There are a ton of resources out there for anyone looking to get the most out of carrying a concealed handgun. Reviews for the newest carry pistols, holsters, and gadgets are always popular, and there are plenty of training schools and shooting sports to help you hone your skills. We like all of that stuff as much as the next guy, but we also recognize that while it’s fun to talk about gear, training, and shooting techniques, it’s not always practical for everyone to immediately put that stuff into action.
So if you’re not sitting on a ton of cash and free time, rather than tell you “tough luck”, we’re passing along a few easy, practical concealed carry tips that you can use now. These are the kind of seemingly obvious aspects of concealed carry that probably got a brief mention in your carry permit class, but you may not have given them any serious thought since then. So if time and money (or maybe winter weather) are keeping you away from the range, these reminders can still help you maximize the potential of your self-defense readiness.
Check out our video below for an explanation and demonstration of today’s tips. The rest of the post provides some additional details and links to resources for further reading.
(Pro Tip: Every Lucky Gunner Lounge video has a closed captioning icon in the top left corner in case you don’t want to hear me yap through the whole thing.)
Three Free and Fast Concealed Carry Tips
1. Weekly Inspection and Function Check
The video shows how to do a quick function check of your carry gun every week, but just in case you’re wondering “is this really necessary?”, take a look at this post from a few weeks ago. The revolver shown there had been carried around for days even though it was completely non-functional. The problem was internal, and would only have been made apparent by attempting to fire or dry-fire the gun. There are also plenty of reported cases of carry guns with corrosion damage from sweat, or pocket lint that could obstruct the action or barrel of a carry gun.
Even if your gun handles the neglect with no ill effects, what about the holster? A worn out holster may not hold the gun securely, or could even cause an accidental discharge. Ammo isn’t safe from wear and tear, either. A round that is repeatedly chambered and cleared day after day will start to exhibit problems, too. Check for bullet setback and deformation of the rim and case body.
There are plenty of resources online if you need a checklist for inspecting your carry gun’s basic mechanical function. Add to any of these lists a simple visual inspection of the firearm’s exterior to spot-check for dirt, debris, corrosion, or broken parts. It doesn’t take much to develop a fairly quick but comprehensive inspection routine. Performing this check regularly will reveal the vast majority of issues that could potentially disable your gun at the worst possible moment.
2. Accessibility
If you ever have to defend yourself, there’s a really good chance you won’t see the danger coming, and will have literally just one or two seconds to react. What happens if you’re taken off guard, and need to draw your gun while quickly backing away from an attacker, pushed up against a wall, knocked to the ground, or sitting in a cramped booth at a restaurant? Does the draw stroke that you practice at the range from a relaxed standing position still work in these scenarios? How accessible would your gun be if an attacker’s first move was to step out from behind a parked car and shove you to the ground while you’re carrying an armful of grocery bags? These are the kind of situations when we’re most vulnerable and look like easy targets, so they’re the first kind of situations to consider when contemplating the viability of a given concealed carry method.
One of the best ways to counter the disadvantage of this kind of vulnerability is through practicing the draw stroke from various unconventional positions on a regular basis, both at the range and through dry-fire drills. But even if that’s too time consuming for you, at the very least you can spend some mental energy on contemplating the different body positions you might end up in when you have to draw.
I’m not suggesting you allow your everyday life to be consumed by contemplating every possible “what if” that comes to mind, because you’ll never be able to plan for every contingency. On the other hand, if you spend the majority of the day sitting down, for example, and your carry gun is in a holster behind your hip that you can’t reach when you’re in a chair, maybe it’s time to think about how you might work around that. Oftentimes, a solution is as simple as changing the direction you face your chair, but it could also mean a complete re-thinking of your carry method and gear. It just depends on your specific situation.
The important point is to at least give a little thought to the “what ifs” to uncover the most obvious flaws in your self-defense plans. There’s always more you can do to become better prepared, but this mental exercise requires very little effort compared to the potential benefits of the “I never thought of that!” moments.
3. Maximize Capacity
Most people I talk to who carry every day seem to favor carrying a small gun the majority of the time. They may occasionally pack something like a Glock 19 or a 1911, but more common are sub-compact, single-stack semi-autos. With such limited capacity available in these guns, it’s really surprising to hear that many of these folks don’t top off their magazines after loading their gun for carry. If you’re stuck with only seven or eight rounds in the magazine, it just makes sense to endure the few extra seconds it takes to eject the magazine after you load the chamber, and fill the mag back up to full capacity to give you that +1 in your low-capacity pistol.
The best stats we have available suggest that, regardless of caliber, an average of 2-3 handgun rounds to a vital area are required to incapacitate an attacker. On top of that, it’s estimated that most people are only about 50% as accurate under the stress of combat as they are on the range. And that’s one of the more optimistic figures you’ll run into. So let’s suppose the magazine in your pistol has a six-round capacity and you don’t bother topping it off after you chamber a round. If you’re attacked and It takes three shots to stop the bad guy, you’re leaving exactly zero room for a “below average” kind of day for marksmanship. Oh yeah, and what if there are two bad guys?
