Well, school, work, life in general has been canceled for the rest of the day here in Knoxville. We've got slush on the roads and about 2 inches of snow in the yard. It's good, wet snow too, so perfect for making a snowman. I'll try to post pictures later. :-)
I've been thinking of getting my concealed carry permit lately. I think of this from time-to-time, most of the time convincing myself that I have no need of it, but lately I think I don't care and I just want it. So, my question is what do I want to carry? The only guns I have any more are antiques and shouldn't be carried for fear of damage (shot is fine, if proper care is taken).
I'm really a large caliber person, so I prefer something .40 or above, but I really don't want to carry a bulky weapon all the time either. I've always been a fan of the looks of the Walther PPK, but I never liked its action. Luckily I have hands small enough to avoid being eaten by the infamous PPK, but its extreme muzzle climb has always annoyed me.
I've considered a revolver, but it's a bit bulky to keep in the small of your back, especially in the calibers I like. The last revolver I owned was a S&W .41 Mag with a 2" barrel and round grip (Lew Horton special). I loved it, but it was sorta useless. It was just a very expensive noisemaker 'cause it was WAY too big to be a useful carry pistol (same frame as .44 Mag, just more metal), and with that 2" barrel, was about useless over 10 yards. I just couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with it. Likely, it was the owner's fault, not the pistol, but I could always shoot well with others, so I blamed it.
On a revolver, I really like a minimum of a 4" barrel for shooting, and one of the reasons I want a new pistol is for target practice. I'm giving up smoking, so I need an expensive hobby to take its place. ;-) For instance, on a Colt Peacemaker, I prefer either the 4 3/4" or 5 1/2 barrels. I'm good with the 7" but I don't like carrying that monster in my belt. For me, that's a scabbard pistol. And like I said, I really am not fond of anything much below .40, so that leaves out most small frame revolvers. I do like a .357 Mag, but not as much something with larger lead.
OK, so my ideal weapon is the size, shape, and width (very important) of a Walther PPK, comes in .45 Long Colt or .44 Magnum (Yeah, I'll step down to one of those new fangled, modern rounds, but only for convenience's sake. It's dueced hard to find .45LC at Wal-Mart.) Oh, and no Glocks. I just don't want a mini-Glock. Full sized would be OK, but I'm not carrying one. I don't care if it kicks like a mule, as long as the muzzle climb isn't like shooting a .50 Desert Eagle. Sights don't matter to me, iron or adjustable is just fine. Double action is preferable, but I'm good with single, too (being a long time single action army fan, it's fine). I can get used to anything. Qualified applicants apply within.
The Truth About The SPAS-12... - FirearmFreedom
20 minutes ago
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17 comments:
What's wrong with Glocks? Hell, I hated them until I shot yours. Now, I carry a G30. Midsized (about the size of a G19), 11 rounds of 45 ACP, and concealable.
And the Para USA carry model 1911s with the double action trigger are nice.
And people seem to like the new Springfield XDs.
-SayUncle
Springfield Amory makes a 3" 1911 in 9MM and .40S&W. Might that fit within your specs?
I love the 1911's, so I'll give that one a look. As far as the Glocks go, the little one's are too bulky for my tastes. The slides are too wide.
I'm a .45 Colt man also. My carry piece is a Taurus model 450 in that caliber. It's total Titanium so doesn't weigh much and 5 shot so the cylinder is not too wide and Crimson Trace says they'll start selling grips this March. I don't think Taurus still makes it but used can be found. I use a mostly nylon holster and just stick it in my right front pocket. You'll be surprised at how handy it is. As for firepower I figure one shot from a .45 Colt per opponent will certainly do the trick.
Take a peek at the Kahr lineup. You can get them in Europellet, .40 Short & Weak, or .45 ACP, not to mention that they are single stack, reliable, and the slides are thin.
As far as DA triggers go, the Kahr is about the finest your gonna find on a plastic pistol. I highly recommend them, especially if you like DA revolver triggers.
I also suggest one of Springfield Armory's little 1911s. You can get them in Commander, 4", 31/2", and 3" barrels. You can't beat that!
Buy a gun you can and will carry, rather than seeking an ideal carry gun that will maximize firepower or caliber, at the expense of weight or size. I have a 3" 38Spl that I carry most often, and since I don't go to gang-territory biker bars, I do not feel under gunned.
