# Best caliber and type concealed carry pistol



## Breeze Fabricators (Oct 2, 2007)

Okay guys whats you top picks based on price,manufacture, weight, caliber?


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## sureicanfish (Sep 30, 2007)

10 pager...


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## MrFish (Aug 21, 2009)

sure said:


> 10 pager...


I'm going with 12. John B. is gonna insult someone on page 4 and give it a life of it's own.

And to the OP, go to a gun store and see what fits your hand and then see if someone has one that you can try out.


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## ghost95 (May 4, 2009)

Well, the gun you carry is better than the one you leave at home.

That being said...S&W hammerless airweight J-Frame 38spl +P with Critical Defense rounds. In a pocket holster. Works great. Reliable. Accurate at self defense ranges. Light enough to not be an issue for pocket carry. A little bulkier than a semi but less prone to malfunction.


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## rychefiji1 (Sep 30, 2007)

Beretta PX4 Storm Subcompact. 9mm 13 round magazine. Fits in my pocket.


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## John B. (Oct 2, 2007)

Lmao mr. fish...

"Best" is all relative...

you can ask a hundred different people and probably get a hundred different answers.

As for me, what I'm wearing dictates what I will be carrying that day. I usually rotate between a Sig 938, glock 26, or glock 19. All of those are 9mm...

Sometimes I carry a ruger sr1911 commander, which is 45acp.



And yes, this will be at least a 10 pager.


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## John B. (Oct 2, 2007)

You need to pick your carry pistol based on these three criteria...

Comfort, a gun is no good to you if you're not going to wear it comfortably every day.

Reliability, I got is no good to you if the damn thing doesn't work.

Capacity, a gun that holds two bullets isn't going to do you any good if you have three assailants after you.


Those are the top 3 factors in my opinion, 1 and 2 really being in a tie for first.. Comfort can be helped greatly by a good holster and good belt.


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## sureicanfish (Sep 30, 2007)

I have a Khar p380, it slips into any pocket


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## KingMe!!! (Apr 25, 2008)

In the winter I carry a s&w shield in 9 mm. Summertime I carry a s&w bodyguard in 380. But don't choose something based off what others are carrying. There are some ranges that offer the opportunity to try out different handguns. The one out near the gb zoo does this I believe. Good luck in your search. What ever you buy, train with it. Shoot the hell out of it until you could do everything with your eyes closed.


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## Hopin4aboat (Jul 5, 2009)

I carry a shield 9 in a desantis intruder or a G17 also in an intruder depending on what I'm wearing and the weather. Every once in a while I'll carry my wife's air weight S&S j-frame also. Get what's comfortable reliable and affordable.


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## welldoya (Oct 5, 2007)

You came to the right place cuz I'm an expert and know a lot more than the rest of these guys put together........................said everybody who is reading this.
Like others have said, it all depends. Do you have a waist and hips ? Then you can wear a bigger gun without your pants falling down in an IWB or even OWB with your shirt over it.
Personally, I have a hard time keeping my pants up even without the extra weight so I usually carry either a Ruger LCP .380 in my pocket or a S&W 642 .38. Both are very compact and lightweight.
Sometimes during the winter, I will carry a Kahr CW9 in my jacket pocket.
I look at it this way - there's a 99.99% chance that I'm not going to need that gun so I'm not going to be uncomfortable carrying it around. Hopefully my choices will keep somebody off me and my family till the cops arrive.
Just remember - a .380 in the pocket beats a .45 at home in the safe so choose what you can comfortably carry.


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## Ocean Master (May 20, 2008)

ghost95 said:


> Well, the gun you carry is better than the one you leave at home.
> 
> That being said...S&W hammerless airweight J-Frame 38spl +P with Critical Defense rounds. In a pocket holster. Works great. Reliable. Accurate at self defense ranges. Light enough to not be an issue for pocket carry. A little bulkier than a semi but less prone to malfunction.


That's my pick and gun.


