What's your best recommendation for concealed carry pistol?

For years I carried the S&M 642 and am still a fan of it. I still carry when concealment isn't difficult. Recently, I have moved to the Kimber Solo Carry for most work days becasue it is even easier and more comfortable to conceal in business wear.
 
You really do want to shoot your choices before laying out the money.

I have guns that I really like to hold, but hate to shoot.


I carry a Ruger Sp101 with no hammer spur.

Or my full sized Glock 22. 40 caliber, and a lot of rounds. Usually, in the summer, when it turns to t-shirt weather I'm more likely to have the .357 on me.
 
This has been my EDC for the last couple years. A S&W 1911PC Bobtail (4.25" 45ACP). Absolutely love everything about it. Second pick when going smaller is a Springfield Micro Compact 1911 (3" 45ACP). Third pick is the S&W Shield (in 9mm).

From there, any other choices are made specifically for the day/location/activity. Such as a beater for hiking or working in the yard. May be anything from a Glock, Snubbie (Ruger LCR, Taurus, etc), or anything that catches the eye while browsing the safe and making one of those tough, flavor of the day decisions. [emoji12]. If hiking around in the Southern Utah Desert in Rattlesnake Haven, I may even pack a somewhat heavy Taurus Judge. Probably load with 410's of small to medium shot.

Used to carry a Glock 26 religiously for many years. But started to experiment with different carry rigs and gun thicknesses. I was very surprised at how much comfort could be acquired by losing 1/8" to 1/4" of frame/slide width. While hoping for a single stack Glock for too many years, I ended up with the drive to experiment. And we all know what that brought.....a gun buying frenzy. [emoji16]

I still want one of the new skinny baby Glocks, but not in any hurry now as my carry needs are pretty well covered now (and I also buy waaaay too many knives to budget for heavier metal).

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No love for the .380 auto? The P238 Sport is an incredible little pistol. It's accurate, comfortable to hold, and has low enough recoil to make target practice fun. I'll easily burn through 100+ rounds target shooting before I realize how much money I just dumped into logs and cans. Plus, it's tiny--it even fits inside my back pocket without printing. I'll admit there are better calibers for personal defense, but with the right ammo it's not a bad choice. 102gr BJHP for me. I have a hard time not printing with anything bigger. I guess the p938 would be worth considering too, but I've heard the recoil is a lot worse.
 
Well, I did it boys, went with the Shield 9, couldn't resist the sale at my local shop! Really like the look and feel of this gun and can't wait to get it out this weekend and start loosening it up! One thing about this M&P, it is tight, I'm sure all that will break in over time, shooting and cleaning.

I'm sure everyone is different, but what is your gun cleaner of choice and why, is aerosol the way to go? I know don't over lube it!

Thanks for the comments guys!
 
Kimber Eclipse Pro II Laser 1911 .45 ACP. Small frame, more than enough stopping power, and sadly, just makes me feel like a rock star when I wear it. I will add that I have an XD9S that I love as well, but IMO, you can't beat a Kimber
 
The "best" handgun is the one that fits YOUR hand, the one that YOU shoot well, and that YOU can trust your life to.
 
Cackmandu said:
Well, I did it boys, went with the Shield 9, couldn't resist the sale at my local shop! Really like the look and feel of this gun and can't wait to get it out this weekend and start loosening it up! One thing about this M&P, it is tight, I'm sure all that will break in over time, shooting and cleaning.

I'm sure everyone is different, but what is your gun cleaner of choice and why, is aerosol the way to go? I know don't over lube it!

Thanks for the comments guys!
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I use de-chlorinated brake cleaner for cleaning and lube it with Mobil One.
 
I honestly just use some Hoppe's #9 oil on a bore patch for cleaning, wipe it dry, then put a little Mil-Comm TW25B grease on all the moving parts. Mil-Comm makes a cleaner, Mc25, that I've been meaning to try. It's pretty rare that I ever actually use a dedicated solvent for cleaning a gun though.
 
