Why I, and you, should carry a BUG.

[carlson1]

There is a fine line between being prepared and being paranoid. Denial has nothing to do with it. One more comment I will add. Posting a link to a police officer and what he does is not applicable here. the police officer is charged with apprehending the criminal. The chl holder is charged with staying alive and removing himself or herself from the situation as quickly as possible.

If you have ever been in a confrontation you might consider a greater line between prepared and paranoid. I don't consider two revolvers with 10 rounds paranoid, but I have had my confrontations and I intend to be able to stay alive.

[NcongruNt]

As you seem to imply that someone who goes around armed with two handguns and reloads is paranoid, I gave you the specific reasoning for why I do so. I am prepared, not paranoid. I'm not here to postulate whether or not you are paranoid. This thread was about why we should carry a BUG.

Yes and also about how we feel about the need to carry a bug. Please don't be offended by my opinion on the topic.

I'm not offended. I just feel like you're conveniently arguing your opinion, yet not really participating in the discussion of the specifics.

You refuted my reference to the police officer attacked with a bat, but didn't bother to read the reference. I gave the specifics of that confrontation and how it was applicable to our situation, but received nothing in response on the subject from you but a statement that I shouldn't be offended by your feelings.

I'm not attacking your feelings, I'm trying to get specifics of why you feel the way you do. Unfortunately, you provide nothing but abstract statements in response.

You opined that since we're carrying all this gear, we might as well wear a gas masks and bullet-proof vests. I stated specifically that the reloads compliment the weight of my primary carry, so it's actually better carrying the reloads. By comparison, the BUG is negligible in its size and weight, so there's no issue there.

You also said that you can't fathom a situation where you would hand off weapons to family members. Here's one: It's Christmas time, you and your wife are staying at your parents' place overnight. A burglar (or burglars) breaks in, and your wife is not armed. You hand her your BUG and have her call 911 while assisting your parents in a defense. Another? Here you go: You're out to eat (let's say again with your parents). A crazy man bursts in (Killeen Luby's style) and starts gunning people down. Your parents are unarmed. It's considerably easier to neutralize a threat like that with multiple good-guys than just one. And with my ridiculous amount of ammo, it's more effective to lay down cover fire against an active shooter if you were to become pinned down.

Do I ever expect this to happen to me? No. Do I think about it as a possibility and think of what I can do to prepare for it? Yes.

[WildBill]

So there is the logic of why I carry a BUG and why I choose the weapon I did as a BUG. Do you agree, disagree, undecided? Let me know.

I agree with your reasoning and logic about carrying a BUG and your choice of guns. Do I routinely carry one? Nope.

[Liberty]

I do a lot of road trips and spend a lot of time on the road. I like to wear one gun and keep one in the door panel. I feel my biggest exposure is getting gas. My door panel BUG is a full sized handgun.

[The Annoyed Man]

I almost never carry a BUG. I guess that I have just never felt the need to. I suppose that if we had a complete societal meltdown, then my 1911 (currently my primary) would become my BUG. My USP Compact would become my BUBUG. My 642 in the pocket would become my BUBUBUG. My P3AT in an ankle holster would be my BUBUBUBUG. My primary would be my AR, and my secondary would be a Remington 700 slung over my back. Oh, and 200 rounds of ammo for each...



Of course, I would have to have suspenders made out of old motorcycle chains and a belt made out of a primary drive chain to carry the weight. Oh, and a meat seeking pit bull on a leash....

Sorry. The Devil made me do it.

Seriously though, two sides of the argument will never be reconciled. It all boils down to what you are personally comfortable with, which is exactly the difference between people who carry a gun in the first place, and those who don't. Except for when I've been hunting and carried both a rifle and a sidearm, the only reason I've ever carried a second pistol was because I was trying to transport it, and sticking it in my pocket was easier than sticking it in the case and having to carry the case. OTH, I do carry 2 reloads for my Kimber. That being said, neither do my personal habits take me into areas where I am ever likely to need more than 22 rounds of .45. Add to that that I have somewhat of a fragile spine, and there's just a limit to what I can carry comfortably and not cause myself any back pain.

But that's just me. Your mileage may vary.