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## Brandon_SPC (Nov 2, 2013)

I carry a shield 9 but what I wear most of the time athletic shorts, athletic pants etc makes it hard to carry a shield and the same thing with sweat pants during the winter. I honestly think down here in Florida the best conceal carry pistols are any of the small 380s in the front pocket. A bad guy will not know the difference when he gets shot in the chest with a 90gr bullets vs even a 230gr all the know is that crap hurts. Go to the store and hold a few, ask to try a holster and wear it for a second. Some great carry ones are

S&W Shield
Ruger LC9
Springfield XDS
Ruger LCP
S&W Airweight
S&W Bodyguard
Kahrs
Glock 42, 43, and some of the sub compacts
and a few other I am probably missing... Go place your hands on some of these and figure out which one fits your the best.... They have all been tried and people love them...


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## johnsonbeachbum (Oct 1, 2007)

John B. said:


> You need to pick your carry pistol based on these three criteria...
> 
> Comfort, a gun is no good to you if you're not going to wear it comfortably every day.
> 
> ...


 How about ammo availability in stores?
Many calibers were not on the shelves for many months or more just recently.


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## John B. (Oct 2, 2007)

johnsonbeachbum said:


> How about ammo availability in stores?
> Many calibers were not on the shelves for many months or more just recently.


9mm or .45ACP are the 2 most common pistol cartridges in America. 

Stick with these and you won't have a problem.


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## Gio (May 27, 2012)

I mostly carry a Kahr CM9 in a Galco pocket holster. I have carried it for three years, and have total faith in it (over 2,000 rounds through it). I have been shooting a Kahr CM45 for about a year now, but it is not perfect yet. I still have some kinks to work out, but hope to get there, as I like the stopping power of a .45. I have carried both a 1911, and a G17, in iwb holsters, but really like to pocket carry, living where we do.
As everyone else has said, it is a personal thing, and shoot as many different guns as possible, until you find what is perfect for you.


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## SteveCal (Jun 21, 2014)

KelTec P3AT in a DeSantis pocket holster. Nine years and about 1000 rounds. Keeps on tickin' and nobody knows its there but me. :thumbup:


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## lettheairout (Mar 11, 2008)

Sissies. I carry a .223. Does everything you need. Self defense to deer hunting 

sent from somewhere your not


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## welldoya (Oct 5, 2007)

lettheairout said:


> Sissies. I carry a .223. Does everything you need. Self defense to deer hunting
> 
> sent from somewhere your not


In a pocket holster ?


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## Sea-r-cy (Oct 3, 2007)

Black widow in .22 mag. Only for up close and personal.


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## chaddd (Jul 27, 2010)

25-06


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## JT Powell (Jun 20, 2012)

S&W shield 9mm, or Springfield xds 45, or Bond arms snake slayer 410, 45, or glock 42,43, or colt 460 Rowland, but that's just me. Still waiting for promised insult.


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## lettheairout (Mar 11, 2008)

No I actually carry a Springfield xd sub compact in .40. Great gun. Had lots of work done to it. 

sent from somewhere your not


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## damnifino3 (Sep 23, 2012)

Wow only 3 pages??? My 2 cents is S&W shield 9mm and Glock 42 (very thin and light)


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## JT Powell (Jun 20, 2012)

All jokes aside Mike's has the S&W shield 9mm on sale for 349 Father's Day, go hold one and see if it fits your hand, if it does I'll tell you I have no complaints outa mine.


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## damnifino3 (Sep 23, 2012)

JT Powell said:


> All jokes aside Mike's has the S&W shield 9mm on sale for 349 Father's Day, go hold one and see if it fits your hand, if it does I'll tell you I have no complaints outa mine.


Great deal!!! I paid $400 for mine a few years ago. Great pistol hides well.


