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How much should you spend on an EDC...

12K views 116 replies 64 participants last post by  Young 
#1 ·
I used to work at a large independent gun store in Texas. They will buy good used guns or take them on trade.

One trade they took was a stainless Colt 1911. According to the owner the pistol was involved in a shooting. The police took the pistol as evidence and crudely engraved a case number on the frame.

It was a few years before the owner was able to gain possession of his property. He didn't get the gun back in the same condition that it was when the police took it for evidence. Plus the 1911 had too many bad memories for him so he sold it.

That got me to thinking about how much we spend for an EDC. We want the best we can afford. We don't give any thought what would happen to our prized handgun if it has to be taken into evidence should we have to defend ourselves.

A friend of mine did a stupid thing and was arrested for DWI. Naturally his carry permit came up for review due to the arrest but they confiscated his pistol. They couldn't leave it in the car because it was towed.

This was over a year and a half a go and he still doesn't have it back.

I bought a Tisas 1911 that I wouldn't lose any sleep over if I were involved in a self defense shooting and the police took it for evidence. I paid less than $400 for it. That an a SA XDs 9.
 
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#3 ·
I don't really spend much tine thinking about the "what ifs" of being involved in a defensive shooting....
That said, I don't cayy $5k custom 1911s either- in fairness, because I don't have any. Regardless, my ~$1k 1911s all function flawlessly, and are adequate to the task. Even if ai had a high end 1911, there's little need to carry it...
 
#4 · (Edited)
I can't see using an uber-expensive gun for defense anyway. But then again, with very few exceptions, I don't tend to view firearms as 'tools'. In my view, edc gun are expendables, therefore, by definition, that eliminates all of the high-end stuff. There are many extremely reliable and effective models at and under $500 - particulalrly the disposable, plastic stuff. For me, everything north of that price range stays in the safe - as opposed to carried daily.

But, to each their own.... and all that jazz!!! :) :) :)
 
#5 · (Edited)
A friend of mine did a stupid thing and was arrested for DWI. Naturally his carry permit came up for review due to the arrest but they confiscated his pistol. They couldn't leave it in the car because it was towed.
Lets say he was driving an Aston Martin DB11 and carrying a Wilson Combat SuperGrade at the time of his arrest.

Which do you think he'd be more concerned about getting back unscathed?

It's all a matter of perspective.
 
#6 ·
If you are involved in a shooting, it's probably going to cost you tens of thousands of dollars to be cleared, even if it was "a good shoot", so I'm not going to lose any sleep over the $700 I spent on my EDC.
 
#7 ·
True, there will be bigger things to worry about. The other guns I have are range guns. The Tisas 1911 was very inexpensive which is why I decided to get one for EDC. My O1970A1CS was my EDC and I paid close to $900 so that's retired to the safe. In the EDC rotation was the S&W 586, FN Hi-Power Israeli surplus. Both are not that easy to find in decent condition.

The Colt 1911 they bough from the guy retailed at $1600. He took the cash and bought a Taurus G2C for $220. He wasn't about to spend another $1600 for an EDC.
 
#9 ·
I don't worry about it. I've carried every range from $300 to $2000 guns and consider it a non issue. I don't drink and drive, never touch alcohol while carrying or handling a loaded gun and follow laws scrupulously.

If I have to use my CCW (God forbid) in a shooting and I survive and don't end up in jail, even if I don't get my gun back ever I'll consider it money well spent, get an alternative CCW from the safe and move on.

Once it checks out I plan to carry my recently acquired EDC X9 and won't worry about its cost one bit.
 
#12 ·
This is the long and the short of it right here.



Aside from that, different strokes for different folks.
 
#17 · (Edited)
Unbox, lube, check function
1000 rounds ball one session
Three days
300 rounds of the carry load one session
Three days
300-500 rounds of steel case

If a gun passes that I consider the gun good to use, no gun is carried that doesn't pass that above test without any hint of malfunction or total insensitively to grip type and I have had guns break during that test or fail due to being able to be limp wristed. I'm more lenient with rifles since they generally work or they don't, a gun can be $195 and if it passes that it's good to go or it can be $5700 like my NHC and fail it 4 times and be considered unreliable. Cost doesn't matter, function does and usually there is a easily measurable correlation in performance vs cost of you want to keep reliability 100%. You can get a Glock to kinda keep up with a 1911 but it will be ammo sensitive and have other small errors......I still haven't figured out a way to get one as fast while maintaining reliability.
 
#15 ·
Any gun I carry is a tool, mines hit concrete, been scratched to hell, refinished three time, and works every time and is the fastest, most reliable, most effective in objective measurement weapon I can have for the role requirements.

I don't even think about and never have, if it gets engraved crudely I'll just have it refinished again as I have before or just have a new gun made if i feel like keeping it as is.
 
#16 ·
I spend as much as I think is reasonable while getting a handgun that does what I want it and is not something I would be embarrassed to show others. The lower end of that price range seems to be $2k, while the upper is <$4k.
 