I know not everyone can or will always carry a gun with higher capacity. I personally carry small guns sometimes myself. But it’s a calculated risk, and I know I’m making a compromise by doing so in order to carry a gun I can effectively and comfortably conceal. I certainly don’t want to compromise any further by failing to load the one extra round my gun can hold just because I couldn’t spare the extra second or two. Loading the extra round doesn’t cost anything in comfort or concealability — all I lose is a little time. There is simply no logic to the mentality that says, “I can’t conceal a gun with a 15 round mag, so I might as well just stick this 7-rounder in my gun and be done with it”. Eight is still a lot less than 15, but it might be the one extra round that makes all the difference in the world.
One quick word of caution: This is all assuming that your gun does not exhibit any reliability issues when loaded to +1 capacity. Make sure you test this at the range, and don’t carry +1 if it causes your pistol to experience any malfunctions that it would not have otherwise.
Any Concealed Carry Tips We Missed?
Have you been carrying a while and have some other strategies that are both free/cheap and quick to implement? If so, sound off in the comments below, and maybe we’ll mention it in a future post.
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Great tips! I really like that your video was captioned as I am hard of hearing. Makes learning much easier.
Thanks Joyce, glad you enjoyed it. We always like knowing when people find the CC option useful.
Great tips! I really like that your video was captioned as I am hard of hearing. Makes learning much easier.
Thanks Joyce, glad you enjoyed it. We always like knowing when people find the CC option useful.
Great to know I am doing things right!!!!!
STOP Useing the Slide Release….Gezus
yes—enjoyed it
Thanks for the tips!!
Thanks for the tips!!
Why?
Why?
If you are going to have him do that, at least call it a slide stop haha
If you are going to have him do that, at least call it a slide stop haha
Great tips. Please do many more.
Hey good tips, but have you checked your total length of the bullet that you cycle thru your weapon over and over? I have found that repeated cycling causes the bullet to be pushed down into the shell, eventually causing feed issues.
Great to know I am doing things right!!!!!
STOP Useing the Slide Release….Gezus
Why?
If you are going to have him do that, at least call it a slide stop haha
Yep, I mentioned that under point #1: "Check for bullet setback and deformation of the rim and case body."
LG Chris oops, I guess I could read also, all I did was watch the video. Thanks, better that I realized. Good Luck
yes—enjoyed it
Thanks for the tips!!
Noel's bordeau Mastif
Great tips. Please do many more.
Hey good tips, but have you checked your total length of the bullet that you cycle thru your weapon over and over? I have found that repeated cycling causes the bullet to be pushed down into the shell, eventually causing feed issues.
Yep, I mentioned that under point #1: “Check for bullet setback and deformation of the rim and case body.”
LG Chris oops, I guess I could read also, all I did was watch the video. Thanks, better that I realized. Good Luck
a) move the repeatedly fed cart to training case after 3 chamberings, if you have this problém. BTW it’s probably the only real problem of Lapua CEPP.
b) get quality carry ammo. for example, the Sellier&Bellot (who produces ammo for Federal, BTW), just because of this issue introduced bullets GLUED into the case throat in addition to tapering the case. never had a bullet pushed in since. if you’re legally restricted to FMJ (like we are), then in 9mm Luger I can recmmend their 139 grain truncated cone subsonics.
Yes I enjoyed the tips and found them useful. Please keep them coming.
Carrying legally is virtually LIFE INSURANCE!
As a Law Enforcement Officer carrying a semi-auto, I rotate my mags in the weapons, primary and back-up. I always carry a spare mag
Yes I enjoyed the tips and found them useful. Please keep them coming.
As a Law Enforcement Officer carrying a semi-auto, I rotate my mags in the weapons, primary and back-up. I always carry a spare mag
thanks for the tips!
thanks for the tips!
Full mag with 16 rounds. One in the chamber.
Full mag with 16 rounds. One in the chamber.
Great stuff. I shared it to my self-defense company FB page as well. Keep this stuff coming!
Great stuff. I shared it to my self-defense company FB page as well. Keep this stuff coming!
You might mention the option to also carry 2 extra magazines, (loaded of course), and most importantly to practice the process of shooting, dropping the mag, reloading, and firing. This requires practice, practice, and then more practice.
You might mention the option to also carry 2 extra magazines, (loaded of course), and most importantly to practice the process of shooting, dropping the mag, reloading, and firing. This requires practice, practice, and then more practice.
I always carry 2 extra hi-cap mags…both turned the SAME way so I can load by feel and not have to look at them….
I always carry 2 extra hi-cap mags…both turned the SAME way so I can load by feel and not have to look at them….
Thanks for the great tips!
Good tips.
Love the tips …ty
Great tips. Especially like the reminder about accessibility.
Great tips. Especially like the reminder about accessibility.