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## BnB (Jun 24, 2014)

rychefiji1 said:


> Beretta PX4 Storm Subcompact. 9mm 13 round magazine. Fits in my pocket.


piece of shit unless you like FTE


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## BnB (Jun 24, 2014)

sure said:


> Khar p*380*,


I guess that's better than noting


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## BnB (Jun 24, 2014)

Brandon_SPC said:


> S&W Shield
> Ruger LC9
> 
> Now we're talking. Get the Ruger LC9s for the trigger
> ...


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## BnB (Jun 24, 2014)

Keep an eye out on this website. They shipped my Shield for $350 without shipping and I paid $20 for my FFL

They are sold out a lot of the time but every now and then you will get lucky

https://www.armsunlimited.com/Pistols-s/8291.htm?searching=Y&sort=5&cat=8291&show=40&page=1&brand=S%26W


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## Capt. Mako (Aug 21, 2014)

Another J-frame aficionado here. I carry the awesome S&W M&P 340 snubby.
Great gun; run the full-house .357s or dial it down to some easy shooting .38s.
I have Crimson Trace laser grips on it and that combined with the front night sight make it an fantastic carry gun. Front pocket holster and a speed loader in my other pocket and good-to-go.
Oh, BTW, I have tried almost all of the semi-autos, too, including Sigs, Glunks, H&K P7M8, Berettas, P3AT, LCP, the list is endless (almost). I can shoot the J-frame with aplomb; accurate, reliable and just a hoot. They are a little pricey, but I have had this little pocket rocket since the mid-90s. Oh, I also
took out the ILS and installed the little plug in it's missing hole/in it's stead.

GIT SOME!


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## BnB (Jun 24, 2014)

Hammerless DOA CC weapon, lol


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## Capt. Mako (Aug 21, 2014)

I see the new Shield .45 is available soon.
Now I do love some .45 caliber. Will have to check one out.


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## bigbulls (Mar 12, 2008)

I carry a shield 9mm 99% of the time.
I have a BG380 I can throw in my pocket when I make a quick run to the store.

I don't like to carry a double stack pistol. IMO they are too fat and can get heavy real quick when fully loaded, even in a great holster. I had an XD subcompact when they first came out and it was left on the night stand more than carried because it was just too dang heavy when loaded.

I prefer the 9mm over the 40 or 45 for several reasons. First and foremost is that they are easier to shoot quickly and accurately than the 40 or 45, all other things being equal. They have higher magazine capacity which is never a bad thing, especially in single stack pistols. Ammo is generally up to half as much as the 40 or 45 so you get to practice twice as much. The dead guy will never know the difference between any of them assuming you are using quality HP ammo and not ball ammo.

Manufacturer is really up to you. Glock, S&W, Ruger would be my top three choices for pistols costing $500 or less. They make reasonably priced pistols and revolvers and their customer service, if something goes wrong, is fantastic... Especially S&W and Ruger. Kahr makes nice pistols but if you ever need their warranty good friggin luck.

It really boils down to what feels good in your hand. Every one is different. For example... Glock is a great pistol but I can't stand the ergonomics. I prefer a straighter grip as I tend to naturally point a Glock right over someones head when drawing a Glock from the holster and have to force myself to correct that to shoot it accurately.


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## welldoya (Oct 5, 2007)

BnB said:


> Keep an eye out on this website. They shipped my Shield for $350 without shipping and I paid $20 for my FFL
> 
> They are sold out a lot of the time but every now and then you will get lucky
> 
> http://www.armsunlimited.com/Pistols-s/8291.htm?searching=Y&sort=5&cat=8291&show=40&page=1&brand=S&W


I wouldn't deal with that company. I ordered a bunch of magazines from them and got an e-mail that they had shipped. I waited two weeks and contacted them. Their response ? "Well, they haven't REALLY shipped, we are out of the 33 rounders but they should be here anytime." I cancelled the order. There are plenty of responsible places to order from such as Bud's or Grabagun .


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## MCDAVE (Apr 8, 2010)

Go to WWW.sneakypete.com and you can pretty much carry any pistol you want outside your pants and very comfortable.


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