learning is driven by hands on experience. We get started knowing very little (maybe even thinking we know more than we really do), our approach makes contact with reality, we identify deficiencies, and our perspective evolves. When this happens we may find that ideas that we once considered infallible are really not so great. Sometimes the change is subtle; other times it's a complete paradigm shift. But there isn't a single one of us who thinks, acts, and carries with the same perspective that we did the first time we strapped a gun to our hip.

So looking back at your own personal journey of carrying a gun, what have you changed your mind about? How has your perspective shifted? How has the weight or importance of things changed over time? I'm really aiming for deeper insight into changes of mindset, training, behavior, focus, decision-making, etc. So, simple things like "the gun got smaller" are fine, but if throwing that example down please include the train of logic you used to make that decision, what tradeoffs you considered and how you weighed them, etc.

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[ilikegunspdx]

That's a bit too complicated for me. I will say though that when I was young and broke I bought some cheap guns that were unreliable. I quickly learned never to do that again and it's been smooth sailing ever since. I research or talk to people before buying a gun and if it has even the faintest whiff of unreliability I don't mess with it. There are just so many reliable guns now the choice of reliable guns is pretty much endless.

 

[Dieselchessy]

I've moved to smaller and smaller pistols.
For me it's comfort, simplicity, lack of printing, ect…
For me the logic is the gun I'm willing to carry is better than no gun at all. Similar logic applies to life jackets. Only the one you're willing to wear at all times will help you.

 

[kmk1012]

I changed my mind on a PM40 made by Kahr, does that count? Also, an XD9SC, and a snub 38, and a……..

 

[Nick Burkhardt]

There is no such thing as "Cheap but good enough".

Buy a quality firearm and gear.

 

[Member 53328]

My mentality to conflict/confrontation. Staying humble and avoiding altercations. Emotional control.

Medical is just as important if not more so then the firearm.

As my family grows the importance of carrying and training rises rapidly.

Taking a honest and realist look at the consequences of using a firearm in a legal and justified shoot and coming to peace with the fact of what I may face if I am forced to use a firearm.

Run away if possible.

Getting into jiu jitsu and I am just trying to add as many tools to my belt as possible.

A gun shouldn't be the only tool you have to resolve conflict.

 

[titsonritz]

I've moved to smaller and smaller pistols.
For me it's comfort, simplicity, lack of printing, ect…
For me the logic is the gun I'm willing to carry is better than no gun at all. Similar logic applies to life jackets. Only the one you're willing to wear at all times will help you.

Ever put it to test and take a two day pistol training class with them?

 

[American123]

For those who carry a gun, much of our learning is driven by hands on experience. We get started knowing very little (maybe even thinking we know more than we really do), our approach makes contact with reality, we identify deficiencies, and our perspective evolves. When this happens we may find that ideas that we once considered infallible are really not so great. Sometimes the change is subtle; other times it's a complete paradigm shift. But there isn't a single one of us who thinks, acts, and carries with the same perspective that we did the first time we strapped a gun to our hip.

So looking back at your own personal journey of carrying a gun, what have you changed your mind about? How has your perspective shifted? How has the weight or importance of things changed over time? I'm really aiming for deeper insight into changes of mindset, training, behavior, focus, decision-making, etc. So, simple things like "the gun got smaller" are fine, but if throwing that example down please include the train of logic you used to make that decision, what tradeoffs you considered and how you weighed them, etc.

Started carrying with just a Glock 29 appendix. 11 rounds, no medical, or extra mag. Leatherman/Swiss army knife was there before the gun, and a "cut something" knife. Thought process was bigger calibers are more effective at stopping people. It hid really nicely on my body and I keep wondering how to get skinny again so I can easily comfortably carry there like I once did.

Getting older and heavier made appendix carry less practical. Carrying strong-side allowed for a bigger gun, so a Glock 20 became the new carry gun. Appendix carry is still best, just doesn't fit me best right now.

Ammo prices are a reality and I was simply shooting a 9mm Glock 17 a LOT more so I decided that despite 10mm being the best pistol caliber I would carry 9mm because I just had more time shooting it and therefore possibly more proficient, thinking being that only good shots on target count in a gunfight. Still no medical, or extra mag.

