Cocked and locked baby!

[Lurper]

THis subject has been beaten to death. Yet I am still amazed at the attitude of some.

I carry on an empty chamber. I look at it this way...step one is pulling your weapon on a BG. Step two is racking the slide. If that doesn't send him packing, step three is aim & fire!

Except step one for the bad guy is to shoot you. If you carry an unloaded pistol, you have a very fancy, expensive brick. Typically when you need a pistol to defend yourself, time is at a premium. If you are not comfortable carrying a 1911 cocked and locked, carry something else.

Carrying your weapon should be looked at as a deterrent, not an ambush. If you do things right, the display of confidence you exhibit, as well as the display of the weapon and the sound of chambering a round will dissuade anyone thinking about making you his midnight snack.

Nothing personal Joe, but what are you smoking? A firearm should never be used as a deterrent. It should only be used (drawn or displayed) when someone is in danger of serious injury or death. In the time it takes you to exhibit the confidence you are so proud of, then chambering a round, a BG can put a couple of rounds your way.

By racking your slide, you create that unmistakeable metal on metal sound, informing your attacker that you mean business.

You also create the unmistakeable opportunity for the BG to shoot you.

Racking the slide takes a fraction of a second if you are training at the range this way.

That fraction is on the order of 1/2. That is long enough for a shooter of intermediate abilty to fire 2 rounds. In a defensive situation, the ability to put lead on the target quickly is the single most important skill.

I would also only load 75% of capacity in the magazine to save wear and tear on the springs.

Tactically unsound and unneccessary. You aren't saving any "wear and tear" on the springs, you are only limiting your round capacity. Modern magazine springs can be left loaded for extended periods (years) without any negative effect.

Loading/unloading the gun every day is not unsafe. If you follow the 4 basic safety rules, you will be fine.

If you aren't comfortable carrying cocked and locked, you should give serious consideration to carrying a different firearm or maybe not at all.

[kayakersteve]

Lurper -
Great summation - Sounds like great advice.

[newarcher]

Not beating the joe up, because I once thought like he did.

My decision came for me from watching Under Fire, a show on CourtTV which shows actual police encounters where they have been fired on and fired back in response. Most were surprises and most of the time the cop was hit before he could even draw on the suspect.

My wife actually mentioned the fact that had I been the cop, I wouldn't have time to rack the slide and I thought "you are darned right!".

I was also amazed at the ability of some of these perps to run away, holding their pants up with one hand, evading fire all the while, and returning what seemingly is a very impressive hit ratio to shots fired. They may be dumb as hell but they can shoot pretty well. It amazes me that a perp with a J frame can hit and kill an officer who is behind a car but a couple squad cars worth of police can't manage to hit the perp, despite shooting several times each.

I think that we CCWr's are sometimes guilty of thinking that any situation where we have to shoot someone will be a controlled situation where we have plenty of time and ability to rationalize and react. I think we also subconsciously believe that the target will stand still and remain at a 20 foot range. None of this could be farther from the truth of course.

Bottom line, cocked and locked is safe (excluding the ammo problem) and isn't going to be the reason I die. I will, of course, have to take extreme precautions to make sure of no ND on unloading or loading.

New

[random_alias]

You can't easily drop the slide on a chambered round with a 1911 because the 1911 is designed for the lip of the round to slide up from the magazine and enter behind the hook on the extractor. The round is attached to the extractor by the pressure of the extractor hook on the lip of the round and the extractor is attached to the slide in such a way that the round and the slide move forward together and the round is chambered as everything comes into battery.

If you place a round in the barrel chamber and try to drop the slide over that round, the extractor hook has to force itself around and over the lip of the round. This stresses the extractor in a way that it was not designed for and can break the extractor or prevent the slide from completely closing. Some guns are designed to be able to load a single round without the magazine in this manner, some are not. The 1911 was not.

As for racking the slide during a confrontation...There's a lot of discussion about the effectiveness of this in a real life situation...is it really a deterrent...will you have two hands free at the time....I don't hear near as much discussion on one very important aspect of this method...who's to say that the gun won't jam at that very moment. Under stress, you may not pull the slide completely back since you are feeling rushed...this can cause a jam or misfeed. Also, Murphy's Law. The whole point of CCW is having AT LEAST one guaranteed round to fire. Having to chamber a round at that very important moment increases your physical and the gun's mechanical movements and actions...thus increasing the likelihood of a failure to fire.

[Duxman]

Condition 3 is safe for you and the bad guy.

