If it doesn't end in the first three rounds?

[Malifax]

Has anyone contemplated what might happen if you get yourself into a gun fight and actually have to reload? What do you think your chances of surviving long enough to slap that second mag in your trusted side arm? I am pretty sure if I cannot resolve a negative social situation with the first three rounds I had better be right with my maker. Anyone have any thoughts? Now keep in mind this is not a law enforcement situation I am speaking as a private citizen who finds themselves in a position to have to bring deadly force to bear in an attempt to save my life and that of my family.

[ghent]

I would have to say "Just keep pulling the trigger". Depending on what I'm carrying at the time I've usually either got 11RD of .40S&W, 16RD of .40, or 8RD of .45ACP +P. I know statistically it should end in the first three-five rounds and I train to make sure that I can pull that off, but realistically if I've dumped any of the above round counts into a person (or even most of) I'm probably going to have either won that fight or at the very least have wounded my attacker enough to buy me a chance to reload. Just train to make sure that you can be "Combat Accurate" with a good bit of speed, try and carry the biggest/most powerful round that you can handle effectively, and then put it out of mind. If you over think self dense to much you'll wind up losing a lot of sleep over the subject.

[Malifax]

I guess my point is somewhat against a high capacity magazine for daily carry. A good micro 1911 with 6 to 8 rounds of good quality .45 acp or maybe a nice .357 Magnum SHOULD solve any social situation where a firearm is required. These 17-20 round magazines seem a bit like overkill to me.

[RICH 45]

+1

[SSgt Jay]

I'd have to agree that hi cap mags are probably not going to have a practical use in MOST close combat self defense situations, but like the old quote goes, "Better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it". Isn't that the rule that all concealed carriers live by daily? Granted, I only have 10 in the mag of 9mm (*sigh*, damn you California..), but if I could have a hi cap mag, i'd probably use it.

I can see the other side of the arugument though. With decent practice and developed accuracy, you may only need one round.

[Malifax]

Simply put I don't want to carry a half a box of ammo on my hip all day. I carry for weight and fire power. If it is to heavy and to bulky to conceal and carry then I am going to leave it in the glove box or at home in the safe.

[log_lew]

2 words a military man never wants to hear..."fix bayonets" If I run out, I'd have to go to the pocket knife.
Seriously, practice practice practice...draws, shooting from retention, get in bed and grab the gun off the night stand and dry fire.

Get you motor skills down at the range..then go to an IDPA match and shoot. You'd be suprised how much flys out the window once that buzzer goes off. I do it for the fun and to shoot under stress. It took a few matches for the "speed of the game" to slow down. It helped tremedously.
LL

[jakebivins@yahoo.com]

When it comes to protecting yourself or your family, are you really willing to take that chance? Carry spare ammo, if you read some articles you will notice that a lot of confrontations never end in 3-5 shots. If you are familiar with Clint Smith, his motto when it comes to guns is "Two is one and one is none" the same should be said for a reload. You should always carry at least one reload. If you dont know who Clint Smith is Google him and read some of his articles. Other authors you should look at are Massad Ayoob, Dave Spaulding and of course Jeff Cooper. Hopefully if I cant change your mind about reloads, they can.

[pastorccl]

Carry what you can. I recall an article about a soldier who fought in the Faulkland Islands. They were not carrying enough ammo and he was checking his dead buddies for ammo. His lesson learned: You NEVER have enough ammo!
Probably never need it but I carry because I have a moral duty to protect my neighbor, self, community and to end the rampage of a murdering criminal. If I ever am in such a situation, I doubt that I shoot as well as I do when punching holes thru paper or blowing apart overgrown zuccinis. A little extra ammo won't hurt.

[Malifax]

I am going to be lucky to draw down on the bad guy and go bang! I practice as much as I can but I am fairly sure unless I find cover and can focus on reloading I will do better charging with my pocket knife. I am a decent shot and can hit at about 90% in a quick draw situation. But I am not protecting my wife and kids and I am not being shot at. I just pray I am practiced enough to save my family from harm.