Sunday, October 11, 2015

Do you carry a spare magazine when you CCW?


I'm taking a small break on the Syria crisis mainly because I think that whatever brain power we have left in the Pentagon and State Dept is working hard to get a handle on this situation.  I have nothing to base it on, but I'm betting that by close of business Monday we'll hear about an agreement to deconflict the airspace over that country...and additional talks about backdoor intel sharing to hit targets that both the US and Russia can agree on will be in place.

So I'm taking advantage of this breathing room to circle back to something that I believe I'm evolving on.  The idea of carrying a spare magazine when you CCW.  Check this out from Concealed Carry Magazine....
The most recent and dramatic example of this was a fairly recent shooting in northern Illinois where a police officer shot an armed assailant 21 times with good quality .45 ACP rounds. Despite the fact that 14 of those hits were to the chest, the assailant kept coming and was only stopped when the officer was able to score two shots to the head. Toxicology reported showed only a small amount of alcohol in the criminal’s blood. That officer subsequently switched from the .45 ACP to 9mm, just so he could carry more rounds. He now regularly totes more than 100 rounds while on duty.
Yes, the FBI stats show the average gunfight to last three seconds while shooters expend three rounds from about 3 yards. Fine. But what if the situation is worse? What if there are two attackers? What if the attacker just decides he doesn’t give a rip, he’s coming for you no matter what? There are as many scenarios as there are concealed carry advocates. But the honest truth is this: when it comes to ammo, more is better. I am more interested in how many rounds you carry than I am in what caliber you carry.
So, if you carry a pistol, carry a spare magazine. If you have a revolver, get a speed loader or two. Practice with them. Get to know them. Train to reload under stress. This could mean racing against another shooter or the clock. Just add some stress. It won’t be like the real thing, but it will help.
I can't argue with that, but hear me out.

First.  A concealed carry holder is not a law enforcement official...not a sheepdog (I refuse to accept the commonly held belief that a private citizen should stumble into incidents that they don't understand and decide to play modern day posse).

Second.  Situational awareness is your first defense.  Criminals and/or suspicious people aren't Ninja.  You can spot them a mile away....IF YOU'RE AWARE!

Last.  Isn't the discussion about carrying a spare magazine premature?  Shouldn't the main focus be to carry at all times?

The average citizen doesn't wear a Chest Rig, war belt or duty belt.  If you add up keys, cell phone, wallet, a pocket knife, a pen/stylus AND your Glock 26 (or whatever you carry...don't get pissed M&P zealots...Glocks are obviously superior) then you're already well on your way to carrying Batman's utility belt in your pockets!

I now believe that a Glock 26 with G19 mag adapters (only to make it more ergonomic) is good enough and a spare mag is just not needed.

What does that mean?  If you go my route then you need to do at least monthly weapons maintenance...at the very least you do mag checks at the same time (if not weekly...but Glock OEM mags are considered reliable).  Oh and you need to train, train, train.

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