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How do you carry?

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Carrying chambered 1911?

363K views 941 replies 542 participants last post by  Tim Burke 
#1 ·
I recently purchased a 70's series Springfield Micro Compact. I have been working for a gun dealer as a salesman for almost a year now and I have several co-workers who also carry 1911s; all of which carry theirs chambered. When I asked about carrying it chambered with the hammer dropped my co-worker told me if you drop a 70's series chambered with the hammer down it will go off. He told me if i was going to carry it chambered have the hammer back and safety on. I plan to familiarize myself with the weapon more before i start doing this but in the mean time i have been carrying it unchambered with the hammer back and safety on to see if my safety will ever fail or shift. I have a nice Galco holster and when i bought the gun it came with an extended safety. Just wanted to see how everyone else carries and make sure I am safe before I accidentally blow my leg and buttocks off with a .45 magsafe round.
 
#104 ·
jogonmd95 said:
I understand most carry the 1911 C&L, BUT Con 2 for me.
peace.:)
Yes officer, I understand that, it's just that my thumb slipped as I was lowering the hammer. Yes officer, I will pay for the damage to the crib across the street, and yes, I am glad no one was hurt.

1911A1, Carried either cocked and locked, or with magazine inserted, hammer down on empty chamber.
 
#106 ·
As applied to the 1911...

Condition 1--Magazine inserted, round in chamber, hammer cocked and locked
Condition 2--magazine inserted, round in chamber, hammer down, safety off
Condition 3--magazine inserted, no round in chamber
Condition 4--no magazine inserted, no round in chamber

There is also a hypothetical Condition 0, that being you are ready to pull the trigger, a round in the chamber, magazine inserted, and safety off.

Also condition 3 and 4, can be utilized with the hammer "cocked" or with the hammer down, on an empty chamber. That's another debate in itself.
 
#107 ·
razor777 said:
......if she had her way i would carry the gun and mag seperate and have to as you say load while presenting the weapon and i told her all thats going to do is get me killed in a gun fight.
Pretty funny. She may even suggest "Condition 17".......carry a box of ammo and an empty magazine in separate pockets. Then load the magazine prior to inserting into 1911. While the assailant waits, rack the slide and you're good to go......:)
 
#109 ·
DevilDave1911 said:
Condition 1...the ONLY way it should be carried. Anything else is asking to be shot/stabbed/clubbed/punch in the face first. ;)

Only in Hollywood is it "COOL" to rack the slide before you take action...or if you are an Israeli commando where its protocol...outside of that, being prepared should the SHTF, is paramount.

Besides C1 is the safest mode of carry...both for the gun, and the enduser needing it ready. In a confrontation, split seconds count...why give the BG an upper hand?
+1 If you need your gun NOW, you dont have time to chamber/cock it or any other BS

Cocked and locked, its not gonna just go off there a lot of safeties to be engaged/disengaged first
 
#119 ·
For one thing dropping the hammer on an chambered round even slowly is a bad practice. This can very well lead to a negligent discharge. That is always something to avoid. Plus in my opinion it is easier to push the safety down with your thumb than it is to try and pull back the hammer to ready the weapon to fire.

A weapon needs to be ready to go on a moments notice. Unchambered it is useless. Uncocked and chambered is near useless. Survival is counted in seconds or less. Anything you can do to lower the amount of time it takes for you to respond to a situation the better your chances of survival are.
 
#111 ·
To add my $0.02 to the discussion, I am of the school of thought that teaches two things:

1) Carry one gun. Period. Don't have a different gun for each day of the week.

2) Carry it consistently. In the 1911 world, that means either always keep it without a round in the chamber, 8+1 un-cocked, or 8+1 cocked and on safe.

Bottom line reasoning: when the SHTF, you need to instinctively know exactly what to do to draw your weapon and hit the target.

This means don't take the milliseconds for your hands to recognize which pistol you have on you today, and then process with your brain whether or not it's a gun with a safety, double-action, etc.

And, if you've resolved to carry a 1911-style only, you should NEVER have to remember or recall whether or not you have it chambered, cocked, on safe, etc.

It should be automatic, with no thought process whatsoever every single time.

So choose whatever chambering/safety preferences suit you, and stick by it. Don't change your guns or carry preferences ever.



I personally carry my Springfield TRP configured as 8+1 cocked, locked, and ready to rock IWB w/no holster and an extra mag in my left pocket.
 