Great tips. Please post more. Thanks.
Love these tips! Great video, please post more when you can.
Thanks for the great tips!
Good tips.
Love the tips …ty
Great tips. Especially like the reminder about accessibility.
Great tips. Please post more. Thanks.
if you must carry with a empty chamber under the hammer at least load a spent cartage in it so as cushion the firing pin if it drooped
Love these tips! Great video, please post more when you can.
Makes sense……at least to me!
if you must carry with a empty chamber under the hammer at least load a spent cartage in it so as cushion the firing pin if it drooped
Makes sense……at least to me!
Shouldn't you carry extra mags too? Just a thought.
I would like to what holster you where using
For which gun? There were several holsters shown in the video.
Shouldn’t you carry extra mags too? Just a thought.
I would like to what holster you where using
For which gun? There were several holsters shown in the video.
The one you where using in the car with the seatbelt tip
The one you where using in the car with the seatbelt tip
That is a “Looper” holster from Concealed Carry Concepts: http://shop.customcarryconcepts.com/Looper-LPR.htm?productId=10
That is a "Looper" holster from Concealed Carry Concepts: http://shop.customcarryconcepts.com/Looper-LPR.htm?productId=10
Thanks
Thanks
Great tips… Practice Practice Practice!!!
Great tips… Practice Practice Practice!!!
Not only carry an extra mag but a back up pistol. In cases of more than one attacker and no time to install the extra mag
I have had my P238 now for a few months, but havent had a chance to practice with it or carry it because I am pregnant. I would rather wait unitl baby is born to get into carrying it. Until then, I always have my Saber Spray on me. 🙂
Not only carry an extra mag but a back up pistol. In cases of more than one attacker and no time to install the extra mag
This time of year (Winter) I continue to carry a G19, but back that up with a .380. Wearing a heavy winter coat it can be tough to find the gun in a hurry. The .390 pocket pistol rides well in my coat pocket and easy to reach. I just don’t hang up my coat in a restaurant… Both are loaded with one in the chamber.
it was well done and would like to see different topics as well…thanks
it was well done and would like to see different topics as well…thanks
Great tips, thanks
Great tips, thanks
My carry is a Bulldog that has five bites and is prepared for all five……………..
My carry is a Bulldog that has five bites and is prepared for all five……………..
I will never carry a "convenient" sidearm. I carried a Colt 1911 for 40 years, switched to a S&W 9mm M&P, became disabled and now carry a Bersa, 15 round, .380 with Hydra-Shok ammunition in the magazine – and a spare magazine. I accept the reduction in power of each round and know that in a real fight (I've been in three,.) my accuracy is no where near what I do on the range. If I miss 50% of the time with this pistol I need only 6 rounds to incapacitate the assailant, leaving me 10 rounds to deal with another bad guy without changing magazines – assuming 15 in the magazine and one in the chamber when the balloon goes up. Keep up the good work – and your service is the best I have ever encountered.
J. Terry Riebling – Author: Seal Warrior – Sniper'e Eyes
I will never carry a “convenient” sidearm. I carried a Colt 1911 for 40 years, switched to a S&W 9mm M&P, became disabled and now carry a Bersa, 15 round, .380 with Hydra-Shok ammunition in the magazine – and a spare magazine. I accept the reduction in power of each round and know that in a real fight (I’ve been in three,.) my accuracy is no where near what I do on the range. If I miss 50% of the time with this pistol I need only 6 rounds to incapacitate the assailant, leaving me 10 rounds to deal with another bad guy without changing magazines – assuming 15 in the magazine and one in the chamber when the balloon goes up. Keep up the good work – and your service is the best I have ever encountered.
J. Terry Riebling – Author: Seal Warrior – Sniper’e Eyes
Great tips. Keep them up. On a side note I would never carry a gun that was not 100 % reliable. If it has an issue with plus 1 it would not be my carry gun.
Great tips. Keep them up. On a side note I would never carry a gun that was not 100 % reliable. If it has an issue with plus 1 it would not be my carry gun.
Excellent tips! More please?
Great tips!! keep 'em coming…I carry a Ruger LCP every day and will now start topping off the magazine. I also occasionally carry my S&W M&P 9MM, that one I top off.
Excellent tips! More please?
Great tips!! keep ’em coming…I carry a Ruger LCP every day and will now start topping off the magazine. I also occasionally carry my S&W M&P 9MM, that one I top off.
I like that S&W M&P 9MM.
I like that S&W M&P 9MM.
Awesome vid with common sense tips that i didn't even think of. Like topping off my mag, #BONUSROUND!
Great job and would love any future tips you can give.
Awesome vid with common sense tips that i didn’t even think of. Like topping off my mag, #BONUSROUND!
Great job and would love any future tips you can give.
