Carrying chambered 1911?

[Ky_Coal_Miner]

i always carry cocked n' locked

[Bvrtail]

yup thats where the term "Cocked n locked" was born!

[AndyC]

Originally Posted by Vern Humphrey

Actually, the first version of what is now the 1911 had no safety at all. Browning intended the pistol to be made safe by lowering the hammer to the half-cock.

The Army knew better and insisted on both a manual safety lock and a grip safety.

Indeed:

[TN.Frank]

Condition 1 is the best way to carry the gun. You can store the gun in a drawer(or else where) in Condition 1, 2 or 3, all are perfectly safe.
Unless something is physically wrong with the gun(overly long firing pin, weak firing pin spring, ect) the gun should NOT go off in Condition 2(hammer down, chamber loaded) since the hammer will be resting against the firing pin stop/slide so no force will be transfered to the firing pin from a blow to the hammer. However, if you have a weak firing pin spring and you drop the gun and it impacts on the muzzle of the gun it CAN go off.
The way the Thumb Safety works on a 1911 totally blocks not only the sear but also the hammer so as long as the thumb safety is in the "ON" position there's no way in heck the gun can go off.
On the Sportsman Channel there's a show called "Student of the Gun", at the start of Episode 15 they talk about carrying "Half Loaded", i.e. Condition 3 and demonstrate just how long it takes to draw and fire from C3 and C1. C1 is THE way to go for CCW.

[Adolf Israel Bubba]

Half cock is just another way to get yourself killed. EVen the old cowboys left one chamber empty in their Remingtons and Colts. My lady hunter friends told me that this rule is good for Ruger DA revolvers, too.

Again:
A. Put safety ON.
B. Remove the magazine.
C. Work the slide to eject the chambered rounds.

[TN.Frank]

Originally Posted by Adolf Israel Bubba

Half cock is just another way to get yourself killed. EVen the old cowboys left one chamber empty in their Remingtons and Colts. My lady hunter friends told me that this rule is good for Ruger DA revolvers, too.

The reason why the older style SA's were carried with only 5 rounds with the hammer down on the empty chamber is because if the hammer were to get hit and the half cock notch were to get broken you'd have the firing pin on the hammer hit the primer of the loaded round in the chamber. No such problem exists with a 1911 since it has an inertia firing pin and a blow to if form the half cocked position would not make enough inertia to move the pin forward enough or with enough force to set the primer on the round in the chamber off.
That being said, if you want to have a round in the chamber it's better to have the hammer all the way down rather then on half cock.
As far as Ruger DA revolvers, you can load up all 6 since they have a transfer bar safety so the round in the chamber can't be hit by the hammer. Most modern DA revolvers and now Ruger SA revolvers all have either a hammer block or transfer bar built into the system so it's safe to keep the gun fully loaded with the hammer down.

[Vern Humphrey]

Originally Posted by TN.Frank

The reason why the older style SA's were carried with only 5 rounds with the hammer down on the empty chamber is because if the hammer were to get hit and the half cock notch were to get broken you'd have the firing pin on the hammer hit the primer of the loaded round in the chamber. No such problem exists with a 1911 since it has an inertia firing pin and a blow to if form the half cocked position would not make enough inertia to move the pin forward enough or with enough force to set the primer on the round in the chamber off.
That being said, if you want to have a round in the chamber it's better to have the hammer all the way down rather then on half cock.
As far as Ruger DA revolvers, you can load up all 6 since they have a transfer bar safety so the round in the chamber can't be hit by the hammer. Most modern DA revolvers and now Ruger SA revolvers all have either a hammer block or transfer bar built into the system so it's safe to keep the gun fully loaded with the hammer down.

I have a friend who shot the heel off his boot in Viet Nam. He was a company commander, and carried both an M1911A1 and an M16A1. He holstered his pistol on half cock, slung his rifle, the butt hit the top of his holster, drove the hammer forward, breaking the half cock and the gun went off.

[chuckfw]

If you want to know about "slips" when half cocked or your thumb slipping before it is cocked, have a reloader fix you a couple of cases with just a primer. Then, with a case chambered, you can try all kinds of scenarios to see if it will go off in your pistol. But, still be careful where the barrel is pointing since it can still hurt someone.

Best is C&L with your finger off the trigger until ready to fire.

