The only time i carried mag in nothing chambered was when ordered to do so by the base CO and this was for everyone.   It looked like I was one of the few who would usually chamber a round upon leaving the wire.   We were in helicopters so maybe it wasn't a big deal to not have a round chambered in your pistol and rifle.   If you were still alive after making it to the ground in an unplanned fashion I guess you would have time to chamber one then.

Loaded and chambered. It's either in my holster, loaded and chambered, or on the nightstand, loaded and chambered. Why bother chambering-unchambering every time I put it on the nightstand? Sounds like unnecessary fingerfucking of the carry piece to me...

I dont have anygun with one in the chamber.

2 young boys in my house.

my house,  my logic

All may mags are loaded, Glock 21 is always within arms reach at all times with two mags ready to go.

This. And the shotgun racked inside the top of the closet is loaded, chambered, on safe. If I have time in response to some intrusion, I'll be using it.

+1

I never want a bad guy to be between me and a ready to go firearm.

VX nerve gas attached to in home sprinkler system and sealed bedroom. If you want something done right go big.

I suggets you parents with loaded guns have your children watch eddy the eagle. It never hurts to educate your children on gun safety.

They are all over the house and in my vehicle, loaded. Not much good empty.

I have a loaded mag in my AR with nothing in the chamber.

Wait wait wait... people actually keep their home defense weapons empty?

Always keep one in the chamber. It is useless unloaded.

My CCW 1911 is always condition 1. It's either on me or secured at all times because we have kids. Most of the other guns around the house are magazines in but not chambered.

I keep my glock loaded but it generally is always locked in the safe.  Which is next to my bed.

first post again

I keep AT LEAST one loaded gun next to me at night.  If it goes down while you are in bed, the time it takes to load the gun could be your undoing.

I keep one chambered when I carry, all the time.

At night, I put a 17 round mag in the gun and a TLR-1 on the rail, and keep it with an empty chamber. The last time I put a loaded gun in a case or night stand in my room and it wasn't ON my person, one of my friends picked it up and did this to my arm:



Now I have a giant mental "FUCK NO" flashing in my head when I set a loaded gun down elsewhere. I've looked at who I'm friends with and adjusted accordingly (including not talking to him anymore, obviously) so that shouldn't happen again, however, it shouldn't have happened in the first place.

So, no guns have one in the chamber unless it's on my person.

I have heard of people making some cool mods to their safe so it can be opened with and any old card wiht a magnetic stripe for quick access

I sleep with the safety off, a round in the chamber, a beta-C mag in the mag well and pulling halfway through the first stage of a two-stage trigger.



Can't be too ready.

i keep my g19 and 1911 loaded at all times. all my other ones i keep unloaded. there's more than one way to my bedroom and without glasses or contacts, i cant see shit. so if i chase someone around the house for a few seconds and they make it to my room, i would really hate to be shot with my own guns

I keep mine at Condition 0 - loaded, in hand, finger on the trigger. 24-7. While I sleep. If I wake up at night, I fire a couple of shots into the closet, window, and door to the stairs, just in case.

It's expensive, with ammo and trial lawyers and veterinarian bills, but I'm ready.

So you are going to throw the gun at your home invader?

For the guys who keep a round chambered, I saw aa news story of a guy who shot himself sleepwalking. Then again, if you are sleepwalking, you could also chamber a round.

I don't worry about this too much, my handguns are locked in a small closet safe unloaded but loaded magazines close.

One in the pipe, and a full mag.

There are some demands you can just blow off and ignore.  You just say no and do what you want.  It works quite well since it is your property.

Loaded Guns Are Dangerous; and I like it that way

My nightstand gun is loaded (1911, cocked and locked, round chambered) at all times.

ETA:

I'm single, no kids.  If a friend comes over with their kids, the gun goes in the safe during the day; if they spend the night in the spare bedroom, I close and lock my bedroom door, and the gun is returned to the nightstand.  If a stranger is over (service person, party with some folks that I don't know that well), gun in the safe.