Loading and unloading your pistol is exponentially increasing your chances of an AD.

Hmmm. Last time I checked - I am not worried about the BG's safety. In fact that is the least of my concerns. My family and personal safety are paramount.

As long as you properly obey at all times - firearm safety rules - keep your finger off the trigger UNTIL your sights are on target - your chances of AD are nil.

Training is the key to zero ADs.

Hooch in BHD: This is my safety sir......

[parrothead2581]

Hmmm. Last time I checked - I am not worried about the BG's safety

I think that monkeyboy was being a bit sarcastic in his statement concerning condition 3 and it's safety for you and the bad guy. It gives the BG extra time to do you harm, making it safer for him.

But maybe I'm wrong.

[JoshB]

I think that we CCWr's are sometimes guilty of thinking that any situation where we have to shoot someone will be a controlled situation where we have plenty of time and ability to rationalize and react. I think we also subconsciously believe that the target will stand still and remain at a 20 foot range. None of this could be farther from the truth of course.

I don't hear near as much discussion on one very important aspect of this method...who's to say that the gun won't jam at that very moment.

Some very good points.

It's hard to prepare for an encounter b/c you don't know who/what/when/where/why or how. That leaves you to do what you can to mitigate the perceived threat. Carrying locked & cocked does it for me most of the time. A back-up revolver, flashlight & knife help, but sometimes you just have to make due with what you're comfortable carrying.
There have been plenty of times at the range where I let the slide go and it either jammed or didn't chamber a round. I certainly would not want this to happen in a SD situation.

[Creature]

Carrying your weapon should be looked at as a deterrent, not an ambush.

I would say if you are pulling you CH, you have already been "ambushed" by a BG...you will be lucky if you can say you were merely "confronted".

The biggest concern is as random alias pointed out:

As for racking the slide during a confrontation...There's a lot of discussion about the effectiveness of this in a real life situation...is it really a deterrent...will you have two hands free at the time....I don't hear near as much discussion on one very important aspect of this method...who's to say that the gun won't jam at that very moment.

As for downloading the mag by a few rounds:

I would also only load 75% of capacity in the magazine to save wear and tear on the springs.

Modern springs do not "wear out" from constant compression. They wear out from constant and repeated compression and decompression.

[woodland]

I guess it depends upon where you live and the odds of needing to shoot quickly.
If you live in a nice neighborhood and you're not a cop, I really don't see the need to carry locked-and-cocked.

Because things happen slower in good neighborhoods than bad? Does that mean that if a nice house burns down you have more time to get out than if it's a dump of a house? I guess I just don't understand this logic. Your surroundings can have no effect on how fast a specific incident is going to unfold. Once it starts happening your location becomes completely irrelevent.

[Spade Cooley]

I stand on what I said before and say the 1911 in any condition is too slow for any emergency. If it's taking a safety off or racking the slide, you will be dead meat before you can fire. The packing of a simple pistol where all you have to do is draw and pull the trigger is what you want. In emergencies people get shook up and forget to take the safety off or rack a slide. It all takes too long. Draw and pull the trigger is the only answer.

[JoeBlackSpade]

I respect your views guys, I really do.

I guess I was trained to think a little differently.

I DO agree that one can safely carry a 1911 that way.

I just don't agree that it is necessary.

Let's take the "knife-wielding looney" out of the equation. Lets' say there are 3 big guys coming right at you after initially milling about close by. In this case, I'm drawing and racking my slide, taking aim at the closest, and giving clear verbal commands. In low light conditions this is the best thing you can do. The combination of ratchet-sound, and clear verbal commands will establish dominance. That ratchet sound WILL discourage just about anybody that isn't doped up or out of their mind on meth, etc., and it might be that extra "oomph" needed due to low light- when verbal commands just won't do it by themselves.

Thing is, I feel C&L is just not necessary. If an assailant is going to close in THAT fast, then a round in the chamber won't make a difference. IMHO, one should train to go from Condition 3, holstered to 2 rounds center mass in less than 2 seconds. A thug closing in faster than that, with clear intent to harm is unlikely, but can be repelled with a straight (or slightly upwards-directed) palm-heel to the chest/chin, using your weak/non-draw/free hand. The straight palm-heel strike gets an extra meter between your assailant and your weapon, and is combined with BLADING your body away from the attacker. This puts not only your extended arm between your attacker and your weapon, but this also puts YOUR OWN BODY between the attacker and your weapon. With practice, you can train to fire from this position, with your weapon virtually resting high on your pectoral muscle, elbow cocked way back. This was standard weapons-retention training for me as a Marine, and is also taught to Maryland State Police, United States Park Police SWAT, and others in the same way.

