The Endless Carry Argument: which gun? what caliber? what self defense round? which holster?

Uncle George's Wallet Holster

From my experience on a couple of decent firearms forums which primarily serve citizens interested in pistols for both shooting and self defense, this argument seems never to die. I think it is important to address because of the increasing numbers of people who are new to handguns and new to legal carry for self defense. These long-running discussions, which can unfortunately turn dictatorial and nasty when the so-called experts get involved, do more to confuse the issue than offer clarity. So, I'm attempting to interject a bit of basic information, and, hopefully, clarity into the topic of handguns meant for self defense carry.

I've illustrated this post with a photo of one of Uncle George's wallet holsters made for the Ruger LCP because carrying a handgun for self defense is a simple and basic act, and this is about as simple as it gets. Anyone - male, female, big, tiny, it doesn't matter - can carry one of these setups almost anywhere without being noticed or uncomfortable. The Ruger LCP weighs 9.4 ounces, 10.0 with a Crimson Trace laser sight installed (as above). It's a little over five inches long and less than an inch wide. It is built for concealment and for carrying. It, and other similar 'pocket pistols' usually are chambered for the .380 caliber round (also called the 9mm short). With a good factory load, designed for self-defense, such as the Hornady CD or perhaps the Speer Gold Dot (and similar ammunition), it is an effective self defense weapon.

So, what we have here is a lightweight (Light), small (Compact) Pistol designed to be carried for self defense by practically anyone. This, evidently, drives some self-styled 'gun experts' crazy.

They can't so much complain about the polymer frame, since many of the handguns they prefer incorporate that in their builds, but seemingly everything else is fair game to them: caliber (too small), bullets (not heavy enough, not designed right), sights (poor iron sights that aren't adjustable), small capacity (seven rounds is not enough), not durable enough (will suffer problems if it's shot too much), and so on. To further disparage these kinds of self defense weapons, they have labeled them "mouse guns". Must mean that they are only good for plinking mice, or that mousy people use them. Not sure on that. And, they probably aren't either.

A few examples of the "experts" recommendations for self defense carry:

• If the caliber of your pistol doesn't start with a "4" it isn't big enough.
• Double-stack magazines are required so you can carry enough ammo without having to frequently reload.
• Your self defense gun must be 100% reliable under all conditions.

There are more, but those will do for illustration purposes.

In my opinion, basically all of those arguments are bogus when it comes to self defense. The two critical factors are, 1. carry a gun. All of the time. It is a true statement that you better have one when you need one.

2. hit only what you intend to hit when you have to shoot.

If the caliber of your pistol doesn't start with a "4" it isn't big enough.

It is obvious that if you pull a gun and fire off a round (or twelve, even) and don't hit the threat, you've done yourself no good and possibly have injured, or worse, an innocent person. No matter what the caliber of the gun, velocity or impact of the bullet, your self defense gun is useless unless you can hit something with it. Reliably, accurately and repeatedly if necessary.

Unless one is a practiced, experienced shooter, shooting a large caliber handgun is harder than shooting a handgun of smaller caliber and power. Most people who carry for self defense are not practiced, experienced shooters and are not going to become one either. They, hopefully, practice enough to be comfortable with their weapon and to be accurate enough for the ranges and target sizes that would be appropriate for most self defense situations. Most of these people shoot a reasonably sized handgun - .38 special, 9mm, .380 calibers. They are big enough to do the job, but not so heavy, noisy and recoil producing to be hard to shoot.

Double-stack magazines are required so you can carry enough ammo without having to frequently reload.

Double stack magazine handguns are bigger and heavier than single stack guns. As a consequence, they are more uncomfortable and heavy to carry and more difficult to conceal. Hence, they tend to not get carried as a regular thing. Your double-stack .40 caliber pistol is doing you no good as a self defense weapon while it's in your car or home in the safe. Besides, when are you going to really need a fifteen, sixteen or seventeen round capacity in the self defense world? I supposed if you were attacked by a gang and were forted up behind a car, then, maybe. You'd likely be outgunned anyway so things wouldn't be turning out well for you.

I think the notion of being in an extended shoot out is common because that is what TV and the movies show us. But, that's really the rare exception when citizens are forced into self defense shooting. Read up on it. Most scenarios involve one or two rounds being fired. It's rare that more than five or six are expended in these situations. They start quickly and end quickly with people running away or stopping their aggressive behavior because they are suddenly dealing with a bullet wound or two.

You can easily carry a spare single-stack magazine along with your smaller self defense weapon so you'll have a reload in the unlikely event you will need one.

Your self defense gun must be 100% reliable under all conditions.

That would be nice, but face it, no machine is 100% reliable even under good conditions. It's the nature of the beast. It's the world of Murphy's Law. I know shooters who have fired thousands of rounds from their handguns and think this is a guarantee of reliability, that the gun is going to go bang the next time they pull the trigger. Think about it. Just because the machine has not experienced a failure before does not mean it's never going to fail.

