For me, loaded chamber indicators are absolutely worthless and get no use whatsoever. Whenever I unload my defensive pistol for any reason, I always reload it before putting it away for immediate use, either in a holster or the pistol safe. Basically it's always loaded unless I need to unload it for a specific reason (e.g. cleaning), whereupon I'd do a press check for safety rather than relying on some device. During an actual emergency, I know that it will be loaded, so there is no need (and there may be no time anyway) to redundantly check. If for some reason I'm suddenly unsure, then I'd do a press check whenever I feel like it, but never during an emergency.
By the way, the same goes for cocking indicators (for guns that don't have external hammers). Unless I've field-stripped it for cleaning or deliberately deactivated it for some other reason, my defensive pistol is always cocked, period. Unlike all too many people I've seen, I do not have a habit of decocking pistols for no reason, so I don't worry about it--if it's in a holster or the pistol safe, then it's cocked.
Mal H said:
Unless you've checked when you pick up your handgun, you aren't totally sure. You may think you are, but you aren't - period
Admittedly, I still have a habit of doing unnecessary press checks whenever transferring my pistol to a holster or pistol safe, just to be sure.
I chalk it up to having a mild case of obsessive-compulsive disorder
, but it doesn't hurt. That said, I will never check during an emergency, when I have other things to worry about (if it doesn't fire for any reason, then I'd rack the slide anyway).
Mal H said:
Rogers gives an aircraft analogy which does apply because in the case of both flying and handgun handling, people can lose their lives if the handler isn't sure, always. For example, you always check for water in the fuel/carb, you don't skip it this time simply because you checked last time.
Well, with airplanes any number of things could be screwed up by other people, during flight, or even by the simple passage of time, and generally I don't think that they're kept in a fully ready condition at all times. Defensive pistols are different in that they are kept in a ready condition virtually all of the time (or should be), nothing changes over time by itself (i.e. the cartridge in the chamber isn't going to gradually leak out
), and access to them is tightly controlled (or should be). I don't think the analogy stands up for defensive pistols--any old firearm that has been lying around in the open for a while or hasn't been handled for some time, yes, but not a personal sidearm that is properly handled.