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Shopping for a concealable Pistol

I have a bunch of Glocks, and they all shoot the same, with the Gen 5 G34 having a better trigger than all the Gen 3's I have. In 3 Gun I shoot a Walther PPQ M2 or the G34 if I want to use a reddot.
 
Hi-Point with Blazer ammo

maybe something in .25 caliber?
 
If you're not hung up on a double stack, get your hands on a PPS M2, or don't, because you'll hate how every other pistol feels after fondling it. Walther has ergonomics figured out.

You can get 8 +1 rounds with the extended mag.
 
grumpy356 said:
Hi-Point with Blazer ammo

maybe something in .25 caliber?
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About 30 years ago my friends and I were out shooting multiple guns in a trash yard. We were astonished at the lack of penetrating power or a .25. A .22 long rifle was far superior to it. I think we stopped it with two layers of heavy blue Jean material. Maybe there are hotter loads today, but I decided I’m not carrying any less than a 9mm/38SP. I’ve heard that a .380 is good, but have no experience.
 
WaterH said:
. I’ve heard that a .380 is good, but have no experience.
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380 is still evolving but in ballistics testing, depending on ammo, a winter coat is usually enough protection to keep a 380 hollow point bullet penetrating a person far enough to kill them or even stop them.
FMJ is better, but still on the weak side.

At the end of the day a 380 is still better than nothing. Not like someone is going to stand there and laugh at you while you are firing a 380 at them.
 
I stopped by another local gun store that had two Kimbers. One stainless and one black. Beautiful stainless model but at $960 (+/-) Uh.....damn.
 
Springfield ronin emp 9mm? Only hits count. All the fire and noise don’t mean shit if you can’t hit what your aiming at. My ex carried a Smith 351pd. 8 shot ..22mag. Light as a feather. Don’t discount the smaller calibers.
 
Stix said:
Springfield ronin emp 9mm? Only hits count. All the fire and noise don’t mean shit if you can’t hit what your aiming at. My ex carried a Smith 351pd. 8 shot ..22mag. Light as a feather. Don’t discount the smaller calibers.
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Correct. Federal punch in .22lr will clear 32 inches of ballistic gel.
 
Stix said:
Springfield ronin emp 9mm? Only hits count. All the fire and noise don’t mean shit if you can’t hit what your aiming at. My ex carried a Smith 351pd. 8 shot ..22mag. Light as a feather. Don’t discount the smaller calibers.
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I’m not sure about this logic. Obviously, if you hit them, that counts. But most criminals are pussys. Do you read the gun encounters in the NRA magazine? Armed thugs break into a house and run when they meet a gun.

I like to say, if you’re a diamond courier, you need to be carrying a bad ass gun because they are coming after you prepared and they are determined to get you. But if you are just a guy that might be carrying $400, they can pick another target.

I do agree the 22mag is a serious round. I heard that more people die from 22’s then any other caliber. Not sure if that’s true. I think it’s because more people get shot with them. Also, the rounds are difficult for doctors to find.
 
WaterH said:
I’m not sure about this logic. Obviously, if you hit them, that counts. But most criminals are pussys. Do you read the gun encounters in the NRA magazine? Armed thugs break into a house and run when they meet a gun.

I like to say, if you’re a diamond courier, you need to be carrying a bad ass gun because they are coming after you prepared and they are determined to get you. But if you are just a guy that might be carrying $400, they can pick another target.

I do agree the 22mag is a serious round. I heard that more people die from 22’s then any other caliber. Not sure if that’s true. I think it’s because more people get shot with them. Also, the rounds are difficult for doctors to find.
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Depends on who you're encountering.

Some 16 year old skinny gangbanger kid who is shitting his pants but trying to act tough? Yeah, he might run when you draw. Honestly he's the least of my threat concerns.

A 25 year old "professional" criminal has seen it all and won't give a fuck that you're carrying. Hope that you're luckier than he is and can land some good hits while you find an exit because he's most likely better than you at this game.

The tweaked out unpredictable 30-40 year old white guy might run, or he might come at you with a fork or try to bite your face off.

In a case where there is a legit threat that needs to be stopped, I want to land a good CNS hit to stop the threat right fuckin now. That means adequate penetration with enough expansion and energy to interrupt CNS function. That means .38SP or 9mm at a minimum.
 
