When traveling.

[Great-Kazoo]

How much is ....Too much
Following this thread by some grouchy forum member.
https://www.ar-15.co/threads/155689-Some-random-thoughts-on-quot-weight-quot

Curious, Exactly how much firepower does one consider too much, OR not enough, for that road trip.
Be it a weekend trip in state, to a month long, or long rout of state visit? .

[hurley842002]

Firepower for me usually consists of my carry pistol,usually some form of Glock, two spare loaded mags for it, and a 50 round box of carry ammo. Travel for me usually consists of visiting my folks in La Junta, or visiting my wife's family in CA. Current (and likely permanent) carry piece is a G33, two spare mags with factory + extensions, giving me a nice round number of 30.

Not enough for me would be no firearm at all, not sure on too much as you can never be too prepared (so they say), but unless I plan on shooting while I'm there, anymore than an extra box or two is unpractical to me.

ETA: the extra box is pretty much exclusively for long trips to CA.

[Slapps74]

G29 with a couple of G20 mags for back up.

[.455_Hunter]

Usually, its just my CCW piece. If we are going to Denver or up in the hills, I may add a duty size gun with one or two reloads.

We flew out to CA for a two week trip last year. I knew I could not carry, but no way was I going to be unarmed in our motel room or in case of mass disturbance (manmade or natural). I brought my Model 64 snub (K-frame stainless, 6 Shot) with a 25 rd box of Hornady .38 Special 158 gr XTPs and had no concerns.

[Dave]

Usually road trips are to Kansas City for her family or Michigan for mine. We both usually just keep our normal carry guns but bring extra loaded mags in the center console. Biggest thing we run into is when driving to MI we have to go through Illinois, so we have to stop on the Iowa side and unload, box and lock up everything per IL law until we hit Indiana. I'd hate for an IL trooper to pull me over for speeding and decide that with my CO plates I might be transporting weed and call in the K9's to tear my car apart and find pistols being transported in a manner that violates their laws.

[Big E3]

When I travel it's usually short mountain trips for the weekend. I will take my small 9 everyday CCW carry, either the G43 or PF9. As well as a KelTec Sub2K in 9 or 40 with spare Glock mags. Typically I will take a mountain OWB gun, a Glock in 10, either the G29, G20 or rarely the G40.

Having said that it still varies greatly depending exactly with whom and where I'm going. I sometimes like to have a handgun with matching rifle in same caliber. That's simple with the Sub2K's just grab a Glock G27, G23, G22, G35 with the appropriate conversion barrel to 9 if necessary depending on caliber. If in hog or bear country, I would take a 44 mag or 357 mag handgun and lever rifle. If out on the plains, a 22 handgun and rifle with maybe a shotgun. When river fishing I carry a titanium 45 LC handgun because it doesn't weigh much along with all the other fishing gear. For no real reason the AK's and AR's don't get out on travel trips much unless somebody else is bringing theirs.

When just generally over road traveling I bring just a carry gun. My thoughts are if in a state that's not carry friendly, I can pack one gun away easier than multiple guns. And I generally don't bring my most expensive carry gun just in case it is confiscated or stolen when locked in the car.

So in general if in this state overnight a Sub2K and carry gun is with me just in case a SHTF event occurs I have something besides just a handgun.

[Zundfolge]

When traveling around the state (when trips are not going to be overnight) I just carry my CCW like I would around town.

When traveling out of state (or multi day in state trips) I take my EDC CCW piece along with a second gun (usually a pocket gun) in case I'll be doing anything that requires me to dress up and I can't carry my larger EDC piece. I also take my AR and a bag of full magazines in part because when traveling to Kansas to visit family there's the chance I might get a range day in with my brother, in part because if my house got broken into while we were gone I wouldn't legally be allowed to replace the mags (not that it would stop me) and in part because if The Coming Collapse™ happens while I'm over 500 miles away from my AR I'll feel stupid.

[gnihcraes]

Basic road trip for shopping, sightseeing etc;
pistol with extra mag and a 50 round box of reloads. Each vehicle always has a 50 round box of 9mm, 22, 223 and 38. (reloads)

Camping trip;
same daily load out of ccw glock. Usually will take the AR/A2 and some extra ammo/mags. Might also throw in the wife's handgun now that she's got the ccw license.

Long road trip across states;
basic ccw loadout listed above^

[lex137]

When in state just my ccw and extra mag

Mountains camping the G20 2 mags, G19 with lots of mags, shotgun, and ar to find a place to shoot in the national forest.

Out of state it's my G19 2 extra mags and at least 50 extra rounds.

When visiting communist states I can't bring anything, and I haven't flown with my firearms only drove with them.

[buffalobo]

Carry piece +2 mags, truck rifle bagged and locked in truck. Bag also contains 2 more pistol mags and usually 5 mags for rifle.

If wife is traveling with me we add another another rifle and mags.

I also look up laws/statutes of states we plan to travel through to see what hassles we have to go through to avoid head aches.

sent from my electronic ball and chain

[wctriumph]

Normal carry is 1911 with one spare mag. Traveling other than local gets 2 spare mags, J-frame with speed strip, if the wife is along then there is another J-frame with speed strip.

