How many of you carry a back-up gun?

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My main carry is concealed with my Kel-Tec P-3AT in my back pocket, but when OC my full-size Taurus PT101, I just keep the Kel-Tec in my pocket and it becomes my backup.

...Y'know, for those "gun grabs" the Anti-OCers are always predicting :quirky...
...Orygunner...

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rolexbenz190e wrote:

I dont not carry a BUG, I carry a Kimber .45 Ultra Carry II with Black Talons loaded in the deposited magazine and also my two extra magazines that I carry as well....

I agree with you fully Open4years. And IDO NOTjudge you or condone anything thing that you choose to do in order to preserve your life and the lives ofothers.

BUGs are needed at times you least expect. Just like that one guy said, most people havetwo sets of car keys.... you are screwed if the only car key you have is lost, stolen or destroyed. Just imagine if its your life at stake and not a vehicle.

If you can afford it and manage it, BUGs might just be the thing that saves your life or some one else's life one day.

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Thank you rolexbenz190e. Yours is the first post to make me feel welcome here. I believe that how we choose to protect our lives and the lives of our love ones are personal decisions that we have to live or die with. Why someone would attack and call somone names just becuase they have chosen (or thinking about) a different approach to THEIR safety is beyond me. I feel we should be able to share opinions here and provoke thought without being hateful.

I also have a Kimber Ultra Carry, the Ultra Raptor. I carry it concealed sometimes but I prefer a "plastic" gun for open carry as I'm always scraping it against something and I would hate to do that to my Kimbers.

Whether a BUG will actually save my life someday, I don't know, but it just makes sense to me to carry a "spare." AND lives have been saved by a BUG.

open4years

p.s. I've carried an extra car key, in my wallet, for many years since the time that I locked myself out and had to pay $65.00. I don't want to experience the same event gun-wise, as you pointed out. As the cost would be my life, not money.

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Everyone is free to manage their own risks their own way and to the degree they see fit.

My reasoning for MYchoices goes about like this:

My odds of being a victim of violent crime are pretty damn slim where I live and for my lifestyle.I haven't even come close to needing a gun so far in almost 20 years of being an adult, I suppose I probably never will. So, I think my odds of being attacked are pretty slim.

In most self-defense situations using a firearm, nobody even gets shot 99% of the time. So, my odds of being attacked and having to actually shoot someone (instead of scaring them off with the gun) are VERY slim.

The average self-defense situation involving a firearm is over in about 5 seconds and the average # of shots fired is 2 or 3. So my odds of being attacked, having to shoot, and needing to shoot more than 2 or 3 shots is VERY SUPER SLIM.

But I recognize that if I ever do need a gun, I'd better damn well have one. So I carry my Kel-Tec P-3AT everywhere (except work). With6+1 rounds of Speer GoldDots, I figure I've got 99.999% of possible needs covered.

That's all just me and my situation. If my situation changed and my odds of needing a gun and/or more ammunication and/or a backup gun increased, I would re-evaluate my choices. but for now, I feel it manages my risk more than adequately.

...To each his own...
...Orygunner...

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Orygunner wrote:

Everyone is free to manage their own risks their own way and to the degree they see fit.

My reasoning for MYchoices goes about like this:

My odds of being a victim of violent crime are pretty damn slim where I live and for my lifestyle.I haven't even come close to needing a gun so far in almost 20 years of being an adult, I suppose I probably never will. So, I think my odds of being attacked are pretty slim.

In most self-defense situations using a firearm, nobody even gets shot 99% of the time. So, my odds of being attacked and having to actually shoot someone (instead of scaring them off with the gun) are VERY slim.

The average self-defense situation involving a firearm is over in about 5 seconds and the average # of shots fired is 2 or 3. So my odds of being attacked, having to shoot, and needing to shoot more than 2 or 3 shots is VERY SUPER SLIM.

But I recognize that if I ever do need a gun, I'd better damn well have one. So I carry my Kel-Tec P-3AT everywhere (except work). With6+1 rounds of Speer GoldDots, I figure I've got 99.999% of possible needs covered.

That's all just me and my situation. If my situation changed and my odds of needing a gun and/or more ammunication and/or a backup gun increased, I would re-evaluate my choices. but for now, I feel it manages my risk more than adequately.

...To each his own...
...Orygunner...

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I'm glad that you do carry. I used to drive a thousand miles a week for decades. I've worn a seatbelt ever since they put them in automobiles. I've had only one accident, where I was rear-ended by a drunk driver doing 45mph, while I was sitting still at a red light. Even then, the seatbelt only probably saved me from a bloody nose, while the accident lead to my becoming disabled years later. (Too late to sue the guy.) I've had two neck operations and I just found out I have 5 more ruptured discs. (Sound of violin playing in background)

However, I still wear a seatbelt because it does save lives and accidents do happen where they (seatbelts) are needed. I may never have an accident where a seatbelt saves my life, just as I may never have an incident where wearing a gun saves my life, BUT people do die in car accidents where a seatbeltmight have saved them. AND people do die from knives and guns where "wearing" a gun (and knowing how to use it) might have saved them.