The idea of one hand being occupied in an unexpected grapple with a thug-and therefore unavailable to cycle the slide- is a genuine and respectable concern. Personally I have confidence in being able to do what I need to do to get a round off if needed, whether I have a hand free or not. One could (and should) not only practice chambering drills, with one arm behind the back, weak-arm operation of their firearm, as well as standard strong-arm operation, and that includes drills on what to do in the event of failure to fire/failure to feed/stovepipes, etc.

I know a few drills for single handed chambering, if anyone is interested.

As I always say, practice practice practice.

Much of the fear/apprehension about being able to handle yourself in the event of a gunfight will be alleviated by practice and training.

[JoeBlackSpade]

"Carrying your weapon should be looked at as a deterrent, not an ambush. If you do things right, the display of confidence you exhibit, as well as the display of the weapon and the sound of chambering a round will dissuade anyone thinking about making you his midnight snack."

"Nothing personal Joe, but what are you smoking? A firearm should never be used as a deterrent. It should only be used (drawn or displayed) when someone is in danger of serious injury or death."

No disagreement there- at least in a general sense. What I think we've been talking about is the process of going past that point. It's in that strange, funky escalation of tension in an encounter, where the threat is gathering- and building. What I believe is not being considered is that an encounter on the streets will not be a neat, tidy event that fits a textbook definition. It's not bad guy pops out of the bushes, and *boom*, I pop him. There's an escalation of force involved in most street encounters. Somewhere in that escalation, there should be verbal commands, placing your hand on your (holstered) weapon, more verbal commands, drawing and going to condition one, etc.



"In the time it takes you to exhibit the confidence you are so proud of, then chambering a round, a BG can put a couple of rounds your way."

True, if you're getting held up at gunpoint, in which case condition 1 won't make much difference than cond. 3. That becomes a race between you (drawing, acquiring sight picture, and squeezing off a round) and your mugger's trigger finger. In such an instance, only your brains are going to get you out alive, and the fact that you have a round in the chamber can do nothing except give you a false sense of security.



Quote:By racking your slide, you create that unmistakable metal on metal sound, informing your attacker that you mean business.

"You also create the unmistakable opportunity for the BG to shoot you."

Again, that's in the case your assailant is holding you at gunpoint. Obviously, drawing your weapon on someone holding you at gunpoint-in 99% of cases- will get you shot. In such cases, cond.1 vs. cond.3 won't make a bit of difference. I'm talking about the multitude of other cases (read: more likely) where your concealed piece can save your life, i.e., knifepoint, faced with an assailant brandishing an improvised weapon, or numerically superior assailants. In such cases, I'm drawing, racking my slide and taking aim. Just because you draw does NOT mean you have to shoot.

Quote:
Racking the slide takes a fraction of a second if you are training at the range this way.

That fraction is on the order of 1/2. That is long enough for a shooter of intermediate abilty to fire 2 rounds. In a defensive situation, the ability to put lead on the target quickly is the single most important skill.

Again, if you are being held AT GUNPOINT, sure, he can squeeze off 2 rounds while you draw, rack, sight in, sqeeze off your rounds. And like I said before, the fact that you have a round in the chamber on your hip won't make a bit of difference. If you go for the "quick-draw" while someone's muzzle is in your face, you're taking a huge risk regardless of whether you're carrying Cond. 1 or Cond. 3.

Quote:
I would also only load 75% of capacity in the magazine to save wear and tear on the springs.
Tactically unsound and unneccessary. You aren't saving any "wear and tear" on the springs, you are only limiting your round capacity. Modern magazine springs can be left loaded for extended periods (years) without any negative effect.


I disagree with that statement. Maxing out the capacity of your magazines, and storing ammunition that way is not only bad for your springs, but it can also create a dangerous situation. If you constantly carry your mags fully loaded, and then you one day have to empty that mag, you're more likely to face a failure to feed while trying to fire the last few rounds in that mag, and possibly a misfeed in the 1911, as well as many other "modern" weapons, including any Pre-ban mag, i.e. the 15 rounder in a 92FS. These are problems you wouldn't face if the springs in the mag are new, and still have their full tension. A magazine at full capacity should be discharged or have the rounds removed while in storage if you want to not only maximize the life of the springs, but also decrease your chances of failure to fire/feed. I've shot thousands of rounds through the M9 (92FS), 1911, my .40 and .45 Ruger, a Glock 17 & 19, and other small weapons over the years. A weakened spring in any of the mags can, and has (on exceptionally rare occasion- admittedly) led to misfeeds.