Eventually I started carrying an extra mag horizontally on the belt. The thought process was it doubled the ammo available, and it provided some redundancy if there was a mag failure for any reason.

Eventually I incorporated mace on the belt because I determined there are a lot of idiots who want to be a threat to others but aren't obvious shootable deadly threats, but I can spray them as a preliminary attempt to deescalate the situation. Police and the law consider mace as less lethal than even fists, so it shows I attempted to resolve the issue without deadly force.

I started carrying medical on my person when I had a family to care for. I figured I didn't want major blood loss (one of the leading preventable causes of trauma deaths) to befall my family. (Or me, the guy who provides for them) A CAT and 15ft of tri-fold Celox gauze in my cargo pocket at all times provides an option to stop/significantly slow major blood loss to allow emergency services more time to do what they do. I'm considering adding chest seals as well.

As far as what I have changed my mind on. I stopped carrying the "cut something" knife, the swiss army knife covers my knife needs and the mace/gun cover the rest. I have no desire to get in a knife fight. I'm going to deescalate, run, mace, or shoot, or a combination of them. The knife is not part of the plan.

 

[Old Dog]

I'm no longer concerned about the perfect concealed carry weapons or the perfect concealed carry system.

I go for comfort now, which means almost always OWB with a nice pancake holster and at least a single-mag pouch, often a double, worn on the left flank.

I no longer worry about how I might appear to anyone -- a bad guy casing the bank, a fellow LEO or Karen in the check-out line at Fred Meyer. I dress how I want in comfortable clothing, and if it's Tuesday and I'm wearing my "shoot me first vest," so be it.

I've downsized on knives and flashlights, though I always have one of each on my person. But I think downsizing on the handgun is a serious mistake.

I no longer look for the lightest, smallest, shortest pistol on the market. I carry a compact steel handgun with great sights that I know is reliable and I can shoot very, very well.

I no longer sacrifice performance for convenience.

I don't worry about carrying a "cheaper" handgun lest it end up in a police evidence locker. I carry the best that I can afford. Period. I like Wilson Combat, Les Baer and the SIG Legion series. Even if I lost if forever, if it'd done its job, it'd be well worth it -- especially if I, or a family member survived because I employed that weapon successfully.

Gun skills are perishable. Training is mandatory. Do it often and regularly. Pay for the best training you can afford. Forego a vacation in Cancun, go to Gunsite instead. There's nothing you learn in Cancun that'll potentially save your wife's or child's life. You can drink Pacifico at home and get good Mexican food down the street (can't help you with the beaches, we got nothing in the PNW).

 

[Dieselchessy]

Ever put it to test and take a two day pistol training class with them?

No, other than the military I've not taken any kind of firearm training.
I do have easy access to a private range, and shoot fairly often. But don't do anything an actual gun fighter would call training.

 

[Longwalkhome]

Got my ccw when I was 21 years old, that was 50 years ago. So many changes in guns and gear I can't list them all. What I carry today depends on the weather and how I dress.

 

[Member 53328]

Started carrying with just a Glock 29 appendix. 11 rounds, no medical, or extra mag. Leatherman/Swiss army knife was there before the gun, and a "cut something" knife. Thought process was bigger calibers are more effective at stopping people. It hid really nicely on my body and I keep wondering how to get skinny again so I can easily comfortably carry there like I once did.

Getting older and heavier made appendix carry less practical. Carrying strong-side allowed for a bigger gun, so a Glock 20 became the new carry gun. Appendix carry is still best, just doesn't fit me best right now.

Ammo prices are a reality and I was simply shooting a 9mm Glock 17 a LOT more so I decided that despite 10mm being the best pistol caliber I would carry 9mm because I just had more time shooting it and therefore possibly more proficient, thinking being that only good shots on target count in a gunfight. Still no medical, or extra mag.

Eventually I started carrying an extra mag horizontally on the belt. The thought process was it doubled the ammo available, and it provided some redundancy if there was a mag failure for any reason.

Eventually I incorporated mace on the belt because I determined there are a lot of idiots who want to be a threat to others but aren't obvious shootable deadly threats, but I can spray them as a preliminary attempt to deescalate the situation. Police and the law consider mace as less lethal than even fists, so it shows I attempted to resolve the issue without deadly force.

