Open for suggestions on a good carry gun

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Brutalmisfit90

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Here in a few years I plan on getting a carry liscense, I thought it might be a good idea to plan which pistols i plan on carrying...
I thought maybe I'd buy one of the compact 1911 models when i carry in a holster, and a small framed revolver for when i don't have the convinience of a holster.
 
I don't know how much you've shot but, get the gun that feels the best to you, and in the largest cal. you can shoot accurately.. Size doesn't matter if you can't put the rounds on target. Then practice, practice, practice.
Be safe.
 
Since you got a few years then just shop around looking at all the models to see what would suit you. You didn't mention how you would carry and there are almost as many ways to carry as there are carry choices.
 
By a "compact 1911," do you mean the Colt Defender or a 1911 with a less than 4" barrel length? If so, keep in mind that the .45 ACP is a low pressure cartridge. The velocity out of a barrel less than 4" will put severe limitations on ammo selection. I'm sure there are a few self defense loads and bullets that perform well out of a short barrel, but I don't like the idea of owning a gun with a limited supply of effective ammo.

If you're looking for a compact gun, then choose a gun designed to be a compact gun. The 1911 was designed to be a big gun. The Colt Defender and it's copies from other makers isn't a bad gun. The owners of the Defender should and often do know it's limitations.

You could argue that all compact guns are limited in their use. That's true, but I would feel better with a higher pressure round. 9mm Parabellum is probably the best choice for the pocket auto. .40 S&W would be a bear to control under recoil for a pocket auto, but isn't as bad in a larger compact gun such as the Glock 27 or Smith & Wesson M&P Compact.

Like the Colt Defender, the Glock 27 and M&P Compact are large guns with grips and barrels chopped off. As such, they have a weird "stunted growth" look to them. If you carry inside-the-waistband (IWB), due to the thickness of these "chopped guns," it will feel like you have a big gun in your holster rather than a compact.

Unlike the chopped guns, Rohrbaugh, Kahr, and Kel-Tec make compacts that were meant to be compacts. The trade off here is capacity. These compacts use single stack magazines rather than the double stack magazines of the chopped guns.

The Colt Combat Commander and Lightweight Commander wouldn't be a bad choice for conceal carry and neither gun has the ammo limitations of the Defender. The Combat Commander has a carbon steel or stainless steel frame while the Lightweight Commander has an aluminum frame. Like the Defender, the Commander has it's copies as well. For example, the Springfield Armory Champion is a popular copy. While I prefer and recommend Colts, there are other makers that produce quality 1911 copies.

The 4.25" Commander has the same size grip as the 5" Government Model. If you can conceal the grip, the Commander will be more comfortable to carry. This is especially true with the Lightweight Commander's aluminum frame versus the Government Model's steel frame. Believe it or not, that .75" really does make a difference in an IWB holster.

The Commander is limited to IWB carry for most folks. However, in the winter season, you could carry it under a jacket. You'll appreciate the thin single stack design not only for it's comfortable grip, but also when it's riding in an IWB holster. In fact, because of the thinness I would rather carry my Commander than my M&P Compact. Once I'm more comfortable with the Commander, I might even trade the M&P Compact for another 1911. We shall see how that goes.

As you can see, a good conceal carry gun is a compromise. You're on the right track choosing two carry guns. Having only one gun for carry is too limiting in my opinion. Having the option of a compact gun or pocket gun (whether it be a semiautomatic or revolver) over a holstered gun is welcomed when one can't "dress around" his or her gun.

Honestly, planning on which gun to carry wont do you much good. I learned what I know about concealed carry and which guns work best by conceal carrying several guns. Some guns I thought we're "the perfect conceal carry gun" turned out to be rather unpleasant to carry. Most people will not only go through several holsters before finding the perfect one, but several guns as well. As you should, do your research, but don't be too disappointed if your "perfect" holster and gun turns out to not live up to your expectations.

Good luck and stay safe.
 
Go to a rental range, start picking up guns. Find the ones that "feel right", and shoot them. Go from there.
Also, spend money on a good holster for each sidearm you get. A good rig retains the sidearm exactly in the same place everytime, and protects your firearm from rust, dirt, scratches, etc.
One last suggestion - always carry spare ammo, whether a Bianchi Speed Strip or a speedloader for wheelies, or at least one spare mag for your auto, always carry spare.
My $.02, that's all. Have fun, and when you have everything all picked out, sign up for classes!
 
+1 on the rental suggestion! :)

Everyone has an opinion,a comfort zone and a favorite caliber. Few of us ever (thank God) gets to find out if we are correct.

When I carry it's for either of two reasons:

1.) A major disaster or direct threat to myself or those with whom I am traveling.

2.) I'm in the woods here in Northern California and I don't care what the eco people say, I don't like bears or cougars. I am not looking to start anything with them, but if they start something, I'll be prepared. It has happened to me before and having the gun was comforting - no shots were fired.

For urban issues with two legged goblins, my choice is the .45acp from a 1911. They are slim, carry and reload easily and are proven performers.

For woods carry, a revolver in .44 magnum, cast heavy gas checked bullets with a stout load of H110.

Good luck on whatever you choose to do, but remember...Practice, practice and then practice some more.
 
I thought maybe I'd buy one of the compact 1911 models when i carry in a holster, and a small framed revolver for when i don't have the convenience of a holster.
Click to expand...