+1 to the Kahr, they're the same size as a PPK, but weigh less, and come in everything from .45 ACP and down.
Walther's PPS (NOT PPK or PPKs) is the same size as the PP/PPK. It comes in either 9mm or .40S&W.
Have a look at it. It's good enough that my wife wants one, and normally she carries a 1911, albeit a very short one.
Regards,
Rabbit.
Well sir in " big bore " there is a plethora of thin 1911s in almost any size you could care to name . For myself my " carry " .45 is a Kahr p45 and i am over all pleased with it tho for the life of me i cant understand the mag capacity with the full sized grip lol . Kahr also makes the k and p .40 which is almost exactly the size of the walther pp pistol . If you can get along with a double action ( feels more like a revolver than a glock ) then a Kahr isn't a bad way to go for a ccw , color me fanboy because over the years found myself still owning 3 of them , and i dont lightly pull " traders " into personal stock .
You might want to think about the S&W Scandium/Unobtanium .357's. I have a 3" .357 that weighs about 12 oz and will dump out over 500 foot pounds of energy per round. Paired with Crimson Trace lasergrips, the ability to hit pop cans at 25 yards is within easy reach of an average shooter.
Caveat: The recoil of full-power ammo ranks somewhere on the scale between "Unbearable" and "Unbelievable". You can practice with .38's, and will have about the same point of impact as long as you use the same weight bullet in each. When I was carrying it out in the woods as a backup, I loaded 158 JSP's, and now that it is mostly a house gun/carry gun it is loaded with 125 JHP's. Shoots really well, but it is NOT a plinker even with .38's.
You're going to have to trade of SOMETHING. If you get an ideal range/plinking pistol, it will be too heavy or bulky for long-term carry. If you focus only on carry, your pistol will usually lack something in the comfort/power trade-off area. TANSTAAFL (There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch).
If you want to try a Taurus .45LC titanium, let me know. I bought one when they first came out and carried it for a while. Works fine, just doesn't have the right combination of size, weight, concealability and power that I was looking for.
Formerflyer (frmrflyer at ay-oh-el dot com)
Here's another vote for Kahr. I own a pm9 and take it everywhere. I considered the pm40 but thought the muzzle flip was to harsh compaired to the pm9. The pm45 wasn't yet released, but I shot an early production model. It had more of the 45 push then muzzle flip and was able to get it on target faster then the pm40. Probably would have bought it if the wait wasn't so long at the time. Try it, you won't be disappointed. If you are firm on wanting a 45lc or 44mag look at a derringer.
www.amderringer.com/m1.html
a two shot 45lc/.410 might be what you are looking for.
Taurus Millennium Pro comes in .45. It's concealable with a 10 round capacity. I/ve got one in .40 that I like ok. The Smith M&P compact in .40 is my main carry gun right now. I have carried my Taurus 450 but find it a little wide. I've got a Sig P239 in 40 that is a little heavier than some, but it conceals pretty well and it shoots like a Sig.
James Nelson
Well, unfortunately, the PPS does not come in either of those calibers, but it does come chambered in .40 short-and-weak. Personally, I have nothing but good things to say about my 9mm PPS, though magazines are a bit on the expensive side (as with all things Walther, I suppose).
Going to have to add another vote for the Kahr, I have a PM45 and a CW45, and love them both, although the PM is a bit hard to hold, it's so tiny. They run a smidge over 1 inch thick, very easily concealed.
How about a Simmerling?
http://www.amderringer.com/lms.html
Wow, that's a lot of love for the Kahrs. I'm not familiar with them, but obviously I should get that way.
Also, I'll check around for a PPS. I can live with a .40.
As for 9mm, I'm not such a fan. My father, in a moment of absolute idiocy, put one through his calf, and it was a Black Talon. Didn't leave much of a hole and it sure didn't slow him down much. Seems more of a plinking round to me. My first semi-auto pistol was a Browning Hi-Power knock-off. I loved to target shoot with it, but I was 10 and easily impressed.
:-)
Thanks for all the advice!
I have to vote for the Kahr CW-40
see
http://home.comcast.net/~chiledogproductions/kahr-cw-40-CD.jpg
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