If I ever get married (not likely) and have kids (even more unlikely), I'd have it cocked and locked, but in one of those "quick-safes" that you can unlock in seconds, bolted under the bed, etc.

I sleep oh so soundly with a loaded gun in the nightstand.  I do have a home alarm, mostly for the purposes of waking my dead ass up if someone busts a window out or if there's a fire, not counting on the sheriff to get here in time to stop anything, of course.

+1

I live in a low crime area with no problems on my street in the 6 years since it was built-up.  Realizing shit can and does happen, and since I'm a gun nut, anyway, I have a Sig 556 and Sig P220 w/spare mag next to the bed. Mags loaded, but  NO ROUNDS CHAMBERED. I've done the math and concluded that I'd be taking a bigger risk by having one in the pipe than not. Besides, my 110 lb.  bad-ass (truely)  GSD sleeps on the floor right next to the bed and between me and the entrances. Guaranteed - he'd provide me more than enough to rack a slide or charging handle if the situation demanded.

I agree. My wife has a tremendous amount of pull with her opinion in our relationship. Some things just aren't up for discussion, though.

loaded and ready to go.

I have my 1911, XD, AR, and 12ga all loaded and ready to go.  Why have them sitting there empty??

Fixed it for me.

 

Mag inserted and chamber empty.  I have a pair of 3 year olds who like to play with daddy's stuff behind his back.  Yes, its a compromise and calculated risk.  Beats the potential alternative.

Always loaded unless being maintained. Period.

This  24/7.



 

I can't carry, so my G21 stays secured in the night stand Loaded mag, but nothing in the chamber.

I set it on top at night, and it gets secured whenever i leave the house.

Loading a round every night is unwarranted finger fucking.  If they are that close to me that i can't chamber a round i'm close enough to beat them with the gun at least.

It's all about personal preference and how much risk you are comfortable with.  Nothing is wrong.

For those that say an unloaded gun is a paper weight, well, so be it.  A paper weight is better than nothing.

speaking of loaded or not here is some creative ideas for storage
(I am not the source)
Google = 40-unique-places-to-stash-firearms

Hiding Places
1.Empty cereal box in pantry, back when I lived in the ‘hood’. Was hoping thieves wouldn’t be hungry! Kaboom cereal in Kill Bill

2.Hanging upside down from a hook under the bathroom cabinet, just above the door. Inside a closet (not a walk-in) up over the door. Most closets are “shallow” and while a Burglar might go thru your clothes and items on shelving, he probably won’t look straight-up over his head.

3.Behind a decorative blanket hung like a cheap tapestry

4.Non-locking hideaway picture frame.

5.False bottom in bedside drawer.

6.Fake electrical outlets.

7.Some folks split the upholstery seam on the rear of the passenger’s seat toward the driver—insert a small holster and appropriate handgun, sew Velcro on the seams to reseal.

8.Along with my storm door, my main entry door is steel with only a small window at the top. I have a nylon holster with my Colt Detective Special velcroed to the inside of the door, just above the doorknob, canted toward me about 45 degrees, when I open it. I can open the door to someone, & they never know my hand is just inches from a weapon. Should I invite them in, I simply close the storm door and leave the main door open, which puts the gun back against a wall and is never seen by a guest.

9.At my desk is a scanner. It has no guts. Lift up the top, and remove handgun.
10.A good method in general when you’re away from your home is to take whatever you want to hide, stash it in a garbage bag, and put it amongst dirty clothes. NO ONE looks through dirty clothes…unless they’re a perv…then they’re not usually looking to rob you in that case.

11.On the road, usually hide them in with my dirty underwear…… Go ahead, grab yourself a big handful of that!

12.One day when I was replacing the sagging cloth under the couch (you know, the flimsy cloth that covers the couch’s framework?), and realized it would be a great hiding spot. I was surprised by how much room there is under there. I got the dremel and hack saw out and after a little work; I made a horizontal system of hooks with belt fasteners (actually milsurp canvas belts) that can hold four rifles lengthwise. I also made a small wooden cubby-hole and screwed it to the framework near the arm rest. That’s where my barbeque revolvers go. Now it’s not a practical place to store your “go-to” weapons, but it is very discreet place to store your valuable rifles. I attached Velcro along the cloth and underside of the couch so all you have to do is flip the couch back, undo the Velcro and you have full access to your hidden rifles. It’s funny to have guests sitting on your couch, clueless to the fact that they’ve got four rifles and two S&W’s 9″ from their butts.