[Doc45]

For this grump it all depends on where I'm going: the minimum is my Defender and 2 spare mags. I've been known to show up at other locales with nothing due to laws or with a rifle, couple of handguns, spare mags/speedloaders and lots of ammo. :)

[brutal]

Bumming around, EDC plus truck/pack gun (SP2022) and several extra mags.

Weekend trips, +1 or 2 boxes of ball ammo + AR and basic load. If I know I'm not too far from home, SBR with can.

Out of state camping/boating ++ ammo, 49 state legal AR with can. I don't go where my guns or cans are not welcome.

I really should submit for interstate SBR...

[Limited GM]

Depends on if I've got a car trunk, saddlebags, or just a tank bag.
Im currently struggling with a planned bike trip and want to shoot some on the way.

[spqrzilla]

That reminds me, I gotta clean out the Jeep and figure out how many guns are in it ...

[Great-Kazoo]

For this grump it all depends on where I'm going: the minimum is my Defender and 2 spare mags. I've been known to show up at other locales with nothing due to laws or with a rifle, couple of handguns, spare mags/speedloaders and lots of ammo. :)


This is one of the reasons we always take a few 357 lever actions & revolvers. Added a 1911 last year to the mix also.

Even have CA legal 10 round ones for the Gee- lox

[ColoradoTJ]

.45, 1 or 2 mags.

[The Norseman]

That reminds me, I gotta clean out the Jeep and figure out how many guns are in it ...

This. Only it's my daily driver crew cab pick em' up truck. If I get to more than 5 fingers, it's time to move some back into the safe.


Sent from my Id.

[MED]

I always have my carry pistol plus a 9mm and a shotgun as well as a get home bag in my daily driver. I've only traveled by air once in the last ten years...I don't like it.

[hurley842002]

That reminds me, I gotta clean out the Jeep and figure out how many guns are in it ...


This. Only it's my daily driver crew cab pick em' up truck. If I get to more than 5 fingers, it's time to move some back into the safe.


Sent from my Id.

Hope we don't see you guys posting up in the "stolen firearms" thread anytime soon...

[Doc45]

This is one of the reasons we always take a few 357 lever actions & revolvers. Added a 1911 last year to the mix also.

Even have CA legal 10 round ones for the Gee- lox

Good advice, though for me even if I couldn't bring anything there were always plenty available when I arrived :D.

[SamuraiCO]

Carry 1911 with one extra magazine for trips around Parker. I always have a range bag with 4 more magazines loaded that travel in the truck. Extra when camping.

[beast556]

Trips fifty miles or less ccw peice no spare mags or ammo. Trips fifty miles or more ccw peice extra mag and box of fifty rounds, ar15 with
Five or six 30rd mags.

[Irving]

What is the reason for Extra supplies? I assume if is based on the possibility of some sort of anarchy breaking out and needing to defend yourself more than one time on the way back home. Just curious how everyone rationalizes each of their unique decisions.

[beast556]

Better to have and not need, than to need and not have. Especially when far from home. Rifle or few extra supplys take up very little space and can maybe save your familys life's in an emergency.

[MED]

What is the reason for Extra supplies? I assume if is based on the possibility of some sort of anarchy breaking out and needing to defend yourself more than one time on the way back home. Just curious how everyone rationalizes each of their unique decisions.

I live at 9,000ft 50 miles from work. If I need to abandon my car downtown; I don't want to hike home with just the clothes on my back and an LCP. I have everything for a 3 day trip home if needed.

[Great-Kazoo]

What is the reason for Extra supplies? I assume if is based on the possibility of some sort of anarchy breaking out and needing to defend yourself more than one time on the way back home. Just curious how everyone rationalizes each of their unique decisions.

One has to evaluate what their needs are. What it would take to return to a "home base" IF something were to happen.

9/11 is to me a perfect example. Airlines shut down, NYC and the tri-state area was literally shut down. You wanted to cross one of the many bridges. Like Boston after the marathon Bombing... EVERYONE WAS SUSPECT. Vehicles searched, ID (naturally) asked for etc. On Long island emergency services were driving around loudspeakers on telling people to stay inside, unless it was an emergency.


We leave town. Our train of thought is Expect the Unexpected.



Better to have and not need, than to need and not have. Especially when far from home. Rifle or few extra supplys take up very little space and can maybe save your familys life's in an emergency.


Exactly

[Aloha_Shooter]

We leave town. Our train of thought is Expect the Unexpected.

Point taken but you DO have to cut it off at something logistically achievable or every time I left home it would be in one of these:

64992

or bigger with off-road bikes (just in case), 200 gal of extra fuel (just in case), an assortment of firearms (each with at least 400 rounds -- just in case), etc. etc. I keep a first aid kit in the car, I don't go prepared for surgery.

I'm glad I haven't had to use my gun at all except at the range. If I need an extra box over and above 2 spare mags ... I probably shouldn't even have left the house ...

