Massad Ayoob: The necessity of high capacity magazines. How many rounds are needed? Critical Mas 45

How much capacity do you need?

I can't believe I used to read Massad's Guns and Ammo column in middle school in the early 80's and he's still around dispensing wisdom!

And to that I say... Practice, practice, practice. Peace. "Through superior firepower".

Outstanding. I was with Dallas PD for 28.5 years. In my 12th year I was in a gunfight with a suspect armed with and SKS with about 60 rounds at his disposal. We were engaged first from about 15 yards but later from about 50. It took me to my 3rd magazine before I finally hit him from 50 yards away with a Sig 357. In a dynamic gunfight, there is movement. When there is movement or distance involved you will spend more rounds. The static paper target creates training scars as do video games where your butt never leaves the couch. Great video.

Mindset. Does not matter if you have a single stack 1911, a revolver, or a high capacity pistol. The most important thing is that you know what your carry piece can and cannot do. Train hard with it. Bring extra magazines or speed loaders. The more magazines or speed loaders, the better. Let us not forget the Browning Hi-Power who was, in my opinion, the most popular Wonder 9 before the Glock 17 came out. To quote Clint Smith: "Beware the man who only has one gun. He probably knows how to use it."

From a California resident, thank you for making videos like this. When law-abiding Americans are being denied their Constitutional rights in ANY state, it is EVERY state's problem.

It was about 2003 or 04 I did a real, detailed written threat assessment for myself and my location. I am a retired Army officer and spent a lot of time as a Strategic Planner at several 4-star commands, major Combatant Commanders. Threat assessments weigh heavily into writing plans and operations orders for large units. After being honest and doing this assessment, I determined my daily carry gun was not going to be a revolver any longer. This was not a fun task because I personally love revolvers. Yes, I grew up with 1911s both at home and in the Army prior to changing over to the M9. But this was later as I said. I needed to catch up with the times, i.e., the threat. It is now 2022. People must understand a few factors in threat analysis. Something can be very unlikely but the most dangerous. (a nuclear war for example). Also, something might be very likely but not as dangerous. As a planner I tried to zero in on the most likely and most dangerous threats for the commanders. We all need to think like this in order to evaluate our own situations. A farmer in rural Kansas vs a person living in Philadelphia will have a host of different criteria to make an evaluation. Myself? I live 60 miles from the Mexico border in South Texas! The threat here? I would love to take a minimum of a four-vehicle convoy with crew served weapons to go to town for groceries and have a platoon of infantry at the house every evening. It is my wife and I and our dogs, goats, chickens and some cows. My neighbors are all great people but they are not near by. Technology for security purposes is VITAL. My dogs are VITAL. My firearms are VITAL. This place is my Alamo. I will not leave. I am in it to win it. Illegal entrants are the threat. They are not friendly, hardworking Mexicans coming seasonally to work and earn money. Those are all already here or smart enough to see America looks too dangerous these days. My best advice? Watch Mas in all videos he is in. You will learn a lot. Also, the man has written quite a few books. Order them and read them. Here is the uncomfortable part. Train. Train with a purpose. Train like your life and your family members lives depend upon it. Strive to make things simple. The Army has battle drills for all weapons systems. These drills focus on learning how to get the weapon into action, the same way every time, how to reload it, clear it, and get back into action, the same exact way every time. The drills are done to the point it becomes "muscle memory". Become an expert marksman or as close as you can become. If a weapon is to be used for carry, home defense, a trunk or truck gun, master it. This is the hard part folks. If you have to fight, understand that it is not over until it is over. If in the fight get to gettin" as an old First Sergeant used to say. Get it done with a purpose. The martial aspect of it is only half the equation. The mental / emotional / spiritual side must be in order BEFORE any fight. If these last three are not solid in you as an individual, your chances are greatly reduced and your risk level just went up. I am not preaching. I am sharing. Lastly, your physical condition is important, regardless of age. I cannot run any more for physical training. I walk, ride a mountain bike, lift weights, and eat right, not perfect, but as best I can. I take supplements, i.e. a bunch of vitamins, beet root for blood pressure, and do not drink much. (yes, I like a cold beer once in a while). Start small and each week make yourself do better. It works. If you do not exercise trying to do too much too soon makes people quit. If you can do 1 push up each day this week, next week you do 2 per day, and so on. I keep my firearms clean and ready to go at all times. That is military habit I cannot dismiss. I challenge all the Patriots on this channel to assess your environment, assess the threat. Consider your skill level. Consider your fitness and diet. Keep or get in shape in the mental / emotional / spiritual realm. We are going to need each and every single one of you in the coming days. This country is not going to repair itself via how things are being done currently. Stay alert, practice situational awareness and danger area avoidance. God bless each of you and stay safe.

