Do you Carry Loaded?

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We are a product of our background. When I hunted, I had a round in the chamber and the safety on. When I was in Nam, we were forbidden to lock and load until eminent danger or ordered to do so. Eminent danger usually ment when you were fired upon.

Forty years later, I carry but without a round in the tube. The magazine is filled and it is in the weapon. I use my own judgement as to when and If I should up my security awareness. I have seen a few times where I felt a little better by jacking a round into the chamber. This is my call for my circumstance. It may not be the best call for some in other circumstances. Experience does come into play, and all I can say it is your choice Brother. Do what you feel most comfortable with and be ready to deal with the results.

I don't have to ask anyone as to how I am going to handle the situation. I sure as heck also don't owe an explanation for what I do and why I do it.

Although, I have to say by the way some of you talk - My best decission is to never enter your community. I don't seek danger and furthermore I attempt to avoid such. It is my believe it leads to a longer life.
 
BUT, if I, the BG, am just looking for an easy victim (as I likely am), I'll probably back down after your gun comes out (especially if I don't have one, which not all BG's will) IF you give me an opportunity.
Remember that easy victims make a criminal's job much easier, and he knows there are plenty of other people put there who aren't carrying like you are, so there IS a possibility he would flee if you pulled out even an empty gun.
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Logic is one thing, what tends to happen on the street may be another.

Going for a gun might make Bubba pee his breaches and hot foot it out of there. Or, attack you even more viciously, knowing that if you reach that gun he could be shot. Many cops have had to grab an assailants gun because they didn't have time or enough distance to draw their own.
 
Loaded with one in the chamber, hammer back and safety on. Always! I feel very safe with three different safeties on my 1911.
 
I thought that shotguns were carried unchambered due to them not being drop safe as compared to most modern handguns.

A department really officially told its officers to rely on sound effects? Sounds stupid to me.

I got in to a debate with a gun shop employee over this when I went with my brother to buy him his first gun (which was a Maverick 88).

He said it's better to leave the chamber empty because of the sound you make when racking one in to the chamber. If you already have one there, you eject a round. If you don't want to do it, then you lose out on intimidating the BG right out of your house.

Of course, this was in reference to home break-ins, which was the reason my brother bought his gun.

Also having been told that through some "study" or another, the pumping of a shotgun is arguably the most intimidating sound in the gun world (next to the sound of shots being fired). And what better than to intimidate the bad guy right out of your house with no confrontation involved?

So it was something to consider. My take on it was: what happens if you have no time to chamber a round as your life is in imminent danger? Well, I do have a nightstand gun, which I can get to faster than I can by dropping off my bed and grabbing the shotgun. So if need be, I can have a weapon drawn. If the bad guy kills me before I have the nightstand gun, then I had no chance to live either way. But if one has no back up gun, then I think in that situation, I'd keep one in the chamber.
 
There is no need to reply to such probing questions from strangers. People only know as much about you as you tell them. That being said, the police carry with one round in the chamber and I suggest you should also after being properly trained to do so.:)
 
Usually - yes empty chamber, that's my comfort zone. With a Glock or similar type, absoloutely empty chamber. With a double action revolver or somthing like a ppk (double action, with hammer and a safety) a loaded chamber is ok. I've carried CCW since the 80's, this has worked well for me, I see no reason to change. If you even think theres a need, its pretty fast to rack one up, and there is no chance whatsoever of an AD until you do. Thats a good balance for most people I think.

If your a police officer, narc on the Mexican Border, etc. you probably need a loaded chamber. For the average working stiff headed to soccer practice, its more of a risk than necessary. B armed, b safe, b responsible.
 
So how many CHLs have drawn and ND'ed during a critical incident? I haven't seen many reports of such - so this is over the cracker speculation about accident rate.

To each his own. You really don't have to have ammo according the DGU reports for most incidents. They are deterrent. That prevents NDs also.

Never ending battle. I do think that if you are scared of your gun - you shouldn't carry it rather than screw around with it when under stress.