13.The Sportsman guide has a wall clock that opens up to store a med. to small handgun in. Runs about $55 after shipping. And the clock works!

14.Back when I lived in Chicago I used to keep a fairly short, folding-stock 12ga situated diagonally in a clean extra-extra large pizza box lodged between my trashcan and my kitchen cabinets. It looked like it was just trash waiting for trash-day…

15.In the closet, on a CHEAP plastic hanger (easily broken), (through the trigger guard, no round in chamber), covered with a button up shirt.

16.Under the towels in the master bath.

17.I met a woman today who’s designing a holster for a derringer that will go between her uh………….mammary glands……

18.In an inside jacket pocket on a jacket on a hook in the closet.

19.Under the skirt of a spare toilet paper girl in master bath where no guests go.

20.My brother in law hid his revolver in the brown paper grocery bags that he had folded next to his refrigerator – you know how they get stuck in that space between the cabinet and fridge. He put it in a bag and folded it up.

21.Between the window curtains and the wall above the windows. Can’t be seen from the outside and if your curtains are heavy, can’t be seen from the inside. Yet the gun can remain on a hook just waiting to be used.

22.I used to have a 12 gauge in a soft gun case hanging from a hook, centered on the back of my bedroom door. I would then throw/tuck/hang a flannel robe over it. I kept the door open, so no one ever noticed the added “heft” of the door.

23.Inside a trophy. If you lift up the brass plate it’s hollow inside. If it’s big enough, anyway. This one was one of my parent’s bowling trophies.

24.I used to keep an old Colt Police Positive in a Ziploc bag under some frozen veggies in my freezer. Can still shoot thru the bag…if ya need to…

25.I bought a good-sized pistol safe (a foot square, or a little bigger) that uses a credit card swipe to open electronically. I use an outdated credit card for it. I have the card hidden nearby, in a place that I don’t think anyone could accidentally find. Yet, it’s so close, that I’m positive that I can grab the card and swipe it faster than I could punch in a combo, even on a finger touch safe. It was less than $100 as well. You could carry a backup identical card in your wallet. Fingerprint ones now too.

26.Old shoebox under the bed at night. Gun safe when I leave the house during the daytime.

27.I did this at home and it works great! A typical nightstand or dresser has room between the drawers and the outer paneling. This opening is the thickness of the frame of the cabinet. I removed the bottom drawer, drilled a hole in front of the rear frame and inserted a wooden peg so that the gun is along the side of the cabinet. The peg is on an angle so that when the barrel is fully seated it creates a slight interference with the bottom of the opening. I have a Ruger SP101 .357 that fits perfectly onto the peg and is held tightly. The drawer can be pulled out and dumped, the whole nightstand could be dumped forward and the gun stays tightly in place. I know it is there and because I shoot it almost every weekend and can grab it without looking, however a bad guy would have to get down on all fours and shine a flashlight into the open to see it.

28.How about behind a vent or cold air return? Before I got a safe, I would put a cased pistol in the vent work. I placed it out of sight, so if they pulled off the vent cover, they couldn’t see it. The cold air return was next to the bed, so it was easy to get to in the night.

29.Dancers carry dance bags for shoes. One side pocket is exclusively reserved for a loaded Glock 29 in 10mm that is put inside a Fobus belt holster. This obviates any danger of putting a finger inside the trigger guard while withdrawing the handgun.

30.I use a small CD wallet to keep my trusty little Kel-Tec 380 and a reload in. Makes for a handy place to slip the pistol and holster into when I have to take it out of my pocket for a little while or while I’m driving…stick it right between the seat and console so it’s more accessible than being in my pocket.

