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

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

I'm not talking specifically about EDC here but in those circumstances where you really MUST have a small pistol, say in sweatpants while jogging and no belt or maybe light shorts, no shirt on the beach.

Maybe something between a small NAA .22lr revolver on the low end to a .380 ACP mouse gun on the high end.

What is the smallest, lightest pistol would you choose for self-defense?
 
My LC9S, which just happens to be my EDC.

I don't own anything smaller in size and don't see a need for it. Also prefer 9mm as a minimum defense caliber.


JMHO....
 
LCR .38+p, with a 158gr LSWC-HP or jacketed HP. Anything physically smaller and I'm going to have a hard time shooting it.
 
I carried a PF9 for years. Knock on wood it’s been reliable and shoots decent for a gun with a terrible trigger and horrible felt recoil. What’s been great about it is whenever I’ve had ammo that was finicky in other guns the PF9 would shoot it. So I know that the issue is the combo of the ammo and that particular gun, not the ammo.
 
Walther PPK/S .380. Maybe a Beretta Tomcat .32 if Lehigh/Underwood made an Xtreme Penetrator load for it, and it worked reliably.
 
What I tell my carry students, is that it's a free (mostly) country. There is no such thing as a non-lethal gun. There are absolutely no guarantees that any bullet will have a predicted result. I don't expect most people to literally have my back, nor am I responsible for their funeral expenses. Pick your gun, train with it, and do your thing.

However comma

There are so many good sub-compact options these days, I see little reason to go below 9mm. G-43, XD-S, M&P Shield, Sig 938, etc. If size is truly a concern, I say go to a rental range and do some comparison shopping and see if there REALLY isn't a 9 that works for you. And if you DO decide on a smaller option, use the best ammo you can find, (like, Double-Tap, Corbon, or Buffalo Bore +P defensive loads,) and practice a LOT. Tiny guns are not easier to shoot well.
 
RPZ said:
Walther PPK/S .380. Maybe a Beretta Tomcat .32 if Lehigh/Underwood made an Xtreme Penetrator load for it, and it worked reliably.
Click to expand...
I actually did carry a Tomcat on the ankle for a couple of years. Don't recall it ever jamming, I mainly ran JHP, Federal Hydrashock and Speer Gold dot through it, IIRC.

It was a fine carry piece, but eventually the frame cracked- this was a big problem on the Italian production Tomcats (though some of the US made guns have also cracked).

I did carry a Colt Vest Pocket .25 on the one occasion when I actually wore a vest, lol. It was reliable if gripped tightly enough and certainly did produce an impressive flash when fired, but I couldn't bring myself to EDC a 100 year old, $600 gun.......:)
 
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mljdeckard said:
What I tell my carry students, is that it's a free (mostly) country. There is no such thing as a non-lethal gun. There are absolutely no guarantees that any bullet will have a predicted result. I don't expect most people to literally have my back, nor am I responsible for their funeral expenses. Pick your gun, train with it, and do your thing.

However comma

There are so many good sub-compact options these days, I see little reason to go below 9mm. G-43, XD-S, M&P Shield, Sig 938, etc. If size is truly a concern, I say go to a rental range and do some comparison shopping and see if there REALLY isn't a 9 that works for you. And if you DO decide on a smaller option, use the best ammo you can find, (like, Double-Tap, Corbon, or Buffalo Bore +P defensive loads,) and practice a LOT. Tiny guns are not easier to shoot well.
Click to expand...

I agree
I’d argue that training with one is so important. So many criticize the Kel-Tec PF9. What I learned was they’re terrible guns with bad form. With good form they shoot decent. So unlike some guns that are more forgiving, you have to make sure you don’t limp wrist.

I suspect many other subcompacts are similar.
So practice practice and more practice.

Oh and I’ll add that once you train with a gun like the PF9 a gun like the XDs is so easy to shoot.
 
mljdeckard said:
I should probably also add, that after carrying full-size guns for 23 years, mostly 1911s, I didn't move down. I moved UP to a double-stack 9mm 1911.
Click to expand...

I go back and forth between more rounds in a 9mm or less in a 45. But I’m with you in getting over the really small guns. Im currently thinking about getting a M&P 9 Compact for EDC. 15 rounds and a couple of 17 round spares is a whole lot more than a six and 7 round mag.
 
For me, it's easier to shoot, cheaper to practice and reload, (and now I am using the same cartridge as my wife,) and I think that with modern bonded JHP bullets, if there is any advantage of a .45 over a 9mm, it's so small, you would have to shoot a LOT of people a LOT of different ways to see any real world difference. An extra hit or two is better.

I am about to have my wife try all of the compacts I named above to see which one works best for her.
 
I have a short-barreled NAA .22 Mag that I put plow-handle boot grips on and carry in a pocket holster. Not my EDC, but I would trust it to stop an attacking dog or to get a BG off of me. The boot grips give me good purchase for one-handed cocking and control. The pocket holster keeps it oriented for easy presentation. As they say, the gun you have on you beats the one you left at home.
 
Both Itchy and I have Seecamp 32s lurking around somewheres. Last time we went to the range I dumped mag in the target's face at 7 yards.. I figger that would probably distract a feller a bit. Itchy, not to be outdone, emptied her's a wee bit lower in a group about the size of a cigarette pack.. The bad guys fly zipper woulda been bent just a little. She's got a mean streak in her, she does.

I call the little Seecamp my GOMA gun. Get Off Me A**hole. A 32 in the eye socket or ear, might get a feller's attention.

That said, we both carry .45s.
 
I wouldn’t want to have anything lesser than a 9mm shield, but for the 1% of situations I could carry nothing better than a .380 like a bodyguard or lcp, or a j frame class revolver, I’d take one along.

It’s not ideal to have a naa mini revolver but I’d still take one over a sternly worded pamphlet.

Again not ideal - I don’t own any of the micros above - but I’d rather have one of those along with me rather than nothing at all.
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
I actually did carry a Tomcat on the ankle for a couple of years. Don't recall it ever jamming, I mainly ran JHP, Federal Hydrashock and Speer Gold dot through it, IIRC.

It was a fine carry piece, but eventually the frame cracked- this was a big problem on the Italian production Tomcats (though some of the US made guns have also cracked).

I did carry a Colt Vest Pocket .25 on the one occasion when I actually wore a vest, lol. It was reliable if gripped tightly enough and certainly did produce an impressive flash when fired, but I couldn't bring myself to EDC a 100 year old, $600 gun.......:)
Click to expand...
Carry alot, shoot little.

Those vintage pocket guns are really cool. I had an Ortgies .25 for awhile. But getting more mags was a big problem so I got rid of it.
 
As a firearms, and CCW instructor, I see a wide variety of carry guns; some are just nightmares. For my big hands, and my perceived need for at least 7 rounds before refueling, the field is narrowed a little. For me, a Glock, 42, 43, S&W shield, Ruger SR22, Sig Mosquito, snubbie revolver is good to go.

Many times, a new student after shooting a their brand new mini gun, and struggling to make hits, I will hand them my Glock 43. More often than not they will have that "aha" moment, that they have picked and ergonomically challenging gun.
 
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