Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Carry gun...

It's nearly three years of carry with the M&P 9 now. Except for a couple months carrying the Glock 19 back in 2012 due to holster issues and a month of carrying the M&P 357 between the Crimson Trace M3GI and Blogorado last year, the bottom gun in this picture has been on my hip every day, and, boy howdy, it looks it...

That M&P has been worked a lot harder than any individual 1911 I carried before it, too. Even after I pared the 1911 stable down severely, the Pro or the old Colt or, later, the CCA custom, would spend maybe a month or three at best on holster duty before getting rotated to the safe or range bag, which was no biggie since the guns were set up pretty much identically.

49 comments:

Mossyrock said...

I meant to ask you this a while ago but forgot. Do you think your transition from the 1911 to the M&P would have been easier/smoother had you gone with a thumb safety equipped M&P?

Al T. said...

I'm trying to recall when I got my 9mm Shield, I think it was two years back. It's interesting to observe that my pocket carried blaster has less wear than your presumably holster carried one. BTW, still very happy with the Shield in it's role of "replaces the pocket carried J frame".

fast richard said...

It does look rather scuffed up. How does that compare to what would happen to a steel framed gun? Is there any impact on the function or reliability of the gun? What would it take to clean up the appearance?

Tam said...

"It does look rather scuffed up. How does that compare to what would happen to a steel framed gun? Is there any impact on the function or reliability of the gun? What would it take to clean up the appearance?"

Most of that scuffing is on the CTC Lightguard.

Steel-framed guns get cosmetically scuffed-up, too if you use them a lot. (Interestingly, if it were flipped over, you'd see some pretty impressive scuffs on the steel slide, too.)

No.

Heck if I know. Blowing off all the lint would help.

Scott J said...

I've still not gotten to the point of reading about your transition from 1911 to tactical Tupperware.

I blame Matt Bracken. I finally read the Enemies trilogy since he generously put the Kindle versions out free :)

Anonymous said...

Plastic guns have no soul! - Guffaw, Guffaw in AZ

gfa

Unknown said...

Is tool. Has no soul. Estwing hammer has no soul either, but drives nails just fine.

Unknown said...

Is tool. Has no soul. Estwing hammer has no soul either, but drives nails just fine.

ChrisCM said...

Not to disparage your efforts here, which obviously are interesting to your readers and characteristically entertaining, but this post is a humourous testament to your morning doldrums: After explicitly complaining about snooze buttons and crappy TV, the most you could muster for a substantive post was taking a picture of your gun.

Tam said...

That picture's a week or two old, and this isn't even the post I meant to use it in.

ChrisCM said...

Ha. Then you couldn't even muster a picture? Y'all's winter would do well to realise that it's spring time.
At least you've got a full day of in depth debris coverage to look forward to.

Unknown said...

OH MY GOD THE FREE ICE CREAM ISN'T EVEN THE FLAVOR I WANTED THIS FREE ICE CREAM PARLOR SUCKS

Marc Pisco said...

Yeah, you really need an artisanal, organic, locally sourced carry piece.

ChrisCM said...

Perhaps I was unclear, but I don't generally use adjectives like "interesting," "characteristically entertaining," and "humourous" when I'm criticising something.

Critter said...

nothing a little brake cleaner and compressed air won't fix.

NotClauswitz said...

Besides no soul there is also no concern for your health and welfare. A 20-oz. Eastwing framing hammer will get you a case of bursitis really fast and a blown-up elbow is no fun when you go to slow-prone.

Sport Pilot said...

Any friends who own ultrasonic cleaners? One of those and a buffing wheel do wonders. Otherwise you've gotten more than your monies worth of service from that pistol.

Al T. said...

Just curious, are you using a Kydex holster? Seems that the hard plastic combined with the sandy range where I shoot totally ate the finish (if you can call it that) off of my Kimber.

Will said...

At least you don't have 94-95F body temps to add enhancement to your SAD!
Mildest winter we have had here in years, and I'm freezing my butt off. Damn thyroid wanted a vacation, I guess.

Tam said...

Sport Pilot,

"Otherwise you've gotten more than your monies worth of service from that pistol."

Dafuq? There's nothing wrong with that gun but some scuffs and lint. There's no reason it won't go on being my CCW gun another five or ten years or more at this rate.

Al T.,

"Just curious, are you using a Kydex holster?"

Yes. Those are schmears of blue kydex on the side of the light housing.

Robert Fowler said...

Tam said...
Blowing off all the lint would help.

That seems to be the biggest issue I have too. It's about time to detail strip and clean mine.

Sport Pilot said...

You are correct, aside from honest wear and fuzz bunnies your M&P 9 is good to go for years. I merely pointed out your investments paid for itself already.

Tam said...

Phew! I thought you were suggesting it needed putting out to pasture, and it got my inner penny-pincher up. :D

Old NFO said...

Yep, daily carry does scuff up a gun, but it's a tool not a showpiece... And that's one of the reasons I do at least a monthly teardown/clean if I can't get to the range... Dustbunnies in the barrel/action are not good! :-)

NotClauswitz said...

Would the M&P Shield 9mm version do as well?

Cincinnatus said...

I, for one, welcome this free ice cream...

Al T. said...

NotClaus, mine, a sample of one, has done extremely well IMHO. Check my earlier posts, it's a pocket carried Shield and it shoots well. Again, IMHO, it's a superb replacement for a pocket carried five shot J frame.

Tom the Impaler said...