31.I bought a/c grills at my old house and made boxes 4″ deep to fit in the stud walls, and placed them up towards the ceiling line like the old wall registers. That way they were high enough the boys couldn’t reach them but low enough my wife could. The grill stayed on with a rubber band. Was there 11 years and no one ever knew.

32.Ever thought of using an electrical box? I keep a spare set of keys in a dummy electrical disconnect box outside my house.

33.A/C vents/ducts/intakes. Usually A/C vents are mounted high and require a stool or ladder to get access. Unscrew panel, tuck in gun, replace panel.

34.While most of my firearms are in my safe, I have the usual few scattered out and hidden in strategic locations similar to those already mentioned. To add confusion to the would be thief, I give him what he wants, upfront. To “express myself” I have several desirable nonfunctioning/unloaded firearms in plain sight as an art form. Upon arriving home, it’s easy to see if any of these are moved or missing, which would indicate that someone unwelcome has entered my home. If any of my “indicator guns” where disturbed/missing upon my arrival, I’d back out and call the Sheriff.

35.Another one that I have seen but not used is a hollowed out water heater complete with pipes that disappear into the wall. The door is hidden on the back side.

36.I keep a 1911 in an old boot that is with a bunch of other shoes on the floor of my closet.

37.I collect beer steins, and have a Davis 22mag derringer in my favorite one.

38.In a special place buried outside, just in case I come back to the house unarmed and have to defend it.

39.When we had tiling installed, I specifically created a false tile. Get on the floor? Sure, can you turn around for a second?

40.Pull the carpet back, grab a hammer & chisel and get to work!

Ouch.

and a rubberband on the trigger, so once you pop that first one off, the rest follow with no effort?

 

Full 30 round magazine in the Rifle, round in the chamber, safety off, bayonet on.

^This  In the nightstand a Glock with one in the chamber and a 2yo in the house is a no go.  

If it is on me then it has one in the chamber.

Glock 22 with round chambered by the bed.
Glock 19 with round chambered 1 in dresser across the room from the bed.
Loaded Benelli Nova 12 gauge with round chambered with extended mag right inside closet -

Several ARs with loaded mags inside safe- condition 3
Other pistols condition 3 as well as some loaded revolvers

My wife has has been disparaging me for years for concealed carrying.  The other night we were sitting around the fire at the BOL when she and the son started hearing something rustling the leaves near us.  They both started freaking out.  She finally said "Where's your gun!"
  I said, "You who have ridiculed me for years for carrying concealed now want to know where my gun is??.  It's in the truck.  Relax there is nothing out here that can eat you, other than the odd Mountain Lion."  Hilarity ensued

.38 Special loaded, de-cocked and safety off in the drawer on my bed side table.
Beretta 92 compact on my hip right now.  Magazine topped off.  One in the chamber.  Safety off.  De-cocked.

Condition 3 for me.  (amber?)

Lots of reasons.  Primarily due to small children.  One of them is a Downs child and will be perpetually 3 years old.

Secondly, I like the trigger in my brain that goes off when I chamber a round.  My mind screams, "You are now standing here with a loaded weapon!"

Four rules still observed at all times.

My HD guns are always loaded, not just at night.

Glock 20 with one in the pipe in my night stand.

I personally wouldn't store my HD weapon in one, I have had too many Credit cards not work because of damaged magnetic strips.

Glock 17 loaded in a paddle holster in a drawer.  When my daughter is born it will be in a keyless entry drawer safe

I have a loaded rock

Guns?  I don't need no guns.   I just take the lead of our President and I have a six pack of light beer by the nightstand so that I can resolve all differences by conversation and dialog.  I'm fully prepared to sitdown and discuss any and all topics with the drugged up, scum bag, mass murderer types who will likely break in to my house, rob me and hurt or kill my family.  By the way, we live in a really good neighborhood where no crime has ever been committed or considered.

I toss and turn too much so I leave the sig P220 loaded with my 8 year old, he is a light sleeper

ROund in the chamber ready to go. One less thing to think about when coming out of a groggy sleep if someone brakes in. Also sits on the night stand i can reach over with one arm and pick it up.