If you aren't comfortable carrying cocked and locked, you should give serious consideration to carrying a different firearm or maybe not at all.

I don't know if that comment was directed at me, or not, but I never said anything about "comfort", nor did I reference safety as a concern. In fact, I explicitly stated that I'm not worried about safety on this class of weapon, and carrying it C&L. My position is that it is unecessary if you are training properly, unless you are a law enforcement officer, or work under environments where you'd have to minimize the time from drawing to firing. An example of this type of person might be a State Trooper, Sheriff, etc. For the safety conscious citizen, walking through the waterfront district, etc., I believe you don't need a round in the chamber.

[revjen45]

The 1911 was designed to be carried in Cond 1. In the safe position the safety blocks the hammer from making contact with the firing pin shoud the impossible happen and something holding the hammer back breaks. In Cond 3 you are taking the chance (however small) that the first round may not feed properly. In Cond 1 that 1st round is up the spout and ready to go. I have seen the idea that the sound of racking the action will cause the BG to immediately wet his knickers and depart at warp speed beaten to death in shotgun threads. I don't carry a gun to scare people. If I need a gun to defend my life I need every round it will carry. It can be argued whether there is time to feed the first round and give verbal commands and otherwise dither in face of deadly threat, but if my life is in danger the time for talking or scaring the BG is past- it's time to present and fire. For the record I carry a Steyr S9, but for those times when I carry a .45 I go cocked and locked (ref. Psalm 1911).

[Dave R]

Condition 3 is more of a liability than a safety issue. The locked and cocked argument has been done to death...the 1911 was designed to be carried in Condition 1 and is completely safe in that condition...it is also the quickest method of employment.

Amen, bro.

Think about this: a DAO pistol with a safety, and one in the tube, is also "cocked and locked." A Glock with one in the tube is cocked and UN-locked. That is the only thing I don't like about Glocks.

[newarcher]

Well, I am going to think about things like this.

I can think of nothing worse than going up against a police officer who is trained well in both tactics, training, and how to get the upper hand. Yet punks go up against cops all the time. Cops have their guns loaded and ready to use every second of every day. I don't think that if punks will take on a cop, the racking of my slide will change anything. I think that while I am racking, the punk will be shooting. That's the nature of punks. Maybe you get lucky and happen to get the unmotivated criminal that will scare easily. The fact of their behavior tells me that they won't.

I am not going to nock anyone for carrying any way they want...perhaps despite the half-cocked position with one in the chamber!

I think that Condi 1 is best for me now and just as safe.

New

[newarcher]

Right on DaveR.

I am not knocking Glocks but people will run around with one in the chamber and not think anything of it. Yet all it takes is a pull of the trigger to discharge.

At least the 1911 has two safeties plus the trigger to keep it from firing.

JMHO.

New

[Lurper]

I stand on what I said before and say the 1911 in any condition is too slow for any emergency. If it's taking a safety off or racking the slide, you will be dead meat before you can fire.

Yeah, so I guess the sub 1 second draws with "A" hits is too slow. I could probably shave some time off if I didn't have to disengage the safety.
1911's C&L are no slower than any other weapon. Just think how fast and good all the pros would be if they would just switch from 1911's to something else.

Joe:
Not every threat builds. Not every situation gives you time to rack the slide or even give commands. Many times, the only thing you have time to do is draw and fire. Carrying a weapon in any condition other than ready for immediate use is like not carrying any weapon at all.

Condition 1 vs condition 3 is a huge difference. Way fewer steps are involved deploying from cond. 1 (read fewer chances for Mr. Murphy's interference). It takes far less time which can translate to more distance between you and the BG (always a good thing). Outdrawing somone holding you at gunpoint can and has been done (won't do it in cond. 3 though), but more importantly is the time it buys you. If your assailant is closing the distance between you, having to rack the slide gives him a free half second. That means the average person can close the distance by about 7 ft. (Tueller 21ft in 1.5 seconds). If the encounter starts at 10 feet, you now have a much more serious problem. Trying to move off line while racking the slide introduces many varibles that aren't there if you move offline in cond. 1. What they are armed with is immaterial. If they have a gun; you have just given them time to take a couple of shots, a knife; time to close and attack, a brick; time to throw or close and attack. If the situation unfolds slowly, you could argue that there is time to rack the slide. However, that is not always the case.