Good info…please do more!
maybe some folks need to be reminded that, unlike mid-fight, at home you have all the time of the universe to make your gun ready for duty. you're at a safe place where nobody is shooting at you, at the warm comfort of your place, with all the ammo you have in the vault, and topping up the mag only takes like 5 seconds. is THAT really worth putting any extra risk against your LIFE and lives of your beloved?
a) move the repeatedly fed cart to training case after 3 chamberings, if you have this problém. BTW it's probably the only real problem of Lapua CEPP.
b) get quality carry ammo. for example, the Sellier&Bellot (who produces ammo for Federal, BTW), just because of this issue introduced bullets GLUED into the case throat in addition to tapering the case. never had a bullet pushed in since. if you're legally restricted to FMJ (like we are), then in 9mm Luger I can recmmend their 139 grain truncated cone subsonics.
Good job would like more
G17 gen 4. No fucks or restictions given.
Good info…please do more!
I travel with two mags for S&W M&P 9mm Shield. Never without them!
I liked the shirt tip. Do the other two. More tips would be great!! Always up for learning more. I carry the xd subcompact 9I'm. I chose it for the caliber and the mag capacity and I carry the other mag loaded
maybe some folks need to be reminded that, unlike mid-fight, at home you have all the time of the universe to make your gun ready for duty. you’re at a safe place where nobody is shooting at you, at the warm comfort of your place, with all the ammo you have in the vault, and topping up the mag only takes like 5 seconds. is THAT really worth putting any extra risk against your LIFE and lives of your beloved?
Good tips.
If I might add a couple more. ..
Get empty handed(martial art/self defense) training. A gun is a distance weapon, if your attacker is actually on top of or shoved up against you, you need to be able to extricate yourself from that position. Drawing a gun in that position increases the risk of it being used against you.
Secondly, carry a back up weapon. Or two or three. And learn how to use anything and everything as either a weapon, a shield or a distraction. In the above positions, a pocket or boot knife, keys, ink pen, even the pointed spine of a paperback book properly applied can give you the moment and distance needed to get to your firearm.
Dependence on the gun alone is foolish.
Yes..alot of info
I have a summer carry and a winter carry. Summer = kel-tec PF9 – full mag, not chambered. I have kids and its just an extra precaution for me. I practice chambering in my draw. Winter = Glock 26 w/Xgrip + G19 15rd mag. I always carry an extra full magazine. I fully understand it take 2-hands and adds minimum of 1 second to the firing time. It is the calculated risk I choose to take. I carry everyday and it is the standard I have chosen with small children.
Great tips! Would love to see more
Excellent tips thank u 🙂
Good job would like more
I travel with two mags for S&W M&P 9mm Shield. Never without them!
I liked the shirt tip. Do the other two. More tips would be great!! Always up for learning more. I carry the xd subcompact 9I’m. I chose it for the caliber and the mag capacity and I carry the other mag loaded
Good tips.
If I might add a couple more. ..
Get empty handed(martial art/self defense) training. A gun is a distance weapon, if your attacker is actually on top of or shoved up against you, you need to be able to extricate yourself from that position. Drawing a gun in that position increases the risk of it being used against you.
Secondly, carry a back up weapon. Or two or three. And learn how to use anything and everything as either a weapon, a shield or a distraction. In the above positions, a pocket or boot knife, keys, ink pen, even the pointed spine of a paperback book properly applied can give you the moment and distance needed to get to your firearm.
Dependence on the gun alone is foolish.
Yes..alot of info
I have a summer carry and a winter carry. Summer = kel-tec PF9 – full mag, not chambered. I have kids and its just an extra precaution for me. I practice chambering in my draw. Winter = Glock 26 w/Xgrip + G19 15rd mag. I always carry an extra full magazine. I fully understand it take 2-hands and adds minimum of 1 second to the firing time. It is the calculated risk I choose to take. I carry everyday and it is the standard I have chosen with small children.
Actually, there are a few ways to chamber a round using one hand.
Chris W. Langer III yep, you’re right and know a couple, Sights etc, but in general that is one of the down sides to an empty chamber, 2 hands and more time.
Great tips! Would love to see more
Excellent tips thank u 🙂
I like the tips. Thanks.
Can I quote you?
Liked ir
I like the tips. Thanks.
Actually, there are a few ways to chamber a round using one hand.
Chris W. Langer III yep, you're right and know a couple, Sights etc, but in general that is one of the down sides to an empty chamber, 2 hands and more time.
Liked ir
really liked this … please do more
Great tips. More please
really liked this … please do more
Great tips. More please
Thanks for the tips. I would like to hear some for us that prefer revolvers as their cc.
Thanks for the tips. I would like to hear some for us that prefer revolvers as their cc.
Great tips! Thanks for posting!
Great tips! Thanks for posting!
very helpful tips..would like to see more
very helpful tips..would like to see more
Great tips!! Thank you!!
Great tips!! Thank you!!
Dry fire. Dry fire. Dry fire.
Dry fire. Dry fire. Dry fire.
In states that limit your rounds to 10…..You basically just use the largest caliber you can get in the smallest gun.