I'm a former Vietnam era soldier. Uncle Sam never gave me that assignment but I associated with many soldiers who fought there. One thing I NEVER EVER heard any one of them say is " I wish I was carrying less ammo" . But many many of them said " I always found a way of carrying a couple of extra mags "

As a retired cop I still carry my .40 cal with 1 in the chamber and a 15rd mag and 2 spare 15 rd mags as my minimum standard EDC. You need to be carrying enough ammo because you never know what you might run into. Stay safe guys!

Thank you so much Sir! I am an ER physician trained at UCLA and working in Oregon. The last case I had, a man shoved 3 steak knives into his victim’s head and neck. Here in Oregon, elicit drugs are largely legal and EVIL walks amount us, and at times, difficult to recognize until it is too late. Three days before Measure 114 was to become “Law”, a trip to Sportsman’s Warehouse showed empty gun displays, and lines of customers holding numbers waiting to see if any firearms were left! All while 41,000 Oregonians awaited to see if they cleared their Background Check ( Something required for years in Oregon). Measure 114 was written by progressive liberals in police defunded Portland, to endanger the lives of conservative and rural Oregonians. The cost of Freedom Truly is Eternal Vigilance! Dr. Hull, MD.

30 years ago I was serving as a deputy sheriff here in Texas. I ended up assisting a trooper who was chasing a stolen truck, whose three occupants had murdered a young couple and a 4:year old boy and 2 year old girl in the act of taking the truck. They exited the highway onto a dark farm to market road. Eventually they busted the gates and entered an unlit large cemetery. There was one way in and one way out, so we parked the troopers car across the entrance and he got in with me. In the back of the cemetery we found the truck, they had blown both front tires trying to hop the large curb. There was no lighting except for what we had, so we felt like targets. We stayed away from our lights as much as possible. I covered as the trooper moved up to clear the vehicle. I thought I saw movement to the left so I moved my focus to that area.. sure enough I saw a flash as the trooper activated his light. I double tapped the muzzle flash and something fell. I was about to ask if the trooper was ok when I saw another flash further right and felt an impact in the car, right beside me. I double tapped that flash as the trooper simultaneously fired two rounds at something I couldn't see, further behind him. Then it was quiet. We carefully moved up and found all three suspects DRT. The trooper had fired three rounds earlier in the action, to keep one of the suspects from grabbing a hostage. So a 90 mile chase and two shootouts, he fired 5 shots, resulting in one suspect DRT, and the event ended. I chased for about 28 miles, fired 4 shots, 2 suspects DRT. The trooper and I had served together on a SWAT team for 4 years prior to this event. I'm certain that the fact we had served and trained heavily together, and the SWAT training program- which is intense, when done properly, is the reason we were successful in the action , with no wasted resources or injured personnel. Which shows the incredible importance of training, and PROPER training. You MUST train like you fight. Live fire exercises and scenarios which differ from expectations are a life and death requirement. Too many departments think one box of ammo to practice with, then another on six month range day, and then the qualification, is more than enough. No structure, limited ammo , poor range equipment all end up creating cops who only THINK they're a good shot. This puts innocent bystanders at risk. Departments have to allow a budget that will provide officers with the skill set they need to do their job safely and efficiently. Civilians really need to increase their practice time, and be certain it is valuable practice. Enroll in some of the excellent programs you can find online. It will save your life someday and possibly others.

I'll never forget the look on an F.B.I. agents face (who had survived the Miami shoot out) when asked if he had any advice to give. He looked straight into the camera and said.... "carry enough ammunition ". How much is enough? You decide.

As a disabled person, I'd also like to point out that swapping magazines is an additional physical task that people like I may not be able to do under stress easily.

I was a cop in Chicago, I Just pulled the plug, my house is up for sale, when I started we had to buy a 4'' S&W, Colt or Ruger 38 or 357, I picked up a S&W MODEL 586, with 3 speed loaders, now I carry a Walther with 16 9mm rounds in the mag. and more then one magazine. . Feds use to say 7 yards 21 feet was the avg. shoot out ,now they say 40% of shootings are 5 to 8 feet.. I loved that 586 but THINGS CHANGE. Thanks for a great video

Your focus becomes your reality. Your perception becomes your reality.

Dear Mas, I just had to comment again. Your teachings and advise is spot on. Been following your teachings for 40+ years. As a 33 yr. Police veteran, you have my deep respect🇺🇸

As the frequency of body armor being used by criminals increased, my center mass zone drill targets have descended about a foot.

Rounds are like gasoline on a road trip. Rather have more than needed and not run out. And unlike the gasoline in the car, we hope we never ever have to use any rounds at all.

Active Self Protection just put up a video of cops taking down a wanted perp. They asked him to put his gun down, he did not. Many shots were fired by the cops. Though downed, the perp survived and was taken into custody. I simply replied "Why 10 rounds aren't enough..."

Very well said. Retired LEO in Ca. Fortunately I now reside in Riverside County where the Sheriff issues CCW permits as fast as he can