[SharonAnne9x23]

Actually, JMB originally designed the 1911 without a GRIP safety. The army insisted on the grip safety for horse mounted cavalry. They were concerned with the up and down movement of the horse that the thumb safety might become dislodged in the flap holstet

[Vern Humphrey]

Originally Posted by SharonAnne9x23

Actually, JMB originally designed the 1911 without a GRIP safety. The army insisted on the grip safety for horse mounted cavalry. They were concerned with the up and down movement of the horse that the thumb safety might become dislodged in the flap holstet

He designed the M1911 without any safety, period. The grip safety was added first, and then the safety lock. both at the Army's insistance.

[beazley26]

i carry mine the way you carry yours , but i do practice drawing and racking the slide and got good at it, its better to be safe and not sorry

[rwd]

I have been carrying a 1911 since I was knee high to a puddle duck...I was taught cocked and locked...If you draw the pistol than you better use it...there should not ever be any situation where you have to draw and wave it around...thats when people get hurt...

[Bvrtail]

always, always!!!! C1 COCKED & LOCKED , COCKED & LOCKED,

[eshelton]

Originally Posted by Bvrtail

always, always!!!! C1 COCKED & LOCKED , COCKED & LOCKED,

ditto

[Adolf Israel Bubba]

Originally Posted by rwd

I have been carrying a 1911 since I was knee high to a puddle duck...I was taught cocked and locked...If you draw the pistol than you better use it...there should not ever be any situation where you have to draw and wave it around...thats when people get hurt...

Agreed.

[downtownv]

Def Con 1! all the way!

[Bingored]

I have always carried full cocked and round chambered with safety on. I did have some difficulty in the military for carrying this way but as I pointed out, It was me that had to face the threat! As I was usually on the base competition shooter teams I generally was allowed to carry as I saw fit. I just had to prove safe handling of my firearm.
The only serious threat to this carry was as a deputy in California and I had to have a holster with a little flap that covered the the hammer. No problem here in Texas.

[Oldsalt65]

Originally Posted by beazley26

i carry mine the way you carry yours , but i do practice drawing and racking the slide and got good at it, its better to be safe and not sorry

If you need to present your gun, take aim, and fire in a split second you are certainly not safe if you need to manipulate the slide and chamber a round when you should be entirely focused on presentation and situational awareness.

You are alread behind the curve in the event you need to use your gun in self defense and having to chamber a round puts you dead last in an armed encounter.

Your adversary may already be shooting at you while you are still fussing with your gun.

The less you have to do when you must deploy your gun in self defense, the safer you are; and individuals who are hesitant to carry their 1911 cocked and locked as it was designed to be safely carried, should strongly consider carrying a pistol or revolver that they aren't afraid to carry properly.

[cwo4uscgret]

Chambered, cocked, and locked. I used to carry hammer down on a loaded chamber until one day I woke up and realized that unless my finger was on the trigger that none of my guns have ever fired all by themselves!

[KNØCW]

I have carried a 1911 or similar for over 30 years. There is only way way to carry it and that is C1. I am a student of Col. Jeff Cooper, Jack Weaver and similar. The only sound the bad guy will hear from me is the slight click of the safety coming off.

[Tarbe]

Originally Posted by KNØCW

I have carried a 1911 or similar for over 30 years. There is only way way to carry it and that is C1. I am a student of Col. Jeff Cooper, Jack Weaver and similar. The only sound the bad guy will hear from me is the slight click of the safety coming off.

Agreed.

It's funny, while I always have my 1911s in condition one, when I was in the Marines (70's) they never let us carry in condition one!

Strange, but true. The good ole USMC would not let us carry the pistol in the fashion it was designed to be carried. Both in a Marine Detachment aboard a carrier and as a TOW squad leader in 2nd Tank.

[Homicide]

Cocked, Locked & Ready to Rock!

[dakrat]

Originally Posted by Homicide

Cocked, Locked & Ready to Rock!

for realz? daz gangsta bruh!

[mrod44]

Originally Posted by Homicide

Cocked, Locked & Ready to Rock!

Thats the only way to carry. Con 2 and 3 just plain scare me and defeat the purpose of the 1911 platform.

[Earl12]

Condition 1, otherwise it's just an expensive club.