The odds are low that either will happen to any of us reading this forum, But itWILL happen to someone somewhere. Only God knows if that someone is us and he hasn't told me yet, so I will continue to carry. Also, who knows, our having a gun might save someone else's live. You are wise to carry but I respect the views of those who choose not to carry, I just don't agree withthem!

open4years

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open4years wrote:

I'm glad that you do carry. I used to drive a thousand miles a week for decades. I've worn a seatbelt ever since they put them in automobiles. I've had only one accident, where I was rear-ended by a drunk driver doing 45mph, while I was sitting still at a red light. Even then, the seatbelt only probably saved me from a bloody nose, while the accident lead to my becoming disabled years later. (Too late to sue the guy.) I've had two neck operations and I just found out I have 5 more ruptured discs. (Sound of violin playing in background)

However, I still wear a seatbelt because it does save lives and accidents do happen where they (seatbelts) are needed. I may never have an accident where a seatbelt saves my life, just as I may never have an incident where wearing a gun saves my life, BUT people do die in car accidents where a seatbeltmight have saved them. AND people do die from knives and guns where "wearing" a gun (and knowing how to use it) might have saved them.

The odds are low that either will happen to any of us reading this forum, But itWILL happen to someone somewhere. Only God knows if that someone is us and he hasn't told me yet, so I will continue to carry. Also, who knows, our having a gun might save someone else's live. You are wise to carry but I respect the views (rights) of those who choose not to carry, I just don't agree withthem!

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Well said! Isn't it a shame that the other side doesn't have the same attitude.

Yata hey

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You are absolutely right Orgygunner that everyone is free to manage their own risks their own way and to the degree they see fit.

My reasoning is:

The world is a crazy place no matter where you are and it is just getting worse. Bad things happen to good people and it's unfortunate that a lot of good people aren't prepared.... A lot of the time they pay with their lives and never get another chance to become prepared.

I live a pretty expensive lifestyle and could easily become targeted by someone who might be envious or jealous.

My17 year old cousin was just murdered in Kentucky along with her 14 year old step sister and her5 year old step brother.... My cousin had her throat cut and her step siblings died from multiple stabs wounds. During the ordeal the perpetrator attacked the mother, killed the children and then set the house on fire thinking that every one was dead so he could cover his tracks. The mother survived.... barely.

http://www.newschannel5.com/Global/story.asp?s=9200451

These are grossum details, but these details tell us that this world is not a perfect place and that anything can happen to anyone at any time. We see these things happen all the time on the news and we say to our selves “Awwww, that’s sad. But the chances of something like this happening to me and my family is 0.000001%, so we are pretty much in the clear.”…. And it doesn’t really hit you until it actually DOES happen to you and/or your family. These things are real, lets not escape reality and think we are invincible from the cruelty of the world.

I always have carried even before this family incident, but it heavily reminded me of the need to carry. Love is life and some might even say that life is love. But when life of a loved one is taken away, neither remain as one… Only in our hearts do they remain.

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I'm pretty much in agreement with Orygunner (except that I rarely trust my life to a .380, but that's a whole other subject). I keep my carry weapon clean and I fire it often. I make sure that I absolutely trust that it will not malfunction on me. In fact, I recently had to start carrying a different weapon because my gun started getting finicky with my carry rounds.

The extremely low odds that I will need to have a gun, coupled with the extremely low odds that my gun will malfunction when I need it, make carrying a BUG statistically unnecessary. In spite of that, I do carry one from time to time, just not always, or even often.

If you want to carry a backup, or to carry two backups and 2 extra mags for each gun, I say, more power to you. I certainly wouldn't, but your life is yours. Do what floats your boat. It's a free country (and always will be as long as we DO continue to carry guns).

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well i'm gonna take it back to the original reason for the post.



I carry a Walther P99QA .40as primary. I have been contemplating a J-frame.38 Specialplus Psmith and wesson orsomething similaras my BUG but the jury is still out on it. I don't carry extra ammo just the 12+1, but i do have 2 extra 12 round mags in my truck along with a box of ammo. All are speer gold dots.

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In Virginia, carrying a BUG presents several logistical problems if your primary is OCd.

In restaurants that serve alcohol, CC is not legal for the general public (not LEO etc) but OC is legal. So to carry a BUG there would necesitate OCing it also. If you have no desire to look like Two Gun Pete, a BUG won't work.