In states that limit your rounds to 10…..You basically just use the largest caliber you can get in the smallest gun.
Great Video, While in NJ i can't carry I find this very informative. thank you
Great Video, While in NJ i can’t carry I find this very informative. thank you
Good tips.
Good tips.
MORE!!!
MORE!!!
excellent tips. keep them coming. you can never learn too much.
Tips and reminders are always worth listening to, especially for an old guy that forgets. Keep em comen!!
Great advice. . Loved it
Great video for those who have been carrying for a while and for those who are new to it. The only thing I noticed is at the being of the video when you went to re-holster you curled you trigger finger up as you holstered your pistol. Maybe it is the instructor in me. That is a bad habit to get into. I’ve seen on more than once people have a ND because of that. That is my two cent.
Always find this information useful. Thanks for the updates!
Good info. Thanks for the tips
I carry daily, a Springfield XDM, sometimes openly sometimes concealed, depends on the clothes I’m wearing that day. I have been carrying for about 5 years now and have always carried one in chamber plus full mag, plus full mag in pocket, like it is said you never know if there will be more than one attacker and as far as I’m concerned I’ll do everything possible to prevent my little girl from getting hurt. They do make a ton of holsters to carry a larger weapon comfortably and concealed. Just my experience thought I’d share
For Christ’s sake… Really? I carry a Smith J-Frame, 5 rounds of .357.. Do you actually expect to be attacked by six or seven miscreants? That’s ridiculous. Shoot one and I warrant the rest will run like rabbits. WTF world do you see? Do you really think that you’re going to need 40 rounds of 9mm as a private citizen? Maybe I’m sheltered and people are going to be breaking into my backyard and I’ll have to apologize. I doubt it. When was the last time you heard of someone being attacked in a swing? Goodness, it’s not that scary a world, unless you’re a professional victim. Please inform me of the time that a private citizen had to reload, I’ve missed it in the news.
Buy a single shot pistol since there’s no need to carry enough to defend yourself from the unlikely 5 person attack. LoL
You assume far to much. You assume you will never miss. You assume everyone will run when confronted. You assume you will never encounter more that one violent assailant. It is very possible to encounter multiple aggressors in a violent confrontation. Lance Thomas was a private citizen, perhaps at more of a risk than most but a citizen none the less. He emptied 3 revolvers and still had one robber in the store and two more outside, I imagine he was glad he had the firepower necessary to save his life. Read the link.
http://forum.opencarry.org/forums/showthread.php?45333-Urban-Gunfighter-%28-The-Lance-Thomas-story%29
By the sounds of you you’ll miss all 5 times. If someone comes at you armed you’ll be sad when you run out
He won’t be sad, more like his azz will be sucking on a putty ball down at the undertakers.
Since when do wolvess hunt alone? Where I come from they come in minimum numbers of 3 Sometimes up to 8 in extreme cases. “Shoot one and the rest will run” is a dangerouse statement to make, in some cases yes but for most criminals the reward is greater than the risk. Out here criminals comes when you least expect it, while relaxing on the couch, after people leaves your house after a party and even while you sleep I dont know about you but I wont be cought with my pants down (by suprise is usually the case). Last week a mom and her 19 year old son was attacked on their farm (the dad passed away to an earlier farm attack about 6 months prior). They had friends over and they just left, while laying in bed 8pm, 3 asailents came through a window armed with a hammer, knive and a firearm. Bashed the kids door down and started beating him, mom heard the noise and started shouting asking if all was okay, the criminals leave him and went for the mom, it gave him a few seconds to GET HIS GUN FROM THE SAFE. The end of the story is one criminal dead, one wounded and one got away and the kid sustained mulipal fractures and stab wounds. The moral of the story, be prepared, anything can happen at any time. I carry from the moment I get up in the mornings to the time I go to bed, and even then my firearm is within arms reach.
I just saw a news video where a man was attacked by a mob of ppl and he was beaten badly and his wife and baby girl were there in car which was damaged, you never know what can happen, better to be prepare than not.. . ppl should be. allow to carry what they want…. just because you don’t hear about it in the main stream media doesn’t mean it doesn’t ands wouldn’t happen… If all you want or need is 5 rounds good for you but everyone is different or have different preferences… thank you that’s all
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/georgia-mom-shoots-home-intruder-face-article-1.1234400 She shot all 5 rounds with just the one intruder he did die but not before leaving the house and driving a short distant. Most home invasion are more then one person. Had there been another one she would have been SOL as she had no more ammo.
Always better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it.
Do I really think I’m going to NEED it? No. But what happens if, for some reason, my first mag, after the first shot, won’t feed? I’m not at a range so I can’t just sit down, disassemble the gun and find the issue. It’s easier to just drop the full mag and swap it for a fresh one
Yes, there’s 100s of circumstances where you can’t do that either, but the likelihood of ever being attacked is already fractionally low as it is. If the world isn’t scary enough to carry a spare magazine (or in yoru case a speed loader), then why carry a firearm at all?
