Packing 101: Two Pound Paperweight

The other day I was in gun shop looking around and I overheard a woman talking to a gun shop guru about carrying concealed in South Carolina. After I listened to him fill her with a bunch of garbage I had to introduce myself. We started talking and I could tell that she was new to this whole carrying concealed thing. During the course of our conversation I asked her if she carried her pistol with a round in the chamber. Her answer scared me.

She told me that she couldn't bring herself to carry with a round in the chamber. She didn't feel comfortable with it. I explained to her that modern firearms have so many safeties in them that a pistol can't "just go off". I explained how firing pin safeties and drop safeties all work to prevent discharges from the pistol being dropped. As the conversation developed she divulged that she didn't even carry the pistol with the magazine inserted into the gun. She travels to South Carolina on a frequent basis for business. South Carolina doesn't have a reciprocity agreement with Georgia. The only way for her to legally carry in South Carolina is to place the pistol in the glove-box, loaded. I explained this to her and she told me that she carried the magazine separately because she wouldn't remember to put the gun into the glove-box when she got into South Carolina. I was horrified. I immediately offered her my contact information for some training and legal education.

What this woman told me is not uncommon. In my time as a police officer I have encountered many people carrying weapons. Depending upon the situation I may ask them to allow me to remove their weapon from them. I don't do this all the time, but sometimes the voice in my head says- separate that guy from his gun, something isn't right here. Most of the time the person I am dealing with is a law abiding citizen who I apologize to for the inconvenience of removing their weapon, I explain that I support their right to be armed and that bad guys get permits too. One time I found a stolen gun doing this and another time the guy was a total "perp" who would have been ineligible to own a firearm if the court system had done its job. I digress. 

The one thing all of those people have in common is they never were carrying a loaded pistol. I can't count the amount of people who had unloaded pistols on their person. I can count, on one hand, the amount of people that actually had a properly loaded pistol on them- three. The majority of people carrying pistols carry them unloaded! I don't care about condition one, two, three, or five; if a round is not in the chamber that pistol isn't loaded. If you will hear a click instead of a bang when the trigger is pressed, the pistol is not loaded.

I hear all the reasons in the world why people don't have a loaded chamber, because I ask them. It's dangerous, I'll just rack the slide, I don't want to risk a discharge. I could go on with the excuses. Bottom line is you won't be able to get that pistol into the fight quickly if the chamber is empty.

Most gunfights we could find ourselves in will be a defensive gunfight. The bad guy will start hostilities and we will react. The chances of taking rounds and getting shot before you engage are decent. Racking the slide of an unloaded pistol while taking rounds is not something I want to do. In the half second it took you to chamber a round you could have sent two to three rounds back at the bad guy had the pistol already been loaded. 

Perhaps the fight will start hand to hand. This is a very probable scenario for a person with a firearms license. A strong-arm robbery that turns into a fight is a more likely scenario than a bad guy opening fire on you. In my opinion this scenario makes having the gun already loaded even more important. 

Let me set the stage. You get jumped by two thugs who will do whatever they have to do to accomplish their goal. You now find yourself in a vicious street fight. After a couple seconds the fight goes to the ground and they start beating you in the face, chest, and head. You now realize that if you don't do something you are probably going to die. The whole thing happened so rapidly you didn't have time to draw when they jumped you. Lying on the ground, you draw your pistol and try to rack the slide, but your weak arm is broken. You try to rack it against your belt, but you are pinned down on the ground. You are a bloody beaten mess, half conscious and weak from fighting. They take your pistol, rack a round into the chamber and shoot you in the head- you are dead.

Now let's flip the scenario around. You are on the ground a bloody beaten, half conscious mess. You draw your loaded pistol and shoot both attackers until they stop beating you. They fall to the ground, you get up. The fight has been stopped, you are seriously beat up, but likely to survive. 

The chances of being in a situation like I have described is less than one percent. You will most likely go your entire life and never be in a fight for your life. If you are unlucky enough to find yourself in that situation, be ready. An unloaded pistol is nothing more than a two pound paperweight. Carry your pistol loaded and stop making excuses.