Yotota said:
In a case where there is a legit threat that needs to be stopped, I want to land a good CNS hit to stop the threat right fuckin now. That means adequate penetration with enough expansion and energy to interrupt CNS function. That means .38SP or 9mm at a minimum.
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I completely agree with this paragraph. My wife and I carry 9mm and 38sp for that reason.

As for the other scenarios, let me put it this way, if two guys are armed and behind cover, the aggressor probably will leave unless there’s good incentive (big money) to continue the fight. If you are being attacked, you have no choice but to continue. A bad guy (aggressor) will go after you until he realizes your armed. At that point, is it worth continuing if there’s little or no payoff?

Obviously, meth heads might not react intelligently. But most people realize they can be killed if guns are involved.
 
WaterH said:
I completely agree with this paragraph. My wife and I carry 9mm and 38sp for that reason.

As for the other scenarios, let me put it this way, if two guys are armed and behind cover, the aggressor probably will leave unless there’s good incentive (big money) to continue the fight. If you are being attacked, you have no choice but to continue. A bad guy (aggressor) will go after you until he realizes your armed. At that point, is it worth continuing if there’s little or no payoff?

Obviously, meth heads might not react intelligently. But most people realize they can be killed if guns are involved.
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I fully agree. It's a lot of hypothetical worst case scenarios, when the odds are equally likely that drawing any gun and/or sending one round will be enough to break contact.

And then the sheer act of carrying yourself with confidence and being aware of your surroundings will prevent most of those contacts from ever occuring anyway...
 
Trashman said:
I stopped by another local gun store that had two Kimbers. One stainless and one black. Beautiful stainless model but at $960 (+/-) Uh.....damn.
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Not worth the money....
You want a carry gun not a show piece.
You can buy 2 smiths for 1 kimber.
Kimber quialty had gon to shat
 
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Anyone recommend a J frame yet?:flipoff2:

I love the little 5 shot smiths, especially the airweights. 38spl+p isn't exactly pleasant out of them but it's still far from unpleasant. The light frame .357s are a handful but it sounds like they're out of your price range anyways. Steel frames are obviously heavier than the airweights but they still carry nice. A speed strip will disappear in any pocket.

There's a few alloy k-frames out there as well. Slightly smaller than your gp100 but way lighter. You'll only find them used though so keep an eye out
 
D Nelly said:
Anyone recommend a J frame yet?:flipoff2:

I love the little 5 shot smiths, especially the airweights. 38spl+p isn't exactly pleasant out of them but it's still far from unpleasant. The light frame .357s are a handful but it sounds like they're out of your price range anyways. Steel frames are obviously heavier than the airweights but they still carry nice. A speed strip will disappear in any pocket.

There's a few alloy k-frames out there as well. Slightly smaller than your gp100 but way lighter. You'll only find them used though so keep an eye out
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I ran accross a few at the local shop actually. May have to check em out closer.
 
I'm gonna get flamed for this but I carry 9MM Taurus PT111 G2. The gun is stupid reliable. It eats anything I feed it and always goes bang. The G2C and G3C are the later versions of gun. They are good and they are cheap. Even Taurus haters admit they are decent. Go read and watch reviews.

12 round mag and feels good in the hand.

Also, at $250 you give don't a shit about losing it.
 
Flatbed said:
I'm gonna get flamed for this but I carry 9MM Taurus PT111 G2. The gun is stupid reliable. It eats anything I feed it and always goes bang. The G2C and G3C are the later versions of gun. They are good and they are cheap. Even Taurus haters admit they are decent. Go read and watch reviews.

12 round mag and feels good in the hand.

Also, at $250 you give don't a shit about losing it.
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Had that thought yesterday checking out a PSA Dagger. Cheap enough to really not worry about. It fit well/was a comfortable grip for me. $350.

I would probably opt for the Shield at $399.
 
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Lee said:
If you're not hung up on a double stack, get your hands on a PPS M2, or don't, because you'll hate how every other pistol feels after fondling it. Walther has ergonomics figured out.

You can get 8 +1 rounds with the extended mag.
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PPS M2, that's the model number i couldn't think of earlier. It's durable enough that it doesn't mind if i roll around on gravel, dirt or concrete. It's cheap enough that I don't care at all about scratches or anything of that sort. It's reliable enough that I am confident no matter what condition it is in, it will go bang at least the first time without thought or complaint.
 
