Swimming with a Glock/Why I don't have a party pistol

[mkm]

I was invited to a pool party today and had to plan what to do about my pistol during that time.  Unfortunately it's not a private pool in someone's back yard but an apartment pool; therefore, it's limited access but still open to lots of people.  Last time I went to a party there I secured it, secretively, in my bag and stored it in as secure but still visible spot as I could.  I was never fully comfortable about it, and it wasn't immediately accessible in an emergency.  Since that time, there has been a very public shooting at a pool party that resulted in several deaths/injuries.  Granted, it wasn't located here, but it still opened my eyes.  I started debating pool carry.

Last night I researched the idea.  There seemed to be lots of cases of successful stories of swimming, etc. with Glocks.  It's the internet; they have to be true, right?  While reading the stories, I also got some carry ideas.  Pocket was easiest but concealabilty and movement in wet shorts wasn't good enough.  I settled for using a iwb passport holder (like a small, thin fanny pack) carried front center.  Not the most accessible and a little too small to zip up with my 26 in its kydex pocket holster, but most concealable.  It worked surpisingly well although I do need something that will zip up if I choose to do it again because I almost lost it playing water volleyball.

My gun seems ok, but I plan to give it a thorough inspection and cleaning this evening.  I'll let you know if there's any negative consequences that pop up.  Call me crazy, maybe I am, but I figured I'd break down and give my Glocks a true test since I depend on them to protect me daily.

By the way, I switched to ball rounds for this experiment as they won't expand in water.  Also, they are cheaper to waste submerged in water all day.  Let me know if you have any other suggestions.

[MikeBjerum]

mkm, you should have no issues.  All regulars here are well aware of MB's habit, and many of us have picked up on it as well.  In case you missed it - We shower with our 1911's   

[Pathfinder]

mkm, you should have no issues.  All regulars here are well aware of MB's habit, and many of us have picked up on it as well.  In case you missed it - We shower with our 1911's   

MB also tends to run his Glocks through the dishwasher in lieu of a right and proper hand cleaning.

[twyacht]

MB also tends to run his Glocks through the dishwasher in lieu of a right and proper hand cleaning.

+1 

[DGF]

In the Army we would clean our M14's in the hot shower before a big inspection.

[Sponsor]

[billt]

The Chlorine I would imagine is more corrosive than the water would be. I would think if you rinsed it off with a hose afterward you would be OK. It wouldn't hurt to spray the internals with a water displacement like WD-40, and leave it in the Sun to dry out afterward with the slide off the frame.

[rojawe]

Did you every think about moving if you have to be that worried at the pool party

[ronlarimer]

Rinse the gun off and it will be fine...  Throw away the ammo!

[seeker_two]

Ammo might be the biggest concern. Find ammo with a sealant applies at the case mouth & primer, or DIY with some clear nail polish (like making waterproof matches).

For this kind of carry, I'd think something like a P3AT or a LCP would be ideal.....

[mkm]

mkm, you should have no issues.  All regulars here are well aware of MB's habit, and many of us have picked up on it as well.  In case you missed it - We shower with our 1911's   

I'm well aware of the showering with your 1911's mantra, but yall always say it in that tone of type (I'm coining that term) with a wry smile which makes me wonder how much actual truth is in that statement.   

The Chlorine I would imagine is more corrosive than the water would be.

That was one of my biggest concerns and it proved to be worse than lake water on my pocket knife which has recently been swimming in both.  I, especially now, would have no concerns or second thoughts about swimming, rafting, etc. with one of my pistols in a natural body of water.

Did you every think about moving if you have to be that worried at the pool party

I don't really live in that bad of town.  The aforementioned shooting occured 5 hours away in a different state, albeit a similar city.  It was more about the situation.  College town, holiday, alcohol (not me), and rambunctious partiers can lead to quick mood changes and conflict.  The shooting I mentioned was instigated by a couple of people who didn't know each other and most of the victims were innocent bystanders.  Swimsuits are already close enough to being caught with your pants down; I wanted to minimize my vulnerability as much as possible.  On that note, my days here are numbered.

Rinse the gun off and it will be fine...  Throw away the ammo!

I plan to put the ammo aside labeled as wet and shoot it next time I go to the range.  It's more of a curiousity than anything else.

For this kind of carry, I'd think something like a P3AT or a LCP would be ideal.....

A smaller gun would have been ideal; however, I had to use what I have available.

Now onto the status report.
I admittedly didn't give the gun as good of a cleaning last night as I should have.  I did, however, do a complete disassembly.  I wiped everything off, gave a little more attention to areas that needed it, used compressed air to blow out the nooks and crannies, and did a proper cleaning this morning.  The main components of the actual gun showed no harm at all, but some of the small internal metal pieces had a minute amount of surface rust.  As a disclaimer, I haven't done a full breakdown and cleaning in a while and do carry in the hot humid South.  Rust on a firearm never makes me happy, but I didn't see anything that was overly concerning or that would have affected functioning.  It was easily cleaned up and ready to go again.  Whoever said Glocks were all plastic has never taken one apart.

There was one thing that took a fairly hard but not critical hit, the magazine.  All the witness holes had surface rust on the exterior.  Once disassembled, the interior along the side with the wholes had quite a bit of surface rust as well.  It cleaned easily, thankfully.  It was a good reminder that magazine maintenance is crucial too.

I don't foresee many more pool swimmings with my Glocks, but I would do it again if I felt the need.  I have much less hesitation to carry it in natural water as that is more likely to be the source of future outings.