Packing 101: When is Small Too Small?

Micro pistols designed specifically for concealed carry are the current rage among many in the concealed carry community. The user has a plethora of options to choose from. Many people comment that these pistols are very light, carry easily, and are comfortable to carry. Some people even say they forget they are carrying a pistol.

Nearly all of these micro pistols are now chambered for service cartridges. All of these guns are very light and produce fierce recoil. I think a lot of people forget they may be required to shoot the micro pistol they are carrying in a frantic, terrifying defense situation. Can you shoot that pistol effectively? Under extreme stress, fear, and panic? Understand that when involved in combat your shooting skill level decreases by about 50%. I have a hunch that most people who carry a defensive pistol have never actually trained with it. Standing in a lane at the shooting range really doesn't count. It's better than nothing, but it isn't training.

I have no issues with the compact guns on the market. Most of the double stack compact versions of full size guns are still substantial enough to shoot effectively under stress. Even some of the smaller single stack pistols like the Kahr P and CW series are substantial enough for combat shooting. The pistols I am referring to are the ones that only allow a marginal two finger grip. The short grip normally makes handling those pistols during recoil difficult.

Many micro pistols suffer from a lack of capacity. A good number of these offerings only carry six to seven rounds. Sure, one can reload the pistol, but that takes precious half seconds and seconds to complete. Those seconds could be the difference between winning and losing; life and death. Anyone who has been in live combat, or trained in a simulated combat environment using simunitions or a similar training device knows that six rounds is nothing. I have fired six rounds in my first volley just getting to cover during one of these exercises. Not many trainers will teach it, but accurate fire superiority is apart of any gun battle. If I can put more copper and lead on the bad guy faster than he can put it on me I have a better chance of winning. Most of these micro pistols decrease that ability.

If you are determined to carry a micro pistol, or it is your only practical option, choose wisely. Don't be fooled by the gun shop guru who tells you anything but a .45 ACP is a less lethal round. In those micro pistols, 9mm standard pressure rounds are just fine. The snappy +P loads, or bigger calibers may look sexy on the box, but they won't do you a lick of good if they all hit the dirt when it counts. I have a strong preference for the .40 S&W, but I prefer the 9mm for micro pistols. Choose a pistol that will work for you, not the gun shop commando.  

Meet Kallie

Kallie is our almost one year old Pitweiler puppy. She is a rather large puppy weighing in around 70 pounds. Kallie is half Rottweiler and half American Pitbull Terrier. My wife found Kallie on craigslist. She was living on a farm in Griffin, Georgia with her other brothers and sisters. We went down to Griffin to just look at the puppies. When we got there Kallie came running up to us, rolled over on her back and demanded we rub her little belly. She was only about 7 pounds and 7 weeks old then.

She is a wonderful dog. Very social and very friendly. She demands attention from everyone who meets her. When she was little she used to get car sick so we couldn't take her very many places. She has since out grown that and now rides with us to any place we can take her. She is a good companion and helps ward off unfriendly two legged critters. Her Rottweiler and APBT features help her scare the bad people away. Perhaps something about a 70 pound Pitweiler toting a Mossberg 12 gauge everywhere is a bit off putting to the criminal element of Kennesaw, Georgia. Anyways, Kallie says HI! She also wants to know if you have a milk bone.

She put her gun down so she could get some cinnamon toast crunch.

Why The 2nd Amendment is Still Valid

This video is proof that Americans still need the right to keep and bear arms. Many people will argue that the general population has no need to keep and bear arms in our current society. This video is disgusting. An unarmed intruder forces entry into a woman's home and begins to savagely beat her. She was home by herself with her two young children at the time.

This woman could have been killed and her children could have been killed as well. Thankfully she survived the incident. If this woman had been armed and trained in the use of a firearm the tables of this fight would have turned after the perpetrator took a few rounds to the chest.