Check your self defense gun by shooting regularly, but don't burn through hundreds and hundreds of rounds. Shoot it enough to be sure it's running well, like it should, then carry it. Maybe go out and practice once a month to keep your proficiency and to exercise the gun. You will soon know if it has an endemic or recurring problem. Send it back to the maker and have them fix it. Use another self defense gun in the interim.

The reliability factor is one of two that mitigate for carrying a backup gun. In the unlikely event that your pistol malfunctions at exactly the wrong time, you may have the opportunity to go to your backup. Odds are that the two guns won't fail at the same time. The second reason is that you may not be able to get to your primary weapon due to being injured, having the gun taken away, dropped, or perhaps your assailant in on top of you wrestling with your gun, or preventing you from getting to it. You may have the option of going for the backup.

In the real world, it is impossible to prepare for all contingencies, just as it is impossible to carry a gun that is 100% reliable. You can narrow the odds and put survival more in your favor by understanding that a reasonable and rational level of preparedness is attainable and sustainable if you only do a few things.

1. Find a handgun that suits you and which you will carry at all times where legally allowed.

2. Keep that gun in good condition.

3. Practice regularly so that you can access it and shoot it accurately under self defense conditions. Practice at short ranges, say, the distance between two walls in a regular room in your house. Become good at hitting an area the size of the human torso.

That's it. Shooting an assailant a number of times in the torso will definitely put the odds of survival in your favor. Of course there are true stories of men being shot multiple times with decent caliber handguns, mostly by law enforcement officers, who still fight back and don't seem to know they are shot. This is the exception however. And, when you think about it, if you should encounter one of those people, it doesn't much matter if you are toting a Model 1911 .45 automatic or a .380 LCP. But one thing for sure, I'd rather reach for and use my .380 in a circumstance like that and hope my accuracy was enough to stop the threat, than to be throwing rocks, glasses or chairs as my self defense weapons.

If you think the circumstances may demand it, you can always carry a larger gun along with your primary self defense weapon, but you don't have to make it a regular thing.

Realistic self defense carry will keep your armed and prepared in all situations. You probably won't be ready for the zombie apocalypse, but you will be ready to deal more effectively if you are seriously threatened. 

Carrying a bigger gun

Ruger LCP .380

Ruger SR9c 9mm

Ruger's two fine self-defense carry pistols. Both have their place in a basic self-defense carry scheme. Without getting into the caliber wars, and you can read as much about this as you want on most internet gun forums if you can stand the tone that these "discussions" often descend to. My philosophy centers around being very proficient with your chosen self-defense weapon regardless of which make, model or caliber you like. There are limitations, of course, being a decision that is predicated upon carrying for self-defense. Too light of a caliber will most certainly be ineffective and too heavy will be hard to shoot and hard to carry consistently. I like the range somewhere in the middle, but whatever one chooses, it is imperative that you be able to consistently hit your target. This will make most any caliber effective, and minimize the possibility of shooting something or someone you don't intend to shoot.

At this point, I have settled on the combination you see above. The .380 shooting modern self defense ammunition, like Hornady Critical Defense (and there are other good choices as well) is an effective, short range self-defense firearm that is reliable and very easy to carry for both men and women, and with almost any wardrobe. Being both light and compact, it carries well in almost any position, and it is very suited to use as a backup gun when required. Pocket carry is very suitable for that role and I personally favor the Uncle George back pocket holster for that use since I don't like front pocket carry. When carrying as a backup, or singly, it fits well in an appendix or cross-draw carry position to supplement a larger handgun in a different carry position such as strong-side.

I find the LCP is very handy for around the house carry when you want something with you and your other gun, or guns, are parked safely in the house.

At one point, in addition to the SR9c, I had a Ruger LC9. Now, that's a good self-defense carry gun - compact, not so big, reliable, in 9 mm. However, I think the SR9c is a better 9 mm choice. It carries, with the small magazine, 11 rounds to the LC9's 7. It has better sights, better (for me) ergonomics, and a much better trigger. And, it is marginally bigger and heavier, but not so much that I cannot carry it all day in a suitable holster - which at this point includes the Bullard Bandit and the N82 Tactical Pro, depending on the occasion.

The biggest advantage of the SR9c over the LC9 for me is that I can shoot it better and more accurately than the LC9. And, coupled with the Ruger SR22PB as a trainer, it goes to make me a better shooter, and that's the most important thing. Your gun must be reliable, but you must be reliable too.

Choose your best carry guns and train with them often. Then carry them whenever you can.

Be safe.

Back from the road trip

We recently returned from an almost two week road trip from Colorado to Iowa. Fortunately, all of the states we traveled to and through have reciprocal concealed carry agreements with Colorado. That was good, but unraveling the different carry restrictions for each state was not quite so easy. There is a site I like about US Hangun laws that helped tremendously: www.handgunlaw.us

All of the relevant factors are listed by state, including which states have reciprocity agreements with others. Passage of the national reciprocity act would make that point moot, like drivers' licenses. They are ALL recognized by ALL states. No questions asked. Why not the same for concealed carry permits you might ask? Well, the fact that most non-gun owners are uneducated in gun ownership, civil rights and the fact that regardless of the desire on many people's part that guns just disappear or be banned outright, criminals and bad people will get, carry and use guns. Like it is somehow morally superior to be found dead - shot, strangled, stabbed, bludgeoned, etc. - rather than to have to explain to the police how that person who attacked you got those bullet holes in his chest.

