My wife doesn’t feel comfortable having to rack during a confrontation.
“My wife doesn’t feel comfortable having to rack during a confrontation.”
And that is fine. Folks should do what they are willing to do and willing to practice doing.
I live in a pretty low crime area. The odds of someone rushing me while pumping gas or in the hardware store are very tiny. I carry mostly for an ‘active shooter’ situation, not a ‘get off me’ situation.
I also accept that a gun doesn’t stop your attacker - not unless you shoot him in the brain, first shot, which is darn unlikely. You can shoot a guy in the heart with a 44 magnum, and he is physically capable of shooting back for 10-20 seconds. MANY bad guys stop at the sight of a gun, or after being hit once. Those that do not can keep shooting you even as you shoot them.
My revolvers have a round chambered, but I sometimes carry a small BU pistol in a pocket - with the chamber empty. That doesn’t bother me. If anyone is bothered, and prefers to ALWAYS carry with a round in the chamber, fine by me.
But a gun with a round NOT chambered is not just a brick. It is a brick that can convert into a gun. Me? I get tired of people telling me my 686+ or my J-frames are worthless because cops don’t carry them, or because they reload too slow, or because I don’t have 16 shots of 9mm ready, etc.
I’ll add this.. I’ve only pulled a gun for defense once. It was a 22 revolver, and there were 8 guys. If they rushed me, I’d have been able to get one, or at best two shots off.
They didn’t rush me. They didn’t do the math and say “8-6=2, we can take him!” They didn’t laugh at the .22 hole in the barrel. I had taken it with me to do some plinking, and it was what I had. Ended up leaving without shooting.
I’d much rather carry without a round in the chamber than not carry. And since this article is aimed at ladies, some of whom keep their guns floating around in a purse...