I have been a rifle/shotgun person mostly, with only mild forays into the world of pistols. However, I have been meaning to get a concealed weapon permit (or "concealed handgun permit" in Colorado) since the economy went belly up, my Dad died, and I turned 21 within a week of each other. That's not a good combination to inspire confidence in the world being hunky dory, huh? So here I am, taking the NRA Basic Pistol class, and researching pistols.
Let me lay out what I am looking at and why, and maybe someone in the wide world of the interwebs can give me some suggestions.
Ever since I first saw the Ruger LCP, I have had a crush on it. The appeal of having a gun on my person in any weather at all times and just being able to have it in a pocket is very high. It is in .380 Auto, though which is very (too?) small. That is my main waffle point on an LCP.
Going along with Ruger is the SR9c. I am a Ruger person, so this was the next pistol that I started looking at when I waffled on the LCP. I like that it is a "thin" 9mm pistol (but still a double stack magazine) rather than a brick grip. It has a 3.5 inch barrel, which is the longest of the three guns I am looking at, but I think that the thinness would be more important for conceal-ability. The main problem with this gun is that it is harder for me to find one in town. Then, I just have something against 9mm--it's ".45 ACP set to stun," right?
The gun that I am leaning towards most right now is the Springfield XD Sub-Compact. It has a 3 inch barrel, which is shorter than the SR9c, but it is thicker. I like the way the safeties work on it, combining the 1911 grip safety with the Glock trigger safety. I like the feel of it in my hand, also. My problem with this gun now is that it comes in 9mm and .40 S&W. This, of course, opens a whole other can of worms.
When I come at this issue from a purely self-defense power standpoint, of course the .40 wins. Real life isn't that simple though, and when you take into consideration price, availability, and ease of shooting, 9mm can beat about anything except .22 LR. [tinfoil]And in case civilization ever collapses there will be a lot more 9mm out there than the other choices[/tinfoil]. Considering that I started out this whole exercise at .380 Auto, 9mm can look good from a stopping power perspective too.
In any case, I will most likely wait for my first paycheck in a couple more weeks before I actually go out with the intent to purchase. I welcome all constructive comments.
2 comments:
First of all, I'm sorry to hear about your dad. My mom shuffled off this mortal coil right before I turned 21 (right before finals, too!) and it just sucks. No two ways about it.
Now regarding my “advice” ... keep in mind that I am a neophyte. A n00b. I will never be a gun geek. But my selection process went something like this.
1. A .22 in your pocket beats the .45 on your nightstand when the world goes pear-shaped.
2. Anything that doesn’t start with a “4” isn’t worth carrying, because it’s only going to annoy your attacker.
3. I don’t have anywhere to conceal anything that starts with a “4”.
Put this on continuous loop in your brain until you snatch out your own hair, scream and give up looking for the perfect one-size-fits-all situations. Since I can’t afford multiple pistols to wear according what season it is (Can I even carry pearl grips before Easter?), I went to a place with lots of pistols, fondled many until I found one I kept going back to, and then justified it by telling myself that 16+1 rounds and two spare mags would make up for the lack of a “4”. (It’s a Springfield XD BTW … I’m just sayin’)
Pick what (as AD so eloquently puts it) makes you “happy in your pants”.
I think you just summed up the whole thing with your three points. I think I am leaning towards 9mm just because it is more ubiquitous.
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