[Great-Kazoo]

Point taken but you DO have to cut it off at something logistically achievable or every time I left home it would be in one of these:

64992

or bigger with off-road bikes (just in case), 200 gal of extra fuel (just in case), an assortment of firearms (each with at least 400 rounds -- just in case), etc. etc. I keep a first aid kit in the car, I don't go prepared for surgery.

I'm glad I haven't had to use my gun at all except at the range. If I need an extra box over and above 2 spare mags ... I probably shouldn't even have left the house ...

what ever fits in the truck or van , goes. But yes there are limits. One approaches it as
If we were on foot, what can 1 person reasonably carry.

[The Norseman]

Hope we don't see you guys posting up in the "stolen firearms" thread anytime soon...

I know, I know....


Sent from my Id.

[Sawin]

I used to keep a "truck gun" in the safe in my car, but stopped doing so after I adopted 100% full time carry... When i didn't always have one on me, I knew I at least had one in my vehicle. In either case, it was never easily accessible to smash and grab jackwagons.

As far as "travel" is concerned... as with many of the contributors thus far, it depends on where I'm going, with whom, how far that is from home, etc. Most of the time, it's just my EDC gear. If a long road trip, maybe I'll throw in a rifle bag with a few mags in it, but not usually.

When i'm car camping... lots of stuff comes along, mainly just for the sake of being able to target practice with whatever I want to practice with or checking zero if I have any doubts.

[wctriumph]

I NEVER leave a gun unattended anywhere outside the home, if no one is home, all guns in the safe. I don't have any firearms related stickers on my vehicles to alert any thugs that there might be a gun in the vehicle. I have had my truck broken into twice when I used to have a NRA decal in the back window, nothing stolen but all the places where a gun might be hidden were opened along with a broken driver side window smashed out. I removed the sticker and no smashed windows since. This happened in a nice neighborhood too, not in the bad parts of town.

[bobbyfairbanks]

Chest rig battle belt hard and soft armor helmet and AR.

But I've been called paranode before

[buffalobo]

Chest rig battle belt hard and soft armor helmet and AR.

But I've been called paranode before
I would call you prepared, not paranoid.[emoji106]

sent from my electronic ball and chain

[Grant H.]

I NEVER leave a gun unattended anywhere outside the home, if no one is home, all guns in the safe. I don't have any firearms related stickers on my vehicles to alert any thugs that there might be a gun in the vehicle. I have had my truck broken into twice when I used to have a NRA decal in the back window, nothing stolen but all the places where a gun might be hidden were opened along with a broken driver side window smashed out. I removed the sticker and no smashed windows since. This happened in a nice neighborhood too, not in the bad parts of town.

This. 100 times this...

The one time I had a truck broken into, I was out of town in the truck, and a friend had left a Ducks Unlimited Hat on the dash. Locking handle was wrenched out of place to be able to unlock the door, and the truck was ransacked. Nothing was stolen. Not the $10k of tools, the $4K of stereo I had in the truck, not even my 2 laptops. Every cubby was open, the laptop bags were dumped of everything, etc, but nothing was gone.

Stickers make you memorable and identifiable to other idiot drivers, and depending on the stickers, they open you up to potential smash and grabs.

As for when I travel, that depends on where I'm going, who's with me, and how long I expect to be gone.

Usually one of my carry pieces and extra mags.
If I'm going across country, and the laws permit, I take extra ammo.
When I am volunteering to drive all the youth from my church to a youth camp and be a counselor for a week? I take an easily hidden EDC, and then I have a pocket in my suitcase that holds something MUCH more effective in a controlled manner. No access to trigger or mag release when it is locked in, but I can get it out quickly.

[Ready Room]

Now that I have my FL CWL, I always have my XDs and a spare mag when I leave the house. I work from home so I don't leave the house much BTW. When I know I am going 30+ miles from home I take my "tennis racket" with me. Vehicle has a basic sustenance bag in it at all times.

[crays]

Chest rig battle belt hard and soft armor helmet and AR.

But I've been called paranode before
Now, is that in a vehicle or on a mule?
[emoji481]

sent from somewhere

[crays]

Now that I have my FL CWL, I always have my XDs and a spare mag when I leave the house. I work from home so I don't leave the house much BTW. When I know I am going 30+ miles from home I take my "tennis racket" with me. Vehicle has a basic sustenance bag in it at all times.
Long time, no post. How's Florida?

sent from somewhere

[bobbyfairbanks]

The mule carried copious amounts of 45-70 and 44mag. No need for, I brought 2 trained attack mules

[Great-Kazoo]

The mule carried copious amounts of 45-70 and 44mag. No need for, I brought 2 trained attack mules

This normal. Or only when you visit Sister Sara?

[SouthPaw]

About the only 'traveling' I do is camping a handful times of the year. Everywhere else is my CCW and two spare mags. Camping is my G17 with a +2 extension with a TLR-1S, spare mags accompanied with my HD 870 (side saddle, 00 buck, and a few slugs).