#112 ·
jba3 said:
What is so difficult about lowering a hammer. I mean they are designed to be easily gripped with thumb and forefinger. Please explain why I am so spastic that I shouldn't continue this practice. Cocked, uncocked.

QUOTE]

Why would you want to?
 
#113 ·
Vuduchild said:
So choose whatever chambering/safety preferences suit you, and stick by it. Don't change your guns or carry preferences ever.
Ideally this is true. I usually carry my Walther PPK/s in daily travels. (for comfort and conceilability). If I'm going on a long trip, or towards the city, or hiking in the woods, I carry the Colt '70. they are two completely different safety systems and I see where you're coming from. but after carrying pretty much only these two for 8+ years, I'm confident in my ability to bring either into action as quickly as the other without having to think about it.
oh, and I carried the 1911 condition 2 for years until I was convinced condition 1 was the only way. it is the only way!
 
#114 ·
razor777 said:
good point, i never tested it, mine if you get it past half way hold in a kinda half cocked postion, i think its a safety to prevent that, or mines just messed up
There are a lot of guys out there who know more about 1911 than me, but I know my gun. I have a Colt Officers Mark IV Series 80. There is a safety built into the gun. If you have a series 80, you can disassemble the slide and see how the safety works. Take the firing pin out, be careful not to lose the little spring. The firing pin will not strike the primer unless the trigger is pulled. If you drop the hammer, the weapon will not fire unless you are also pulling the trigger. If you are carrying chamber loaded and you drop your weapon and it lands on the muzzle, the firing pin will not strike the primer. Of course, all safeties can fail. If I am wrong, please one of you gurus tell me.
 
#117 ·
I completely agree. My 1911 hammer has 2 safety notches...it clicks twice when cocking the hammer. If the hammer drops anywhere on or between these 2 clicks, it catches; I purposely tried this with an empty chamber just to see. Also, that's why the heavy spring and light titanium firing pins are used...so that an accidental drop won't have enough force to drive the pin to the primer.
 
#115 ·
singleactionman said:
There are a lot of guys out there who know more about 1911 than me, but I know my gun. I have a Colt Officers Mark IV Series 80. There is a safety built into the gun. If you have a series 80, you can disassemble the slide and see how the safety works. Take the firing pin out, be careful not to lose the little spring. The firing pin will not strike the primer unless the trigger is pulled. If you drop the hammer, the weapon will not fire unless you are also pulling the trigger. If you are carrying chamber loaded and you drop your weapon and it lands on the muzzle, the firing pin will not strike the primer. Of course, all safeties can fail. If I am wrong, please one of you gurus tell me.
Your quite right, I've used both series 70 and 80 1911's for my CCW, but, I prefer to believe, that in everyday use, just as in combat, Mr. Murphy is NEVER far behind. As to the spring in the Series 80, I have on hand 25 packs of refills from Brownells, as no matter how careful you are, you will at one time or another lose that spring.
 
#118 ·
Condition 1 or leave it home.
 
#123 ·
Cocked and locked. Always.

And, to the gentleman who was asking about 1911s discharging when dropped, it's possible with a round in the chamber regardless of the hammer or safety position (being on safe won't prevent this), if the gun is dropped onto a hard surface from waist/chest height, and lands nose down. The exception, of course, is the series 80 models. The rest can do it. Precautions taken to lessen the chance of this happening are lighter firing pins and/or heavier firing pin springs. However, in most 1911's, there is nothing actually blocking the pin from hitting the primer, and inertia can overcome the firing pin spring under the right circumstances. Is this a problem? Not really, in my opinion, as, the gun has to be pretty much muzzle down on contact with the ground on that hard surface and, when this happens, the bullet usually just splashes itself into tiny fragments. I've seen it happen twice. It leaves a cute little 1911-nose shaped impression in the concrete.
 
#124 ·
I carry in condition 3 most of the time. When I go downtown or while traveling through a risky area, I go to condition 1. I know, it's not cool to rack the slide upon draw. But I do practice that process, and I don't care to constantly unload a chambered round.
 
#125 ·
:rock: cocked and Locked
 
#126 ·
The only ND I've ever had was with a RIA 1911 that I tried to carry C2. As I let the hammer down on the gun it slipped from between my thumb and finger and went off sending a 230gr round into my wifes cedar chest almost taking out my cat as well. The ONLY SAFE way to carry a 1911 is C1 period. Because when you try C2 you are already defeating the safeties on the gun and pulling the trigger. I was taught to carry C1 in the Army and I should have stuck with it. Now I know better. C1 for me from now on.:rock:
 
#127 ·
I am new to the 1911A and have a unique perspective on this topic.