So you are scared of your gun and thus when you are scared poopy pants by the incident you start a relative complex action which you probably haven't really practiced a zillion times as you are scared of the gun and/or it is new?

:confused:
 
I don't like the idea of carrying one in the chamber with my Glock 26, so I bought PX4 Storm sub-compact! Now I'm perfectly comfortable with 13+1.....in practice, at home, because my CCW is about 60 days away :(
 
This thing has been batted around more than a tether ball at the city park, and I have yet to hear a cogent argument for carrying a self defense weapon in such a manner, intentionally, that it is not in a state of readiness. There isn't an argument to present. The firearm is there to defend oneself from attack, and to do so instantly as required. Making sure you have to go through some manual of arms prior to being able to use it does not seem to be a rational thing to do.
 
When I started carrying, I was a little uneasy about it and did so with chamber empty. However, as I grew more comfortable and had some time with the gun in the holster, I realized it never "went off" riding on my belt; the action was always as I had left it there. After a short while, I started carrying with a loaded chamber. It just made sense.

Firearms are designed to be safely carried in a loaded condition. Keep the safties in place, cover the trigger and leave it alone and you won't have to worry about a ND. But, if you're more comfortable carrying chamber empty, then do so, but practice getting the gun ready on the draw until its all you do.


Now I carry a wheelgun, and all chambers stay loaded :-)
 
These threads never fail to surprise me. The number of people who carry without a round chambered always makes me take a step back. Seems common sense to me to carry with one in the pipe.

I agree with the sentiment that if you are scared of your gun maybe you shouldn't carry one.
 
A funny thing here is that if you read things written 50 years ago, there was no controversy at all. It was simply too dangerous to carry an automatic with a chambered round, no question about it. And for that reason, they were too slow for fast draw work. Mind you, there was virtually only one service size automatic around at the time, which was the Colt Government Model. True, by then there was the Browning Hi-Power, not much different as far as the way it worked, plus war surplus P38s and a few Lugers. The S&W Model 39 had only just arrived on the scene but it was a 9mm. So all of those writers were dedicated revolver men, at least one of whom thought the .357 was for men with small, weak hands.

It is amazing the technological progress that has taken place in the last 50 years so that a 1911 Colt .45 automatic is so much safer than it used to be.
 
Without reading all of the posts here I am not sure about this answer but here goes..In my last 20 years of owning and carrying guns I have seen several negligent discharges of firearms...Three of them were with 1911s. and one was with a small compact Astra SA9 mm w/thumb safety. I have never heard of one with the Glock and the Glock is not myfavorite gun. I am a 1911 and any other small handgun that is for safe carry fan....I keep my Glocks in condition 3 till I am ready to holster and then I chamber and carry in condition 1...Just like a revolver or your DA auto you keep with hammer down on live round....No gun is smart and some operators aren't...
 
I would have probably said "Well Andy says I can't carry my gun loaded. The only round I was issued is in my shirt pocket.":p

Seriously if I was in a place that sells guns, and it was a counter person that asked I would not be terribly concerned. It is not like some stranger in the grocery store asking.

My IWB guns are striker fired semiautos I carry with one in the chamber. Pocket gun is a DA/SA with a heavy DA first trigger pull. I carry it safety off, hammer down in a pocket holster.
 
When i carried for duty, I always carried one in the chamber, safety off but with the hammer let down so my first shot was DA. This way you dont have to fumble with the safety and the trigger isnt as touchy where you might have an accident or draw and possibly touch the trigger and fire prematurely given the situation. Given the situation you can draw and shoot but it still gives you that split second to make that last minute decision.
 
As an MP at Fort Hood we were trained to rack the slide as we cleared leather.
With that holster in open carry, that technique is extremely fast. Like I said,
from open carry, so it doesn't really apply to cc. I know fellas that carry shortened Kimbers in their back pocket, One in the chamber, hammer down.
I wouldn't carry cocked and locked without a holster without a retention strap
either.
 
I have a round in the chamber with every weapon i carry, when and if I need to draw my gun it needs to be ready to do the job for which I carry it; to protect my family or myself. "plan for the unexpected, only victims are surprised".
 
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