I'm new to the board and shooting so I hope I can get some good opinions regarding how to keep my gun "ready".

I just purchased a Springfield 1911A1 Mil-Spec. Seeing how one of the reasons I bought it was for self defence, what's the best way to have it ready for that situation?

My first thought is to have the gun in my nightstand with a round chambered and the saftey on. Obviously this makes the weapon quickly available but how safe is it? How safe is it to allow the gun to sit this way? It'll definitely see lots of range time so I can't imagine that any single round would be chambered for more than a few days or a week. Is this acceptable?

I don't have any children, and my young nephew only visits once in a great while.

How do you guys "keep ready"?

Thanks for your help and all the good opinons I've already seen here.

The 1911 series pistols were designed to be carried in "condition one" which is round in chamber, hammer cocked and safety on. This is how I carry my Officers Model Colt when I carry it, and it stays that way for weeks at a time. As long as you use quality magazines, you should have no problems with "spring set". I carry a 1911 Colt OM, a Glock M30 or an S&W five shot revolver depending on situation and weather. The two autos have had their magazines fully loaded for months at a time with no ill effects. Some recognized authorities on the use of handguns for self defense, such as Massad Ayoob, contend that carrying an auto pistol with a safety such as the 1911, can save your life if the bad guy manages to get your weapon and is not familiar with the safety device, and can't use it, as opposed to a DAO auto such as the Glock or a revolver, where all that is required is to pull the trigger. As far as safety in the home, as long as no one has access to the pistol whether you're home or not, you shouldn't have any problems. I have no children either, but I have a boatload of nephews and nieces and they're over all the time. I either lock up the guns or keep it on my person when they visit. You should lock up any firearm when you're not home, both from a personal protection and a liability standpoint. If someone breaks into your home, and you interrupt him, you may have armed him if you have left a gun out, and if he steals it, you might be held liable in either a criminal or civil litigation depending upon state law. Just my $.02.

Depends on who you think may be in your house. Seems to me that having an auto cocked-and-locked in the house is somewhat unnecessary.... at the very least I'd certainly consider one of the quick-access boxes that you can open with one hand in the dark.

mikej-Thanks for the advice on locking the gun up when I'm not at home. That was definitely something that I had overlooked.

mikeg-Can you offer up any suggestions on the quick access boxes that you're speaking of?

Check out this link, I'm sure there are other brands as well:

http://www.kcsafe.com/FirearmsSecurity.htm

The term "Cocked & Locked" was coined specifically because of the 1911. It was designed to be carried as such without developing any "spring set". As for "how safe is safe?" The most useless gun is an unloaded one. Much like the song(not the current pop) my girlfriend, as my wife has titled it, goes wherever I go.
Now if you aren't one to carry, or shoot it much, I might say that you should keep the clip full and in the machine, but maybe not cocked and locked. And by every means teach your wife to understand as much as you do about it.
I think the only one who can dissasemble my Springfield as fast as me, is my wife!

Bird1911A1

I believe that the design of the 1911 does not allow the safety to function unless the piece is cocked. You describe keeping yours with the hammer down: I believe that you cannot engage the safety that way. The other option that you have is to keep the chamber empty, and a full magazine inserted. This readiness condition requires racking the slide to ready the piece to shoot. Leaving the hammer cocked will ease racking the slide.

Darrel