What is the lowest caliber you will carry

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I've carried as low as .32 S&W Long in the past. I've settled nicely now with only two carry guns. One is .45 ACP and the other is .44 Special.
 
"Carry"? I presume you're referring to CCW as I doubt that you care much that no squirrel has ever complained about my .22 being too small. On the basis of that presumption, I've carried .32, .38, .357, 9mm & .45 and would carry any of them again.
 
cpljohn said:
One other thing... How many people that say they feel "undergunned with anything less than a 9mm" have ever been in a shootout? Not many. We live in the USA, not Falluja. IMHO and I mean no disrespect to any other members but I think that the feeling of being undergunned is more paranoia than a realistic mindset.
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I would agree with you, esp in your previous post about distance. If I draw my weapon, it's likely to only be in fairly close quarters or I'm leaving.

However I dont believe in .22. I'm not concerned with killing anyone...I want to STOP them and I do not believe in the .22s power to do that quickly. Possible? Sure. Likely? Much less so, even with a head shot.

Someone else said .22 has killed more people than any other caliber. My *guess* is thats because there are so many .22 guns out there and yes....22 does kill, just not necessarily quickly. I need an attack to stop immediately, period.
 
Someone else said .22 has killed more people than any other caliber. My *guess* is thats because there are so many .22 guns out there and yes....22 does kill, just not necessarily quickly. I need an attack to stop immediately, period.
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I feel the same way.............unfortunatly that limits us to 12 ga. shotguns.
 
Probably a 9mm/38spl, I've been tempted to buy an LCP but havent felt the need.
 
32 acp is the lowest I would go. Low recoil and a 10 round magazine for easy follow up shots, to the upper body/ face.
That's ONLY when I cannot carry my G30. Which is not frequent.
 
9MMare: I totally understand what you mean about stopping power being a concern. Using flat point or hollow point .22 rounds at close range is incredibly devastating, and .22's offer probably the best penetration available (I'm almost positive on that). Granted, a baseball bat or even a carpenters hammer have more stopping power than a .45. I recommend a .22 due to lightness, concealability, lack of recoil and mag capacity.
 
.22LR. I've carried .44 mag, .357 mag, .40 S&W, 9mm, .38 spl, .& 380. I prefer the 9mm, but feel comfortable with the .22LR most of the time. I'm gonna pick up a NAA Black Widow .22 Mag tomorrow.
 
Snappy Mags -- .22 WMR++

If someone can craft a fast-burning version of the .22 mag cartridge, suitable for running in something like the PMR-30, I might well feel confident carrying one of those.

I understand there have been a couple of attempts, but I'm not yet aware of anything that burns all the powder in time to exit a 3-inch or 4-inch barrel without a daylight muzzle flash and a thunderclap detonation.

Said another way, if they can engineer the .22 WMR to get all the energy out of a short barrel and not be louder and brighter than a .38 special or 9mm, then we would have a serious contender.

Imagine having 30 rounds of that on tap, with less recoil than a 9mm.

Then Kel-Tec can make a pocket pistol in it, without having to use a Twisted Industries conversion kit. Eight to ten rounds of .22 WMR in a pocket pistol the size of the PF-9 or P3AT.

Heh.

Fun.

 
I think about it like this. A serious martial artist probably feels safe in almost any situation, knowing that he could defend himself under most circumstances with just his brains and bare hands. In the rock/scissors/paper hierarchy of the dangerous world out there, 22 LR beats Bare Hands. So I'd feel comfortable with 22LR. Yes, I'd rather have a 9 or .357, but if a 22 was what I was carrying, it would provide a lot of comfort in a bad situation.

I have known people who had been shot with 22LR, and they were messed up BAD. Yes, I know, it doesn't have the stopping power of larger calibers. And there are always stories floating around about people who were shot with a 22, or 9, or 38, or whatever the caliber-to-be-bashed-of-the-conversation happens to be, who immediately after receiving multiple wounds by these rounds, shrug off the pain and climb Everest or something.

But I still contend that anyone getting shot with a 22 is almost always messed up BAD, and any bullet is still much more effective and deadly than any fist or foot or other non-firearm weapon.

FWIW

David
 
I have a 44 sp in one house and only my pea-shooter in 38 sp at the other. Upgraded ammo helps as the 38, for example, with better ammo is one step ahead of the plain RN 38 that was the police standard for meany years.
Of course, these are backups for the shotgun...
 
I never have, nor will I ever have a problem with a .22 rim fire or .25 ACP.

There is more to this, but I know something, and I know some of our folks, including Staff members know of what I speak.

Hint: It ain't the make, model, caliber, instead the person armed.
 
I never have, nor will I ever have a problem with a .22 rim fire or .25 ACP.

There is more to this, but I know something, and I know some of our folks, including Staff members know of what I speak.

Hint: It ain't the make, model, caliber, instead the person armed.
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Well, SM I read your post........and was agreeing with you...........and then I read your signature line. :p
 
Well my smallest caliber handgun I have is a .38/.357 so that one. If I had a .22 and was proficient with it I'd carry that, hell I carry a knife everywhere I go and it isn't ballistic, unless I threw it I guess.
 
sm said:
i never have, nor will i ever have a problem with a .22 rim fire or .25 acp.

There is more to this, but i know something, and i know some of our folks, including staff members know of what i speak.

Hint: It ain't the make, model, caliber, instead the person armed.
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well i shot a .22 cal revolver for the first time at the range and man-- i question it's ability on one shot stopping power
 
I've carried a .25 out of the house before, back before I had a .380. I didn't mind it, but I like the .380 better because it doesn't have a safety. I carry my G19 almost all the time (have it on now), but sometimes it's nice to have a wee gun tucked away.
 
Ive never had any trouble dropping a 25 in my pocket. Did so for a long time . I carry 380 KelTec in pocket most time nowdays . Or 45 on the belt.
 
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