Also if OCing a primary and CCing a BUG, that would put you in the position of having to respond to a LEO's request for ID, even if he only thought you were OCing because you would know that you are also CCing. Does that make sense or did I go too fast.

So with the OC and CC laws being in conflict for those that want to carry consistantly - not change with each establishment they enter - carrying a BUG on our person presents difficulties. That said, I might have a BUG under certain circumstances and then will need to respond to LEOs and other circumstances accordingly.

Yata hey

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ya, i was stationed in virginia for 8+ years.. holy hell i didn't like the laws there.. not just gun related.. just everything related. commonwealths suck.

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I'm sorry for your loss rolexbenz190e. I'll keep the mother and your family in my prayers.

Your story is a powerful illustration for vigilance. Yes I CC my BUG (P3AT)everywhere it is legal... always,even at home. My primary (HK USP .40 Compact) doesn't always make the ride.Usually it's in a Serpa on my hip, sometimes not. I realise that the role definitions of these guns would change the way I carry them. The Kel-tec has a permanent home on my body and its location and carry condition always remain constant. Furthermore I consider it my back up even when I have no primary to go to first. Yeah,yeah...it's technically incorrect, but it's more natural for me to think of it that way. So even when I'm unarmed, I carry a back up.

Yeah that's clear as mud now isn't it? "I think that Texan's been in the sun too long."

Yes Grapeshot, what you said makes perfect sense.

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Thanks cccook. The man is facing the death penalty, so we'll see what happends.

I was debating whether or not I should buy a .357 snub for my BUG and tuck it away in my pocket, ankle or back.

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rolexbenz190e wrote:

I was debating whether or not I should buy a .357 snub for my BUG and tuck it away in my pocket, ankle or back.

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A .357 sounds like an excellent choice.

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cccook wrote:

rolexbenz190e wrote:

I was debating whether or not I should buy a .357 snub for my BUG and tuck it away in my pocket, ankle or back.

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A .357 sounds like an excellent choice.

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.357 mag is a big BUG !
http://media.ebaumsworld.com/2006/07/bigbug.jpg

Yata hey

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ya it's a big BUG, but it makes a nice bang just like everything else lol. I say if your big enough to conceal a .357 snub comfortably rock the hell on.. My thin frame won't do it.

Jizzle said:

ya it's a big BUG, but it makes a nice bang just like everything else lol. I say if your big enough to conceal a .357 snub comfortably rock the hell on.. My thin frame won't do it.

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I've been looking for an affordable .357 BUG frame for years. As a primary defensive firearm, the hammerless offerings from Ruger don't cut the mustard, but as a BUG, they do.

I don't care how big it is - I'll drop my pants two inches and store it between my heritage.

I started carrying a second gun some time ago

Why? Am I one of those fanatical "I'll take on an entire battalion" kind of guys? Nope. Am I a really a bad shot and need a gun in each hand and nearly 100 rounds of ammo to increase my chances of hitting the bad guy? Nope.

Regretably, I have became a victim of Dimensional Midsection Geometry Transition (expanding waistline). I can't reach my primary carry gun with the off hand, unless I position it at the belt buckle. If I do that and try to conceal it, I look far too "happy to see you", if you get my drift. So, if something happens to the strong hand during an "encounter", the gun might as well be on the far side of the moon.

So, what to do. There is hope that this cursed Dimensional Midsection Geometry Transition can be reversed, but that takes time. In the interim, a smaller, lighter, flatter gun rides in a pocket holster on the off side.

open4years said:

I ALWAYS carry a back-up gun and for many reasons. I usually carry my primary at waist level, usually in a Serpa holster. I carry a back-up (usually my new Ruger .380) on my left ankle with two extra magazines.

To balance things out, and make both legs look the same, I carry on my rightankletwo extra magazines for my primary gun. Sometimes I will carry another gun in a front pocket, such as another .380 or a .22 magnum revolver.

Since my primary gun is a FNH Five-Seven, with 20 rounds in the magazine, this gives me a total of 61 rounds for my primary. That should be enough to handle most situations! If not, I have two more magazines thatI could carry,and several plus 10 round magazine conversions for a total well over 140 rounds!

What do you carry on a regular basis?

open4years

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When traveling I always have an extra with two extra mags available. Often I may have a shotgun available also.

That normally gives me a total of 56 rounds available immediately and sometimes 60.
Let's see: 25 of 10mm + 31 of .40 S&W +4 of 12 gauge 000 buck = 60, Yep.

I have 15 +1 in my bersa. No need for another gun.

hogeater f6 said:

I have 15 +1 in my bersa. No need for another gun.

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i got 8 in the Z, no need for anything else.....truly!