What "condition" do you carry your 1911 in?

imq707s · January 12, 2008, 06:30 PM

I always carry in Condition 1, but I know some people are afraid of this for some reason?? What condition do you carry in??

Condition 0 - A round is in the chamber, hammer is cocked, and the safety is off.

Condition 1 - Also known as "cocked and locked," means a round is in the chamber, the hammer is cocked, and the manual thumb safety on the side of the frame is applied.

Condition 2 - A round is in the chamber and the hammer is down.

Condition 3 - The chamber is empty and hammer is down with a charged magazine in the gun.

Condition 4 - The chamber is empty, hammer is down and no magazine is in the gun.

outlawsrnr · January 12, 2008, 06:33 PM

Condition 1

Butch

tomh1426 · January 12, 2008, 06:40 PM

Condition 1 always

nobanforme · January 12, 2008, 06:41 PM

condition 1 always, always, always.

hoytinak · January 12, 2008, 06:43 PM

The way a 1911 was meant to be carried.

Curtis(USAF) · January 12, 2008, 08:39 PM

Condition zero is not bright. When you draw your gun, you risk a double feed because the slide can still move back and forth. Theres also the fact that (At least my) 1911s seem to have a real short, crisp trigger break. Like a single action, and no trigger safety like a glock. relying on the grip safe alone is not advisable.

Condition 1 is the best way. The way I currently carry. Safety wise, I feel quite confident, especially considering the fact that my current holster has a restraining strap that runs on the back of the slide between the hammer and the firing pin. Even if the hammer does drop, its not going to go off.

Condition 2 is Highly NOT advisable. Your firing pin is resting directly on your primer. Really fun trying to slowly lower that hammer down without making
your gun go off. The only pistols I carry in 2 are Double action only.

Condition3 is acceptable if you just don't feel comfortable with Condition 1. Its usually a mental thing, and its probably a good thing to do if you are just getting in the swing of carrying concealed. I carried my first Concealed pistol unloaded for a day, Just so I could get used to the feel of the gun, concealing the gun, and so forth. That and I didn't have any 9mm ammo other then FMJ for the first day I had it.
I also carried my 1911 in condition 3 until I could get my ambidextrous hammer safe put on it. With the original hammer safe, I had a hard time getting the safety down with my thumb. The new ambi safe fixed that, and my 1911 is almost always in Condition 1 now.

Condition 4 is just for storage and child safety if you ask me.

nate45 · January 12, 2008, 08:42 PM

Quote:

Condition 1 is the best way.

+1

There is no doubt about it.

orionengnr · January 13, 2008, 09:56 AM

This subject gets beaten to death on about a weekly basis.

If you do a search you'll have enough reading material to last you quite some time.

Did you notice that there are 25 votes right now, but only seven replies? Lots of responders have grown tired of re-posting the same thing over and over, and then having it devolve into a urinating contest (as it inevitably will, just like the Taurus threads).

BTW, the one I carry is in excellent condition.

Officer's Match · January 13, 2008, 11:12 AM

Clean, oiled , and loaded.

varoadking · January 13, 2008, 11:34 AM

Quote:

This subject gets beaten to death on about a weekly basis.

You beat me to it...that was going to be my reply...

w_houle · January 13, 2008, 04:48 PM

Somebody had pointed out on another thread that high standard manufactured 1911s I naturally got curious
http://www.highstandard.com/m1911.html
If you scroll down to the bottom of the page you will see a warning that states "WARNING: Be a safe shooter. Never chamber a round until you are ready to shoot! Follow the rules of safe shooting. Always read and obey the owner's manuals supplied with each pistol. An additional copy of the owner's manual is available upon request."
Which to me sounds like at most they encourage either condition three or four, or maybe it is just a basic CYA policy
IIRC the SOP for MPs is to carry in condition three to give them an extra level of escalation as in 1) draw low ready 2) chamber a round 3)...

orionengnr · January 13, 2008, 05:51 PM

CYA Lawyer-speak. The safest pistol to carry is an unloaded one. Safest for the company lawyer, that is...not the safest for you.

A quick look through my Springfield owner's manual says the same thing, and I'll bet if I looked through a few more manuals, I'd find the same thing.

As far as MPs go, they deal mostly with drunken, unruly soldiers. Unarmed drunken soldiers who have a healthy respect for the UCMJ and it's consequences. (How do I know this? As a many-time drunken, unruly sailor, I have dealt with SPs a time or three

) I seriously doubt that most MP/SPs ever draw, let alone camber a round, except at qualifications.

