Best .45 ACP for concealment

[Zerodefect]

Noone has any experience with the Springfield Xd-S?!?

Get to the gunstore and check one of those out. Striker fired goodness, Skinny as a 1911. Perfect for a Crossbreed IWB holster.

Dan Wesson ECO might be my next CCW piece.

I can carry 4" guns IWB in a Cossbreedat 5oclock easy. 5" 1911's have a barrel that sticks out sometimes when bend over. The average Ohioan has piss poor situation awareness, I could walk around with towel tossed over a shotgun and nnoone would notice, but I feel better concealing properly. And smaller guns are convenient and comfortable. Soometimes I just don't feel the need for a real gun.

 

[Safety First]

I like my Kahr P45, and my S&W 1911 PD (Scandium Commander) even more.

What he said I have the S&W Scandium PD 1911 Commander and want the P45 Kahr, it is on my short list for a light weight carry 45.

 

[MrGlock45]

Hello all.
I would vote for a Gen 3 G30 or G30SF, or the new G30S. If you want a Gen 4 go for the new G30 they are all 10 rds. of 45ACP goodness. This is in a compact pkg.
You can carry the G21 13 rd mags for back up if you like.

As always stay safe.

 

[TonyT]

I purchased a Glock-3 shortly after they were introduced and carried it for several years. Currently I would also consider the Kahr and Springfield XD compacts.

 

[JR24]

Most of the good ones have been covered (Kahr, XD, Glock, M&P, etc) if you can't handle a full size pistol. Personally I like Commander size 1911 for .45's. I'm holding out hope that in a year or two we'll see a Ruger SR45c; if so that will very likely get on my short list immediately.

Haven't got my hands on a CCO size 1911 yet, but that's probably work for me even better.

Important part is a good holster and belt. I like Milt Spark's Summer specials myself. A Simply Rugged belt has served me for years now.

 

[gym]

Be aware that you still need a sub-compact 9mm for those times that you just can't conceal a 45. I like the PM9 for those times, and the xds in 45 for most others. You might also step down to a 380 if you really need to "hide" a gun. Like in a place you might be warned not to carry, "or be told to leave", "not illegal" just not wanted.
I got pinned by a nurse last week, and no one ever pins me, in 43 years no one ever had. She was very cool though, "didn't say a word", I had mom in ICU and had no time to go home first, and my Doctor advised me not to leave it in the car, "which I had done, due to the junkies breaking into the cars.
Since a lot of nurses are married to cops, her eyes went right to my front pocket, you couldn't see the outline of the gun, but I could tell she had that feeling. If I had a 45, I would have been definitely pinned. I had just a tee shirt and nylon Nike pants.
A seacamp would have been handy right then.
But with guns, one gun will almost never suit all purposes, also if I had a regular shirt on, she never would have seen it even with an IWB.
Honestly I don't like going into a Hospital for that reason.

 

[Panzercat]

I will echo the question of whether full size guns are 'near impossible' to conceal. Many of us have been doing it for decades...1911s are actually slim, and a commander-sized one makes a great carry gun.

Chiming in off that, the only thing I've found virtually impossible to carry is a HiPoint, either .45 or 9 doesn't matter. Contrast that to my full frame 1911 45acp which is imminently carriable. You'll feel it, but it isn't a brick.

 

[rodinal220]

Colt LWOM/New Agent.

 

[Claude Clay]

i carried for many years a PT 145 with a IWB tuckable holster ( soon to be posted for sale) and than a Colt Defender ( arthritis made it unpleasant to practice with -- already sold ) and now i carry a Sig C-3 IWB. not quite as accurate as the Defender but the extra weight alows for practice

 

[dondavis3]

I carry two different .45's -

The one I carry most is a S&W M&P .45c

The other is a Kahr CW45

Both are very good guns with easy recoil and very accurate.

 

[777TRUTH]

I've been looking at the Kimber Ultra TLE II

Specifications

Caliber: .45 ACP
Height (inches) 90° to barrel: 4.75
Weight (ounces) with empty magazine: 25
Length (inches): 6.8
Magazine capacity: 7
Recoil spring (pounds): 18.0
Full-length guide rod

Frame

Material: Aluminum
Finish: Kimpro II
Width (inches): 1.28
Front strap checkering

Slide

Material: Steel
Finish: Matte black

Barrel

Length (inches): 3
Material: Steel, match grade
Twist rate (left hand): 16
Ramped

Sights

Meprolight Tritium 3-dot night sight, fixed
Radius (inches): 4.8

Grips

Black synthetic
Double diamond

Trigger

Aluminum, match grade
Factory setting (approximate pounds): 4.0 - 5.0

 

[98Redline]

As much as I love the 1911 platform I don't think that i would consider one of the ultra compact 1911 guns. There are more than a few respected 1911 smiths that consider a 1911 in anything shorter than a commander length slide problematic. The geometry and physics of the shorter gun are really pushing the boundaries of how the 1911 was meant to function and thus makes them much more finicky when it comes to grip, ammo, and general reliability.

I think for those times when you can't carry something as big as a 1911 commander, something like a G36 or CW45 is a good solution. Going deep cover, my LCP in .380 can disappear in any clothing I happen to be wearing.

 

[Vodoun da Vinci]

As much as I love the 1911 platform I don't think that i would consider one of the ultra compact 1911 guns. There are more than a few respected 1911 smiths that consider a 1911 in anything shorter than a commander length slide problematic. The geometry and physics of the shorter gun are really pushing the boundaries of how the 1911 was meant to function and thus makes them much more finicky when it comes to grip, ammo, and general reliability.

While I agree with this generality I have to add that I have a Colt Officers ACP with several thousand rounds thru it (all every kind of ammunition I could find over the years..) that has never missed a lick. Never a FTF or FTE....ever. And it's stock with no mods.

I have a distinct liking for my Gun Buddys Colt Defender and we have about 3000 rounds thru that stock pistol as well with various types of ammo and it has never failed either. So, while I generally agree that the smaller 1911 platforms can be a compromise it seems to be only a few that are finicky and not a general rule.

In my experience - other MMV.

VooDoo

 

[420Stainless]

Kahr PM45 for me. Have had one for three years and can't see anything better coming down anytime soon.

 

[Delford]

Hatzing & Mdauben
I've been trying to find a G36 for over 6 months and haven't found one yet....