Who Switches Carry Guns Regularly?

S

scgunrunner

Inactive
My question is two fold. First, what types of pistols do you switch between and how often? And secondly, why do you switch them up?

I understand that at times your regular carry gun maybe inappropriate for a certain situation, i.e. you wouldn’t go jogging with your 4” 1911 when you have an Airlite .38 just like you wouldn’t take your Glock 17 into the woods when you have a 4” .357 to stop bears (ok, maybe a bit much, but just trying to make a point). But I hear of a lot of people, including some friends, that switch carry guns every other day. I just think it complicates the SD process, when you’re under stress and trying to remember if you chambered a round in your Glock before you left the house, or if you pulled the hammer back on your 1911... Not to mention the difficulty in maintaining proficiency in multiple guns.

So I guess I just wanted to hear what my fellow citizens thought about the matter.
 
it comes down to situation like you said. I normally carry either a keltec 32 in my pocket, or a 6906 iwb, depending on where im going and what ill be doing. I also recently added an ankle carry 38 that i really like when im doing something kind of active indoors where i may print (like shooting pool). Im just not that tactically minded i suppose, i dont go out the door thinking about situations i may end up in and what i should be carrying, im just of the mindset that i have a weapon, thats better than nothing, and i will play whatever happens by ear.
 
Normal carry is a Kel Tec P11, during the winter months I switch to my Ruger P95, and when I'm out in the woods my Ruger GP100.
 
Beware of the guy with ONE gun

For carry, get one gun, learn to use it, and and stick with it.

I have tons of guns, All kinds. I carry one, my 642. I finish every shooting session with rounds out of my carry gun. I go through a min of 200 rounds a week with it. Not to say I dont shoot my other guns, I do, I shoot lots, but I only carry my 642.

Regardless if I'm hunting, hiking, horse back riding, regardless what else I might have, I carry my 642 as my defense pistol. I may hunt small game and camp meat with my 642 but its the only one I use for SD.

For a defense pistol, get ONE and learn to use it.
 
I would not say you must have one carry gun but I think any you carry you should be proficient with.

I switch between three.

Pocket/Smart Carry: S&W Model 60 J frame 38+P
IWB tucked or untucked, occasional pocket: Firestar M43 9mm+P
IWB untucked: 5" 1911 in 10mm

I prefer to have the biggest but mode of dress/environment dictates what I will carry. I am proficient in all three.
 
I have more than one weapon I carry, but they are all 5" 1911's, set up exactly the same, so that really doesn't count. I also always have a J frame on my ankle.
 
I switch mine mainly for seasonal dress. Summer time gets the LCP in the pocket or P2KSK IWB, winter time gets the P2KSK or 1911 commander both IWB.

Not to mention the difficulty in maintaining proficiency in multiple guns.
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It's not difficult at all, just takes practicing with all your carry guns.
 
I believe this is pretty much a matter of personal choice, but depending on the conditions, there are three that I carry.

In the well lit, better areas of town like malls and restaurants, I tend to carry my Walther PPK, usually in an ankle holster so I can remove my jacket (and I dislike baggy or untucked shirts).

Late at night or bad areas of town finds me carrying my Les Baer Concealed Carry model 1911 at 4 o'clock in a Bianchi model 82 retention holster.

Either on horseback or on foot in rural areas, I tend toward open carry of either my Smith mod. 29 or my Smith mod. 25 in .45 (long) Colt. Although both have 6.5" barrels, I usually go with my mod. 25. Shooting a .44 mag. on horseback can lead to rodeo time :D.
 
My two 'main' carry guns are a Glock 27 .40, and a Smith 642 .38. The backup for either is a Keltec P3AT.

The Glock has a NY-1 trigger with a 3.5 connector. Thus a 8 lb or so trigger pull that is strait back. The J frame is DAO and maybe a 9 lb trigger. The P3AT is also DAO with a LONG maybe 9 lb trigger.

Due to dress style and weather in Texas, I do have to change rather often. But since I have a IDPA Glock 26 version of the 27 and a 640 J frame practice gun along with a 2 inch J frame 34 .22 lr, well I practice alot with pretty much the same as I carry.

So while I switch often, I'm quite satisfied with it.
 
