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Balancing act of CCW

3K views 18 replies 15 participants last post by  raevan 
#1 ·
Hearing about people never seeing their guns again if they're involved in a shooting got me thinking.....Carrying a$100,but reliable gun as opposed to a $1000 gun may be a good idea.I have 2 carry guns right now.An SP101,while not expensive,it is my favorite gun and I'd hate to "lose" it.And a cheap but reliable Rossi 461(357),that I only spent $150 on ,and while I do like this gun,if it was lost in an evidence wearhouse somewhere I wouldn't be heart broken.
So what do you all think?
 
#2 ·
Carry what you like best. Don't worry about confiscated evidence. Your other gun will be a substitute until you get your primary gun back. You could always get another SP for a backup........
 
#3 ·
I have thought about that a bit... however, I carry what I can shoot best, figuring that if I have to shoot, I hope I'm alive to then hire a lawyer and try to get my gun back from the authorities (to use your example -- where I live, I suspect I'd have no problem once the case was closed).
I shoot little 1911s best and I'm old and fortunate enough to own more than one, so if I do make it through a defensive situation and my handgun becomes "evidence," then I can go home, open the safe and get out #2 1911.
First thing is to live through the shooting --
 
#5 ·
Loosing a gun to the evidence room should be the least of your worries. It is a tool used to survive. having a second (a dozen)to go home to is highly recomended. Getting through a violent encounter is FAR more important.
Yep ,it would really suck wind to loose my Mountain Gun or a 1911 in that way. But I would be happy, if I was still around afterwards to experiance it.

As it happens I just picked up a slightly used Braztec -Rossi 462. I really like it. It is the perfect D frame sized small 6 shot .357, (the gun Colt designed and released as the Magnum Carry, only to drop in less than a year!)
It packs easily, takes K frame speed loaders, the Hogue designed grips are very well designed, it locks up tight w/ the new crane lock.
I think I will pick up another as this one was purchased for my wife. Yeah, for her, THAT's the ticket:)

Rob
 
#6 ·
From my perspective, I would carry whichever weapon I thought was most reliable and and with which I was most proficient. Weapons are just tools. I would not want any of mine in an evidence locker, but if I'm still breathing I can always get another one.
 
#7 ·
From my perspective, I know that a lot of LEOs in Texas don't understand the CCW law and I'm extremely likely to have a pistol confiscated if stopped in some localities. The irony of the situation is that if I did not have a permit, I would not have to declare my armed status nor would the officer know to check. As usual the reward for compliance and lawfulness is loss of one's property.

I know an individual who, I believe for 19 months now, has been trying to get a Glock back from a local PD. He was and is a permit holder. He has paid fees and filled out forms and even had a lawyer involved. He's not getting it back for all intents and purposes because he's spent the value of the gun over again trying to recover it.

Furthermore, I go through Arkansas and Missouri sometimes. My permit is good there, but the fact is I'm a long way from Texas. If some agency confiscates my XD40 (somewhat likely to happen because the police love to get the out of staters) I can't just up and make a 16 hour (one way) trip to recover it whenever it suits the agency that took it. I doubt I'd get in any real trouble because I don't do anything illegal and I mind my Ps and Qs when talking to any officer, but they might do it just to spite me.

It's true that I need a quality arm I can trust, but I also want something that is replaceable and doesn't hold any sentimental value. Honestly, obeying the speed limit, staying on the main highways, and being a good John Q. Public will keep most anyone out of such a lurch, but I am paranoid.

I wouldn't CCW a custom/heirloom/favorite pistol for that reason... a custom/heirloom/favorite is not something you can replace, ya know?
 
#8 ·
You guys have covered this well.

I put function, reliability, and my ability with - the gun that does the job well, for me. Up to a point yes - better to lose a less expensive piece but - I look at the odds and consider that if in the unlikely event I did have to use my gun for SD - then still being around after would more than compensate for the loss of the primary!!

I think we maybe need to follow some ''redundancy'' approach such that either we maybe have a dupe to fall back on or - at least one or two other guns we know are suitable for carry. If my 226 went then 220 would step in or, SW99. Come to that, BHP, SP-101, even the ol' P95!!

I reckon - buy, practice with and carry - the best gun you can afford and handle well - worry about its loss when it comes to it but have some plan for a spare of some sort.
 
#9 ·
I honestly don't get very emotionally attached to any of my carry firearms. I consider them to be high quality "Tools" for the "Trade" that are intended for my "Personal Protection"
They should be properly maintained & kept functional & even appreciated but, they are still tools to me.
I want the best and most reliable & "proven effective" tools possible to save my precious bacon.
Even the best carry firearm is less expensive than a nice casket & funeral costs.
I have a few "Handed Down Family Firearms" but, I don't carry them for self~defense.
I personally want to have the best firearm that works for me...and I want it with me should I ever need to actually use it.
I'll absolutely have other more important things on my mind should I ever be forced to end a human life.
Just my opinion.

Using that same logic...that would be like not carrying a firearm at all because you don't think that you could afford the possible impending legal fees if you're ever involved in a shooting. So...better just to be a victim. :wink:
 
#14 ·
My "favorite" gun is the very first 1911 I ever owned the only one to which I attached a "name." Betsy is a Remington-Rand I picked up at Fort Lewis during my active duty stint. She'd already been rather heavily modified and that gun NEVER let me down. When I got married years later, I taught my wife to shoot with Betsy and she liked the old girl so much she demanded one of her own, hence the presence of a Combat Commander in our home these last seventeen years. Betsy is part of our emergency plan. If I or my wife is ever forced into the home by a BG we'll call out: Honey! I'm home with company! Get BETSY and come say hello! We know that when the other appears it'll be cocked locked and ready to rock and so it would behoove us to get to the floor rather quickly and out of the line of fire. Of course this was formulated before we got our Newfoundland dogs. I don't carry a 1911 anymore. Betsy guards the safe, but she's ready for duty at any moment.
 
#18 ·
I carry my CDP II 90% and a Para Tac Four 10%. Only because I shoot the Kimber best (and it has nite sights and Laser Grips). I still have my first 1911, SS Colt Combat Commander, it shoots as accurate as the Kimber. But it is a sentmental piece, my first Colt auto, and she stays in the safe. I pinched pennies for months to save enough cash for her. That's why her name is "Pennie" :biggrin:
 
#19 ·
Life seeks life. Stay alive first, worry about the gun later. Stay legal, stay honest and stay out of trouble. If trouble comes deal with it then. Don't worry about it now. Carry your best friend , the one that feels most right, cause it will get you out of the fire.
 
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