Carry gun

Wing,

There are volumes of stuff written on this subject.  None of it wrong....none of it right.  It is a personal thing.

Some of my thoughts.  I got my NY state carry permit in 1968, been carrying since then, and have owned about 6 CC guns.

1st.  You do not need a high capacity gun like a Ber 92 or a colt 45.  If the gun is for self-defense you will not need to carry for a shoot-out situation.

2nd If the gun you pick is not light, small and comfortable,, you may not have it on you when you do need it.

3rd get a gun that looks like a gun. and that has ammo that you can aford to shoot it a lot to get comfortable and accurate with it.  a sig 357 is great, but be prepared to spend a $1000 on ammo to get you up to reasonable effectiveness.

OPINION:  Get a 38 spl alloy frame (j frame) revolver, or a small frame 9mm auto.  A 22 auto is probably to light for self defense, but it is cheap to shoot and light weight.

My present CC gun is a S&W alloy  j-frame 38Special,  no hammer, revolver (model 442).

BEAR

Thanks Guys,

I will keep looking and see what comes along. I have read alot of people carry a Kel-Tec. Size and weight sounds like it would fit my needs.

Thanks again guys.

 Hey Wingman

  I carry a Kimber .45 it is heaver than most but I trust it.All that said I did just pick up this S&W model 13-3 that may just get the nod,it's light and comfortable to shoot and the more range time I spend with it the more I like it.I carried it in the woods last Fri. and never noticed it.

"One more Question,  Is a .32 Acp powerful enough for a defense gun?  Wing master"

Just my thoughts, but I have 2 colt 32 auto Pocket pistols, that I carry.  The 32 auto is actually a 30 caliber. It is the lightest I consider 'adequate'.

There are two factory rounds that wrok in this both Winchester: a 60 gr hollow point and a 71 gr FMJ.  Most gun writers recommend the HP as it is about 10% more energy.  I use the FMF, as I like the extra bullet weight and they feed perfect (so does the hp).

The hp always has the poor expansion if you have to shoot thru heavy clothes.  I don't want to have cold winter rounds and summer rounds.  So all I use is the 70 gr FMJ.  Only thing I've ever shot with it was a good size water snake, not a good test.

I'd recommend the 32 auto for CC, for a non-LEO.  One has to compromise and the 32 would not be my preferred round for a shoot-out with high capacity 9mm or 45s.  But the non-LEO CC gun will not be in this service.

The 32 autos without staggered magazines, really carry flat...nice.  Both of my colts look like scaled down 1911s and carry nice and flat, but are ALL steel and are heavy.

Many European police forces harried the 32 auto for years, recently they seem to be changing to 380 or 9mm.  The 380 is also a great CC round in a light auto.

The 32 is a definite step up from the 25 auto.  The light recoil makes the 32 a fast recovery pistol.

BEAR 

I've got to agree with Kp, practice is more important than what gun you buy.  I like to recommend the 38 as reloaded cast rounds are dirt cheap.  I find that people that buy 357 Sig or 32 autos don't practice, as the ammo is expensive.  I think a minimum or 500 roounds, maybe even 1000 rounds is necessary to be profisiont.

But KP, while I carry a no hammer S7W 38 alloy frame just because I do like the option of shooting thru a jacket, they are difficult to shoot.  a 4 or a six inch revolver like a model 19 S&W is an eaasy gun to shoot and hit something with. 

But a short barreled (2", 1 1/2" or 1') revolver is a very difficult gun to hit with.  The double astion (like a cap gun) can be fired easily by anyone with little training.  But for the average non-gun person, they are clearly the toughest.

I have lots of pistol trophies, but it took me months of heavy practice to shoot a short barreled light weigh 38 in a double action mode.  If you are a target shooter and use to firing single action, you MUST totally modify your trigger pull to even get on the paper.  Now I understand combat shooting and defense shooting is at extremely close range, BUT you must have the mind set that you can hit what you are aiming at BEFORE the emotional time comes to shoot.

BEAR

waksupi

You must be as tall as an elk.  If I carries a 1911, my pants would fall as soon as I started to run or move fast.  Also with a 1911 you don't need a "conceal" permit, everyone knows you are carrying.

But you can't beat a good colt 1911 in a close in gunfight.

A close friend is an undercover NARC, and Irish, and 6'2" and about 230#.  I carried a 9mm S&W aluminum frame w/single stack mag.  At the age of 26, he just had to carry the 1911, under cover.  Now I'll admit that he had a big back for the small-of-the- back holster rig.  But one night when he chase a perp across a park lawn, that 1911 went flying so far I thought he would never find it.  The search reminded me of 'looking for nightcrawlers' when I was a kid and wanted to go fishing.

BEAR