I started carrying medical on my person when I had a family to care for. I figured I didn't want major blood loss (one of the leading preventable causes of trauma deaths) to befall my family. (Or me, the guy who provides for them) A CAT and 15ft of tri-fold Celox gauze in my cargo pocket at all times provides an option to stop/significantly slow major blood loss to allow emergency services more time to do what they do. I'm considering adding chest seals as well.

As far as what I have changed my mind on. I stopped carrying the "cut something" knife, the swiss army knife covers my knife needs and the mace/gun cover the rest. I have no desire to get in a knife fight. I'm going to deescalate, run, mace, or shoot, or a combination of them. The knife is not part of the plan.

Carrying a blade is much more than getting into a "knife fight" in my opinion.

I carry a fixed blade and a folder daily. But to each their own.

 

[American123]

Carrying a blade is much more than getting into a "knife fight" in my opinion.

I carry a fixed blade and a folder daily. But to each their own.

What scenario do use envision your knife for?

 

[AshWilliams]

With my first foray into carrying I used to get wrapped around the axel with the make of pistol and aftermarket parts, etc. (Sig vs Glock vs S&W) This is probably the path that a lot of people take, however, now I could care less about the make of the pistol, keep it slick and reliable, and focus solely on training with it at regular cadences. My pistol looks like arse but the internals are very well maintained and she bubblegums.

 

[Unka-Boo]

What scenario do use envision your knife for?

For me:

box opener ( 90% of what its used for )
sammich slicer
cheese cutter
nail cleaner
screw driver
single sided scissors
seat belt cutter
stabby thingy if I have nothing else

 

[Member 53328]

What scenario do use envision your knife for?

It's simply a secondary tool for self defense.

What happens when you're in a physical altercation or in your vehicle and your "gun hand" gets pinned and you don't have an access to your firearm? A blade on your "weak side" fixes that problem.

 

[American123]

For me:

box opener ( 90% of what its used for )
sammich slicer
cheese cutter
nail cleaner
screw driver
single sided scissors
seat belt cutter
stabby thingy if I have nothing else

Yep, so it sounds like a Swiss army knife does that entire list sufficiently, comparatively, minus the stabby things. Since a knife is a "deadly weapon," if I'm going to use a deadly weapon to defend myself, it would be the more effective one I carry and not the knife.

I don't cut sandwiches so that's not a skill I need my knife to have.

 

[Unicykle]

What scenario do use envision your knife for?

I don't know how a male can get along without a knife I use mine probably 20 times a day for everything except Knife fighting, it's s30v and razor sharp.

 

[oremike]

When I got in to guns I started out with a 7 1/2" Ruger Blackhawk in 45 Colt that I open carried out in the woods. A couple years later I switched to a 4" GP-100 still open carried in the woods. I got into riding big dual sport motorcycles, and got my concealed carry permit so started carrying in a pocket of my riding gear pocket a 1911. My thought for carring on the motorcycle was if I've fallen and can't get up I didn't want to be an easy mark for Cougers and crackheads. I decided I wanted something smaller and lighter so after some head scratching bought a M&P 40 Shield. In recent years it has become apparent to me that I need to carry all the time so the 40 is my constant companion. I don't train per say, I try to get to the range a couple times a month and compete at various events when I can. Probably every other trip to the range I draw and mag dump the 40 into a paper plate at 10 paces making a fist sized group dead center in the plate. I figure if I can shoot that gun like that every time well, that's minute of bad guy.

 

[Certaindeaf]

For those who carry a gun, much of our learning is driven by hands on experience. We get started knowing very little (maybe even thinking we know more than we really do), our approach makes contact with reality, we identify deficiencies, and our perspective evolves. When this happens we may find that ideas that we once considered infallible are really not so great. Sometimes the change is subtle; other times it's a complete paradigm shift. But there isn't a single one of us who thinks, acts, and carries with the same perspective that we did the first time we strapped a gun to our hip.

So looking back at your own personal journey of carrying a gun, what have you changed your mind about? How has your perspective shifted? How has the weight or importance of things changed over time? I'm really aiming for deeper insight into changes of mindset, training, behavior, focus, decision-making, etc. So, simple things like "the gun got smaller" are fine, but if throwing that example down please include the train of logic you used to make that decision, what tradeoffs you considered and how you weighed them, etc.

Nothing.
Good talk.