Carrying the Ruger LCP with a Chambered Cartridge
Like many others who replied to your post, I have owned and carried my first-generation Ruger LCP .380ACP for some years now, and have had no untoward incidents involving the little pistol in all that time, while carrying the pistol with a round in the chamber. I mainly carry the LCP as a backup gun, together with two extra magazines, and I truly appreciate its diminutive size and low weight. Once I put it on, I hardly notice it’s there.
Your comment about keeping the gun on you while roughhousing with your kids gave me some pause, however; the only thing I can recommend is that you shift the gun from your front pocket to one of your back pockets when you carry it, and make sure that the holster you choose covers the gun’s trigger guard and always maintains the pistol in a muzzle-down, grip-up position.
I am still inclined to believe that there is no substitute for carrying a gun with a cartridge chambered, especially in an environment as potentially dangerous as your own. Like you, I usually wind up carrying concealed at home (albeit involuntarily) because I often neglect to remove the LCP and its two extra magazines from my back pockets, after putting aside whatever primary handgun I’ve carried for the day.
Security experts insist that carrying at home is an excellent idea --- it precludes any mad scramble to get to a gun when a breach of your home’s security occurs. Although I have to admit that my first impulse would still be to reach for the closest long gun if such an emergency occurred.
Personally, the only instance in which I would consider carrying a gun without a chambered round is if I had a reliable early-warning system (like a pair of dogs that warn against intruders, for example). Such an alert could prompt me to draw the pistol and rack the slide at the first sign of danger.
You may eventually wish to add a laser unit to your LCP in the future, to make the pistol easier to aim and hit with. The LCP’s sights can sometimes be difficult to see, especially in low light. Crimson Trace makes a laser unit specifically for the LCP, and my gun has worn one for as long as I‘ve been carrying it.
The only other important thing I would like to add has to do with the Crimson Trace laser unit. If and when you do attach a Crimson Trace unit to the gun, and you carry it in the back pocket of your jeans the way that I normally do, make sure to check the laser’s alignment every couple of weeks or so.
I have noticed that when the gun and its laser attachment are have been exclusively carried in the back right pocket for a while, the laser’s point of aim tends to shift an inch or two to the left, likely because of the constant pressure exerted upon the attachment when I sit on the gun. The change in alignment is easily corrected using the unit’s adjustment screws, however, and poses no significant disadvantage at close quarters.
I have written a somewhat more detailed account of my experience with the Ruger LCP over the years, which you may find helpful. You can find it here:
https://tygus.net/2018/09/16/a-defensive-pistol-you-can-always-have-with-you/
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I love gun control. It lets me hit what I'm shooting at!