If something is worth doing, it’s worth over-doing.
Good video, keep them coming!
Full mag, 1 in the pipe, spare mag….all the time.
Excellent thanks!
I’m a CA native (we don’t all believe in gun control), I carry 15 +1, semiauto always and everywhere. At work, I have over 60 rounds on me. Off work, 31 rounds. Be a Sheepdog, not a sheep. You never know when the wolves will attack. Be prepared. If you can legally defend yourself and shoot them once, keep shooting until the threat is stopped. Clean and functional weapon is a priority. If you have a dirty gun, partial magazine, or can’t adequately use a firearm, you might as well have a club. As for the “Guest” that is only going to shoot once, ‘one shot one kill’ is great in theory, but the bad guy rarely goes down immediately and stays down.
If you carry 15 in a mag in California it is supposedly illegal, you are only allowed 10 and that includes 1 in the chamber. I say supposedly because any gun law in un-Constitutional and therefore illegal. The Bill of Rights being part of the Constitution means that it is the Supreme Law of the Land. Just because they have twisted it to allow States to make their own Laws doesn’t mean they are actually Legal Laws.
It might be a grandfathered magazine.
Glock made a lot of money selling those from 94-2004.
I am going to disagree with the comment that says this is not such an ugly world. It is Uglier than many would like to admit.
Let’s says that you are such an incredible shooter that even under stress you don’t miss a shot. You carry a 6 or 7 rounds handgun, no extra round in the chamber and no extra mags. 3 people attack you. Now, statistics say it takes an average or 3 shots to stop an attacker. You have 2 guys down and maybe one hurt. But we know one shot doesn’t necessarily stop someone and not every shoot you fire will cause maximum damage. So what do you do now? Add to the situation that it might be dark and you might miss a couple shots or that you might have dropped your glasses and can’t see very well. So many facts can affect the outcome of a lethal encounter.
I always, always have an extra round on the chamber. My gun is always loaded at full capacity. When it comes down to a “you” or “me” situation I’ll fight till the end so it won’t be me.
How many cases of people being attacked by 4 or 5 assailants we see everyday. How many women rapped by 5 or 6 men. How many cases of more than 2 robbers breaking into a home. Yes, it’s a horrible world out there and you can’t assume they’ll run as soon as you start shooting.
Don’t forget that quality ammo is another important thing to consider when carrying. Buying the right ammo can make the difference. I personally carry a short barrel gun so I only buy ammo that is designed to not lose speed and maximize penetration and expansion in order to cause maximum damage possible.
I carry a Kimber Custom Carry full size 1911, eight in the mag, one in the spout, cocked and locked in a Galco “Miami” style horizontal cross draw shoulder rig with double magazine pouch, both fully loaded, under the right arm. Unless I’m sneak attacked from behind I pity the poor old stupid sob that thinks he wants to give me a go.
Crossdraw sometimes allows for your attacker to pin your arm as you draw if they’re close enough, just FYI.
I can’t disagree with that, but there are about a hundred and one other possibilities that can hamper your draw as well. If I absolutely have to I CAN remove it with my left hand. Already practiced the maneuver over and over, that being the particular reason for choosing a horizontal rig. Not to mention the fact that I have plenty of up close and personal combat experience to go with it, coupled with an ambidextrous safety, if he doesn’t disable both my arms, he’s still going to take an early dirt nap real quick like
Let’s take the ever popular appendix IWB carry…
I’m an assailant. I manage to surprise you and get close. You go to draw your weapon. I notice quickly and pin your arm, preventing you from having access to your weapon. In a swift motion, I reach down to your weapon and pull the trigger. If you’re extremely lucky, the round passes through to the ground, missing everything. If you’re merely lucky, the round hits the boys. If you’re unlucky, the round passes deep into your femur, tearing your leg up and increasing the chance of the round hitting the Femoral Artery. In all but the first one (and no one’s that lucky), you’re down. I finish my business quickly and leave you to bleed. This very scenario happened to a friend of mine (he was merely lucky).
Every carry technique has it’s pros and cons. The important thing is that someone finds the CT that works for them.
Again here, I believe that a product like Saf-T-Blok could have prevented him being shot with a simple trigger squeeze. Sorry about your friend though. This seems like a strange kind of encounter though… was he in a fight or was he standing with his back against a wall? just having trouble picturing someone who was not only in arms reach but was able to pin his arm with no way of backing out… just curious as I run this scenario in my head for my own prevention and foresight. Thanks
I was surprised that my Charter Arms Bulldog .44 revolver would not fire while pointed straight up. The heavy .44 rounds would rest against the recoil shield and when the hammer fell, the firing pin would have to lift the heavy round up until it was stopped by the case rim against the cylinder. The primer-popping power had been used up lifting the round and the primers barely showed a tiny dent. Moral: It may seem unusual, but try shooting while laying on your back. It could happen.
Good observance,i never even thought of this
Buy a better gun….