I carry my PM9 98% of the time. It's in my pocket now, 9:40 PM Christmas Eve, in my "home office" (junk room).
But occasionally, living on a lake, with snakes plentiful for 2-3 months a year, when I'm out with the dogs, etc., I carry a S&W442 with alternating shot shell/JHP's.
When I cannot carry a gun due to dress or...something...I carry a Seecamp 32.
I practice with the Kahr a lot; the 442 20 odd rounds per range visit and the Seecamp almost never.
All three are pull, point, shoot...though I practice reloads with the Kahr..not so much with the 442 and don't even own a spare mag for the Seecamp.

So I'm good 98% of the time..:)
 
Beware of the guy with ONE gun
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Calling B.S. on that one. Likely the guy with one gun doesn't really like guns and doesn't shoot much.

That being said, you have no buisness carrying a CCW that you are not proficiant with. I carry everything from a SP101 to a CZ 83 to a 1911 to a EAA 10mm and much more with complete confidance, not because I'm anything special, but because I shoot them all a lot in combat drills. If your training time is limited then maybe you are better off sticking to one gun, then maybe you should find more time to train.
 
Yes I carry all sorts of different guns,I only really have one rule the safety (if equipped) must be swept down with thumb to fire.I don't like carrying my walthers (p1 and a pp) for this reason.grip safetys and the P7 squeeze cocker dont matter I was gripping the gun any way.OH ya no colt DAs the cylinder latch works the wrong direction.
My list includes Smith,Ruger and Taurus DA revolvers.
autos include HK P7,Seecamp,AMT backup 45,Makarov,CZ82,1911s,a Smith 1076 and a Taurus PT38S.
 
I'm with kraigwy...

I carry my main gun about 95% of the time. I practice most with it and depend most on it. It's the most accurate in my hand of all my choices.

I have three other carry options, all of which I MAY carry, usually due to a concealment problem, since my main carry gun is sorta large and hard to hide sometimes.

My preference for carry is (in this order):
Steyr S40 .40 S&W
Keltec PF-9 9mm
Taurus 85 .38 spcl.
Bersa Thunder .380
 
I generally switch "Primary" guns, or Actions every year or two.

For the last two years I've been carrying mostly D.A. Revolvers. That's changing over the winter to the S. A. Autoloaders. In 2009 I'll be packing a 1911 or a BHP for the next year or two. I've already started the transition. :)

As far as the BUG's, I like the D.A. Revolver, and I usually carry two of them to go along with the "Primary". I like to stay "familiar" with any weapon I may find so that when the chips are down I can function with whatever I may have to use.

I'm not giving up my Revolvers, just giving them a rest. They still have a valued place in my line-up and will be called upon for use again as a "Primary" I'm sure. After the S.A. Autoloaders I'll probably go back to the Striker Fired weapons, like the Glock and S&W M&P.

Biker
 
The advice you'll hear from professionals is that you should carry the same gun, in the same holster, in the same location. Under duress, this prevents you from reaching for a gun that isn't there because you chose to ankle carry that day.

Unfortunately, it can be difficult to carry out the above mentioned practice, especially if you live in an area with a wide variation in climate (hot summers, freezing winters). Various styles of dress also make concealing a large gun difficult.

I usually like a revolver as a carry gun. Simple and easy to operate. If I carry an auto, it's either a 1911 or a S&W auto, two guns I've used for decades and have practice with them.

I am consistent in carrying at a 4 o'clock position and most practiced with a thumbreak holster. Once in a while, when conditions warrant, I'll carry in a shoulder holster. These few changes seldom give me any reason to worry.
 
I used to change guns all the time.

.45 LW Commander
.45 full size 1911
.45 Witness
.38 Super Witness
.357 GP100
.44 M29
9mm BHP
9mm G17

But not anymore. Now it's the Glock 19 as primary and a P3AT BUG. With one spare mag - Glock 17+2 - I have 35 rounds for the primary with one reload and 7 rounds in the BUG.
 
The problem with the "one gun" theory is that it may be impractical for people who engage in different sort of activities during the course of a given day. While I'd like to carry my Commander sized 1911 everywhere I go, that's just not possible all the time, so a lot of the time I switch between a 1911 and a Beretta Jetfire. I can't carry the 1911 when I go running in track shorts and t-shirt, and I can't carry the 1911 when I'm wearing a tucked in polo shirt at work. Since I believe in "always carrying", the little .25 rides my pocket.

One thing I do believe in though is not having multiple operating systems for my different guns. Fundamentally, my Jetfire's OS is scaled down version of the 1911 - cocked and locked with one up, safety located in the same place, etc.
 
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