#90 ·
... and losing it would not affect your lifestyle at all. you can AFFORD it. I worry about these young folks struggling to buy their dream pistol- and then want to carry it. They'll be at the pawn shop or Gun Show after they save up enough for that $300-400 gun. Shoulda carried it the first time. I don't worry about being embarrassed over any gun I carry- my concerns are reliability. Image? ROTFLMAO! that's for BBQ guns..
 
#18 · (Edited)
Yeah.....not really.

While your personal test for reliability is commendable, it’s not the final word.

A good number of rounds should be run through any gun being considered for carry revolver or pistol, but there are many variables that come into play other than round count.

Additionally, I stay away (after extensive experience) from saying ‘ this is better than that’. There are no real absolutes with regard to what is made, and proven to be reliable.

Back to the original question......carry the gun YOU feel is the very best for YOU. Worrying about what might happen to it later is pretty much a waste of energy.
 
#21 ·
Yeah.....not really.

While your personal test for reliability is commendable, it’s not the final word.

A good number of rounds should be run through any gun being considered for carry revolver or pistol, but there are many variables that come into play other than round count.

Additionally, I stay away (after extensive experience) from saying those is better than that’. It’s just simply not true.

Your comment that reliability is immune to price is pretty good, generally speaking. There are no real absolutes with regard to what is made, and proven to be reliable.

Back to the original question......carry the gun YOU feel is the very best for YOU. Worrying about what might happen to it later is pretty much a waste of energy.
Timers do not lie, some guns are just better than others unilaterally even in the hands of multiple people.
 
#19 · (Edited)
Isn't it great to live in a Country where in 'most' States you can carry pretty much whatever you choose?

EVERY firearm I own has the same level of 'sentiment' or emotional attachment to me as I ascribe to my ball peen hammer or hacksaw. Were I ever to consider any possession 'too special' to use for its intended purchase, I'd sell it off or have my sanity checked - lol

As to those who feel the need to expend huge (to ME) quantities of ammo before they 'trust' a firearm? I'd note the disclaimer on every investment ad I've seen or read - "Past performance is NO guarantee of future results."

But hey, YOU only gotta keep YOU happy. Who cares what I think? Heckfire, I barely do. LOL
 
#20 ·
I worried so much about my government model 1911 EDC being confiscated that I bought a second one. I am now up to twelve government model 1911s just in case. Am I safe?
 
#28 ·
Sure, the gun has to hide perfectly as well as be totally comfortable all day. Everything past those personal needs can be quantified and guns can be entered into a spreadsheet and you can determine what is better. Cost can be factored in as well if needed
 
#24 ·
You’re very concerned with pure speed.....

That’s fine, usually doesn’t hurt. But I could show two documented instances where obsession with speed in training, did in fact ‘hurt’.

Speed is but one leg of the trifecta required to end things as much in your favor as possible. Speed for speed sake is great and fun, but as I’ve said before.....RARELY the deciding factor in gunfights.

I started seriously shooting with speed as a component in the early days of IPSC. Then into USPSA, then/ additionally IDPA. I carried a professionally for just over 40 years.

I’ll never knock speed, but it’s a component that generally gives you a bit of luxury in certain areas when the targets have guns as well.

We tend to want to transfer many of our ‘range goodies’ to situations when we carry. Some transfer well, others not so much.

Bottom line is there are some fight hardened folks walking the planet, many of them aren’t the fastest on the range, with the coolest gear. Reminder, I like fast, and I love cool gear. Was lucky enough to be sponsored for quite a few years.

But all’s well until the bullets or barstools start flying.......then ‘holding your mud’ comes into play in a big way.
 
#29 · (Edited)
Better gear is better gear more skill is more skill. Fast is only worth anything if you can hit, I judge guns by how quickly and easily they can give perfect hits in a given drill or use. Some guns simply can get a first shot faster than others with less user effort and far greater margin of error. Others not so much, those are all factors that can be objectively measured.

EDIT, you can also have very very particular requirements that automatically exclude certain options, if you must have freehanded accuracy of 1 inch or better at 15 yards then you probably will need a gun with a optic and a very good trigger and no matter how long you take in the clock with another gun it may never be able to do it. Other uses may require ability to shoot from within clothing so then a revolver becomes needed since a semi auto will be horridly long on clock due to having to clear malfunctions.
 
#32 ·
Hope I never need to use mine for other than the range but if I had to, losing the gun would not be my top priority. From a $500 Springer to a $3000 Wilson, at their heart they’re still a tool for stopping people from doing bad things.

Besides, if you can afford a $4000 Cabot for edc, you could probably afford another. If you dumped every penny into just the one by eating saltine ketchup sandwiches only to lose it and survive a shooting then God is telling you to stop and buy a steak. Tomorrow is never promised.
 
