i'm happy with my .25 for my CCW..

[UWstudent]

as long as i can throw it fast enough to his head to knock him out..

i'm just wondering does anybody carry a 22 or 25 for carry? i carry at G27 (.40) myself.

 

[grimjaw]

I carried (past tense) a compact .22 for a BUG for awhile. After seeing the lack of penetration by even .22 Stingers, and seeing that there are more powerful cartridges in the same size gun, I decided to sell it. I haven't picked up another BUG yet, though.

jmm

 

[critter]

The highly opinionated Jeff Cooper had a humerous view of the .25. He said something like, "If you ever had to shoot somebody with the .25 acp AND HE FOUND OUT ABOUT IT, he would be really upset."

 

[fencer1960]

A .25 will kill a man. Just might take a while, couple of hours...maybe days. My only experience with the .25 as a self defence round; no, that's not right, it was an attempted murder round. Anyway, a lady I once knew was shot 6 times by her husband. With a .25. She lived to get the house, kids, etc.

For what it's worth.

 

[Zundfolge]

Interesting story about a .25

http://www.plusp.com/classroom/lesson30.php

yep, the perp died. But damn .... (just read the story)

 

[MCgunner]

I carried a .25 for a long time just because it was small and I could pocket it. It's the only gun I ever had to pull on a man and the sight of it made him figure his knife wasn't enough and he hauled buns. I didn't have to fire, thankfully. I didn't even have the sights on his head too steady when he was turning to run, LOL. That's the only time I ever had to use a gun in self defense. But, I was carrying it when there was no CCW law in Texas, so it had to HIDE. It saved my buns, I'm glad I had it.

Now days, I have a CCW permit and carry a bigger, better gun. I carry at minimum a .380 in a pocket, but if I can carry IWB I'll have a .38, a 9mm or on rare occasion a full size .45. I do, however, have an "always gun" in my pocket. It's a .22lr NAA mini revolver in a "holster grip". This little gun is just danged handy, like a little pocket knife. I've shot snakes, rabbits at up to 20-25 yards, and a wild dog once. It's an amazing little gun even if it takes super-human concentration on the sight picture with that tiny sight radius. I carry it as a back up, better than nothing, but I sure wouldn't wanna get into a gun fight with THAT as my only weapon.

 

[Old Fuff]

Yes, The Old Fuff on occasion CCW'ed a 1908 Colt, and wasn't particularly worried. At the range most weapons of this type are used it would do what it's supposed to, if you knew how to use it. But then I upgraded to the much more powerful .32 S&W ...

 

[ABTOMAT]

Man, I just read that link. Terrifying. I guess unless you get a brain shot is sure isn't much to count on.

 

[RyanM]

The really small calibers, like .25, may be the one case where prefragmented rounds are okay, though it really depends on shot placement. Normally, I'm all for penetration, but .25 is just too small to be effective on anything but a spine, brain, or aorta shot. The larger calibers at least give you some margin of error on the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, etc.

Prefragmented rounds will still punch through a skull, and they'd do a lot more damage if fired into the neck. A bunch of pellets spreading out might increase the chances of hitting a carotid or vertebral artery.

I guess FMJs if you plan to aim for center mass, prefrags if you aim for the throat and head.

 

[aaronrkelly]

I sometimes carry this:



NAA Mini Revolver in .22mag


I hope to occasionally carry this a few times this summer:



Zastava Model 70 in .32

 

[stealthmode]

made me look

 

[scbair]

I once made a practice of slipping a Beretta .25 ACP Jetfire in a pocket of my uniform trousers. There was no comparable-sized pistol in any larger caliber back in those days! I later started packing a Fraser .25 in my shirt pocket, as the barrel tip-up release of the Beretta proved troublesome in fastacquisition (that is, it would occasionally snag, flipping the barrel open and tossing the chambered round into the air!).

I haven't even taken my old .25 Fraser out of its box, yet alone fire or carry it, for 20+ years, now. I own a KelTec p32, but rarely carry it, either.

Academic discussions are fine, but having faced some folks bent on crippling or killing me, and who were:
a) mentally unbalanced;
b) on mind-altering drugs;
c) liquored-up;
d) angered past all self-control; and/or
e) just plain mean & ornery;

(pick one or more of the above),

I came to the empirical conclusion that there ain't no such thing as enough gun for such violent confrontations! I simply refuse to rely on anything less than a .38 Special snubbie as my primary defensive piece. I'm happier with a .45 and room to run!

As a backup? I do sometimes carry a .22 WMR mini-revolver; it has more penetration than a .25 ACP, and has proven totally reliable, while small enough to tuck away in a shirt pocket, behind a belt buckle, etc. (in suitable holsters, naturally). I sure hope I never have to relay on it, but it'll at least penetrate sufficiently to reach vital organs (in most cases . . .).

 

[loadedround]

25 ACP

I don't carry the 25 ACP for CCW, but would if that was the only firearm available. The average bad guy doesn't want to get shot and a round to the head should stop or slow down anyone except a crazed druggie and you would need a 45 to do that. I am not advocating carrying the 25, but it's better than nothing. Like my little Seecamp 32...don leave home without it!

 

[made2cut]

I remember reading a thread (please don't ask me where) in which some guy said he got shot with .25 in the shoulder area from the rear after an altercation with someone outside a bar. After he realized what happened he turned around and beat the guy up pretty bad. Suffice it to say the round didn't slow him down much.

I guess if you decide to carry a .25 for protection you better place your shots to the head and not miss.