You mean your fireing rounds straight up in the air??
I’ll try it with my revolver some day. I guess the best place for that might be the beach. Whoa! Never thought of that one!
S&W air weight. +P, with golden saber. loaded, with at least 1 speed strip. normally OS the belt.
Very good , yes would like more ———–
Really informative, its a very positive thing to have little tutorials like this on a variety of firearms, ammo, tactics, law and 2nd amendment topics. Thanks to all at LG!!
I am hoping to petition my local Police to acquire a concealed carry permit here in Gilroy, California. My next door neighbor took time to share some things with me (he’s a sheriff) and he said due to my handicap and age, “You might” be able to talk the local police chief into issuing you one, but “Not Likely”.
Ah, the joys of a “may issue” state.
Great stuff! Would love to see more
Most gun fights occur withing seven feet. I’m not going to miss at seven feet, I don’t care how much adrenalin is pumping into my blood. If there’s two of them there won’t be time to shove in that spare magazine, so my most intensive practice is making sure the first two rounds go into that seven inch circle between the tits. BTW, my everyday carry is a Glock 43 with Hornady hollowpoints.
I carry a Ruger .38 special. I am 5’4″ tall, short-waisted, and “chunky”. Most holsters do not fit my body type or allow an easy draw. My favorite solution is to purchase mens’ jeans a couple of sizes larger than necessary, to ensure they ride loosely around the top of my hips, and slide my holstered .38 into the front, right pocket. The pockets of mens’ jeans are larger and deeper than pockets of womens’ jeans, and the gun is unobtrusive. Even the shorts work well. Of course, drawing from a seated position is difficult–but if the jeans are sufficiently loose, it is not impossible.
I agree with all of your CC tips. My only problem is not having the range available to me to draw from the holster and then fire. I do however practice my draw from the hip as in a confined space.
You don’t need 3 shots in a vital area to stop a perp. You just need Federal HST, and preferably the +P rounds in your 9mm or .40 SW weapon! There is not a more effective and deadly SD pistol round on the market. One shot anywhere between the shoulders, and they’re not getting up. (Used to only be sold to LE, but available now to the public, and far more effective than Hydra-Shock)
Federal HST is a great bullet. It’s what I carry most of the time. But it doesn’t negate the need for multiple handgun rounds on an attacker. The “anywhere in between the shoulders” argument makes it sound like the vital organs are one giant mass taking up the whole of the upper torso. In reality, the ideal target area is relatively small. All the HST round does is give you a slightly better chance of hitting that target through its penetration and expansion characteristics. But not even a heart or lung shot will necessarily incapacitate an attacker immediately. Depending on who you ask, somewhere between 75-95% of people who are shot with a handgun survive. Using HST — or any other bullet — doesn’t magically bring that number down to 0.
Unfortunately the mp9c aren’t rated for +p ammo. Do you know an equivalent non +p round with same stopping power?
Not sure where you got that information, but the M&P9c is compatible with +P ammo.
It says so in user’s manual.
Not exactly. The generic M&P owner’s manual that comes with the M&P9c has a disclaimer warning that +P ammo can cause more wear and require more frequent maintenance, but the manual also says to use SAAMI spec ammo. Ammo rated as 9mm +P is, by definition, SAAMI spec. Unless you’re running thousands of +P rounds through your M&P, you have little to worry about.
But if you still don’t want to use +P ammo, there are standard pressure 124 gr and 147 gr loadings of the HST ammo. Both performed well in our recent ballistic gel tests: http://www.luckygunner.com/labs/self-defense-ammo-ballistic-tests/
However, I will warn that *no* handgun load can be counted on for a “one shot stop”. Here’s an excellent read on the topic that de-bunks that myth: http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/alternate-look-handgun-stopping-power
Roger that. Thanks for the info.
I suggest you carry with “urban rounds” in your weapon. Here are some “suggestions”: Xtreme Defender by Underwood, Pow’RBall by Corbon, G2 Research “Radically Invasive Projectile” (RIP), Hornady FTX, Barnes TAC-XPD Defense Ammunition, Remington BJHP “Ultimate Defense”. All are available at Lucky Gunner…I purchased mine from them.
I have found that a projectile (bullet) that “expands” upon impact, or just after impact in the body of the perpetrator attacking you, is the best round to use to stop the attack upon your person.
I am alive due to a .357 expanding (hollow point) doing exactly that on September 03, 1981. My wife and I were attacked out of nowhere on our porch. I was stabbed in the neck with a knife… still in my neck when my wife slapped the Ruger .357 in my left hand (I’m right handed)…and I fired a round point blank into the right front temple of my attacker using my left hand. It was odd…using my left hand to fire the Ruger… I mean. (The person attacking us was heavily drug induced with PCP (horse tranquilizer) , cocaine, speed, and alcohol…and “mistook” us for people having him arrested the next day. We had never seen this “forker” before……). The attack stopped. It was a nightmare dream while it happened…and also afterwords.
