I almost always carry more than one gun.
Why?
Guns break.
Guns are machines and all machines break eventually. I don’t know when “eventually” might be.
Saying your gun has never failed/I only buy quality guns/That’s not very likely/Etc, does nothing to keep it from happening.
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Guns malfunction.
Go to a match. Any match. It doesn’t have to be a USPSA or IDPA match, you’ll see malfunctions at any of them. Maybe the gun failed in some way, but many are caused by the user due to stress, and any match is less stressful than a fight.
I know, everybody has guns that have never failed. That’s what those people say too. I made my living fixing things that failed for the first time.
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Accessibility throughout the day.
Maybe wait until Monday, but some average day ask yourself at various times throughout that day:
“Can I get to my gun right now?”
And I mean right that second, without standing up, or changing position, or taking your seatbelt off, or putting down what’s in your dominant hand, etc. If you are honest, you will probably find many times throughout the day where something (or several things) prevented immediate access. It might be as simple as the back of your chair impedes your draw. Simple, average, daily things.
When you do find these times, ask if you could get to a second gun carried somewhere else, even if it’s with your “wrong” hand.
I can add another justification here that’s specific to me, but might include others. I sometimes use a cane due to back and/or hip pain. Depending on the day, I might need the cane in my left hand or my right hand, and maybe not until after I’ve left home.
I have a gun already in place where I can use it with either hand busy with the cane.
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Accessibility when things aren’t average.
I know we all like to think we can “see it coming”. Everybody does. But it still happens. Nobody can be fully alert all the time; that’s exhausting. And sometimes there are simply too many things to watch.
Even if you were on top of things and did everything right, you are still likely to be responding to something that is already happening.
Your first indicator of bad times could be the harmless “mechanic” driving a screwdriver into the back of your hand. Your dominant hand.
Or maybe you got slammed against the wall next to you and are pinned there. On your gun side.
If your particular problem came from an escalating dispute, it’s even more likely you got hurt along the way to time for guns. Draws from pocket carry aren’t very smooth with busted knuckles. It’s also hard to draw a gun you’re laying on it, and somebody is laying on you.
But maybe if you had another gun carried elsewhere you could get to it.
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Gun takeaways.
I hear “If anybody grabs my gun, they get the contents.” Take a class on gun retention/takeaways. If somebody wants your gun and can reach it, it’s gone. You might slow them down a little, but they will get it.
You know what else slows them down? Shooting them with your other gun.
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As a loaner gun. This one won’t fit everybody.
My wife doesn’t carry a gun for a few reasons. She can, and she knows how to use it, but she doesn’t. (If she kept up with one like she keeps up with her phone… aww, never mind!)
More than a couple of times we’ve been on a long driving trip and had to stop for gas or a break in an unfamiliar area. We’ve both felt better when I handed her Gun #2 for a little while.
Another example?
I’ve picked a buddy up at the airport and handed him a spare until we got him home. He appreciated that making stops along the way.
Yeah, anyone can plan ahead and bring one for that purpose, but I had one already.
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I’ve probably only scratched the surface. These are just some examples of what I’ve found or done. There are plenty more reasons.
I know of at least one former LEO who carries a hi-cap red dot semiauto IWB, but he also carries a snub Appendix. Very different guns and methods. His thinking is he has the most capable gun in his ideal spot, but he wants a snub for if he gets in a belly-to-belly fight and he keeps it where he feels it’s most easy to access it in that case. I guess. Maybe so.
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These are some reasons why.
I know it’s more bother carry more than one, but I’ve chosen to accept that.
So other than that: Why not?
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