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Carrying Spare Magazines: How Many Are “Needed”?
Is it paranoia or preparedness that drives people to concealed carry? Many would try to convince you it is paranoia, but the answer is preparedness.
Carrying a firearm, whether it is to the grocery store, church, or on a walk, is a deeply personal decision. One that requires incredible responsibility. Every piece of your everyday carry (EDC) setup matters.
There are endless debates between keyboard warriors as to which firearm is best, what gear is necessary, how best to ensure concealability, etc., and one of the highly debated questions is:
Should you carry spare magazines? If so, how many spare magazines should you carry?
Is one spare magazine enough?
The debate has many facets, with all sides presenting valid points. The debate may be as much about the mindset of each concealed carrier as it is about the mechanics of carrying a spare magazine.
Do the odds of needing a reload, which are statistically low, outweigh the inconvenience of carrying the extra gear? Is the potential cost (your life) of needing the reload but not having a spare magazine too high to ignore?
This article will examine the arguments for and against carrying a spare magazine. We will look at the data and provide practical advice to help you make an informed decision.
Spare Magazines: Do You Need Them?
Things break. Magazines break. Magazines are one of, if not the most likely, components to fail on a semi-automatic firearm. Bent feed lips, worn springs, cracks, and even grit and debris can all cause a magazine to fail and lead to a bad day.
When your gun fails, the best/fastest way to get it running isn’t always to clear the magazine; instead, it may be to drop the mag and insert a new spare.
Another factor that must be considered is ammo capacity. Most defensive gun uses (DGUs) involve less than five rounds, but there are exceptions, of course. Statistics report that law enforcement officers fired an average of 7.59 rounds per incident.
Interesting figures. Source
Low-capacity firearms, like a single-stack 1911s or micro compacts like the Glock 43, only have 6, 7, or 8 rounds in the magazine. A single magazine may not be enough to make it through a DGU.
Quality defensive ammo is a must.
Stress compounds the issue of limited magazine capacity. Adrenaline dumps play hell with the functioning of your body, and accuracy tends to drop. If you have ever participated in force-on-force training, you know how fast you can empty your mag and sometimes achieve very few hits.
In a DGU, you are responsible for every shot fired, and if you miss the bad guy, you might have some explaining to do. That said, it is better to reload and stop the threat than not fire enough rounds and end up room temperature.
Finally, you are carrying a firearm to be prepared, not because you ever want to need it. Carrying a spare magazine is the same thought process. Emergencies don’t come with a warning. Being prepared for the “just in case” is why you have your concealed carry weapon—carrying an extra magazine tracks with that logic.
Arguments Against Carrying a Spare Mag(s)
If spare magazines are so essential, why doesn’t everyone carry one? The simplest, most common reason is convenience, or should I say, inconvenience. Adding a spare magazine to your EDC means more weight, more bulk, and paying more attention to what you wear to ensure you can conceal your setup. Many concealed carriers exchange comfort for carrying a firearm.
The majority of defensive gun uses end without a shot being fired. Sometimes, the simple presence of a firearm is sufficient to ensure the carrier and those they are with go home safely. When DGUs escalate to the point of rounds being fired, they usually are resolved with a few rounds and do not require a reload.
If you are carrying a double-stack pistol that is 10, 12, or 15+ one, you are already over the average number of rounds fired by police officers. To some, the odds of needing more rounds than your pistol is carrying are not enough to justify the extra hassle of carrying another magazine.
One of these magazines proves more challenging to conceal than the others.
High stress and adrenaline wreak havoc on your fine motor skills. Reloading under fire or in a high-stress situation is extremely difficult. Most concealed carriers don’t spend a significant amount of time practicing high-stress reloads.
Another consideration, one that you should not dismiss out of hand, is what exactly you need. A good tourniquet or flashlight could be much more helpful in your daily life than a spare magazine for a gun battle you are unlikely ever to experience, and you only have so much real estate on your gun belt or in your pockets.
So You Decided to Carry a Spare Magazine
One spare magazine is a practical minimum for most concealed carriers. It is what I carry regardless of the firearm I am concealing. Two of my most frequently concealed firearms are a Glock 26 and a Ruger LCP II.
The Glock 26 holds 10+1, and I carry a 15-round spare magazine. The LCP II holds 6+1, and I carry a 7-round spare magazine.
One spare magazine strikes the right balance between being prepared for a malfunction or needing to respond to a threat that requires more than what is in the gun, and keeping things comfortable and concealable. The spare magazine is about preparing for the unexpected. It is a peace of mind accessory that isn’t that inconvenient for me.
If you carry a low-capacity pistol, a la the LCP II, live in an area where you feel the threat level is higher, or simply value being prepared, a second spare magazine is not an unreasonable addition. Of course, a Glock 17 with 17+1 rounds provides a lot of prevention without needing a spare mag.
How to Carry a Spare Mag
A quality magazine carrier is the most secure and accessible way to carry your spare magazine. Sidecar holsters are very popular because they integrate the mag pouch into the holster itself. This offers fast access and barely increases the holster’s bulk.
Sidecar holsters are a popular way to carry a spare magazine. Source
I pocket carry my LCP II and do so with my spare magazine as well. This has drawbacks, as it means lint or debris could accumulate and lead to a failure if I don’t maintain the magazine. Plus, movement of the magazine in my pockets can lead to slower draw times and slower reloads.
Whatever method you choose, train. Get some snap caps and practice reloads in multiple situations to ensure you are ready if the worst ever happens.
Snap caps should be used when training with your firearm to ensure your safety and the safety of those around you. Source
Ask yourself the following questions:
- Have I trained for a malfunction?
- How can I add stress to that training?
- Is my setup comfortable enough that I will carry it consistently?
- Can I reload quickly and confidently with my setup?
If your answer to these is no, you must reconsider your needs, setup, and training.
Last Words
Carrying a firearm is not a sign of paranoia. Carrying a spare magazine is not either. Doing both is a practical step to address real-world risks. Bad people do exist, and that’s why you concealed carry. Magazines do fail or run out of ammunition, and that’s why you carry a spare magazine.
A spare magazine provides insurance against a potential failure and gives you a second option in the rare but not impossible event that things go sideways.
