Backup Gun type?

[TrailerparkTrash]

For a BUG, do you carry a revolver, semi auto or non at all?

[elpaisa1]

Glock 42

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[micro911]

Back up gun absolutely has to work when you need it. I carried a S&W model 42 38 Special 5 shot revolver when I was on patrol. I had total confidence in its function, no doubt.

[sacmedic01]

LCP. Not my favorite. Ready to change to a revolver.


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[TrailerparkTrash]

Back up gun absolutely has to work when you need it. I carried a S&W model 42 38 Special 5 shot revolver when I was on patrol. I had total confidence in its function, no doubt.

^^^Yes I personally agree. It will work probably 99.9% of the time it’s needed. It can be “burried” in pocket lint and still work. No so with a small semi auto. For a revolver, even if one has a “dead” round it only takes the same trigger finger to rotate a fresh bullet out the barrel. Whereas a semi auto might need two hands to tap n rack a new round. If the primary hand is injured, now what? It still can be done but it’s a lot more difficult and slower.

I love the 642 “air weight” J-frame, but any small wheel-guns will do. A shrouded hammer is even better.

[Barbell909]

Most I seen in my department...

Semi.... LCP 380 or bodyguard 380 sometimes Glock 42, but not much as LCP

Revolver.... s&w j frame

[Atomic Donut]

I carried a S&W 442 Airweight, however we recently switched to external carrier vests so I am no longer carryimg a BUG until I can find a good location to place it now.

[dpod68]

Not allowed per Policy. Then again I really shouldn't be putting me and my partner into situations that call for a BUG as a Probation Officer. That said I usually have 76 rounds on me when I get out of the office....

[TRICKSTER]

I carried a Glock 30. That way I could also use the magazines from my duty gun ( Glock 21) if necessary.

[retired]

I carried a S&W Model 60, 5 shot .38. I had the hammer bobbed so it wouldn't hang up on my pocket. I also carried it off duty.

My dept. had very strict rules as to what we could carry. It used to be a Colt or Smith revolver and that was it. Once we transitioned to the 92F we could still carry those, but we could also carry a Beretta Cougar, but not the Mini Cougar. The Cougar was too big to carry as a bug or off duty IMO and why the dept. wouldn't let us carry the Mini is beyond me. I could be incorrect, but IIRC, there really wasn't anything else allowed. If someone knows otherwise, please enlighten me.

Once I retired and didn't have to follow the overly strict and asinine rules, I stopped carrying the revolver. Once I retired I retired the gun to the safe and began carrying a XDSC 9mm. Did that for about 12 years. Now I carry a 9mm Shield.

I'm glad the deputies on my former dept. have so many more options as to firearms and accessories (i.e. lights/lasers).

[retired]

Not allowed per Policy. Then again I really shouldn't be putting me and my partner into situations that call for a BUG as a Probation Officer. That said I usually have 76 rounds on me when I get out of the office....

You can't, as I'm sure you know, always control the situation and the fact your dept. doesn't permit it is shortsighted and downright stupid IMO. Allowing you to carry a duty weapon but not a BUG seems incomprehensible to me.

The subject of a BUG has come up before in similar threads in the leo forum and I recall there were several leos who worked for police depts. that forbid carrying a BUG on duty. I was shocked to learn a dept. would do that. I know I wouldn't work for one that had that policy and I wasn't alone.

Sorry for the OT OP.

[dpod68]

You can't, as I'm sure you know, always control the situation and the fact your dept. doesn't permit it is shortsighted and downright stupid IMO. Allowing you to carry a duty weapon but not a BUG seems incomprehensible to me.

The subject of a BUG has come up before in similar threads in the leo forum and I recall there were several leos who worked for police depts. that forbid carrying a BUG on duty. I was shocked to learn a dept. would do that. I know I wouldn't work for one that had that policy and I wasn't alone.

Sorry for the OT OP.

Some policies arise from somebody in the past history of the Department doing something stupid. I don't know the story on this one, but I'd sure like to hear it!

That said, our department is pretty good on keeping us prepared, especially compared to other California departments. Quarterly qualifications, decent training (we train for outlier incidents, i.e. Wounded shooter scenarios, malfunction drills, etc.) and EVERYONE can be armed, from Court officers to PRCS supervision officers. In addition we have good collateral training in medical emergency protocols, we are probably one of the few Probation departments that carry tourniquets.

That said, a BUG would be great for when my G22 goes entirely down, my 3.5" folder will probably be inadequate for the rest of the gunfight....

[GizmoSD]

Ahhh the all-so often debated topic of revolver or semi auto. The chicken came first, not the egg by the way. At least that’s what POST says.

Things to consider:

Semi auto- keep it reasonably clean and shoot the snot out of it before you carry it. Large manufacturer semis run very well.

Revolver - can be very light and small. Generally work well and can be fired through clothing with bobbed or enclosed hammers.

If you’re wrestling over the gun, grabbing the cylinder of the revolver will prevent it from firing. I’m always shocked at the number of people who don’t know that. The semi will still generally get one round off, then the adventure starts.

Semis are generally flatter and can hide easier in certain spots. Revolvers are generally lighter.

There’s more, but the moral of the story is you need to carry what you’re comfortable/knowledgeable in and get some training, even if it’s from your department’s firearms unit.

That being said, I carry two push daggers where I want them and a high standard 22 mag derringer in a particular pocket. No exposed moving parts and I get two rounds with absolutely nothing anyone can do about it other than kill me before I get them off.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

I briefly carried a small semi-auto as a BUG while I was working patrol. Gun oil on my A's, lint in every crevice of the weapon, too large and heavy. Legitimate concerns about it being pushed out of battery in a contact shot situation. It was replaced by a Ruger LCR in a DeSantis Superfly holster and I never looked back.

[SoCalDep]

I've carried a lot of duty guns... and a lot of backup guns.

I understand both positions... semi auto vs. revolver... and I've carried both. I think I'd still be OK carrying both, especially my S&W 640 which is the best revolver I've ever owned.

That said, I've been carrying a semi auto as a backup for many years, starting with a .45 Mini Cougar, then a .45 S&W CS45, then an M&P9C, then a 9mm Shield, and now a 9mm Glock 43.

I feel more confident with a semi-auto. I understand the potential drawbacks and work/train to mitigate them.

I also carry a Ruger LCP off duty. It goes in my pocket when I wake up in the morning... It's there now... and will not be put away until I go to bed. About every six months I go shoot the magazine I'd been carrying. I watch the lint "poof" out during the first couple shots. Then I'll train with it a bit... 50 to 150 rounds, clean it, and reload it with new duty ammo. I have around 800 rounds through it with exactly zero malfunctions with a variety of ammunition. ZERO. I can't say that for most of my guns, including many of my Glocks and the revolver I carried most as a backup.

At the same time I know another person who had major problems right from the beginning with their LCP and went to a revolver. I won't knock her choice.