taw1126
(.333 member)
26/07/10 03:22 PM
Re: Best handgun for self defense

Quote:

I would carry a Ruger SP101 in 357 Mag. I think it is a good option keeping in mind that is it easily concealable.

BigBoreRS




"Easily concealable" varies tremendously depending on your environment and how many hours per day you're going to carry the thing. I have two .45 ACP 1911's (full-size Colt Gunsite, and Commander-length Ed Brown) and they are my favorite self defense platform. Toting around a couple of magazines worth of standard-pressure 230 grain bonded hollow points will give you a comforting feeling. But it's not necessarily comfortable, and it's very difficult to "accessibly conceal" a 1911 under business casual clothing even with very high quality gunleather (Milt Sparks' VM-II is my personal favorite). So I rarely carry a 1911.

For several years I carried a little Kel-Tec P3AT (.380 ACP) in a pocket holster. Extremely light, and simply vanishes in the front pocket of dress slacks. I carried mine with FMJs to maximize the potential for reaching something vital but I've never been comfortable staking my safety on the .380 ACP. I still own a .380 PPK but it's really heavy for the firepower it provides, and I only keep it around for the James Bond factor.

A few months ago I bought a 9mm Kahr PM9 for pocket carry. It's a small pistol, but still much heavier and larger than the Kel-Tec. I can pocket-carry it, but it "prints" worse in dress pants due to the additional size & weight. The upside is that I'm toting around 147 grain bonded hollow points that pass the FBI's penetration tests instead of the 90-grain FMJs.

I guess my points are as follows:
- it's only worth owning if you have it with you
- there's a very real trade-off between firepower and ease of carry/concealment
- what looks good in the store or on paper might be a real bitch to deal with when you try to conceal it for any length of time
- be realistic about the amount of training you're going to do, and what you're going to be capable of in the confusion/stress/excitement/fog of a life threatening situation



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