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Is the LCP II a safe gun to carry?

  • The LCP II's action can be locked by choice; the gun is safe to carry

    Votes: 2 9.1%
  • The LCP II's action can be locked by choice; the gun is NOT safe to carry

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • The LCP II's action can NOT be locked by choice; the gun is safe to carry

    Votes: 10 45.5%
  • The LCP II's action can NOT be locked by choice; the gun is NOT safe to carry

    Votes: 5 22.7%
  • I haven't made up my mind

    Votes: 5 22.7%

Poll: Is the LCP II a safe gun to carry?

21K views 74 replies 13 participants last post by  bld522 
#1 ·
The question for this poll is whether or not this community believes that the Ruger LCP II contains a safety or safeties that are capable of locking the action by choice and as a result, whether or not the LCP II is a safe gun to carry. This poll is anonymous and there is no time limit. Comments are encouraged.
 
#2 ·
I have yet to actually try one . If it is similar to my LC9s pro , I hesitate to carry with one in the chamber except in specific situations.
 
#3 ·
"specific situations"=Like when you need it!?
 
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#11 ·
Just voted "I haven't made up my mind", as I reach down to touch my LCP II (with one in the tube) in it's IWB Vedder holster, just to make sure its there, since I can't feel it over my appendectomy scar.
 
#12 ·
I would not carry a defensive pistol without having a live round chambered. I cannot be sure I have time to deploy the pistol even with a chambered round depending on the situation. Having to cycle the slide while I am under extreme pressure would not be a safe action in my opinion as too much time would be consumed.

The poll does not describe methods of carry. A properly designed holster is, in my opinion, absolutely essential when carrying pistols like the Ruger LCP II, Glocks, or any other (like my S&W SW9VE) that have similar safety configurations.
 
#14 · (Edited)
The poll does not describe methods of carry. A properly designed holster is, in my opinion, absolutely essential when carrying pistols like the Ruger LCP II, Glocks, or any other (like my S&W SW9VE) that have similar safety configurations.
Agreed, but to have added holster considerations would have made the poll unwieldy. I figured folks could cover that in their comments if they chose to. And for what it's worth, a holster . . . properly designed or otherwise . . . is not a substitute for a gun that lacks adequate safeguards of its own in my estimation.
 
#17 ·
I follow Hickock closely and really like him a lot, but have to admit that more than once, I cringed as Gunner wandered among the targets he was shooting at. Absolutely the only thing I ever had to criticize him for. By the way, that man can and does shooting anything with any kind of trigger, so, I can't take his ability to shoot whatever as applicable to me.
 
#18 ·
Sure . . . provided you put in as much practice time and shoot as many weapons as he does. ;-) As for me, I'll never shoot as well with the range of weapons at Hickock's disposal as he does. But that's OK with me. I only have to shoot the weapons at my disposal well enough and safely enough to get the job done.
 
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#25 ·
I can see a concern for reholstering the weapon, however the concern I believe to be more of a concern is just the light trigger. A pocket gun is not the easiest gun to grab onto quickly. How easy would it be to put your finger on that trigger at the wrong time. There is not much resistance. Even a Glock 43 is so much bigger. People shoot themselves all the time while just cleaning guns. Sad, that something as stupid as this happens, yet light trigger makes this tragic act even more likely. How about a high tense moment. You have to draw your gun and you have adrenaline running through your entire body and your finger goes on that trigger. This LIGHT trigger?
There are so many possible mishaps with a light trigger. A target gun is one thing, but for a Pocket gun? Serioulsy, why would any one want a light trigger without a safety on such a gun? Show me the real benifit, other than you can target practice better.

I remember the day I bought my first LCP, the original with the long hard trigger. I remarked about how long it was to my LGS friend, a retired combat Marine. he said "If the times comes for you to use that gun, that long trigger will not bother you one bit and in the meantime it is there to protect you from hurting yourself". Sounded like good advice then and still does.
My bad,Dave. I switched topic to the LC9s pro because I have yet to feel the LCP II trigger. By the way, has anyone accidentally let off a double tap? Another product of light triggers.
 
#31 ·
OK, but in my reality, have been gone from home for almost 72hrs. and, even after returning home, LCP will not be unholstered 'til going to the range or time for cleaning. Yes, I may be tempted to play with somethings, but not my firearms.
 
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#32 ·
OK, here I go. Head first into the big dispute. I think the LCP II is safe to carry with 1 in the chamber. I would not recommend it be done by someone new to fire arms. However, I do think that experienced firearms owners that handle their guns frequently and are well aware of the potential dangers, can carry it safely.
As far as new shooters, I do not think that they should carry at all until they are thoroughly familiar with their gun and all safety practices are done without thinking.
I think pocket carry with the LCP or II II is out of the question. Drawing from a pocket is never as smooth and clean enough.
Just my humble opinion.
 
#33 ·
Nothing there to argue with.
 
