Are you "over-prepared"?

[glbedd53]

What I carry to west Texas might depend on which vehicle we take. A rifle or shotgun will hide much better in her trunk than in the back floorboard of my truck. Even if I take my Chinese SKS getting my truck broke in to is worse than losing that gun.

[WildBill]

You never be "over-prepared." I have decided to carry a calibrated caliper in my EDC bag. For measuring the letter height on 30.06 signs.

[glbedd53]

Yeah I've got one of those, thanks for the idea.

[USMC-COL]

I've been trying to decide what all to take to west Texas next month. I know I'm takin the two handguns, the one I carry and the one in the truck, but something makes me want to take an AR or maybe the 870. I guess it's the closeness to the border, especially in Brackettville and Del Rio.

Nice IDPA matches every fourth Saturday in Brackettville run by Catus League with a side carbine or shotgun match at times. Same in Del Rio with AASA matches. So, you'll have additional reasons for three guns in the car (carbine/shotgun/handguns) if you're in that area over the appropriate weekends. Just have plenty of ammo.

[bdickens]

You never be "over-prepared." I have decided to carry a calibrated caliper in my EDC bag. For measuring the letter height on 30.06 signs.

[SpringerFan]

LCP plus spare magazine, tac folding knife, and cell phone. Everyday, no exceptions.

[gabe]

LCP plus spare magazine, tac folding knife, and cell phone. Everyday, no exceptions.

With the LCP as your primary, you probably won't be accused of being over-prepared.

[SpringerFan]

LCP plus spare magazine, tac folding knife, and cell phone. Everyday, no exceptions.

With the LCP as your primary, you probably won't be accused of being over-prepared.

Was that a .380 shot? I know I don't want 13 of em in the chest.

[Mike from Texas]

LCP plus spare magazine, tac folding knife, and cell phone. Everyday, no exceptions.

With the LCP as your primary, you probably won't be accused of being over-prepared.

Well played Sir.

I figured out that I can carry a Kahr PM9 in about the same real estate as my P3AT and have a full size caliber so it has become my pocket carry choice. It complements the Glock 17 or 19 quite nicely. Only one type of ammo to carry for both weapons.

[Rex B]

We have in each car a "bug-out bag".
It has all the things one might need if caught away from the house unexpectedly for a day or two:
For example:
Knife, matches, meds
first aid
granola bars
map
change of clothes
sunblock
whistle
notepad and pencil
GPS
Spare batteries
flashlight
multitool
Old cellphone and car charger.
Booster battery and car charger for current cellphone
and a number of other things.

Call it what you will.

[MojoTexas]

This topic made me chuckle...lately I've been getting up at 5:00 am and taking my dog for a 2-3 mile walk every morning. It's typically still dark when I leave the house, and even though I don't live in a bad part of town, and I'm out "exercising," I'm still carrying my Taurus PT145 and an extra magazine, plus a tactical flashlight, a large folding knife (CRKT M16-LE), along with the usual wallet/keys/watch/etc.

I don't carry at work (due to company policy) but I typically have at least one large knife and two small folding pocket tools in my pockets. In my truck I have a first aid kit, and a Tool Logic Survival Card (with firestarter, knife, etc.). In the colder months I also keep blankets and a folding shovel in my truck, and in the warmer months I always keep a couple of bottles of drinking water.

If ever asked about why I carry so much stuff, I'll just reply (truthfully, I might add) that as a former Eagle Scout, the Boy Scouts of America taught me to always, "Be Prepared." I'd like to see a prosecutor try to impugn the integrity of the good ole Boy Scouts of America.

MojoTexas

[chasfm11]

On most stuff, I consider myself to be a pragmatist. I don't want to be tied down with a lot of stuff that I'll never use. As I read what others carry, I'm scratching my head and wondering "why?" I may be coming around, however.

Tactical flashlight? I read that and figured "yeah, sure, and what would I ever use one of those for?" The more that I read, however, the more that I was convinced that I might need to deal with a night time situation. I looked hard at the Sure Fire lights but just could not bring myself to spend over $100 for one. I did find this, however.
http://www.amazon.com/LED-Tactical-Flas ... 047&sr=8-6
What a great asset! Tonight, I had it along while I was walking one of the dogs. She started to fuss and I shot the light in the direction she was pointing towards - there was a skunk about 20 feet away!. No way would I have seen it with a regular flashlight. As far as I'm concerned, it paid for itself tonight. Now, I cannot imagine myself going out at night without it. It is right by the bed, along with the Sig.