 

[MrBigStuff]

Beretta Jetfire all day.

I used to live in NYC where there are no CCW's. I felt I needed a gun sometimes and carried a Beretta Jetfire and always felt comfortable with it. Extremely concealable: (hid the gun at the bottom of my sneaker one time) Shooting at 10 feet a .25 ACP 50 grain full metal jacket bullet will penetrate one patch of denim and 1 and 1/2 inches of an oak board. The Jetfire holds nine rounds. If you can't have that work for you at close range, then you should not in the neighborhood/area you are in.

The .25 is not the best choice, but make no mistake, will definately get the job done. If you sense someone(s) going to try to rob/attach/etc. you, you can have it in your hand in your pocket.

 

[Dr.Rob]

Someone I knew pretty well was killed with a single shot from a .25 from the back and into the heart.

While it's not the best of tools, it can be effective.

I'd pick something bigger.

 

[clang]

Wasn't there a scene in Taxi Driver where Al Pacino unloads a full clip of .25 into one of the bad guys face? Did he have to shoot him again with one of his other guns?

I know, It's just a movie....

 

[Braden]

While I don't advocate carrying such small calibers, a mouse gun is still better than no gun.

 

[Henry Bowman]

I have and still do when it has to be very small and very concealed (yet accessible). A .25ACP in my hand is infinitely more powerful than a .45ACP in my safe.

 

[Jim PHL]

My personal opinion is that it is too small and weak to STOP an attacker, except in the event of perfect shot circumstances, which include a perfect shot on your part and particular position of the attacker's body and limbs and lack of impediments like clothes, jewelry, etc. All too "planets in alignment" for my taste.
Most sensible people will give up their wallets or valuables when threatened by ANY gun, including a .22 or .25. But in a defensive role, if I have to use a gun to defend myself, I am going to need it to STOP the attacker by its force, not because he sees it and decides to stop. If you need to stop a person who is (scbair's list)

a) mentally unbalanced;
b) on mind-altering drugs;
c) liquored-up;
d) angered past all self-control; and/or
e) just plain mean & ornery;

I just feel you need something with a little more punch and power. It does you no good if you shoot your attacker and he bleeds out later after he's left the scene. You need to give yourself more of a chance.

I agree to a certain extent that anything is better than nothing, but my .38 weighs around 11 oz. The ultra-mini-mouseguns are not that much smaller and lighter to carry. When I am out and about, I (usually ) have pants on, and all my pants have pockets. My airlite is my anywhere/everywhere gun. I know the .38 isn't a magic bullet but I got rid of my .380 because I feel better about a 158 grain +P than anything in .380 or smaller. A pocket snub is what I've decided is my minimum. Even so, I still prefer to carry a .45.

Be safe

 

[geekWithA.45]

I've been known to carry a Walther TPH as a BUG, every now & then.

 

[Manedwolf]

Shot placement. It's all about shot placement.

My BUG and "clothes too slender for anything else" is a Beretta 950 Jetfire .25ACP loaded with an every-other mix of Federal ball and Speer Gold Dot JHP. Nine rounds, and can fire as fast as I can pull the trigger. I would take it over a cheaper-made plastic .32 for certain. DEFINITELY choose it over a Keltec or...Seecamp. It's made really really well. If you think you're heading into a trouble area, it can even be carried cocked and with the safety on just like its bigger cousins.

It's also more accurate than anything that small has a right to be. I doubt someone is not going to notice a good percentage of nine rounds hitting them. I PRACTICE with it, and at close range, (15 feet or so) I can reliably hit a silhouette in the neck or face. To me, that'd do the trick.

And I doubt Speer would have bothered to continue to make Gold Dot ammo for it, or Kramer a fitted, expensive hard leather pocket holster for it, unless someone was using them in a defensive capacity. And while I don't have much faith in the power of pre-fragmented ammo, MagSafe's +P .25ACP is definitely an energetic round out of it.

The highly opinionated Jeff Cooper had a humerous view of the .25. He said something like, "If you ever had to shoot somebody with the .25 acp AND HE FOUND OUT ABOUT IT, he would be really upset."

Okay. He can stand there while someone unloads a mag of Gold Dot .25 JHPs at him. Think he would?

Besides. The .25 ACP was an invention of John Moses Browning, and I do tend to think that the man knew what he was doing.

 

[Jim K]

I wish people like Jeff Cooper would stop making stupid jokes. If he really thinks a person shot with a .25 would not be hurt, he is a lot dumber than I think he is. Does he really think any gun is a harmless toy? Would he like to volunteer to be shot with one?

No one has ever called the .25 auto a powerhouse, but I know at least two people who were shot with a .25 who died, and did so immediately, not weeks later. (One bullet went through the man's neck from the front and severed the spinal cord; the other was dead center in the heart.)

Jim

 

[mrmeval]

I'm fine with a .22lr in the hottest rounds as a secondary low mass carry pistol. I would now carry the quite excellent Kel-Tec 380 or one of the low mass 9mm pistols.

 

[Braden]

I agree with Jim PHL...a .38 snub is the absolute SMALLEST handgun I'd feel comfortable with carrying for self defense. The idea is to STOP the threat IMMEDIATELY. While a .22 or .25 MIGHT do that, it would take a PERFECT shot to make it happen. You may not have the time or the opportunity to make the perfect shot.

That being said, I still say that a mouse gun is better than no gun at all. A .22 in the pocket is still better than a .45 in the safe.

Of course, if you'd carry a .22 in your pocket when you have a perfectly good .45 in the safe then I'd have to question your intelligence.