As for the magazine springs, we'll have to agree to disagree. I have magazines that I have left loaded for extended periods of time that are just as reliable now as they were when they were new several years and several hundreds of thousands of rounds ago.

[Spade Cooley]

I guess there is no use. Fumbling for a safety or racking a pistol slide when the du du hits the fan is a bad idea. Whats wrong with a DAO pistol that is simple and all you have to do is pull the trigger to make it happen. Either a first shot double action auto or DAO Glock, even a revolver is a much better way to go. When you watch scariest shootouts on TV the cops are walking up to a vehicle and they don't have time to react even when they have the right weapon, Jacking with slides or safeties in a shoot out or a surprise robbery will never work. You want the gun ready to fire when you need it and want to pull the trigger. It will not go off unless you pull the trigger, period. But that is what you want to happen.

[Lurper]

Spade
It's all in how you train. I guarantee I can shoot a 1911 faster than 95% can shoot a da or dao. If you train to take the safety off, you will take the safety off. It doesn't slow you down. Plus, you get a better trigger on a single action auto than you will get on any other type of action. Again, if it was so bad why do all the pros use the 1911? I don't have to watch the scariest shootouts to understand. BTDT

You are correct however in saying that you don't want to have to rack the slide.

[ilikesa]

Joe...why not just rack the slide with a round already in the chamber, if you think that will establish dominance. Take it from a former cop, you DON'T have time. People attack police officers, who they KNOW to be armed. People can be nuts! You have to plan for the worst scenario and be thankful if it's not that bad.

You mentioned "good neighborhood" too. Well, bad people have cars, and "good neighborhoods" usually have money, jewelry, and valuable electronics. Where would you go?

Im not trying to beat up on you, but your logic is flawed. Better safe than sorry.

As to the 1911 cocked and locked, go for it. Lots of people have done it, and continue to do it.

[Creature]

JoeBlackSpade wrote:

I guess I was trained to think a little differently.

I gotta ask...did any of those agencies...or the US Marine Corps for that matter, teach you to carry in anything other than condition 1 while on patrol?

Anyway, if you feel safer carrying in Condition 3...have at it. If magazine loaded to 75% makes you feel better, knock yourself out. If you think you can blade with a tango drawing on you, more power to you. If you are confident that multiple tangos in the dark...while you are moving...is no problem, right on.

I know that for me, it's C&L and 7+1 for my carry 1911.

[Spade Cooley]

"Yet all it takes is a pull of the trigger to discharge"

That is exactly what you want to happen. I will not be pulling the trigger unless I have to. But when I do I don't want any interference from anything. Its happened hundreds of times where the armed citizen has been squeezing nothing but mush hoping the pistol would go off and nothing happened. In an emergence we tend to forget.

[crankshop1000]

I stand on what I said before and say the 1911 in any condition is too slow for any emergency. If it's taking a safety off or racking the slide, you will be dead meat before you can fire. The packing of a simple pistol where all you have to do is draw and pull the trigger is what you want. In emergencies people get shook up and forget to take the safety off or rack a slide. It all takes too long. Draw and pull the trigger is the only answer.

The 1911 is still the premier combat pistol that all are trying to equal. A 1911 in the hands of someone who knows how it is designed to operate will have an advantage over anything else out there.Thumbing the safety while drawing and the first shot single action is unbeatable.Sorry to sound harsh, but you don't know what you are talking about if you believe that a 1911 is slow.Chuck.

[JoeBlackSpade]

I gotta ask...did any of those agencies...or the US Marine Corps for that matter, teach you to carry in anything other than condition 1 while on patrol?

Anyway, if you feel safer carrying in Condition 3...have at it. If magazine loaded to 75% makes you feel better, knock yourself out. If you think you can blade with a tango drawing on you, more power to you. If you are confident that multiple tangos in the dark...while you are moving...is no problem, right on.

I know that for me, it's C&L and 7+1 for my carry 1911.


Going on patrol with the Marines is not the same as walking your dog.

Of course, going on patrol, your weapon is locked and loaded- but you are EXPECTING to engage. You are LOOKING for the enemy, actively searching for them, or expecting to counter an ambush, etc. You are talking to other assets that might have spotted the targets you are TRYING to engage. Walking down the streets of America, there's little comparison. Hell, I remember stumbling drunk through the meanest streets of Washington D.C. near "8th and I" when I was stationed there, in little more than a t-shirt and a bottle of Jack Daniels in me- at 4:30 a.m., just trying to get back in time for morning P.T. Big difference between even our meanest streets and Fallujah.