[03Lightningrocks]

There is a fine line between being prepared and being paranoid. Denial has nothing to do with it. One more comment I will add. Posting a link to a police officer and what he does is not applicable here. the police officer is charged with apprehending the criminal. The chl holder is charged with staying alive and removing himself or herself from the situation as quickly as possible.

If you have ever been in a confrontation you might consider a greater line between prepared and paranoid. I don't consider two revolvers with 10 rounds paranoid, but I have had my confrontations and I intend to be able to stay alive.

I actually have been involved in a deadly force situation. Having more guns would not have made the situation any different. It was a quick and very decisive conclusion with no need to break out additional weapons. I carry a VERY dependable firearm. That is the reason I believe there is no need in a bug or a case of ammo when I am out on the streets.

[03Lightningrocks]

I do a lot of road trips and spend a lot of time on the road. I like to wear one gun and keep one in the door panel. I feel my biggest exposure is getting gas. My door panel BUG is a full sized handgun.

LOL....I did the same thing when I went down to Houston a couple days after the hurricane. I was carrying 40 gallons of fuel in plastic 5 gallon cans and after watching all the stories about fuel shortages and what not, was thinking the same thing as you about filling up my tank. I realized after getting there that people were actually behaving more civil than normal and all was well with the world.

[carlson1]

There is a fine line between being prepared and being paranoid. Denial has nothing to do with it. One more comment I will add. Posting a link to a police officer and what he does is not applicable here. the police officer is charged with apprehending the criminal. The chl holder is charged with staying alive and removing himself or herself from the situation as quickly as possible.

If you have ever been in a confrontation you might consider a greater line between prepared and paranoid. I don't consider two revolvers with 10 rounds paranoid, but I have had my confrontations and I intend to be able to stay alive.

I actually have been involved in a deadly force situation. Having more guns would not have made the situation any different. It was a quick and very decisive conclusion with no need to break out additional weapons. I carry a VERY dependable firearm. That is the reason I believe there is no need in a bug or a case of ammo when I am out on the streets.

The firearms I carry are also dependable. One of the situations I was in REQUIRED A BACK UP TO LIVE, so I will continue to carry one. Maybe you will never need and I hope I don't need it again, but if I do I will have it because I do not like a $700 club.

[03Lightningrocks]

The firearms I carry are also dependable. One of the situations I was in REQUIRED A BACK UP TO LIVE, so I will continue to carry one. Maybe you will never need and I hope I don't need it again, but if I do I will have it because I do not like a $700 club.

The fact that we are both here posting means we both came out of our situations still kicking . If I had ever been in a situation, like you, where a back up weapon became necessary, I would probably think differently about it than I do. I hope and pray that neither of us will ever again encounter a situation that requires such action. The odds should be in our favor, since lightning rarely strikes twice in the same place .

After the money I spent on lawyers and what not, avoidance is my first line of defense. My concealed carry piece is second to that.... .

[Liberty]

The firearms I carry are also dependable. One of the situations I was in REQUIRED A BACK UP TO LIVE, so I will continue to carry one. Maybe you will never need and I hope I don't need it again, but if I do I will have it because I do not like a $700 club.

I have always been quit confident in my Ruger's abilty to fire reliably and consistently. I took my wife shooting with me last Saturday, We were hauling out my house and were pretty beat. My wife had 2 FTEs with my Ruger. Now I have always been pretty smug about my Rugers ability to shoot reliably and have never experienced any type of malfunction before. What I believed happened was my wife's hands and wrist were tired from all the hard work and she had lost some strength which caused her to badly limp wrist.

This got me to thinking about how under combat conditions, things can wrong. Forcing shots, and possible injuries shooting on the move etc. can result in equipment failure. No mater how reliable the handgun, it is just more likely to fail under combat conditions.

[Lindy]

an inexperienced shooter that I equip may limp wrist it causing a failure.

I hear about those kinds of failures, but I've never experienced one - and to demonstrate the rarity of them to students, I regularly fire my pistol holding it using only my thumb and middle finger. I also hold it upside down that way, and operate the trigger with my little finger.

Perhaps I've just been lucky.