Have you ever seen a cop carry Condition 3? No, because they need to be prepared for the worst, and they can draw before actually needing to fire.

You, as a CCWer, can not legally draw until things deteriorate quite far. Placing yourself at a further disadvantage by requiring the use of both hands (when two hands may not be available) and additional monkey-motion does not seem a good stategy to me.

YMMV.

Technosavant · January 13, 2008, 10:21 PM

Heh, as of now, 45 people say "Condition One."

Yep. 45 of them.

workinwifdakids · January 13, 2008, 11:05 PM

I carry my 1911 in Condition Negative 1:

A 230-grain Ranger SXT hollowpoint with a dented primer is in the chamber, the hammer is cocked, 100mph GI duct tape is wrapped around the pistol to hold in the grip safety, the safety is off, the X300 Surefire Tactical Weapon Light is on, the Crimson Trace Laser Grip is activated, my chest is encircled with full 15-round magazines like a suicide bomber, and I'm blowing a 130-decibel emergency whistle to the tune of "The Good The Bad and The Ugly."

Combat Controller · January 14, 2008, 04:12 PM

Because it takes three steps to get it together. I keep a Gold Dot in the chamber with the slide off and in my other pocket. I assemble the pistol if I need it, that way if my kids reach into my holster it won't go off and if I get disarmed they only have half a gun. You have to practice for hours to get it just right. You can never be too safe!

Other times I carry it like it was meant to be carried...

hoytinak · January 14, 2008, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Because it takes three steps to get it together. I keep a Gold Dot in the chamber with the slide off and in my other pocket. I assemble the pistol if I need it, that way if my kids reach into my holster it won't go off and if I get disarmed they only have half a gun. You have to practice for hours to get it just right. You can never be too safe!

Someone in Cali just read that and thought "that's a great idea" minus the round in the chamber of course.

OneClownDown · January 15, 2008, 05:40 AM

condition 5, I don't carry a 1911.

CajunBass · January 15, 2008, 08:36 AM

There is another way to carry a 1911?

Rinspeed · January 15, 2008, 09:40 AM

Unless you're a fool there is only one way.

David Armstrong · January 15, 2008, 02:02 PM

Like so many other things, it depends. Sometimes Condition 1 is the preferred mode, sometimes Condition 3 is the preferred mode. There are strengths and weaknesses to each, the trick is figuring out which strengths and weaknesses are applicable to your particular situation.

Musketeer · January 15, 2008, 03:05 PM

I am just amazed 3 people have voted for Condition 2.

p99guy · January 15, 2008, 04:04 PM

cocked and locked of course

Buzzcook · January 15, 2008, 04:04 PM

I'm the one with condition 4.
The 1911 is for the range or for plinking. It's empty till I'm ready to shoot.
If I was carrying it I'd have it in condition 1

As a rule I don't carry.

hoytinak · January 15, 2008, 04:06 PM

not too bad...looks like it'll buff right out

Tamara · January 15, 2008, 04:12 PM

Not only do I carry my 1911 in Condition One, I store my 2 carry guns that way too. The only time the hammer is down on those gun is if they're actually in the act of firing a round, or if they're stripped for cleaning.

Reassemble gun. Chamber round. Apply safety. Holster weapon. LEAVE IT ALONE.

I'd wager that 90% of all ND's in this country occur during the needless administrative handling involved in loading, unloading, cocking, decocking, and otherwise futzing with the sidearm.

View Poll Results: What condition do you carry your 1911 in?
Condition 0	1	0.60%
Condition 1	141	84.43%
Condition 2	8	4.79%
Condition 3	15	8.98%
Conditon 4 ...?? Who does this?	2	1.20%
Voters: 167. You may not vote on this poll

January 12, 2008, 06:30 PM	#1
imq707s Senior Member Join Date: August 31, 2000 Posts: 179	What "condition" do you carry your 1911 in? I always carry in Condition 1, but I know some people are afraid of this for some reason?? What condition do you carry in?? Condition 0 - A round is in the chamber, hammer is cocked, and the safety is off. Condition 1 - Also known as "cocked and locked," means a round is in the chamber, the hammer is cocked, and the manual thumb safety on the side of the frame is applied. Condition 2 - A round is in the chamber and the hammer is down. Condition 3 - The chamber is empty and hammer is down with a charged magazine in the gun. Condition 4 - The chamber is empty, hammer is down and no magazine is in the gun.