#34 ·
All the talk of fast draws makes me laugh. This is not the wild, wild west. Cops need to worry about fast draws. Civilians need to concern themselves with concealed carry .Keep your skinny jeans home and alls good.I know I'm going to get killed over this but I think we are all a bit paranoid.Fast draw is something invented by self proclaimed internet instructors.Unless you are living somewhere really dangerous,in which case I would move if it was that bad,speed is not my first concern. Ok, let me take cover now.:cheerful:
 
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#35 ·
"Speed" is not my long-suit, either. At my advanced age, suspect the BD is likely to perceive me as one of the least of his threats--hope so, anyway.
 
#36 ·
I fully agree. As someone who has had a lot of birthdays, I may look like a tempting target to bad guys who tend to think older people are walking around with lots of cash on them. If I have to defend myself, I can do so based on years of gun handling including real world experience. I would not hesitate to carry an LCP II with a round in the chamber, but frankly prefer DA pocket pistols with longer, harder trigger pulls. I carried a 1911 for years and depended on the safety, so I am not worried about "forgetting" to release one, but don't need a safety on my LCP or Seecamp.
 
#38 ·
Makes two of us, pennsy.
 
#42 · (Edited)
I every day carry a LCP II or Glock 43. 95% of the time I use a IWB holster, and if concealment requirements dictate...I will pocket carry the LCP II in the holster Ruger provided with the weapon. I always carry with a round in the chamber (I will post a link to a good video below that I think illustrates why that is imperative for me). Personal choice I know, but it literally could be a life or death decision. I would not use not carrying a round in the LCP II as a mitigation for the lack of manual safety and lighter trigger pull. For the record, even though I do EDC with the LCP II and Glock 43 I think the "trigger safety" feature both advertise is a bit of a stretch. That is like putting a "safety" on your accelerator pedal of you car...you press down on the accelerater you are going to speed up regardless if there is a "safety switch" in front of the pedal.

So, I'm comfortable carrying these style weapons because I train constantly and I practice the rules of gun safety religiously. When holstering my weapon, or if I had to draw my weapon for any reason, I do or will not try win any speed records getting the weapon in or back in the holster.

Here's the link to the video I mentioned. Good demonstration of why I carry with a round in the chamber. Regardless of your thoughts on the LCP II, manual safeties, and single action/light trigger pulls...I would agree that carrying without a round in the chamber significantly decreases your ability to defend yourself in a defensive gun use situation when somebody rushes at you.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4h7hgo02P-4
 
#43 ·
That is like putting a "safety" on your accelerator pedal of you car...you press down on the accelerater you are going to speed up regardless if there is a "safety switch" in front of the pedal.
An interesting analogy, Nukes....Thanks for the thought.
 
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#50 · (Edited)
This quote from a real gun expert should be a sticky.
+1. I've also advocated that Skip's "opinion" should be a sticky:

http://rugerpistolforums.com/forums...lcp-ii-accidental-discharge-4.html#post313082

By the way, the results of the poll so far come as no surprise to me. I figured most folks would recognize that it is mechanically impossible to lock the action on an LCP II by choice and that those who own an LCP II would say it's OK to carry one while those who don't would say it's not OK to carry one. Mostly I just wanted to make sure people understood Skip's point that the Ruger LCP II has no safety or safeties that "lock" the action by choice so that if a round is in the chamber, the trigger can be pulled and the pistol fired. I'd also invite people who voted that the LCP II's trigger lever safety can be locked by choice to please explain precisely how that can be done. I'm more concerned that those folks might base a purchase decision on a misconception concerning the gun's safety features than I am folks who realize that the LCP II's trigger lever safety is more for show than for go and carry an LCP II anyway.

As much as I hate to say it, I think the time has come for folks like you and me to recognize that, while the shooter has always been the party primarily responsible for handling his or her firearms safely, manufacturers no longer feel that they're required to provide significant safety features in their products. The Glock pistol created a sea change in their thinking in that regard and as others have said, that thinking isn't likely to change anytime soon. So we can continue to rail against the lack of proper safety features in guns like the LCP II and yell at the top of our lungs that those who refuse to learn from the past are condemned to repeat it, but our exhortations will fall largely on deaf ears. A few folks may pay attention to what we have to say, but most won't. And some unfortunately will have to discover the hard way why manual safeties, DA/SA pistols and DAO pistols were created in the first place.
 
#51 · (Edited)
Yep. Common sense is and has always been uncommon.

I agree that it's worth having to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous comments to try to save just one more person from making a decision that could put their life and the lives of others in peril. And while it may be true that no gun is completely safe, a gun whose trigger cannot be pulled unless the shooter wants to pull it is clearly safer than a gun whose trigger can be pulled whether the shooter wants to pull it or not. The insanity that exists is that there are actually people out there who would argue against that. Makes me wonder how many of them text and drive at the same time. ;-)
 
#53 · (Edited)
I did. As a result, I haven't smoked for decades. Unfortunately, it took me a lot longer to recognize alcohol's warning signs. If I have expertise in anything, it's the power of denial and recovery from it. And I'd be lying if I didn't say it took a metaphorical shot to the gut to wake me up.

Like I said, common sense is uncommon.
 
#54 ·
Human nature is what it is. That pendulum will take a long time to swing back to the center. Let's face it, we want to shoot targets with our combat pistols and we want to be rewarded with good results. Light triggers lend themselves to these rewards. AD is an adverse reward and hopefully much less common.
 
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