[db4570]

In my quest for my perfect carry gun (I started another post several weeks ago on this that I got a lot of help on) I am back looking at a Ruger LCP. I have owned guns, including handguns, for 30 years, although I have only ever carried sporadically.

One reason I switched from revolvers to autos a few years ago is that I want a manual safety, which the LCP doesn't have. Although it seems everyone insists it is perfectly safe to carry a gun chambered with no safety, it's just something I've never been 100% comfortable with, even in my revolver days.

Please stop right now if you're going to say "the only safety you need is between your ears" or "the trigger pull on a DAO is so long and hard there is no chance it will go off accidentally". Yes, I know. We've all heard those things countless times. I'm trying to get past that. As I said, maybe I'm being obsessive, but I'm just not 100% comfortable with it.

So what I'm thinking about doing with the LCP is carrying it... prepare yourselves... unchambered! Here's my justification. First, I figure that carrying ANY type of gun is a drastic improvement in preparedness over nothing. Having one that I am 100% comfortable carrying means I'll be carrying a lot more. Second, I am rarely in a place where I feel I need fast-draw instant-access, like being jumped. Instead, I have been places where it looked like something weird might be going down, and it was nice to have a gun as a last-ditch backup plan. The difference getting a shot off in two seconds instead of one second hasn't seemed to enter into the equation. Third, the chances of being shot or otherwise injured so I couldn't rack the slide with my free hand seem extremely remote.

So, if we can refrain from cliches and armchair-urban-soldier fantasies, I'd like to hear who else might carry like this, as well as well-reasoned arguments for why I shouldn't.

Thanks!

David