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carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:46 pm
by roff
has anyone else done this?
is there anything wrong with carrying a concealed gun before shooting?
i bought a p30 recently and havent had the time to find bullets much less go to the range.
i am carrying it with gold speer jhp though.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:51 pm
by longtooth
Not exactly the best way to do it but if you need one I say it would be better to have it than nothing.
Make sure it is clean & oiled. Get some practice ammo ASAP & to the range soon as you have the opportunity.

I have done it, I confess. BUT the only time was the Nork I just bought from HV & he had already verified it reliable to my satisfaction. :thumbs2:

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:52 pm
by Carrots
Not the best thing to do to be sure, but if I were to do this then an HK would be my choice to do it with. They just work. Nevertheless go and shoot it ASAP, just to make sure.....

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:53 pm
by frazzled
bad, very bad.
Never take an untested firearm. better to be unarmed and know it, then find out the hard way. :eek6

Take the time to go to the range, if even for 15 minutes to make sure that puppy works properly.

EDIT: HK you say? Modify my statement. get some bullets ASAP and test but ok until then.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:55 pm
by TDDude
I think it's a mistake to carry an unfamiliar pistol.

I know that the HPD officers have to qualify with everything that they plan on using and if they can't pass the shooting test with a certain firearm, they can't carry that weapon.

Of course, the best gun in a gunfight is the one you have with you.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:57 pm
by frazzled
How many of those Gold Speers do you have? You should be testing those anyway. If you have more than your clips plus spares then you need to try out the gun with that ammo type anyway.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 3:58 pm
by BrianSW99
I know HKs are very reliable handguns, but I wouldn't be comfortable with it until I had shot it myself. I think I'd at least put 1 box through it even if I had to buy the expensive range ammo. I suppose if it's the only gun you have, it's better than nothing, but I'd sure make time to get to the range as soon as I could.

Also, I know some guns sometimes have issues with some brands of SD ammo. It would be even better if you could test the Gold Dots in that gun before you trust your life to them.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 4:01 pm
by roff
it was a box of 20 for $27.
ive never seen a box of less than 50 before that day.
15+1 in the gun
15 wwb jhp in the spare magazine.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 4:11 pm
by frazzled
Gotcha. I'd take great effort to procure yourself a supply of practice rounds.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 4:22 pm
by USA1
i have a confession... :oops:

i purchased my gun the day before my class .
it was a last minute thing .

the first 50 rds through it were at the shooting portion of the class .

fortunately , the gun performed flawlessly , but the night before the class, it was worrying me a little .

whew , i feel better now .

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 4:27 pm
by pbwalker
USA1 wrote:i have a confession... :oops:

i purchased my gun the day before my class .
it was a last minute thing .

the first 50 rds through it were at the shooting portion of the class .

fortunately , the gun performed flawlessly , but the night before the class, it was worrying me a little .

whew , i feel better now .
Must have been a Glock...

:leaving

:lol:

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 4:48 pm
by BrianSW99
roff wrote:it was a box of 20 for $27.
ive never seen a box of less than 50 before that day.
15+1 in the gun
15 wwb jhp in the spare magazine.
SD ammo marketed for personal defense is usually packaged in boxes of 20. Gold Dots also come in boxes of 50, but those are primarily marketed and sold to law enforcement agencies. However, if you can find a dealer that has them, they're usually about the same cost as the boxes of 20.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 5:12 pm
by gemini
BrianSW99 wrote:I know HKs are very reliable handguns, but I wouldn't be comfortable with it until I had shot it myself. I think I'd at least put 1 box through it even if I had to buy the expensive range ammo. I suppose if it's the only gun you have, it's better than nothing, but I'd sure make time to get to the range as soon as I could.

Also, I know some guns sometimes have issues with some brands of SD ammo. It would be even better if you could test the Gold Dots in that gun before you trust your life to them.
:iagree:
I would also advise you to be very familiar with your carry weapon. Practical range time will help give you that experience.
ie: functional controls, usage, accuracy, clearing etc. etc. Unload your weapon and practice drawing from concealment + dry
firing...... at the bare minimum prior to actual carry.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 6:14 pm
by NcongruNt
BrianSW99 wrote:
roff wrote:it was a box of 20 for $27.
ive never seen a box of less than 50 before that day.
15+1 in the gun
15 wwb jhp in the spare magazine.
SD ammo marketed for personal defense is usually packaged in boxes of 20. Gold Dots also come in boxes of 50, but those are primarily marketed and sold to law enforcement agencies. However, if you can find a dealer that has them, they're usually about the same cost as the boxes of 20.
Yep. I found a local place (GT Distributors in Austin) that carries the 50-round boxes of Gold Dot for a good price. That's where I get my carry ammo now. Depending on brand/type, some of their ammo is restricted to LE only, but last I checked the Gold Dot handgun stuff was still available to everyone.

Re: carrying a gun before shooting it

Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009 6:49 pm
by casingpoint
That's the nice thing about a revolver. If rounds will load in the cylinder, it's pretty much a sure thing it will go bang when you pull the trigger.

You can just about add $200 to the purchase price of any semi auto for the recommended 200 rounds or carry ammo shot through one before you can trust it.

Likewise, you can take $200 off the purchase price of any revolver. Not to mention you can now hit what you are aiming at with the utmost consistency.