What is the Smallest, Lightest Defensive Pistol You WOuld Rely On ?

[Good Ol' Boy]

Every day.
Every where.
(Almost)
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Sorry to get off topic but the coolest part of that pic is that that old Chevy has AC.

 

[rpenmanparker]

Every day.
Every where.
(Almost)
View attachment 794199

Yes, but why don’t you tell folks what it is.

 

[rpenmanparker]

Sorry to get off topic but the coolest part of that pic is that that old Chevy has AC.

Prolly Texas.

 

[BSA1]

I don't subscribe to the smallest, lightest defensive carry handgun anymore. With more and more terrorists and nut cases using vehicles to run over people until their vehicle is disabled along with the usual strung-out meth heads, road rage incidents small guns just don't git 'er done.

My smallest, lightest gun that I do carry on rare very low risk occasions (attended a friends funeral) is a Seecamp LWS 32 Auto. I slip it in my pocket only once or twice a year. Fortunately I don't have very many friends and family dying. I have no real faith in it saving my bacon. As commented it is for very close range, dirty fighting self-defense.

My life and the life of my wife and family calls for using the most powerful handgun I can legally carry.

 

[Armored farmer]

Yes, but why don’t you tell folks what it is.

Its is my '72 shortbed 350cid 4bbl factory a/c 2wd.
My pap bought it for me in 1980. I drove it until my oldest son turned 16. Then my middle son. Now my youngest will be 16 on July 3rd. Im getting it all ready for him.
And yes, I just put a new a/c compressor on it.

 

[MedWheeler]

BSA1 writes:

I don't subscribe to the smallest, lightest defensive carry handgun anymore. With more and more terrorists and nut cases using vehicles to run over people until their vehicle is disabled along with the usual strung-out meth heads, road rage incidents small guns just don't git 'er done.

My smallest, lightest gun that I do carry on rare very low risk occasions (attended a friends funeral) is a Seecamp LWS 32 Auto. I slip it in my pocket only once or twice a year. Fortunately I don't have very many friends and family dying. I have no real faith in it saving my bacon. As commented it is for very close range, dirty fighting self-defense.

My life and the life of my wife and family calls for using the most powerful handgun I can legally carry.

So, even if it's a 1911 in .45, or a .50 DE, what's your answer to the question? (I guess, technically, you answered it with the Seecamp.) You could simply tell us what the largest, heaviest, most-powerful handgun you'll carry for defense is, and that will be the answer.

 

[sean m]

Normally a LCP but at times an NAA minimag

 

[BSA1]

BSA1 writes:
So, even if it's a 1911 in .45, or a .50 DE, what's your answer to the question? (I guess, technically, you answered it with the Seecamp.) You could simply tell us what the largest, heaviest, most-powerful handgun you'll carry for defense is, and that will be the answer.

With as many times as I have posted it I am surprised you don't know. My edc is a Beretta 92FS carried in a Milt Sparks EX Companion iwb holster just forward of my right hip bone. The cant of the gun puts the muzzle pointing rearward under the hip bone and is very comfortable.

I always carry my Beretta this way. Kansas is a Open Carry State so I open carry regularly. (GASP!) The only difference is when the weather is cold my roscoe is covered by a hoodie or coat. Same gun, same holster, same position. No pausing for a moment remembering which gun I decided to carry today.

On my left side I carry a spare magazine in a leather case that has a flap that covers it. It is actually a military issue single magazine pouch that M.P.'s used 30 years ago. I like the fact that it snaps on and off my belt. It looks like a multi-tool pouch that are commonly worn here.

The Sparks EX holster also snaps on so it only takes me a minute to put on the holster and mag pouch when I leave the house.

My primary 92FS has green fiber optic sights. My spare 92FS (2 is 1) is a law enforcement model that I purchased over 20 years ago with factory night sights. I had the night sights relamped in 2016.

 

[HB]

I used to own a NAA mini, a p32, and a 32 NAA guardian. I had a close call with some people with baseball bats in downtown STL, which prompted me to carry at work, and this dictated a small gun.

Then I realized anybody who was more violent than me or more willing to use violence could easily carve me to pieces with a pen knife inside the effective range of these guns.

I then bought a j frame and load it with 158 jr swc. That is absolutely minimum and I shoot it very well.

Normal I carry a full-size 9mm. It’s really not hard to carry. Snub is reserved for when I have to hug people or wear a tight t shirt.

I’m not saying you’re defenseless with a 32 or 380 but an angry large man would likely beat the hell out of you if you aren’t also a large angry man.

HB

 

[340PD]

LCP 380

 

[SharpDog]

I used to own a NAA mini, a p32, and a 32 NAA guardian. I had a close call with some people with baseball bats in downtown STL, which prompted me to carry at work, and this dictated a small gun.

Then I realized anybody who was more violent than me or more willing to use violence could easily carve me to pieces with a pen knife inside the effective range of these guns.

I then bought a j frame and load it with 158 jr swc. That is absolutely minimum and I shoot it very well.

Normal I carry a full-size 9mm. It’s really not hard to carry. Snub is reserved for when I have to hug people or wear a tight t shirt.

I’m not saying you’re defenseless with a 32 or 380 but an angry large man would likely beat the hell out of you if you aren’t also a large angry man.

HB

That is a persuasive argument. I'm not sure it completely makes small mouse guns like the P32 completely useless, but given the limited usefulness of really any pistol in a situation (vs. a long gun) it does offer a good perspective.

 

[chicharrones]

I used to own a NAA mini, a p32, and a 32 NAA guardian. I had a close call with some people with baseball bats in downtown STL, which prompted me to carry at work, and this dictated a small gun.