In this situation all three requirements for the lawful use of deadly force existed. The attacker had the ability to cause her death or great bodily harm by his size advantage compared to her. The attacker had the opportunity to cause her death or great bodily harm by initiating a savage beating. Note how he is punching her in the head and placing her in choke holds. Finally the attacker placed the victim in jeopardy by choosing to beat her. However, lawful use of deadly force could have been used the instant the attacker gained entry into the home. The attacker forced entry into home he had no lawful right to be in. He kicked open a locked door thus entering the home in a violent and tumultuous manner. His advancement into the home creates ability, opportunity, and jeopardy. This is a legal standard referred to as the Castle Doctrine.

CNN's Supreme Court Cases that Changed America

CNN posted a photo essay to their website recently about fifteen Supreme Court cases that changed America. All of the cases that CNN has chosen are in fact landmark cases that changed the American legal system.

I find it interesting that the very first photo is about the "Obamacare" decision. CNN has chosen to put that case first in the line up before cases such as Gideon v. Wainwright, Miranda v. Arizona, Plessy v. Ferguson, and Roe v. Wade. What I find even more interesting is CNN's failure to include the landmark Supreme Court decision Heller v. D.C. That was the first case ever decided by the Supreme Court to apply the second amendment of the U.S. Constitution as an individual right. Anti-gun politics perhaps? With all of the recent pushes for more anti-gun legislation in Washington and states around the country Heller v. D.C. should be included in that list. That landmark decision will undoubtedly be used as precedent for future Supreme Court cases. The court is likely to hear more gun rights cases in the future with the passage of laws such as New York State's constitutionally questionable SAFE Act.

The photo essay can be found here: CNN 15 Supreme Court Cases that Changed America

Concealed Carry on a Budget

Kahr CW40

From time to time I run into people who tell me that they want to carry a concealed firearm, but only have X amount to spend on equipment. Getting set up for concealed carry on a budget is easier than the gun shop guru would have you believe. This is how:

The pistol is the biggest expense. There are several pistols currently on the market that fit the bill for the novice concealed carrier. Once of those pistols is the Kahr CW9/40. The Kahr CW9/40 is a solid reliable pistol that fits the role of entry level concealed carry pistol nicely. The recoil of the pistols can be stout, especially the .40. If the carrier has access to premium defense ammunition, I would recommend the 9mm version. Price: $392 with tax.

Minotaur MTAC

A quality holster is the backbone of concealed carry. Without a quality
holster concealed carry is either impossible or very uncomfortable. A new carrier needs to feel secure and confident in his holster. I recommend the Comp-Tac MTAC holster. The MTAC is a very secure and concealable holster. It is comfortable to wear for long periods of time and is user adjustable. The MTAC was my very first concealed carry holster. Price: $100 with shipping.

A good belt is always nice to have when carrying three pounds of metal around on one hip all day. Belts can go from $10 to $300 depending on the material, decoration, etc... I just switched to a 1.75 inch 5.11 Tactical Double Duty Belt. The belt is a very stable double thickness nylon web with five horizontal stitches holding the two pieces of nylon together. I am able to carry a full size M&P 40 all day outside the waistband with no discomfort. The belt is made in 1.5 inches and 1.75 inches. Price: $25 with tax.

Ammunition is the last part of the equation. A scan of the latest gun forum would have a person thinking that anything but HST, Ranger T, Gold Dot, or the likes is nothing more than a less lethal round. Older designs and "budget" hollow points still do a fine job. Remington UMC, Federal Hi-Shok, and Federal Hydra-Shok all come to mind.

My 9mm load of choice is the Winchester 124 grain PDX1 +P. I imagine the recoil of that round in the CW9 will be stout. I have some trigger time on a CW40 with full power 180 grain loads and it was a handful. Kahr pistols can be picky about ammunition. I would recommend trying a few boxes of a particular load to test for function.

Since there is a plethora of ammunition choices I will use an average price for a 50 round box of premium defense ammunition. Price: $50 with tax or shipping.

Itemized list:
Kahr CW9/40- $392
Comp-Tac MTAC- $100
5.11 Double Duty Belt- $25
Premium Defense Ammunition- $50

Total: $567

For all of the items I have listed there are alternatives. I have also not considered regular range ammunition into this equation. The above information is just one way to get into concealed carry when on a budget.