Best Caliber for Concealed Carry

[perbell]

I received my concealed carry permit and want to know what the best caliber is for a concealed carry. Looking at a PPS or Sig Sauer. Any suggestions?

 

[DanJ]

First, congrats on your conceal carry. What is the best cal. for carry? That is a hot topic. The best advice is carry what you are comfortable with, that you can shoot accurately. Most will advise 9mm because it is a very good round and it will have more rounds compared to the same size gun in a larger caliber. 9mm has less recoil than larger calibers which allows you to get back on target faster. You can find ammo for 9mm easier and as cheap as the 380 which is a decent round. I have a Sig P938 9mm and love it. I also carry a .45 ACP. Shot placement is the most important thing.

 

[Stan1]

This topic has pretty well been covered. First off, congrats on your permit. Second, everyone will have an opinion on which caliber and gun you should carry. However, you will also see many who say you should try out many guns to see what fits your hand and shooting style the best. Then you should stick with the most powerful caliber you are comfortable with and able to handle. To do this, you may need to call in a favor to a friend who has many pistols in many calibers, or visit a range that rents guns out and try as many as you can. This would be your best bet. As for me, I started carrying a Walther ppk/s .380. I however changed to a Smith and Wesson Shield .40 cal. I liked the Walther, but wanted a more 'powerful' round. After I switched, I never looked back. Since I am very familiar with guns, I knew what I was getting with the .40 cal. in recoil and was confident I could 'handle' it. I still make regular trips to the range to practice so I don't get rusty. This is just my two cents worth. Hope it helps! :biggrin:

 

[AzBanks]

The best advice is carry what you are comfortable with, that you can shoot accurately. Most will advise 9mm because it is a very good round and it will have more rounds compared to the same size gun in a larger caliber. 9mm has less recoil than larger calibers which allows you to get back on target faster. Shot placement is the most important thing.

I second what Dan has posted.

In several tests it has been shown that there is less than 1/10 of an inch difference in expanded diameter between 9mm, .40, and .45 with current high performance hollow point ammunition.

 

[cougar98332]

The one you are most competent with that is capable of serious defense use. Handle as many as you can before you buy. And Congrats!

sent from my mobile using the USA CARRY 2.0 app

 

[apvbguy]

bigger is better, carry the gun that you can both conceal properly and handle well that has the most knock down power and mag capacity

 

[mojoman]

Yep, you pretty much have it and congrats on your CCP, I love my .45s it just me but I've being thinking about get a 9mm or just stop where I'm at because I'm happy on what I got.

 

[Rocketgeezer]

As for caliber use as big as you are comfortable with, as for gun size same thing, be it a small 380 or 500 magnum, because if your not comfortable with your gun you tend not to carry it, or find excuses not to, so try many different guns before you buy, then carry it 24/7

 

[s0nspark]

For me it came down to finding the gun first and then choosing the caliber based on available options.

d(-.-)b

 

[wolf_fire]

The one that you WILL carry because YOU enjoy it and it fits well on your person and the one that you can shoot well.

You've got many calibers to choose from. The more popular carry calibers are .380, 9mm, .40 and .45

Of these, the least expensive rounds are the 9mm. If cost of ammo is a concern, this would make a good choice. If you are looking for something very small to conceal incredibly well you may want to look at a .380 or even a pocket 9mm. If you want a full size handgun (these can still be concealed, I conceal a full size double stacked .40 every day) that has good ballistic energy, then you are looking into the .40 and .45 calibers.

That's a rather broad overview of what's out there.

 

[wa1hog]

I wouldn't want to get shot with anything. Just looking a pistol should more than scare most people off.



Ruger LCP

 

[wolf_fire]

I wouldn't want to get shot with anything. Just looking a pistol should more than scare most people off.



Ruger LCP

That's a dangerous mindset to have. Because if you are ever confronted with a situation where the bad guy has a gun and you do happen to shoot him with a tiny caliber gun (in response to your "anything" comment) and only inflict pain upon him, then you are in a world of doo-doo. Because now you have a ticked off, wounded bad guy with a gun coming after you.... that is if he hasn't already shot you.

We carry so we can stop whatever threat comes after us or our family. We shoot to stop the threat and continue to shoot until that threat has been stopped. We do NOT carry to ward away evil spirits by the sight of our gun. And we certainly do not present our guns as a means of scaring someone off, this is called brandishing.

And concerning this Just looking a pistol should more than scare most people off. To a hardened criminal, no this wouldn't be enough to scare that person off especially if they were armed as well.

 

[Nightmare45]

There is no gun with a one shot knock down capability, practice and find out which weapon you are comfortable with, personal preference is bigger is better, buy good equipment and practice. Become very familiar with what ever weapon you carry. Have the mindset to use said weapon, the BG does. Had a friend of mine killed in his gun store when shooters walked in the door shooting. If you are not skilled and practiced then do not carry.

 

[s0nspark]

Link Removed

 

[thru]

SOME 9mm loads have considerably more ballistic energy than some .45 loads and they utilize that energy better, too. The corbon 100 gr 9mm has 1500 fps, which means 500 ft lbs, from a 5" barrel. Put a 230 gr ball .45 rd in a 3.5" barrel, and it gets a mere 720 fps, for barely over 250 ft lbs. furthermore, that low velocity (with 5" barrels, too, 850 fps) wont expand the jhp .45 in flesh. so it wastes 1/3rd or more of its power on the far side of the attacker. So dont kid yourself about the .45, or the slow, 180 gr .40's, as being superior to the 9mm. They are not. the 165 gr .45 Corbon and 135 gr .40's, yes, those are superior.

 

[thru]

also, tho, I try to always point out that a 9mm is a pocket gun caliber. More powerful loads are very hard to control in rapidfire, when your gun is a pocket model. And if you are lugging around a belt gun, it can have quite a bit more power than the 9mm offers, if you will practice enough to be able to control it adequately. Do not "settle" for low velocity, 147 gr 9mm jhp's. The will not expand and they only have 250 ft lbs. Such pathetic performance, in .38 Special, is well proven to not suffice to stop men, even with good chest hits, quite often.