Flatbed said:
Also, at $250 you give don't a shit about losing it.
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I get that flack alot too. Really I leave a gun in the pickup, why would I risk a $650 gun getting stolen if I can hit with a $200 gun just as well.

It is great to have nicer guns and those I carry on me, but cheaper guns have a place too.
 
Ill pick up something after KOH. Probabaly the Sig new or used Shield if its still for sale.
 
plym49.2 said:
This. I often carry a Kel-Tec P-11 that I bought for $100. I consider it expendable in terms of everyday wear and tear.
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$100 is about worth it for a Kel Tec.

$200 is about $100 too much.

:flipoff2:

(I've owned a few and I'm glad I traded them off).
 
P365 all the way. Super compact and 15rd capacity (at least in TX). I bought the NRA coyote paclage came with a 10 rd and 2 12 rds. Bought Sig 15 round mags which are great. 1.5 stack mags are awesome.
 
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I have the P365XL and like it. I have big hands and I like having the little extra grip length w/o dealing with an extended mag, which drove me towards the 365XL as opposed to the 365. I figure the 12 rounds is plenty, although you can get the 15 round mag. I looked at the P365XL, the 43X and the M&P 2.0 and shot all three at the local range where they had them to rent. Overall, I liked the sights on the Glock, and it shot well, but it was definitely a little more "snappy" with the recoil than the P365XL. I didn't try out the Hellcat, but talking to one of my buddies he said it was even more snappy than the Glock. The M&P was okay, but I didn't like the trigger or how it felt in my hand as much. My daughter has a P320 Carry and I looked at the P320X, but it is definitely a bigger gun and I felt that it would be a little more difficult too conceal with the only benefit being a couple extra rounds and better shootability due to the increased mass. Since I didn't have a problem shooting the 365XL, for me it wasn't worth going bigger.

I have been thinking about one of the reflex sights like you looked at, since my eyes (59 YO) aren't what they used to be, but you have to definitely spend some time practicing with those sights to ensure that you get your eyes seeing the dot in that small window and aren't searching for the dot as you bring the gun up to firing position. Not something you can't get used to, but just something to be aware of. On the other hand, the most likely situation for self defense you are dealing with a short range, high anxiety situation and you are likely going to just instinctively bring the gun up to point and shoot, so having the perfect sight picture isn't an absolute necessity.
 
giles45shop said:
I have been thinking about one of the reflex sights like you looked at, since my eyes (59 YO) aren't what they used to be, but you have to definitely spend some time practicing with those sights to ensure that you get your eyes seeing the dot in that small window and aren't searching for the dot as you bring the gun up to firing position. Not something you can't get used to, but just something to be aware of. On the other hand, the most likely situation for self defense you are dealing with a short range, high anxiety situation and you are likely going to just instinctively bring the gun up to point and shoot, so having the perfect sight picture isn't an absolute necessity.
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I love gutter/trench/channel sights for this reason. Drawing from under a shirt and jacket means snagging every part of the pistol on everything possible, especially if you're seated. And if you have time to take a calm precise shot you probably have time to beat feet and get someplace else.

The Sig P938 SAS has a cool tritium gutter style sight in the slide. I dig that.
 
Yotota said:
I love gutter/trench/channel sights for this reason. Drawing from under a shirt and jacket means snagging every part of the pistol on everything possible, especially if you're seated. And if you have time to take a calm precise shot you probably have time to beat feet and get someplace else.

The Sig P938 SAS has a cool tritium gutter style sight in the slide. I dig that.
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Thats my top pick right now as well.
 
My brother and I are finally getting our CCW permits so we did a bit of shopping. Tried a couple of range guns and he ended up with the M&P 9 shield. I think we tried out a little Glock and XD as well, Glock did not fit right and the XD trigger was weird, Loooong take up and a mushy release. Maybe it was just the range gun?

I'm all set with my P238 for now. I hear and understand all of the arguments about .380 but being a well made little gun has to be worth something and I like the hammer:homer:. If I feel like I need something bigger I can always tuck the USP40 in my waistband and wait for someone to call the cops.:lmao:
 
If your considering a compact instead of a sub compact, H&K VP9B, I've carried glocks in multiple configs, and a S&W MP Shield for years and the VP9 is one of the best shooting, comfortable, easiest to get back on target semi I've ever shot.

.
 
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