I'm interested in what types of pistols you guys are carrying on a regular basis and what caliber. I was thinking if I got my ccw and I was going to carry (this is all hypothetical) I would probably get the glock 30 which is a .45 subcompact. The other option would be a HK45c but I think it's going to be too big. .45 ammo is pretty expensive so I wont shoot it that much and I doubt getting a glock would be the end of the world and it's cheap which is nice. Do you guys prefer carrying something really small? I also was looking at the sig 239 but I don't know enough about the characteristics of .357 ammo. Also what are your opinions on the Kimber Ultra Carry II? Also how obtrusive is it to carry these guns?

Which brings my next question: what's the best caliber for personal protection? Now I know it all depends on what you shoot best, but in your opinions based on your abilities what do you recommend. I have been talking to a lot of street cops and around here, their all using standard issue S&W .40s. To be honest though i don't get the feeling the average cop knows a lot about his weapon, it was kind of surprising! If you guys could just recommend calibers and discuss what characteristics of those or other calibers influenced your preferences/decisions I would really appreciate it. I can shoot a .45 without much issue so recoil isn't a huge factor for me I'm a pretty big guy.

Thanks.

 

I cary either my SA EMP 9mmor my S&W .357.

 

Although I carry all three major calibers (including a Glock 23 in .40, and an H&K P30 in 9mm), the gun I most frequently carry is a .45: The H&K USP Compact Tactical.

The other two have significantly more capacity, but my guns rarely make it out of the car, I always have a spare magazine, and the Compact Tactical is the first .45 I have found that has that elusive combination of concealable size and great ergonomics with acceptable barrel length, to make it a truly useful weapon in a variety of settings.

Plus I have to say that, as someone who has had to point a gun at someone else before on more than one occassion, although the additional caliber size is really only a big plus when firing into vehicles, the intimidation factor when someone else is looking down the barrel of a .45 is an added deterrent to escalation . . .

 

Blue is on to something with the USP Compact in .45. It is the best of both worlds.

As for me personally, I enjoy a .45, full size, unless I'm in a situation where wardrobe absolutely prevents any chance of a full size 1911. If I cannot carry a full size 1911, I'll go to a Glock. I'm just not a fan of compact 1911's. I like the .45 round even though one cannot always carry a lot of ammo with it. So I rely on the fact that I will in all likelihood hit what I'm aiming at, and tear a chunk off.

Ironically, if I do not carry a .45, I will carry a 9mm. 9mm got a bad rap by a bunch of guys that can't shoot. And with a 9, you have the added advantage of less recoil, and it is a natural round for a compact, or sub-compact; not to mention the obvious benefit of bringing more lead to drink at the party.

I guess thats bi-polar carry, eh?

 

I love it when you get all gangsta on me...

 

Get whatever caliber you can shoot effectively. There will be a bunch of guys that say you HAVE to carry a .45 because of the dropping power of the gun. To those guys I say this. Let me shoot you with a 9mm and see how if feels. Then I'll shoot you with a .22 and let me know how that gets ya.

A bullet in any caliber is going to hurt somebody. If you are carrying as a police man or in a combat situation, I think that the bigger the caliber the better. For a daily carry, in a guy that you will most likely never use, get something small, easy to shoot, and reliable.

 

It's interesting that you say that because I was reading something somewhere about how a couple police officers liked HKs because criminals were more intimidated by the shape and aesthetics of the gun. The gun they were referring to was a USP .40, but obviously a .45 is gonna have even more of an effect. In your guys opinion do you think of the look of the gun may be a factor. I can see how someone who knows guns might be more afraid of someone with a 1911 or a HK45c because odds are the owner likes guns which means he shoots them regularly...thus more effective at terminating a target.

Funny story:
I was at the range tuesday and there were three wannabe gangsters with their FUBU and chains and all that crap speaking in ebonics at the range annoying everyone being loud ect. They were shooting two .45s and a m4, all of which they rented. When I walked up into my lane next to them they gave me some look like to threaten me and I was just like whatever. These idiots were shooting those over sized human silhouettes targets at 15 feet lol this is with the m4 too and their spraying crap all over that thing. So I had 6 12" diameter targets, they were on like 24/16 pieces of paper but you get the idea. So I took out my humble USP 9mm sent the target out 60 ft and put ten straight into the target and it really put things into perspective for me. Accuracy really is everything, and it made me think about if I was in a situation just how much more I am prepared as a result of shooting. You know everyone should really get a gun and start practicing as soon as they can. I am so comfortable with my gun right now and I'm getting pretty good at shooting too. Anyways I have no idea why I just typed this but im too lazy to delete it.

 

I agree completely with everything you said. I have rented .45s a couple times at the range and I shoot them pretty much as good as my 9mm, but it takes me longer to re-aim. However the added stopping power cancels out that lag in aim for me personally. I just wondered what the pros and cons were of different ammo types, and how caliber may affect you differently depending on the size of the gun. I am still new to this and I just want to learn as much as I can, and I trust you guys so I feel like getting info here is a real advantage I really appreciate all you guys helping out since before I even got into this. It's hard to read through foreign forums not knowing who the bullshitters are, and at the gun shop you never know when they are just trying to sell you.


I really do appreciate your help and time guys. I am very happy that I got the USP 9mm, which was a result of a lot of your guys advice. If I had gotten a .45, which is something I really want, but the ammo costs would just mean I would practice less. Hopefully I can add a .45 into the arsenal but I will still practice mainly with my 9mm.

thanks,
bill

 

Says the kid driving a Ferrari and a Maybach...

Pick a caliber that you shoot well with and go with that. Don't let cost of ammo be a deciding factor on what you choose OR how much you practice to be come proficient.

 

It's important to understand how a weapon works before it's chosen. Handgun rounds cause death due to either direct destruction of vital structures such as brain or heart or high spinal cord, hemorrhage or delayed death due to infection, DIC, etc. Hemorrhage is the most common cause of death from a handgun. From police and combat shootings, data have been tabulated with regard to the one shot stop capability of certain rounds; everything above .380 auto is 90+% effective, given a center mass hit.

That said, bad shooting against big people with a small gun is a bad idea. I saw one case where a wiseass in a strip club shot a 350+ pound bouncer 5 times with a 9mm, and the beating that the bouncer gave the bad guy was more severe than the shooting. The bouncer left the hospital first. So, if you're using a smaller caliber, use a better ammo. I highly doubt that anyone would be standing after five rounds of Corbon 115gr +p rounds.

Personally, I prefer a .45 because of the bigger holes the bullets make. Bigger holes mean more bleeding. Philosophically, I try to stick with .45 and 9mm, because if the crap ever hit the fan, it might be hard to find less common calibers. I own .38, .357 Sig, .303 British (rifle) and some odd stuff. However, if my family and I have to high tail it to the hills, we'll bring .45, 9mm, .223, .308 and 12ga.