CloudsRest said:
No love for the .380 auto? The P238 Sport is an incredible little pistol. It's accurate, comfortable to hold, and has low enough recoil to make target practice fun. I'll easily burn through 100+ rounds target shooting before I realize how much money I just dumped into logs and cans. Plus, it's tiny--it even fits inside my back pocket without printing. I'll admit there are better calibers for personal defense, but with the right ammo it's not a bad choice. 102gr BJHP for me. I have a hard time not printing with anything bigger. I guess the p938 would be worth considering too, but I've heard the recoil is a lot worse.
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Got one (P238), and got a screaming deal on it.
'Looked at a ton of .380 models (we don't have options to try-before-buy here unless you know someone who owns one) and kept going back to that one.
Ammo's not cheap, but I have a .22 for having fun with :)

Cackmandu said:
Well, I did it boys, went with the Shield 9, couldn't resist the sale at my local shop! Really like the look and feel of this gun and can't wait to get it out this weekend and start loosening it up! One thing about this M&P, it is tight, I'm sure all that will break in over time, shooting and cleaning.

I'm sure everyone is different, but what is your gun cleaner of choice and why, is aerosol the way to go? I know don't over lube it!

Thanks for the comments guys!
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After shooting, my guns get a full tear-down, cleaning with plain old solvent, reassemble and oil.
Maybe anal-retentive, but it's part of the process for me.


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trailrunner1 said:
...Just get some thing you are comfortable with. Gun sitting in the safe kind of defeats the purpose. If its to big or uncomfortable Most will not carry it
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This is very true. I bought a Glock 20 in 10mm about 10 years ago, thinking I'd use it as a carry gun. It's large, heavy, and uncomfortable to carry, despite a quality kydex holster and a proper gun belt. I stuck it out for a few years, but carried it less and less, until finally pretty much not at all.

I recently bought a Ruger LCP in .380 ACP, and though it's the bottom end of what's considered viable for self-defense, it IS a decent platform, and it's small and light enough that I actually carry it all the time. I have a clip on the side of it, so I can carry it IWB below the belt line, and it's virtually undetectable.

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I carry my LCP in a desanti nemesis pocket holster. Anytime I dont feel like carryiny my Glock it goes in my pocket. Super easy and yeah... at least it is something.
 
LCP 380 here too. Light Weight and easy to operate. I also carry it in a pocket holster. You almost forget it's there.
 
As a few have said, the right CCW is the one that fits your situation and that you have trained with and trust.
Thousands and thousands of rounds down range will give you concealed carry confidence.
Lately, I have been carrying these 3.
Springfield Armory Mil-Spec 1911 in 45ACP
Springfield Armory XD Mod2 in 9mm
Smith and Wesson 640 J frame in 38/357
 
The problem with semiauto's is the jamming factor, too many variables. Get a good wheel gun and call it a day. Semiauto's will jam up when limp wristing.
 
UffDa said:
I recommend a pair of Colt 1851 Navy's. If they were good enough for Wild Bill, they are good enough for you.
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Beat me to it. :D Besides, you can always escape, and then enjoy the perplexed look on the officers face on crimestoppers tv spots. Be even neater if you could drop a coin from the era near the scene. That would turn some heads forensically, and not much ballistics to work with.

"We're uh..we're looking for..well. We think that..er.. did anyone see anything weird, or even spooky, or anything, on the day of.."
 
My friend just got an extended magazine for his Ruger 380.Even with his fairly small hand he's much happier with the fit. Some thing youmight think about.
 
d762nato said:
The problem with semiauto's is the jamming factor, too many variables. Get a good wheel gun and call it a day. Semiauto's will jam up when limp wristing.
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'Not a good idea to be carrying a gun if you can't avoid limp-wristing when shooting.
And keep in mind the semi-auto has been around and successfully used since 1885, by dozens if not hundreds of MILLIONS worldwide.
An old stat, but in 1994, there were 26 million semi-auto handguns in the US alone.

A blanket statement to their inefficacy is one helluva stretch of the imagination.
 
robgmn said:
'Not a good idea to be carrying a gun if you can't avoid limp-wristing when shooting.
And keep in mind the semi-auto has been around and successfully used since 1885, by dozens if not hundreds of MILLIONS worldwide.
An old stat, but in 1994, there were 26 million semi-auto handguns in the US alone.

A blanket statement to their inefficacy is one helluva stretch of the imagination.
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I didn't say I had a problem with it but I have seen it happen as well as certain loads and ejectors and extractors and springs ect. ect. cause semi autos to jam up. I've had some pretty high dollar 1911's choke also and is why I don't trust them. I guess it depends on if Murphy is riding with you when the balloon goes up in the end. Do you have stats on how many of those 26 million semi autos have malfunctioned at one time or another. I would wager quite a few. :D
 
The flat semi autos are nice and easy to conceal. I really like my ruger sr9c. I also carry a 6 shot .357 snubnose quite often. I tend to prefer revolvers, but the snubnose takes more practice to be consist.
 
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