Virginia Gun Owners Forum - VGOF

‘Chicks with Guns’: Some 15 million US women pack heat

Pop quiz: Name one accessory that grandmothers, moms, girls, wealthy socialites, middle-class females and low-income women might be likely to own — and cherish — all across America.

If you answered “a gun,” you’d be correct.

Based on polling research and gun-sale statistics, an estimated 15 million to 20 million women in the United States own their own firearms. Dozens of those heat-packing women are documented in “Chicks with Guns,” a new book by photographer Lindsay McCrum that is sure to challenge almost anyone’s assumptions about gun ownership.

IMHO - This review should be kept available to give to females you meet that are "on the fence" about personal protection with a firearm.

That...Is...Awesome!

To quote a fictitious but courageous literary woman. "The women of this country learned long ago--those without swords can still die upon them!" So we arm ourselves and thus hope to never have to use it, but it is there to keep us and ours secure.

I thought it was interesting that "Liz", the former police detective, keeps a loaded gun, round in chamber and safety off, in her nightstand because she feels it's the only way the gun is effective. Personally, I do the same thing BUT there's no round in the chamber. I simply would have to rack the slide. The extra second is no big deal and it's much safer. I doubt the way "Liz" does it is too common, but I might be wrong about that. Certainly, it would be extremely rare if there are kids in your house (which there aren't with "Liz" as she points out).

@9mm92fs
You might be surprised how many people keep a round chambered even when they sleep. In fact most people that use 1911 style pistols I have run across deem it "heresy" to not keep it "locked and cocked" when you want the pistol ready for use. And also remember a lot of the newer firearms out there do not have an actual safety lever you push to disengage the safety, such as the glock and Springfield XD series. I personally do not keep it simply in the drawer, because my wife has cats in the house. And cats if anything are more curious about their environment than little kids are. So I have a good bedside safe that I keep my handgun in at night, but it is loaded with a round in the chamber. If you have a good manufactured gun there should be little worry about an accidental discharge as long as you make sure there isn't anything in the drawer/safe with the gun that could get inside the trigger guard and pull the trigger. How often do you hear about guns going off by themselves except in movies/tv shows that don't know the facts?

But to try and stay on topic of this thread. It seems to be an interesting book that I have pondered about getting for my wife. She doesn't have a problem with my guns, but she hasn't really shown interest in carrying one herself.

Jakeiscrazy wrote:

totes6 wrote:@9mm92fs
You might be surprised how many people keep a round chambered even when they sleep. In fact most people that use 1911 style pistols I have run across deem it "heresy" to not keep it "locked and cocked" when you want the pistol ready for use. And also remember a lot of the newer firearms out there do not have an actual safety lever you push to disengage the safety, such as the glock and Springfield XD series. I personally do not keep it simply in the drawer, because my wife has cats in the house. And cats if anything are more curious about their environment than little kids are. So I have a good bedside safe that I keep my handgun in at night, but it is loaded with a round in the chamber. If you have a good manufactured gun there should be little worry about an accidental discharge as long as you make sure there isn't anything in the drawer/safe with the gun that could get inside the trigger guard and pull the trigger. How often do you hear about guns going off by themselves except in movies/tv shows that don't know the facts?

But to try and stay on topic of this thread. It seems to be an interesting book that I have pondered about getting for my wife. She doesn't have a problem with my guns, but she hasn't really shown interest in carrying one herself.

Accidental discharge wouldn't be my concern as much as spring set would be.

In the unlikely event of spring set (This topic has been discussed to endless lengths in other threads and I will not try and rehash it here,) springs can be replaced. And if you are a responsible gun owner you should be going to the range and firing the gun that you carry/keep handy to keep your skills sharp. Any sign of spring set/fatigue should start to appear well before it becomes a catastrophic issue. Remember it isn't just in the drawer/bed side safe that people keep their firearms loaded. Most people who carry firearms day to day, carry them loaded. People tend to spend more time awake than they do asleep in bed. So if spring set is really going to be a cause of concern, be more worried about where you spend your most time.

Even if you have kids, why keep an unloaded gun? I grew up in a town where virtually every house had children and loaded ( and unlocked) guns. This was mid/late 90's. Not once, was there ever an accidental shooting.

As to the chicks with guns.... I know lots of them

totes6 wrote:@9mm92fs
You might be surprised how many people keep a round chambered even when they sleep. In fact most people that use 1911 style pistols I have run across deem it "heresy" to not keep it "locked and cocked" when you want the pistol ready for use.

Funny you should mention the 1911. I own both a 9MM Beretta 92FS and a .45 ACP RIA 1911. I would worry more about accidental discharges while reaching in my nightstand for a 1911 with chambered round in the dark at 3AM because it's single action ( I say "in the dark" because I wouldn't turn on a light to better illuminate me as a target for an armed intruder). The SA feature would make it easier to pull a Plaxico Burress (except fumbling in the nightstand drawer, not my pants ). The double action Beretta, after chambering a round and decocking, would be somewhat less likely, i.e. harder trigger pull, to have an accidental discharge with, but not by much. Of course, this is assuming the intruder makes it past my GSD, which is not a gun model, but rather a dog model, i.e. German Shepherd Dog. Also, the sound of racking the slide might scare off all but a totally clueless intruder

Btw, I used to keep the Beretta in my nightstand, but recently replaced it with the 1911 for nightstand duty, hence the bigger worry about accidental discharges with a chambered round. I realize there's a safety on both, but I'd rather have the safety off with nothing in the chamber because chambering a round takes about as much time as having one in the chamber and having to release the safety. YMMV

I read it, my wiife read it, and we gave a couple for Christmas gifts. Love the kids from Montana with their rifles !