Up until now, when I've carried, I've carried my XD9 4". Which is fine except a bit large, heavyish, and not the most easily concealable. Which means i don't carry it. I got rid of my Bersa a while ago (nothing wrong with it, just got a good trade for something else) so at current, I don't own anything smaller. So I'm looking around for a small, lightish, slimish, easily concealable-ish, 9mm. My current list is:
The Star is essentially ideal. Cheap, small, light, slim, SA. Unfortunately it's a 30 year old gun, getting harder to find/fix, and I've heard the frames don't take P+ all that well. The Kel-Tec is right there, but I was hoping to get an SA or and SA/DA piece, and nothing against KT, but it's a new design. The Para and the Sig are nice, but a bit dear for what I'd put them through, and in the case of the Para, I have a love/hate relationship with the 1911. The simplest answer would be the XD, because it would best leverage the kit I already own and maintain a single "manual of arms", but having handled it, it doesn't feel that much smaller. FYI, I've never handled the Sig, but all the others I've seen.
The short list varies day to day, but I'm leaning toward the PF-9 or the P239. Are there any others that I should look at, or anything else I should consider? What should the choice be, and why? Any help/suggestions would be appreciated.
- Star BM
- Kel-Tec PF9
- Para Hawg 9
- Sig P239
- XD9 Compact
The Star is essentially ideal. Cheap, small, light, slim, SA. Unfortunately it's a 30 year old gun, getting harder to find/fix, and I've heard the frames don't take P+ all that well. The Kel-Tec is right there, but I was hoping to get an SA or and SA/DA piece, and nothing against KT, but it's a new design. The Para and the Sig are nice, but a bit dear for what I'd put them through, and in the case of the Para, I have a love/hate relationship with the 1911. The simplest answer would be the XD, because it would best leverage the kit I already own and maintain a single "manual of arms", but having handled it, it doesn't feel that much smaller. FYI, I've never handled the Sig, but all the others I've seen.
The short list varies day to day, but I'm leaning toward the PF-9 or the P239. Are there any others that I should look at, or anything else I should consider? What should the choice be, and why? Any help/suggestions would be appreciated.