Personally, carrying without a holster seems like putting unnecessary complications into the situation. Some people do this fine, but I can't imagine being without a pocket holster at least. It might just be my body shape: both IWB holsters and ankle holsters are quite comfortable for me, even when bicycling or swing dancing.

Also personally, I am not yet practiced enough with handguns to feel comfortable having both a semiautomatic and a revolver as carry guns. In a crisis situation the muscle memory habits are too different and I might become slow or confused rather than acting properly instinctually. You might be beyond this limitation, however. :)
 
It's been a year since I've posted this up, mostly been reading around the site.

I've bought a Rossi Model R46202 stainless steel .357 mag snub-nose revolver.

I've yet to try it out (just bought it a week ago) but my father says Rossi makes good firearms. I'll be trying it out this weekend, I'm really excited to see how it works down range!

I've still got two years before I can get the carry license, so I've got plenty of time to practice!
 
There are many many good pistols out there. I would say, to start to narrow it, try to decide this parameters, roughly in order:

1. Caliber
2. Action type (DAO, DA/SA, or SAO). Select SAO only if you're going to the range regularly and practice drawing and disengaging the manual in one second-nature fell swoop.
3. Single stack or double stack, and therefore width dimension (which question will in turn depend on likely carry mode, so decide carry mode among one of the first decisions before deciding on a gun - OWB, IWB, Smartcarry, Pocket, what?)
4. *IF* it's a DAO or DA/SA gun, Whether you want a manual safety or a decocker, or both, or neither.
5. Construction of frame (Steel, aluminum, or plastic)
6. Revolver or Auto
7. Budget
8. General size (full-sized, compact, or subcompact)
9. Willing to buy used, or must have new gun?

This has been re-hashed hundreds of times, of course, but I like metal guns, preferaby all-steel.

I like the Kahr MK9 in a Smartcarry for "always" carry. (Subcompact, all-steel, pre-sprung DAO with no manual safety, single stack, 9x19mm). Or PM9 if you want to go a little lighter in the crotch area. I personally like having a bullet-proof steel plate fig leaf flap (the MK9) protecting the vital zone from stray bullets, NSA sterility gamma rays, and the like. :)

I like the CZ 75 Compact or P01, or a Sig Classic P Series compact in an OWB paddle holster for "normal" carry, with a jacket to cover up.

I like a 4" bbl compact 1911 single stack (all-steel) for "Tuckable IWB" Carry (i.e. when the holster is one where you can tuck your shirt into it and go almost completely concealed without a jacket or vest). Another good choice for this mode is a larger Kahr or a HK P7. I can carry in this way with the Kahr in the SmartCarry rig, and have two completely concealed handguns, if I think I'm going to be in a rough area at night, for example. I can actually get a third completely concealed gun in addition to these by throwing the CZ into a belly band holster, but that's only in winter - too hot for summer.

For pocket carry, I like a snubnose .38 special 5-shot revolver, specifically, the Taurus 85 SS, since autos tend to unwittingly get their mag release button pressed while carried in the pocket. I used to think that the bulkiness of the revo's cylinder made it a poor choice for pocket carry, but the protrusion of the cylinder actually helps hide the outline of the rest of the gun, concealing it's identity better than a small auto, particularly when inside a pocket holster.

But a small auto like a Rohrbaugh, Seecamp, or NAA Guardian would work for pocket carry as well. Even the smallest Kahrs are a little too big for pocket carry, *for me*.

I don't do ankle carry, and I no longer do fanny pack carry. For a fanny pack (or purse carry for a woman**), the CZ 2075 RAMI and Springfield XD subcompacts are good choices (2-stack, but very compact), provided they fit your hand. Thin-ness is not so much an issue with a fanny pack (or Safepacker carry).

**Or a fancy-boy about town.

Having said all that, I continue to evolve as I live and learn. Would like a Rohrbaugh for pocket carry, but they're so pricey, we'll see....
 
A fairly recent entry into the sub-compact variants on the 1911
design is the Springfield Armory Enhanced Micro Pistol or EMP. It is
a 1911 scaled in slide and frame/mag. well length for the 9MM LUger,
.40 S&W and the .45 GAP. THe firs EMPs chambered in 9mm Luger
have been out about 2 years. THe .40 S&W version is said to have
shipped recently.

It is comparable to a Colt Defender in length and is kinda tween a Glock
19 Compact and the Glock 23 sub-compact but beats them in
width at 1.17" since it is a single stack - in 9MM LUger it is a 9 rd mag. cap.
and weighs in at 28 oz. I held one a couple of weeks ago and have
large but not beeffy - say long fingers in size and got a full grip with
all fingers and it's a shorter triggereach not so much in length but cir-cumference.

Read a test at:

http://ezine.m1911.org/SAemp.htm

You'll notice it has the saem SA trigger and thumb
safety as the 1911.

So, you might consider a full size or Commander in .45 ACP
for HD/SD & sometime CCW, and also have an EMP for year
around.

Randall
 
I use my Springfield XD .40 subcompact when wearing light clothing and my Springfield XD .45 compact when wearing heavier clothing. I've been thrilled with the performance of my XD's so far. Their sales numbers speak for themselves. I have a couple 1911's but they hiccup occasionally while I've never had a problem with my XD.
 
I think the HK P7, particularly,is a great ccw gun. It isn't super light but it is super accurate and single action. The "squeeze cocker" gives unequalled safety for a SA first shot pistol...


ymmv
 
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