I'm sorry, but I just don't have that much adrenaline, and intensity when I'm walking my dog in Lake Mary, FL.



You guys each have your own areas of expertise, and I truly do respect that as I mentioned earlier, but a few of you make me nervous, like you'd be more comfortable in the Old West, where anything more than a mouse fart will get you drawing on a tango down Main Street. Realistically, I'm going to anticipate a level of escalation in most confrontations.

The way I see it, there's only 2 ways a gunfight is going to go down on the streets:

a.) Less than lethal threat graduates to lethal threat with some level of warning.

>>>During such an escalation, I will have the ability to draw down, chamber a round, etc.

b.) Total surprise situation with a baseball bat to the head, or a thug with a pistol pops out from behind the bushes, aiming his weapon at me. He's got his muzzle to my face before I know what happens-
>>>In such a case, having a round in the chamber isn't going to help me one bit. Knowing that I have a round in the chamber might even sway my decision to draw when perhaps I really shouldn't. Those of you that think you're quick enough to draw when someone has a muzzle in your face, good luck with that. I'm a super-quick summammabich, but I'm not going for it unless the sun, the moon and the planets align, and the Spirit of the Lord gives me a gentle nudge to go for it.

Creature, I think you might be running my comments all together, and out of order, and they kinda' lose their context if you do that. I'm not talking about moving, blading, palm-heeling, ninja-rolling, and taking down multiples at night. I'm talking about the way it goes down in the street. Mugger comes walking with his buddy towards you at 3 a.m., asking "what- up- man", or "what time you got". My hand goes to my piece- but I don't draw down. My comments are something like "you got 3 seconds to get the **** outta here".

REAL LIFE SITUATION:
My father (58 years old, former Ranger) was driving through downtown Miami a few years ago in a rental vehicle. As is a common tactic, a car full of scum-bags rear-ended my father's car at low speed, while he was momentarily stopped at a stop sign. He saw the 3 or 4 guys moving around inside, and knew he'd likely be a victim. In a split second, he jumped out of the car, shoved his hand inside his jacket (LIKE HE WAS GOING FOR HIS WEAPON) and raised his free hand out, palm up, Al Pacino style. "What's up?" he was yelling to the guys. They spun their 20-inch rims, and drove off, cursing my dad, but not ready for a gunfight. He bluffed his way out, got back in his car, and left.

Not only did he NOT have a round in the chamber, he didn't have a piece, period. My point is that the credible threat of force is just as effective as force in most cases. While I'm certain he was lucky this time, its also important to note that this happened during a period of time in FL (recent) history where a number of Canadians, Europeans, and northerners were bumped like this, carjacked and subsequently KILLED in an identical set-up.

Carrying concealed is not the same as Marines on patrol, or a State Trooper flagging someone on I-95 with shifty characters behind the wheel. Unless you guys are walking the strip through bar-country with your pieces at 3:30 a.m. Then, yeah, I might chamber a round.

Just walking down by the beach in the afternoon, or whatnot, there's no way I need a round in the chamber in Wal Mart.

And I hope I never accidentally step on any of you guys' toes in Denny's at midnight. The way some of you guys talk, you've got trigger-pulls lighter than the 6-oz. sirloin.

[michael t]

In this case, I'm drawing and racking my slide, taking aim at the closest, and giving clear verbal commands. In low light conditions this is the best thing you can do. The combination of ratchet-sound, and clear verbal commands will establish dominance.

You live in never never land with Peter Pan. Now lets get real. Many BG's ain't scared of cops Do you really think you and you Alfa dog commands will impress them.
You might have 2 sec. if you lucky. The above crap won't wash in real life. Theirs no time and is gonna get you killed.
I have USED A 1911 AS A CIV for SD . I had time to draw, off the safety while raising the pistol (yes it can be done) and fireing . If I hadn't my wife would have been a widow

Just walking down by the beach in the afternoon, or whatnot, there's no way I need a round in the chamber in Wal Mart.

Been several SD shooting at Wally world last couple years Open you eyes.
As for your father sorry But he was a fool and lucky Don't bet you life on a bluff. Other guy may not bluff and have the winning hand A loaded pistol.

By way I am 61 and a Locked & Cocked Commander is on my hip as I type this. Be like a Boy Scout Always Prepaired . Not 1/2 way with a empty pistol.