So…my advice here is to…unless you’re in direct contact with the head (brain)…fire as many rounds as you can into your attacker hoping there isn’t someone backing him/her up. You must think quickly…and believe that although you think you have enough ammo……there’s never enough ammo……………
I carry a Walther PPS 9mm and sometimes a Glock 26. Both fully loaded and always one in the chamber. If you ever experience being attack by a crazy individual you won’t have the time to rack the slide and bring the gun up to your sight of view, and then fire. You are going to be so nervous and in the process you could jam your gun. I use Lehigh 9mm Luger 105 gr. Maximum expansion. Penetration is up to 12 (in). Good ammo if you need to fire in a movie theater or where there is lot of people. These are my two cents. Please keep them coming; great info. from everyone. You can’t ever know too much.
Get info can’t wait to see more videos and use these tips for when I get my CCW this December!!
WITH REGARD TO CARRYING +1: that is fine for those carrying a semi-auto that has a hammer (i.e. 1911), but if you have a firing pin (i.e. M&P) and if you carry +1, you’re now trusting that your little safety lever doesn’t get caught on something and get set HOT or that you don’t accidentally flip it off as you’re concealing and un-concealing, as we tend to do many times throughout the day.
We have to remember that, unfortunately, there are many people carrying that are less than highly responsible or who haven’t thought things out in advance or aren’t smart enough to do so. ADVISING SOMEONE TO CARRY +1 IN A GUN WITH A FIRING PIN CAN HAVE DISASTROUS CONSEQUENCES!
That’s an easy fix… just get something like Saf-T-Blok and you can’t budge the trigger till you pop it out. Your point still holds true though… there are many who need to use good judgment on how well their gear works for them and how practiced they are in order to do this safely.
I am not sure I understand. Appreciate if you can elaborate on this.
Carrying +1 means the magazine is full of bullets and there’s 1 in the chamber. People like to do this so they don’t have to rack a round into the chamber when they have to pull their gun, they feel it saves them valuable seconds when their life is in jeopardy. For guns that have a hammer, the hammer gets “cocked” when you rack one into the chamber. On these guns, you can de-cock the hammer so that the gun is safer to carry +1 and you won’t accidentally fire the gun if you bump the trigger. But for guns that DON’T have a hammer, +1 can be dangerous. They function the same way, but instead of a hammer, they use a firing pin that gets “cocked” when you rack a round into the chamber and the firing pin cannot be manually de-cocked. This firing pin is internal and you can’t even see it, let alone touch it, therefore you cannot “de-cock” a firing pin. The only thing you have to prevent the gun from firing if the trigger gets bumped is a little “safety” lever which can easily be accidentally flipped off when you’re putting the gun in or taking it out of your holster, pocket, waistband, etc. Hope this helps.
Use a quality holster that protects the trigger. train until; you know your carry gun inside and out, keep your finger off the trigger when holstering, and keep your wits about you. I carry a full sized Glock 21 daily with 13+1 and have for years.
No NDs here. If you cannot carry your EDC safely and competently . . get a revolver.
Y, racking could take the time you need to protect you or… It’s one reason I have a 6+1 or 10+1 cap’y. carry status re: the weapon. Firing the first round from double action in practice is my way of training.
Good tips, Thanks to LuckyGunner. Another reason to carry extra loaded mag(s) is that mag may become damaged or lost. I saw a cop chasing a thief-his Glock smacked a railing on some steps, and his magazine came to pieces still in the gun-I helped him pick up the ammo/spring. If that happens-you have one or no shots, depending on the design of your pistol. Small sacrifice to carry at least one reload-or a backup.
I carry a glock 20 so the plus one I couldn’t care less about. If I can’t hit them in 15 rounds I’m pretty well screwed by then or have time to reload.
Great tips
My EDC is a Glock 21 with 13+1 and a spare mag, and a PF9 BUG with a spare mag. Be ready, be prepared, train, and better too much than too little.
Thanks Chris and I would love for you to continue your videos.. if you can stand the society backlash.. It is all food for thought for all of us. I learn from you, and some from the backlash comments as well. Again, Thanks and keep up the great work with your business.
Nice piece , I was fascinated by the insight . Does someone know where I could possibly acquire a blank a form form to complete ?
My Ruger P-90DC is kept full like the 93 when in use or just idle. Practicing with the first shot a double action pull then the rest SA pull is the way I’ve trained. One in the chute. Brain is the safety. Stop the threat. I’m not anything, but a civvie in condition “white” while sleeping so to speak. Whennusing/carrying the Ruger .357 it’s accompanied by another speedloader withnthe rest of my Glaser Safety Slugs. They don’t penetrate walls. This is not an advertisement! Can’t use a beavertail. One-handed use since the ’93 CVA, hence the beginning with the Ruger DCs.
Rotate the round you chamber. Don’t use the same one time after time.
Also, it’s good practice to rotate your carry ammo periodically. Use your old ammo for a range session and buy fresh.