Second Amendment Blog
Stupid Inventions
Posted by:Sebastian on 
Dec 15th, 2008 | 
Filed under: Guns
Loaded chamber indicator. I agree, they are highly stupid. They are also dangerous. Remember the original Mk.III’s that could go off if you dropped them on the LCI? You can’t make guns that are safe in the hands of the ignorant. The key is educating the ignorant.
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December 15th, 2008 at 11:36 pm
Posting what I posted over there:
I like ‘em. My S&W 1911 has a little notch on the top that lets me see brass if there’s a round in the chamber, though I think Springfield did it best with their XD pistols as you can feel a hump if there’s a round in there.
Of course, I only use them to make pretty sure the gun’s got a round chambered in it, not the other way around. It isn’t unloaded until i’ve got visual confirmation and my pinky doing a prostate exam on the chamber.
December 16th, 2008 at 12:19 am
I like them, but more for making sure something’s full rather than it being empty. Moving your hands needlessly before checking that can be a little frustrating.
December 16th, 2008 at 2:18 am
I don’t mind the LCI on my Walther P1. However, I only use it reaffirm what I already know: the weapon *is* loaded. If I want to verify that the weapon is clear, there is only one valid method: manually clear the chamber by ejecting the magazine and cycling the action.
I nominate the magazine disconnect for the stupidest firearm ‘enhancement’. That makes for a dangerous weapon!
December 16th, 2008 at 6:11 am
LinkP: I just haven’t got to the magazine disconnect yet.
December 16th, 2008 at 7:04 am
The loaded chamber and and striker status indicators can be helpful in the dark when you need to positively test the gun’s ready to go. It would be nuts to rely on it prior to say cleaning your gun.
XD features here.
December 16th, 2008 at 4:00 pm
I like the LCI on my Kahr PM9. I can quickly tell if it’s loaded without doing a brass-check. I don’t ever use to confirm the opposite though, I do check manually to make sure it’s unloaded.
December 17th, 2008 at 12:17 pm
I don’t even tell people about the LCI on my S&W1911s, It’s easy to not have enugh light to see the case, and it often requires you to point the muzzle of the gun in an unsafe direction hunting for a good light/angle combination.
Just do a damn press-check and be safe about it, otherwise handle the gun like it’s loaded.
Still the Mag disconnect is even worse IMHO. Nothing like a device that easily turns your gun into a poor club when you might most need it….or give you a false sence on security handling a gun with a round in the chamber!