I had my first accidental discharge with a 1911A, and it was completely my fault.

The reason? The trigger on my Springfield is much lighter than what I am used to carrying.

Most people say that you should only carry 1 gun, but the truth is - you carry what the situation calls for.

1) Pocket gun - The revolver can't be beat. It has an irregular shape so it masks itself - can easily be worn with short pants and a t-shirt. No worry for accidental discharge because they usually have a 8 - 10 pound trigger pull.

2) General concealed carry - for my frame, the 1911A is a little large and it prints in almost anything that I wear. I choose to carry as my "daily" gun the Ruger SR9. It's compact, feels good - and I've been competing with it for the last 3 months. Definately one of my favorites. 5 1/2 trigger pull. Must pull to the rear to fire.

3) Competition - The 1911A is going to be my new competition piece. Highly modifyable, light trigger pull, extremely accurate... 3 1/2 pound trigger pull... trigger moves, hammer falls... bang!

Just my opinion... the super light trigger pull is going to take some time for me to get used to it... then maybe I'll put it in the rotation as a carry piece... until then, I'll carry it around the house, unloaded... until I am used to it.

My $0.02.

Acoustic.
 
#128 ·
theres a reason why the 1911 was made in th SA "cocked and locked position" a hundred years ago and is still around today. an unchambered gun is not much better then an unloaded gun. in a gun fight, depending on how trained you are mentally/physically, you pretty much lose your fine motor skills so you want a reliable gun that goes bang when you put the front sight on the guy trying to kill you and press the trigger( without any extracirricular activity). that's also why many police dept's carry guns loaded without safeties (glocks, sigs). i wouldn't worry about the discharge. if you have a good holster and this is still a concern, practice your draw techniques because dropping a gun when you need it just made a bad situation a lot worse. also remember most gunfights are within arm distance so while it takes 2 hands to "rack a round", who's fighting back??? definately not you!!!
 
#130 ·
In the interest of maintaining my growing reputation for asking stupid questions, are there any issues with loss of spring tension when keeping the gun cocked and locked all the time? I keep my Kimber that way and have wondered.
Not to my knowledge (never had a problem with any of mine). If it did? Wilson Combat sells the springs for $1.50. They're one of the higher end (more expensive) suppliers.

ALWAYS cocked and locked with a 1911. That's what it was designed for.

Newbie here (joined two years ago, just started posting :p). How many posts to get rid of the "Junior Member" tag? :)
 
#132 ·
surprised

Condition 1 period. Cocked and locked or you might as well have a rock. Sounds like some of these people have selected the wrong firearm if they are not comfortable with the designated method of carry for a 1911. An unnamed relative who spent the last 5yrs working undercover narcotics out of Miami for the Coast Guard says they are trained that most gunfights occur like this: 3 to 5 feet, 3 to 5 seconds, 3 to 5 shots... i repeat Condition 1 PERIOD or get a wheel gun.

Mike
_________________________________________________________________________________________
"The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil but, because of the people who do nothing about them."
- Albert Einstein
 
#134 ·
Condition 1 period. Cocked and locked or you might as well have a rock. Sounds like some of these people have selected the wrong firearm if they are not comfortable with the designated method of carry for a 1911. An unnamed relative who spent the last 5yrs working undercover narcotics out of Miami for the Coast Guard says they are trained that most gunfights occur like this: 3 to 5 feet, 3 to 5 seconds, 3 to 5 shots... i repeat Condition 1 PERIOD or get a wheel gun.

Mike
_________________________________________________________________________________________
"The world is a dangerous place to live, not because of the people who are evil but, because of the people who do nothing about them."
- Albert Einstein
LOL, I agree. " Hey, hold it a second Mr. Badguy, let me rack my slide before you rob me or cause me serious bodily harm"

LOL
 
#136 ·
My primary personal defense weapon is a Colt XSE Lightweight Commander. It is always carried "condition 1" in a Galco Royal Guard IWB holster. When I can't carry the Commander, I carry a S&W 340PD in a Kramer pocket holster. IMHO, the manipulation of the trigger and hammer that's required to carry 1911s in "condition 2" is a very dangerous practice.
 
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