#35 ·
My current EDC is a special order NH Bull Commander. It works and works well.
I’ve run it thru a few classes. Cost was only an issue to me when buying it. The gun I carried before it was a WC Pro in stainless. The cost of my EDC and whether or not it will get taken for whatever reason if God forbid I have to use it to defend myself doesn’t matter to me. They can have it and I’ll just load up one of my other guns to use in the meantime.
I know people who have had their guns taken for numerous reasons. Here in Florida they don’t engrave case numbers on the gun or anything else. They actually take pretty good care of them and put them in a small cardboard box that holds them quite well. When they got the gun back it was fine.
The only time when a gun that was taken got damaged that I know of was decades ago when my older brother was arrested for agg assault w/firearm. LONG story short he was acquitted and thru their own testimony his accusers incriminated themselves during the trial and wound up getting charged themselves. The damage to the gun occurred because for some strange reason they had the gun, magazine and rounds he was carrying in it all together in a plastic evidence bag. The prosecutor kept trying to make a case of the fact he was carrying JHPs in it and was some sort of psycho for doing it. In his efforts he kept shaking the gun up and down in front of the jury. The rounds and mag scratched the piss out of the gun. I still remember the jury being out deliberating whether or not my brother was going to be found guilty or not which carried a mandatory minimum sentence of no less than 3yrs and all he was worried about was ‘that damn prosecutor scratched my gun!!’ :D
 
#36 ·
Cry over the $$$ spent on a gun or have your family cry at your funeral. You pick.

If you get a dui and have your gun taken then you are an idiot and deserve what you get.

It is like the people who park their new car at the end of the lot to avoid scratches. Cars and edc guns are daily use items. They will get scratched, damaged and stolen/confiscated. If you can't handle that then carry a blow gun and take the bus.
 
#37 ·
When it comes to a gun, a 1911 that may save my or my loved ones lives I’m not going to skimp. I have guns from Chuck Rogers & John Jardine because I know that they work every time! I stick with those smiths because of their skills & because I consider them friends. I don’t know how much each of them cost, in the thousands & frankly if the worse day of my life comes knocking it’s one of those guns that will be in my hand, if it saves lives that’s all the care about. If I don’t get it back, money well spent, comes back scratched I’ll have it buffed, comes back with a number then so be it. It’s a tool.

Someone only wants to carry a Glock in case it’s taken, personal choice and I’ve no issues with it. Someone has a safe full of reliable, proven 1911’s that each cost thousands, babies them, only takes them to the range & only carries a sub $1,000 plastic wonder in case he has to use it - I question their priorities. In the end though it’s a free country, carry what you like.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 
#38 ·
Mine cost much more than one K. It has been modified to what I like. I am far more worried about not winning in a fight, than what I lose after a fight. I am not rich, but I have been a gear head my whole life. I have always valued an equipment edge in everything I do.
 
#39 ·
Timex vs Rolex?

Price doesn't mean didily. There's $300 guns that are better suited for EDC than a $3500 Kustom Kombat 1911.

I'm perplexed by those guys who seem to trade in his EDC of the month for something else , every month. Often coincides with what's hot in the gun magazines.

I don't buy something I don't like , as such , I don't get rid of many , if any at all. Gotta get used to a gun before I fully trust it , and us old gun owners get attached.

Yes , if you do use it in a defensive shooting , justifiable or not , you probably won't see that gun for a long time , if ever again. :bawling:

Another reason I retired my old Colt Combat Commander which has been personalized over many years , in favor of a $300 Para Expert Lightweight. It's been accurate and reliable , and lighter than my old Colt. And it's UGLY! But it has gotten a few small 'beauty marks' along the way. But I could never become attached to it.


Or have I already? :confused:
 
#41 ·
Timex vs Rolex?

Price doesn't mean didily. There's $300 guns that are better suited for EDC than a $3500 Kustom Kombat 1911.

I'm perplexed by those guys who seem to trade in his EDC of the month for something else , every month. Often coincides with what's hot in the gun magazines.

I don't buy something I don't like , as such , I don't get rid of many , if any at all. Gotta get used to a gun before I fully trust it , and us old gun owners get attached.

Yes , if you do use it in a defensive shooting , justifiable or not , you probably won't see that gun for a long time , if ever again.


Another reason I retired my old Colt Combat Commander which has been personalized over many years , in favor of a $300 Para Expert Lightweight. It's been accurate and reliable , and lighter than my old Colt. And it's UGLY! But it has gotten a few small 'beauty marks' along the way. But I could never become attached to it.


Or have I already?
If your $300 gun beats mine in anything you can have my gun. Guns are tools, some are good enough for casual or light work others will last far beyond others and do a better job the entire time.

Plus I've sent over 5x the cost of my gun down it's barrel so really the gun is the cheapest part of any of it for some people who really train.

The EDC handgun is literally the tool that I think people should be THE most critical about and take no compromises since any edge it provides may very well mean you don't die.
 
#40 ·
I'm continually amazed at folks who worry about:

A. A scratch on a gun, or.....

B. Confiscation of said gun in a shooting investigation.

Silly.
 
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