So let's further my education. My opinion of knives has been that they are good for those who know how to use them. I don't. I'm afraid that it a close quarters scuffle, all that I would do would be to give my opponent something to hurt me with. Aside for the utilitarian pocket knives (I do carry one of those) I don't see myself bothering with a tactical style knife. What am I missing? After my experience with the flashlight, I've "seen the light", so to speak (sorry, just couldn't resist.)

If I were going to branch out further, I might try carrying pepper spray. I ride bike for cardio exercise 3 times a week and have been hassled and bitten by dogs while trying to do it. The time that I was bitten (60lb doberman), I'd never have gotten to the pepper spray in time - the attack literally came out of nowhere. I've had some heated verbal exchanges with dog owners where I probably would have been better off just spraying the dog. I'm not sure, however, how effective that would have been in those situations. I have the same reservations about using pepper spray against a human target. The conditions would have to be very favorable to me for that to work. That is not normally the way that my luck runs. Pepper spray as a self defense tool seems to get very mixed reviews.

I, too, was an Eagle scout and have carried the "be prepared" lesson with me throughout my life. I'm not sure that one can be overprepared but I'm convinced that it is possible to be weighted down.

[MojoTexas]

To be honest I carry knives and multi-tools for the "tool" aspect more than as a weapon. Sure, it would serve as a last-ditch weapon but I use my knife mostly for mundane tasks, like opening the box on a new case of coffee at the office, cutting open a package of Cat-6 cable, etc.

In a survival situation a knife is probably the most important thing to have after food and water. With a knife you can start a fire without matches (fashioning a bow drill or something similar), build a shelter, fashion a weapon for taking game, etc.

I've had a little training in knife fighting but it's a messy business. That's why I carry a gun. :-)

MojoTexas.

[srothstein]

So let's further my education. My opinion of knives has been that they are good for those who know how to use them. I don't. I'm afraid that it a close quarters scuffle, all that I would do would be to give my opponent something to hurt me with. Aside for the utilitarian pocket knives (I do carry one of those) I don't see myself bothering with a tactical style knife. What am I missing? After my experience with the flashlight, I've "seen the light", so to speak (sorry, just couldn't resist.)

I recommend you get two knives (well, one more than you currently have) to carry. One knife is the general pocket knife tool that you already know how to use, say as a box opener. The other is for fighting in a last ditch situation. This should be a knife that you can grab and use without much other than instinct going for you. this is what I did when I was on patrol. I carried a folding knife I used as a tool, either a box opener, a pry bar (poor way to treat a knife, but we all do it), or similar. I carried a Cold Steel folder with a tanto style blade, but this is a personal choice. You can carry anything since the presumption is it meets your tool needs and you will have time to use it with very little stress applied.

As a last ditch weapon, I carried a 2 inch punch knife on my left side. This is the style of knife that looks like a T. You grab the handle in your fist and the blade sticks out between your fingers. You can stab then by just punching someone with it, hence the name. This is not for a knifefight with someone else who may know what they are doing with a knife, that is what your pistol is for. This is for when you are rolling around on the ground fighting for your life in what has devolved into a fistfight. You may have been disarmed somehow, or you may be fighting for control of your weapon. This was the primary intent of my caryring a knife, in case of a gungrab by a criminal.

You will probably never suffer the potential gun grab that a police officer has to deal with as a threat. But if you ever need to pull your weapon, it is possible you will end up fighting for control over it. You can continue to fight for control with your strong hand (the one holding the gun) while you can grab this knife off your belt and start punching the BG's gut with it. You may be attacked from behind by a knockdown style attack where you cannot get your gun from concealment. You may need a knife due to some unavoidable 30.06 sign. A punch knife is pretty instinctive if you don't want to take the time to learn how to use other types of tactical knives or weapons.

[chasfm11]

Thanks, Steve.

I assume that http://www.amazon.com/Undercover-Magnum ... 01CZHNCA/2 these are what you are talking about. I ltried to examaine at several of them and some youtube videos for their use. I think I understand the concepts but at my 60+ age, I'm still concerned that I lack the strength to use such a knife effectively. The thing would have to be absolutely razor sharp. Even with the power of my forearm behind it, especially on my weak side a you seem to recommend, driving it through clothing and into enough tissue to do enough harm to stop a threat seems like quite a challenge. I do understand adrenalin and it's possible help if I were, indeed, fighting for my life.

The Ft. Worth gun show is this weekend. I may cruise over there tomorrow and see if anyone has them there.

I do appreciate the advice. I hope that my situation is much different than yours on patrol. You had to get into situations that I will avoid like the plague.