January 13, 2008, 09:56 AM	#8
orionengnr Senior Member Join Date: July 9, 2004 Posts: 5,174	...and search is your friend. This subject gets beaten to death on about a weekly basis. If you do a search you'll have enough reading material to last you quite some time. Did you notice that there are 25 votes right now, but only seven replies? Lots of responders have grown tired of re-posting the same thing over and over, and then having it devolve into a urinating contest (as it inevitably will, just like the Taurus threads). BTW, the one I carry is in excellent condition.

January 13, 2008, 11:12 AM	#9
Officer's Match Senior Member Join Date: January 16, 2007 Location: LANCASTER,OHIO Posts: 3,944	Clean, oiled , and loaded. __________________ REAL EYES REALIZE REAL LIES

January 13, 2008, 04:48 PM	#11
w_houle Senior Member Join Date: March 29, 2007 Location: Raleigh, NC Posts: 1,391	Somebody had pointed out on another thread that high standard manufactured 1911s I naturally got curious http://www.highstandard.com/m1911.html If you scroll down to the bottom of the page you will see a warning that states "WARNING: Be a safe shooter. Never chamber a round until you are ready to shoot! Follow the rules of safe shooting. Always read and obey the owner's manuals supplied with each pistol. An additional copy of the owner's manual is available upon request." Which to me sounds like at most they encourage either condition three or four, or maybe it is just a basic CYA policy IIRC the SOP for MPs is to carry in condition three to give them an extra level of escalation as in 1) draw low ready 2) chamber a round 3)... __________________ How could you have a slogan like "freedom is slavery" when the concept of freedom has been abolished?

January 12, 2008, 06:33 PM	#2
outlawsrnr Junior Member Join Date: January 10, 2008 Posts: 1	Condition 1 Butch

January 12, 2008, 06:40 PM	#3
tomh1426 Senior Member Join Date: September 17, 2005 Location: Youngtown Arizona Posts: 1,135	Condition 1 always

January 12, 2008, 06:41 PM	#4
nobanforme Senior Member Join Date: September 30, 2004 Location: Utah Posts: 389	condition 1 always, always, always.

January 12, 2008, 06:43 PM	#5
hoytinak Senior Member Join Date: July 5, 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 5,721	The way a 1911 was meant to be carried.

January 12, 2008, 08:39 PM	#6
Curtis(USAF) Senior Member Join Date: January 3, 2008 Posts: 241	Condition zero is not bright. When you draw your gun, you risk a double feed because the slide can still move back and forth. Theres also the fact that (At least my) 1911s seem to have a real short, crisp trigger break. Like a single action, and no trigger safety like a glock. relying on the grip safe alone is not advisable. Condition 1 is the best way. The way I currently carry. Safety wise, I feel quite confident, especially considering the fact that my current holster has a restraining strap that runs on the back of the slide between the hammer and the firing pin. Even if the hammer does drop, its not going to go off. Condition 2 is Highly NOT advisable. Your firing pin is resting directly on your primer. Really fun trying to slowly lower that hammer down without making your gun go off. The only pistols I carry in 2 are Double action only. Condition3 is acceptable if you just don't feel comfortable with Condition 1. Its usually a mental thing, and its probably a good thing to do if you are just getting in the swing of carrying concealed. I carried my first Concealed pistol unloaded for a day, Just so I could get used to the feel of the gun, concealing the gun, and so forth. That and I didn't have any 9mm ammo other then FMJ for the first day I had it. I also carried my 1911 in condition 3 until I could get my ambidextrous hammer safe put on it. With the original hammer safe, I had a hard time getting the safety down with my thumb. The new ambi safe fixed that, and my 1911 is almost always in Condition 1 now. Condition 4 is just for storage and child safety if you ask me.

January 13, 2008, 05:51 PM	#12
orionengnr Senior Member Join Date: July 9, 2004 Posts: 5,174	CYA Lawyer-speak. The safest pistol to carry is an unloaded one. Safest for the company lawyer, that is...not the safest for you. A quick look through my Springfield owner's manual says the same thing, and I'll bet if I looked through a few more manuals, I'd find the same thing. As far as MPs go, they deal mostly with drunken, unruly soldiers. Unarmed drunken soldiers who have a healthy respect for the UCMJ and it's consequences. (How do I know this? As a many-time drunken, unruly sailor, I have dealt with SPs a time or three ) I seriously doubt that most MP/SPs ever draw, let alone camber a round, except at qualifications. Have you ever seen a cop carry Condition 3? No, because they need to be prepared for the worst, and they can draw before actually needing to fire. You, as a CCWer, can not legally draw until things deteriorate quite far. Placing yourself at a further disadvantage by requiring the use of both hands (when two hands may not be available) and additional monkey-motion does not seem a good stategy to me. YMMV.