Did the suspects look like this? http://m.mlb.com/stl/roster

My apologies, that's the first thing that popped in my mind while reading that. Happy Sunday. lol.

 

[HB]

They haven’t been hitting much of anything recently!!

It was actually a group of 3 teens and a driver. I was eating lunch in my parking lot and they hopped out looking for trouble. I started my car and hauled butt out of there. Not sure if they were looking to break into cars or to jump somebody for fun but I don’t think a NAA 22 would have done me any better than pepper spray.

Did the suspects look like this? http://m.mlb.com/stl/roster

My apologies, that's the first thing that popped in my mind while reading that. Happy Sunday. lol.

 

[Tallball]

Here is a G26 I'm going to start carrying when the weather cools down enough for me to wear an outer shirt - November or something around here. I've put 100-150 trouble free rounds through it so far. This is my 1970 model Ford F100. It's a swb and has a 302 under the hood. I've owned it for over 20 years. I'm pretty sure the under-the-dash a/c is a dealer-installed unit. It works just fine.

View media item 1751

 

[oldrevolverguy]

For self defense, 9MM/38 Spl are my floor. The Kahr PM9, S&W 642 and Beretta Nano are as small as I get. They fit easily into the pocket. They can be carried completely concealed in pants or most style shorts even without a shirt, using a Smart Carry style holster. YMMV.

 

[JJE]

Normally I carry a Glock 42, but switch to a Kahr CW380 when I want maximum concealment. The CW380 (carried AIWB in a trigger-guard holster on a static cord - no belt loops or clips) is undetectable under a T-shirt, even a slightly-snug one, even if hugged by a gun-phobe in-law relative.

 

[chicharrones]

Remington RM380 and 2003 Toyota Corolla with 109.47 c.i. engine and factory AC. Coldest AC of any car in my driveway. Lucky daughter.



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You knew this was bound to happen.

 

[Armored farmer]

are we really doing this?

 

[FL-NC]

LCP

 

[golden]

The smallest handgun that I would consider carrying is the BERETTA Tomcat 3032. It is very small and light, yet still controllable and has proven very reliable for me. I normally carry a hollow point in the chamber and COR BON Powerball in the magazine.
I have shot smaller .32ACP pistols such as the KEL TEC which I did not have much confidence in and the N.A.A. Guardian which is a hard kicking gun for this caliber.
The .22LR pistols I have are usually the full size target/plinker models like the BROWNING Challenger, COLT Woodsman and so on. They are more accurate and easier to shoot, but almost impossible to conceal.
The .25ACP pistols I have shot, usually BERETTA'S are also very reliable and slightly smaller than the Tomcat, but not by much, so if I am not carrying a GLOCK 42, then it will probably be the Tomcat.
For me, all the of the mini and micro 9m.m. have been too hard on my hand. I want to go through at least a 50 box of ammo with them and that is usually too much pain for me.

Jim

 

[Blue Feather]

‘Just ordered a Springfield Armory XDs .45ACP. This will be my first sub compact pistol. Will carry 230 Grain HST JHP std. pressure.

 

[somethingbenign]

Currently a 9mm CZ RAMI which gives me 10 rounds of ammo on hand not including and reloads I have. With that being said I plan to pick up a micro here soon for a new job site that will require more consistent concealment. Tomcat in 32ACP is my front runner but will probably be a LCPII just because I can actually find one of those locally.

 

[Old Dog]

With no disrespect to others posting in this thread, and with no intent to seriously derail the thread -- I think my thoughts are in line with the thread's question.

So I totally get that many here feel the need to carry a light compact or sub-compact handgun ... But what I'm concluding here is that a large percentage of the members posting in this thread feel entirely comfortable carrying a "mouse-gun" in an inferior caliber with only a small number of cartridges on tap ...

Does this mean that those folks don't really believe they'll encounter a serious threat (say a couple large bad hombres tweaking to the gills whose give-a-crap meters are broken and with the element of surprise going for them) in which they'd actually be far better off with a more easily-drawn piece (read: not buried in a pocket or with a tiny grip under layers of clothing in a thin, clingy holster) in an effective caliber (.38/.357, 9mm or larger) that can be fired much more easily, rapidly and effectively?

I'm inclined to believe as this guy does:

I don't subscribe to the smallest, lightest defensive carry handgun anymore. With more and more terrorists and nut cases using vehicles to run over people until their vehicle is disabled along with the usual strung-out meth heads, road rage incidents small guns just don't git 'er done.

I guess some of us just plain for worst-case scenarios, while others don't believe they'll ever really encounter serious violence. Any regular Wal-Mart customers here? (surely some here saw the case involving one of our local (just a small suburb of a medium sized city) Wal-Mart incidents the other day?)

 

[somethingbenign]

Old Dog for me it is simply a case of carrying the largest available gun that fits my current circumstance. Lately that has resulted in me either taking a sick day from work or not carrying. When people tell me carrying less than a 9mm (or 45 for some) what I hear is I'm better off not being armed at all. I get that you and others are well intended in your advice but the demands on our lives just must be different and require different approaches. Please understand we are just trying to fit personal defense into our current lifestyle and not the other way around.

 

[rpenmanparker]

Old Dog for me it is simply a case of carrying the largest available gun that fits my current circumstance. Lately that has resulted in me either taking a sick day from work or not carrying. When people tell me carrying less than a 9mm (or 45 for some) what I hear is I'm better off not being armed at all. I get that you and others are well intended in your advice but the demands on our lives just must be different and require different approaches. Please understand we are just trying to fit personal defense into our current lifestyle and not the other way around.

So please tell us how a sub-compact 9mm like the LCs9 wouldn’t work for you.