So was the .357 a wheelgun M&P or the .357 Sig cartridge? and what did you think of it? Apart from the fact that it's "carried" and not "carrying"

Sport Pilot said...

Of the Shield's I've seen that were really used, yes. I'm ornery though and after a PF9 & LC9 I went with the SA XD9s.

Jim said...

Is .39 Dustbunny the new tacticool kaliburrrrr, for use in the land of endless winter?


Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX

rremington said...

I've got a G19 that has been shot and carried enough I've worn the finish off the front corners of the slide. Still seems to run fine. I see nothing wrong with yours!

Tam said...

Tom the Impaler,

Some more here.

Tom the Impaler said...

Ah, Thank you. It dovetails with my observation lately that in a panic, the "common" calibers are in fact impossible to get and the guy with the 8mm Lebel, 7mm RSAUM or .416 Rigby is grinning into his beer.

Critter said...

part of the reason i reload .32-20. :)

Boat Guy said...

Been carrying my XD 4" in .45 for about the same period (maybe a tad longer) in a Fobus paddle and one of the surprises has been how little the finish has worn.
Must be something in the brain waves but I took five or six minutes yesterday when I got home to field-strip and run some Gunzilla through the parts that might benefit from same. I've shot this piece regularly (and used the last day of our TR pistol class) and it's still lookin purty shiny (in a matte-black kinda way)

Scott J said...

Heh, funny to see my comments all over that .357 Sig thread.

I'm a couple of steps closer to a .40. I've turned my SW9VE into $250 and should turn my Taurus PT-22 into $150 next week.

I have my eye on one of those used M&P .40s at Bud's for $399 shipped.

Firehand said...

The 1911 I just rebuilt(new frame and some parts)looked pretty worn before; I could refinish the slide, but it'll get just as worn again after a couple of years(or less). Which doesn't make it shoot any worse.

Personally, I don't like the thumb-safety M&Ps I've seen; just not in the right place to suit my hand.

poobie said...

Since it's in the picture, and no one else has brought it up, what's the story on the 2022? I have been giving one of those in 9mm at the local big box sporting goods place the hairy eyeball for a year or so, waiting to see if they'll keep dropping the price to a point that Dr. Wife won't notice.

Sport Pilot said...

Scott J, unless you already own other .40 S&W pistol's it's kind off overrated and expensive. I carried and trained with G22/27 for years. Overall experiences have me more in the 9mmP camp with the 1911 GM in 45ACP as well.

Will said...

Scott J:

The only reason, at this point, to own a .40 is to have a weapon that can handle that ammo in a possible SHTF situation.

Recoil is snappy. Bothers some people. Ammo is expensive. Since they are generally built on a 9mm frame size, they tend to fail at faster rates than the equivalent 9mm would.
The .40 is much more likely to Kaboom! with bullet setback, than most other calibers. The very high pressure, and the loading/chambering dynamics of typical pistols seems to be the main cause. I've investigated this, and it is f'ing scary.

I'm looking to convert my .40 into a 9mm.
The recoil doesn't bother me in my primary hand, but I'm already having problems with my off hand/wrist, so I don't need the future aggravation it may cause. Plus, I need to practice more with that hand, and I avoid it now. Aging is not fun.

Scott J said...

"The only reason, at this point, to own a .40 is to have a weapon that can handle that ammo in a possible SHTF situation. "

Precisely why I want it.

My intent is to get it a Storm Lake 9mm conversion barrel for range toy use.

Ultimately my intent is to have a M&P and Glock 19 to go with my XD-9 when introing a new shooter.

Paul said...

Buy a high quality CCW gun, then take care of it and it will last longer than you will.

Yea it will have alot of it's finish gone, but it will work fine.

glenn said...

Does it still work?

Tam said...

glenn,

"Does it still work?"

Yes.



Paul,

"Buy a high quality CCW gun, then take care of it and it will last longer than you will. "

For most people. Most people carry a gun a lot more than they shoot it. On the other hand, I know people who have shot many high quality handguns until they were junk. Fortunately, I only shoot a fraction of what they do, so I anticipate eventually replacing this one because I want to, not because I have to.

Anonymous said...

I shoot my carry pistol, a Kimber Custom II in IDPA matches and, once in a while, USPSA.

I everyone who carries should shoot USPSA or IDPA with their carry guns. It's the best way to find out about you and the instrument that you are betting your life on.

As a side note, I do not shoot these matches because I'm interested in the competitive side of shooting. I shoot these matches to familiarize myself with my weapon.

-Blake

Mike_P said...

Tam,

Every Year my carry G-19 gets a hot bath and an oil rub. I run the frame under hot soapy, then hot clear water. Scrubbing it internally with a toothbrush when I soap her. Then I give it a good rubdown with ArmorAll and re-lube the rails, springs and friction points. Looks almost new when I am done.....but I can never get that new Gun smell back......

chris Muir said...

Gun wears. Tam still hot.It's math.

NotClauswitz said...

I know people who have shot many high quality handguns until they were junk. Phew!! Thank God, now I can shoot the hell out of the Sig and other crap, and just leave the Ed Brown for carry.
Since it's a major cost-boner I don't dare pull it out unless it really ~IS~ absolutely necessary. Talk about carrying around some insurance - to NOT shoot...
And Louis (I know you don't read this but I wish you did), thanks!

Chad said...

Sounds like some folks would get the vapors if they saw my usual carry, a Colt from the very early 80s. The steel was exposed at one time to Maryland humidity, and had to be ground down to get the worst of the pitting off before it was moly coated.

But it's damn accurate and has been 100% reliable.