KSEV Locked & Loaded Report:
Ever since Texas approved concealed carry, Texans have consistently asked one question more than any other. “What is the best concealed carry pistol?” The answer is not usually the answer they want, but it remains true. The best concealed carry pistol is the one you are most comfortable shooting and carrying. It’s that simple.
Sure we all have our preference of guns, but like many things in life, it is subjective as to which is the best. The bottom line is, the reason for a concealed carry pistol is to protect yourself or loved ones. If you cannot see yourself firing the weapon in that situation, then STOP RIGHT HERE. A concealed carry pistol is not for you. If however this is not an issue, then read on as there are two major factors to consider when finding the concealed carry pistol that is best for you. In this special two-part series, we address those factors. Be sure to come back for part two later this month.
WILL IT NEUTRALIZE THE THREAT?
You know the scenario in the movies; An attacker comes after the good guy, he fires one round, the attacker flies backwards to the ground, and another one bites the dust. Well, in the real world it rarely goes down that way. Stopping power for the most part is determined by the caliber of the bullet. The larger the caliber, the larger wound cavity it produces. It takes one to two good shots to neutralize an attacker in the least amount of time possible. Every second he is able to keep coming at you, your chances of survival decrease drastically. It is unlikely you are an ex- navy seal reading this article, so you won’t be making precision head shots. You will be aiming for center mass which essentially encompasses the entire chest and torso. Shots to center mass most likely will not stop an attacker with one shot so the bigger your bullet is the more effective it will be. At the very least, consider nothing below a 9mm round, but ideally a .40 or .45 caliber hollow point round is going to be your best bet. A hollow point is a round that the center of the bullet is hollow so when it hits its target it expands and does more damage. It should be noted that with the exception of a couple of guns on the market, a .45 is hard to conceal due to its size so the .40 is a nice middle ground and favored by law enforcement as well. The best way to find a good fit is to go to a gun range and rent one gun of each caliber to see which one you can handle best.
IS THE GUN COMFORTABLE TO WEAR EVERY DAY?
Let’s be realistic, wearing a handgun on your person concealed or open carry is typically not comfortable. It is, however, something you can get accustomed to as with any accessory you keep with you. Who would of thought we’d come full circle in cell phones and be back to phones as big as our faces? People adapt, and that is what you must realize when trying to find a concealed carry pistol. It has sadly become more of a necessity in our daily life to level the playing field against criminals. Streets just aren’t as safe as they were in the “Leave it to Beaver” days. Sure, in reality they had crime problems back then but nothing like what we deal with in today’s society. You can’t predict when you are going to be robbed at gunpoint, attacked or caught in an active shooter situation. A lot of optimists will say they will likely never be in that situation, but all it takes is once for you to wish you hadn’t.
An attacker is never going to tell you when he is going to strike or how he is going to do it. That is only villains in movies or Scooby Doo that spill the beans. In real life, you must get into the habit of wearing your concealed carry pistol in a proper concealed carry holster whenever it is legally possible for you to do so. Take your time when shopping for the right gun for yourself. First determine the caliber you think best and whether you want to carry the weapon inside the waistband or outside or in a shoulder rig. Pay close attention to how it fits your hand and how easy it is to quickly align with the target as you present the weapon. Next you will want to determine where you want to carry the weapon. We call this position “Your Sweet Spot”. Everyone has one spot where they can carry the weapon in a quality holster and be able to literally forget that they are carrying. Only you can determine your “Sweet Spot”. Take your time. If it is too uncomfortable you will never wear it.
Gun Width Plays a Role
The width of your gun will reflect directly on how concealable in is and how comfortable it is to carry on your person daily. Here is the rub, while thinner profile guns are comfortable to carry and easy to conceal, they carry fewer rounds due to design. A Glock 19, for example, is a 9mm handgun that will hold 15 rounds in the magazine alone, but it has a wide profile. This makes it harder to conceal and takes practice wearing it as such. A thin profile counterpart would be something like the Smith & Wesson M&P, but it only holds 8 rounds in the magazine. Ultimately, you have to train yourself and be disciplined to maintain training so that you are proficient and deadly accurate with whichever gun you go with.
That wraps our list for the factors that make a handgun a good choice for concealed carry. Take into account all the above factors, and you will be well on your way to finding a quality firearm to carry on your person.
Already have a firearm that you use for concealed carry? Let us know which ones you have found to be the best by leaving a comment.
This post was provided by Houston’s Locked & Loaded Gun Gear featuring Tucker Gunleather and Custom Holsters.