So, with that in mind, I put my road carry package together, suitable for many hours in the car, and for many hours in the company of hundreds, and in some cases, thousands of people who mostly do not carry guns, mostly don't like or understand guns, and who would likely freak out if they saw or suspected that someone amongst them were actually carrying a gun. Sort of like normal life, but on an amplified scale for a couple of weeks.

Being a person who understands risk analyis and is often a fan of redundant systems, I elected to take two Rugers: an LCP and an LC9. This would provide me another weapon should one become unuseable for any reason, like a malfunction of me leaving it behind somewhere (not very likely, but, hey, I've done stupid things before...) This would also permit me to balance firepower with conditions, like around the hotel room it's more comfortable to carry the little LCP than the bigger, heavier nine. With Hornady Critical Defense ammo, the LCP would be effective, especially within the confines of a hotel room, and worse case, would possibly buy me some time to get to the nine of things really went to hell in a hurry. At least that was the theory.

For holsters, I took two Versacarry rigs. Either would fit either gun and provide varying levels of deep carry. I also took a standard Remora for the LCP and two Remoras for the LC9, one tuckable, the other not.  Lastly, I took the Uncle George back pocket holster for the LCP.

I used a combination of them all at one time or another. Except for the Uncle George, most of my carry positions were either appendix or cross-draw. When in situations where one is sitting, moving about, sitting, etc. throughout the day, I favor the cross-draw position. Good concealment and easy to get to, even when wearing a seat belt. You have to get a suitable holster though, since the end of the grip may tend to protrude under your shirt. I found that the Remora or the Versacarry worked fine in this position too.

When all was over and we were back home, I got an unintended compliment from my wife. She looked at me (I was carrying the LC9 in a Remora at the time) and asked, "Did you carry your gun while we were at the reunion?"
"What do you think?" I said.
"I don't know," she said, "did you?"

I haven't answered that question yet.

Mods come, mods go...

After wearing the LCP with the new Hogue grips for a couple of days in the Uncle George and the Nemesis pocket holsters I have removed them today and gone back to the stock skinny grips. If one was primarily wearing the LCP in an OWB, or some IWB holsters, these would probably work fine, and they do add thickness and heft to the pistol which improves the grip. However, they are just too big and somewhat sticky for pocket use. The Uncle George back pocket holster works very well with the stock LCP, but the Hogue grips add just enough width and friction to make a clean draw a sometimes thing. That is not acceptable for a self-defense concealed pistol. Things were not all that better with the Nemesis (or Remora) when carried in a pocket. Front or back, did not seem to make much difference. So, off they went and I'll probably sell them on my forum.

Modifications

With warmer weather soon to come - can't be too soon for me now - I will be relying on my Ruger LC9 as my main carry gun. I may or may not also pack a backup gun. The jury is still out on that one for me. I do have an LCP that I can carry in an Uncle George back pocket holster, or a Nemesis front pocket holster, and various other IWB (In Waist Band) and OWB (Outside Waist Band) rigs for it.

I will have soon a Crossbreed MiniTuck holster for the LC9 to supplement the Remora I currently use for IWB. So, in some terms, I am modifying my carry system. I have also put some easy mods on my guns. First, I replaced the standard recoil springs on the LCP with #12 Wolff springs. This was to keep the ejected brass closer to me and to lessen the recoil impact on the frame. During one session of shooting with the LCP I noticed the takedown pin was beginning to move out from the frame. I popped it back in and kept shooting with no further problems. Afterwards, I called Ruger customer support and discussed this with them. Instead of returning the pistol for their analysis, I ordered a new takedown pin and installed it. That's when I also got the Wolff springs.

The theory being that with more energy taken up by the heavier springs on recoil, less will be transmitted to the frame causing less jarring of the takedown pin. This has worked so far. Time and more rounds fired with tell though.

I also installed the new Hogue "fat" grip on the LCP. It provides a better grip on the small gun which I like, but renders the Uncle George holster more difficult to draw from. I don't think this will be an issue and I am still experimenting with that.

Finally, the LCP was equipped with a set of Nitesiters, glow in the dark sight dots. The LCP does not really have useful sights, which is not all that important for a close-in, point and shoot self defense gun anyway, but I thought they might be useful in the dark.

I am not a fan of lasers. I'll get into that in another post.

My other modification was to install a new stainless steel guide rod, made by Steve Bedair from Bedair Machine Works in Gladewater, Texas. The stock plastic rod has performed fine, but it is a large and crucial part in a semiautomatic handgun, so I decided that I would feel better with one made from steel.

That's it for those guns. Some people will get into other modifications - shorter trigger pulls, lighter triggers, removal of the magazine disconnect and loaded indicators, etc. I figure I can train to use those features, including the safety if present, and will stick with the designers' intentions.