Carry speedloaders on your person

B

BarrySDCA

New member
I pack a S&W 442 (J-frame airweight 5 shot .38 special) revolver as a CCW on a daily basis. I only carry speedloaders in my car and not on my person, mainly out of comfort in not having tons of things in my pockets. Last night, something happened that made me question this practice:

A small but popular grocery store in San Diego - one that I go to from time to time - was robbed by three gunmen. They first entered and ordered everyone to the floor before proceeding to rob the registers. Then, they started to rob the customers inside the store! In the end, one customer was shot (not critical) and a store employee was beaten by a gun. Three bad guys on the loose.

What if I was in that store? 5 shots, 3 bad guys...

I have no doubt in my ability to suddenly turn on that mode where a second seems like an hour, focus and make the shots. But...5 shots, 3 bad guys!

I like the weapon, although may move up to a Glock 27 or something similar in the future...but is it time to start carrying a speedloader on my person? Ugh...

How many of you already cary a speedloader on your person? More than one speedloader?

Thank you,

Barry
 
I carry 1 speedstrip.They carry much better as are more compact.They are slower to load from but for me I think the best choice when I carry a wheelgun.99% of the time I carry a sig 220 anyhow but I still practice with my M 36
 
I carry one Speed Strip when it's in back-up role, which is usually the case. On the RARE occasion it is the only gun w/me, I have a speed loader in addition to the strip. The nice thing is, a J's loader is a lot more compact than that for a K, or larger. It even fits in the watch pocket of my Levi's unnoticed. If you do consider something larger, take a look at the Kahr line of 9mms.:)
 
When I carry a revolver, I carry 1 speedloader in a Don Hume Pack Six holder, right front. On the left side I have 6 rounds in shell loops, left front. In my right front pocket is a Bianchi speed strip loaded with 5 rounds.

I wear shirts untucked.
 
Two Tacks to Take...

If I have a wheel-gun (70% of time I do), I carry 2 speedloaders. They fit in khaki pockets very nicely, or in the on-belt holders (jeans), or coat pockets too. I prefer the 7-shot 357 snubbies and have little difficulty in hiding it when necessary.
 
BarrySDCA, which store?

I'm in San Diego and haven't heard, but I've been on 600AM or 98.1 FM all day...I too would go to a semi-auto if reloading in that situation were a concern. But the more important question is how did you get a CCW in San Diego?
 
My fastest reload is the other gun. Normally carry speed strip or two, and sometimes speedloader.

Rather have five nasty .38spec than ten 9x19s.

Sam...my favorite 9mm is the 9x32R
 
It was the whole food store on University Avenue (I'm somewhat of a health nut at times). I sometimes stop by there because I have a client up the road a little further. Usually, though, I go to O' Henry's on Rosecrans.

CCW in San Diego was not difficult. I own a computer company here and some of the things we do puts me at risk of being targeted by a certain criminal element. I actually found the people in the San Diego Sheriff's office to be down to earth and quite friendly.

Barry
 
I would at least carry a couple of speed strips if the idea of speedloaders doesn't appeal to you. However, I have to admit, I would lean more to a 1911 of some type. I carry my Kimber PRO CDP daily, and it's light weight, 9 rounds, and a .45. I also carry an extra 8 round Wilson mag. Good luck, and PRACTICE with whatever choice you make...
 
Two guns. Reloads. All good.

Ask me again why I generally prefer my full-size 9's...

Oh, crap, I confess. I like them all; my 1911, my GP100's, my Redhawks, my EAA's in multple sizes and calibers (never did like my Glock)...
 
I normally carry a .45 ACP 1911. But occasionally, when deep concealment is a must, I'll carry a Taurus 85 5-shot .38 with boot grips. When I do, I always carry at least one Speedstrip and one Speedloader, and a .32 ACP back-up gun.
 
one speed strip all the time, if you're in a hurry (under fire) you can load two, fire two, load two, fire two, load two and assess. the niffy thing about speed strips is that if there is a lull in the fire you can top off your cylinder. NOTE: it's important to know which way your cylinder turns (yup, different brands rotate different directions)

if my 642 is my primary weapon, i try to remember to have a speedloader along too. our department recently had some training during which a wheelgun was pitted agisnt an auto...two shots, reload, two more shots. they were going head to head until the auto dropped a shot...very impressive especially w/hks loaders

if you go with a autoloader, don't think of it as only spare ammo for "those times". you should also be thinking of a possible malfunction which requires you to strip the mag out of the gun.
 
Kind of the more expensive route but...

...you can always carry a spare 5 shot snubbie.
 
When carrying my Rossi 720, I carry two speedloaders. Sometimes in a belt pouch, but usually in jacket or vest pockets.
 
Two speedstrips, strong side rear pocket. You can sit on them all day without pain; they don't print; and they are relatively fast. Open cyl latch with ss thumb, swing open cyl with other hand and point bbl up; jam ejector rod with ss heel; retrieve reload with ss and reload. Worth practicing...
 
I testing two new speedloader holders (a single and double)from Blade-Tech that I received at the SHOT show. My initial impression is quite favorable, especially for the single unit. Fits very compactly on the belt and quite fast to use. I have generally been underwhelmed with concealable speedloader carriers, but these look like they have promise.

A couple of situations I was in made me a uncomfortable with Speed-Strips, although I always have one on me when I am carrying a wheelgun. They can be pretty fast with practice.
 
Hi Barry,

My two favorite ways to carry speedloaders come from Sam Andrews Leather in Florida.

My favored method is to get a horizontal shoulder holster made for the revolver and get a triple speedloader carrier on the offside. The key to the arrangement is that Sam mounts the speedloader pouches horizontally with the snap on top of the loader's knob (a la HKS or Safariland Comp-II). When reloading, I dump the empties and hold the now empty revolver in my weak hand as my strong hand easily reaches under my strong side arm and withdraws a loader. The process is very smooth and positive.

My second favorite are these single speedloader clamshell style pouches that Sam makes. They let the speedloader straddle the belt with half of the rounds on either side. It also positions the snap on top of the knob. I always mount them so that the female snap (which is on top when the unit is snapped) is positioned so that upon opening I can push the flap away allowing for a very fast snatch. I usually positon two on the strongside.

My third favorite is just bounching around in a jacket pocket.

With my S&W M-640 Centennial in .38 Special I carry one speedstrip if it is serving as a backup. If it is the primary weapon, I carry a S&W M-642 Centennial as a backup with two speedloaders and one speedstrip.

If there is just absolutely no way I can carry a second gun I will often use the Safariland Comp-I loaders in a weakside pants pocket. The Comp-I's have no knob like the HKS units and are extremely compact with only five rounds. The spring driven action also allows you to use your weak hand to reload. Very handy sometimes.

Might I suggest going up in power instead of round count. Try a S&W M-640-1 in .357 Magnum. The Safariland loaders won't work with it, but HKS will. A pair of speedstrips and you would have a very formidable package. Loaded with the 125-grain JHP (1450 fps), a .357 Magnum snub is a very devastating weapon that should prove quite effective against robbers. Same manual of arms as well.

My personal solution was a lightly customized Kahr K-40 loaded with Federal 155-grain Hydra-Shoks. This gun is actually small enough to carry in a pants pocket with the right belt and pocket holster. The Kahr/SW M-640 combination has served me well in Texas' warm weather for some time now.

Good luck with whatever you do.

- Anthony
 
Anthony, why won't the Comp loaders work with the magnum version? I love my Comps for my K-frame, but I've never seen them for the J-frame. Can you provide any discount source other than direct from Safariland?
 
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