Tuesday, August 4, 2020

RFI / Question on Concealed Carry

My carry pistol is a Ruger LCP II in .380 with iron sights only - I took a pass on the laser sight for personal reasons.  I use a sticky holster and carry in my right front pocket.

Question: Should I be carrying this with a round in the chamber?

If I somehow knew for certain sure that I'd never in all my life be in a rush to pull my gat and put lead in the air, then I'd say no - don't put one up the pipe.  Now, on the other hand, I kind of think I should have one in the chamber, ready to go.  The thing is, the LCP runs like a Glock.  The only safety is between my ears (stop laughin' you bums in the back!) and I'm a bit timid of somehow torching one off and doing myself a mischief.

What do you guys think?

8 comments:

Ike said...

Yes there is a risk, Colt Mustang is an alternate. Slide safety, and hammer down, safety off and manual cock for the first shot. Now for the hard part, with any concealed carry pistol, draw slowly, aim and while at the range, fire. Be slow and delebrate, you are practicing, for safe skill.

Ed Bonderenka said...

I pocket carry all day long in a sticky holster.
When I draw, finger off the trigger.
No threat to myself.
You never want to :
1) Have one less capacity
2) Have to rack to shoot.

Old NFO said...

Concur with Ed. As you said, the SAFETY is you. And that is as it should be.

Mad Jack said...

Thanks guys. I'm putting one up the pipe.

I never pull with my finger on the trigger or inside the trigger guard, but I do not have particularly strong hands and the slide isn't easy to rack.

The Neon Madman said...

It is probably just me, but I can't even consider one in the chamber if there is even the slightest possibility of a round going off either accidentally, or by fumble fingering in the moment of adrenaline rush. The guys who carry a pistol loaded and cocked, relying on the safety alone, are nuts in my opinion. For 20 years I have taught that a safety is a mechanical mechanism, and anything mechanical can fail. Some HE groups have used guns with defective safeties to illustrate that. I just can't do the "loaded and locked" thing myself - it goes against a lifetime of habit.

We are not in a hot combat zone. Maybe that extra second to rack the slide or cock the hammer is actually a good thing, allowing that little extra bit of time to assess/confirm/prioritize threats. YMMV and to each his own, but I will err on the side of safety.

Anonymous said...

Most “accidental duscharges” happen when reholstering. Put the pistol in the holster out side your pants then put the holstered pistol in your pants. Make sure the holster is firm and covers the trigger - then no worries.

Mad Jack said...

Neon: Your point about taking an extra second to think about things while racking the slide is a good one.

Anonymous: Thanks for the tip. I use a sticky holster in my front pocket, and holstering the pistol before I put it in my pocket in all cases is a good one. The trigger will be covered before it goes into my pocket.

Anonymous said...

My edc is a keltec p3at I carry without one in the pipe just to give me a moment to consider. When I am somewhere that concerns me I step up to something less anemic with one in the pipe.

Fitty