January 13, 2008, 10:21 PM	#13
Technosavant Senior Member Join Date: May 29, 2007 Location: St. Louis, MO area Posts: 4,040	Heh, as of now, 45 people say "Condition One." Yep. 45 of them.

January 13, 2008, 11:05 PM	#14
workinwifdakids Senior Member Join Date: January 15, 2007 Location: SoCal Posts: 216	Negative I carry my 1911 in Condition Negative 1: A 230-grain Ranger SXT hollowpoint with a dented primer is in the chamber, the hammer is cocked, 100mph GI duct tape is wrapped around the pistol to hold in the grip safety, the safety is off, the X300 Surefire Tactical Weapon Light is on, the Crimson Trace Laser Grip is activated, my chest is encircled with full 15-round magazines like a suicide bomber, and I'm blowing a 130-decibel emergency whistle to the tune of "The Good The Bad and The Ugly." __________________ "Lieutenant Onoda, reporting for duty, Sir!"

January 14, 2008, 04:12 PM	#15
Combat Controller Junior Member Join Date: October 21, 2006 Posts: 10	Negative three. Because it takes three steps to get it together. I keep a Gold Dot in the chamber with the slide off and in my other pocket. I assemble the pistol if I need it, that way if my kids reach into my holster it won't go off and if I get disarmed they only have half a gun. You have to practice for hours to get it just right. You can never be too safe! Other times I carry it like it was meant to be carried...

January 15, 2008, 05:40 AM	#17
OneClownDown Senior Member Join Date: December 15, 2007 Location: Viva! Posts: 131	condition 5, I don't carry a 1911.

January 15, 2008, 08:36 AM	#18
CajunBass Senior Member Join Date: May 6, 2005 Location: North Chesterfield, Virginia Posts: 4,767	There is another way to carry a 1911? __________________ For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16 (NKJV)

January 15, 2008, 09:40 AM	#19
Rinspeed Senior Member Join Date: February 1, 2000 Posts: 1,505	Unless you're a fool there is only one way. Last edited by Rinspeed; January 15, 2008 at 03:32 PM.

January 15, 2008, 02:02 PM	#20
David Armstrong Junior member Join Date: January 24, 2005 Location: SW Louisiana Posts: 2,289	Like so many other things, it depends. Sometimes Condition 1 is the preferred mode, sometimes Condition 3 is the preferred mode. There are strengths and weaknesses to each, the trick is figuring out which strengths and weaknesses are applicable to your particular situation.

January 15, 2008, 03:05 PM	#21
Musketeer Senior Member Join Date: September 12, 2005 Posts: 3,733	I am just amazed 3 people have voted for Condition 2. __________________ "Religions are all alike - founded upon fables and mythologies." Thomas Jefferson "The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason." Benjamin Franklin

January 15, 2008, 04:04 PM	#22
p99guy Senior Member Join Date: November 4, 2004 Location: Haslet,Texas(DFW area) Posts: 1,506	cocked and locked of course __________________ Lighten up Francis!.....;Actor Warren Oats, in the movie "Stripes"

January 15, 2008, 04:04 PM	#23
Buzzcook Senior Member Join Date: November 29, 2007 Location: Everett, WA Posts: 6,126	I'm the one with condition 4. The 1911 is for the range or for plinking. It's empty till I'm ready to shoot. If I was carrying it I'd have it in condition 1 As a rule I don't carry.

January 15, 2008, 04:06 PM	#24
hoytinak Senior Member Join Date: July 5, 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 5,721	not too bad...looks like it'll buff right out

January 15, 2008, 04:12 PM	#25
Tamara Moderator Emeritus Join Date: March 11, 2000 Location: Indianapolis, IN Posts: 16,002	Not only do I carry my 1911 in Condition One, I store my 2 carry guns that way too. The only time the hammer is down on those gun is if they're actually in the act of firing a round, or if they're stripped for cleaning. Reassemble gun. Chamber round. Apply safety. Holster weapon. LEAVE IT ALONE. I'd wager that 90% of all ND's in this country occur during the needless administrative handling involved in loading, unloading, cocking, decocking, and otherwise futzing with the sidearm. __________________ MOLON LABE! 2% Unobtainium, 98% Hypetanium. The Arms Room: An Online Museum.