Reality

[Sailor man]

Think about it. After reading questions on this and other boards as I do. Do I need a cannon .(45)or a mouse gun (.22) for self defense, double stack , most accurate ?.REALITY Most self defenseshootings are 3to 7 feet and shoot once or empty the gun. Any further than that and it's hard to prove a threat. My belief is get a good double action on the first round. Dao or da/sa in a semi is the answere. A good revolver would also work. The key is no safties. Who wants to be rolling on the ground with a thug and need to be fumbling with a safety. A good holster keeps the boom stick covered and keeps the weapon from firing. Buy a good holster too many people buy a 700 dollar gun and a 15 dollar generic holster.
Carry the largest caliber that you can handle safely.(you are responslble for your missed shots.) We are not shooting great distances as some LEOS or through windshields or doors. In fact most derringers would do. The need for double stack mags is probably non existant as a CIVILIAN. I carried a AMT backup .45 5 plus 1 in the pipe butnow carry a kahr pm .45 that is 5 plus one. Switched to kahr only because the trigger reach is better for me. Get what works for YOU a .380 carried is better than a .45 left home. Comfort means better acuracy. My .45s are less than the size of most 9's.DO YOUR HOMEWORK! Think reality for your defense gun. Get the smallest you are comfortable with( size wise) withthe most caliber you can hamdle .

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[violinjim]

.38 snub. 'nuff said.

[goldmaster]

OP, are you implying that I shouldn't carry my 1911 because it has a thumb safety, if so we'er going to have to agree to disagree.

[21bubba]

Think about it. After reading questions on this and other boards as I do. Do I need a cannon .(45)or a mouse gun (.22) for self defense, double stack , most accurate ?.REALITY Most self defenseshootings are 3to 7 feet and shoot once or empty the gun. Any further than that and it's hard to prove a threat. My belief is get a good double action on the first round. Dao or da/sa in a semi is the answere. A good revolver would also work. The key is no safties. Who wants to be rolling on the ground with a thug and need to be fumbling with a safety. A good holster keeps the boom stick covered and keeps the weapon from firing. Buy a good holster too many people buy a 700 dollar gun and a 15 dollar generic holster.
Carry the largest caliber that you can handle safely.(you are responslble for your missed shots.) We are not shooting great distances as some LEOS or through windshields or doors. In fact most derringers would do. The need for double stack mags is probably non existant as a CIVILIAN. I carried a AMT backup .45 5 plus 1 in the pipe butnow carry a kahr pm .45 that is 5 plus one. Switched to kahr only because the trigger reach is better for me. Get what works for YOU a .380 carried is better than a .45 left home. Comfort means better acuracy. My .45s are less than the size of most 9's.DO YOUR HOMEWORK! Think reality for your defense gun. Get the smallest you are comfortable with( size wise) withthe most caliber you can hamdle .

Your logic is good. Your presumptions are not.

[Ram Rod]

So........you've had an epiphany? That's cool.

Double stack magazines are kinda nice...depends on how many spares you want to carry. As a civilian.....you don't have a team and you won't be calling for a drop or asking the person closest to you for an extra in time of need. I do make it a point to carry at least an extra mag when I'm carrying my single stack.
Every once in a while I do have 'homework' to do myself, but the term just takes me back to the school days, so I wish we could call "homework" something else as adults. Other than those trivial things........I know what you mean.

Your logic is good. Your presumptions are not.

I picked up on this as well. I just didn't say it aloud.

Stick with it....stick around.

[Smitty901]

Will not disagree with the facts you quoted.
Sd will be close it will require more than one round to end the threat no madder what you using. There are exception to everything I know but back in the real world. The facts on SD hang gun encounters are hard to argue.
What you need is a weapon you can get out and hit center mass quickly from 6 inches away to 21 feet.
We can big boy talk all day long about two to the chest 1 to the head it aint happening in the real world if it does that is not self defense but a gun fight or murder.
A 2-3 round well placed quickly beats a poorly place round from any 45.
I not bashing the 45 I carried one for a while and have a lot of faith in the weapon.

[PEF]

I carry a revolver, but I disagree re no safeties. As long as you are committed to becoming very familiar with the weapon, carrying cocked and locked is not an issue. I decided against a SA semi because I only practice a couple of times a month. But I agree with the rest of what you are saying.

[P95]

Hmmmmm

[oakchas]

To each his own. Carry what you feel will work for you.

Caliber wars and size wars are unnecessary.

[357and40]

"a .380 carried is better than a .45 left home" is one of the biggest lines of bs I see and it is used in every caliber war. Either you make the choice to carry a certain caliber or you do not. I made the decision to dress around a service caliber weapon long ago. I buy my pants a size larger than I need, I wear a belt capable of carrying a weapon and a decent holster. My pockets have been elongated to carry a firearm in my pockets as well.

I made a decision to enable myself to carry an M&P40c and a j-frame daily. I do this in business casual wardrobe. Either you commit to that decision or you do not, but that statement of "a .380 carried is better than a .45 left home" is one I find to be wasted breath. By that logic a sharp stone in the pocket is better than a rocket launcher in the trunk.

[Rev.357]

Reality is I only carry a gun that I can shoot acc., fast & safe. That only comes from training with that gun!! Reality is I train with different guns because I can't always carry the same gun. I also feel just as safe with my 9mm through my .45cal that's reality.

[RevolvingMag]

.357 snub, or 1911. I carry cannons because most often a mouse gun won't quite cover it. I believe that a .22 could very easily get the job done. But, it's not exactly a 'one hitter quitter".

And, before anyone starts 'it's about placement not caliber'; think about getting hit with a .22. Most of the people I've heard of getting hit with .22s don't realize they're been shot until they feel blood, look at where they're hurt, or become disabled in some way. most people hit with a .45 or a .357mag tend to know pretty well when they get hit and won't want it to happen again.

Not saying that either of those calibers will guaranteed stop a fight in one hit, but I believe it more likely than with a smaller caliber.

[nedrgr21]

Eh,

Reality is cases of people on some really screwed up drugs and home invasions with multiple BG's are becoming more common. I doubt you've actually ever shot a derringer - I wouldn't depend on one for SD. You're distance vs. threat assumption is bogus. So is your attitude about triggers and safeties. For someone trying to preach to the choir, you forgot about practice/training. If your fundamentals are strong, distance, triggers, and safeties are non-issues.

RamRod - how about "research"?

[GreyGhost]

I fully agree that you should carry the largest caliber that you shoot well. The actual gun, that's up to each individual.

As for me I don't follow your logic of not needing a double stack magazine, the most accurate gun, or using the "most self defense shootings are within 3-7 feet, or even the 380 carried is better than the 45 left at home. All of these are ideas that are often repeated on internet forums. Usually by people that don't or won't put the time and effort into getting all the gear they need to carry relatively comfortably.

I don't believe in limiting my round count based upon the assumption that I "should" only need one mag with less rounds. I believe more in being prepared for a much worse scenario. So I carry a double stack mag gun and a spare mag.

The idea that self defense shootings usually occur at 3-7 feet is self limiting also. If an armed gunman comes into McDonalds when you're having lunch with your kids and starts blasting away, do you want to be able to shoot from 50 feet away? I sure do! And I've got extra rounds for when I miss!

My personal take on reality. Carry the biggest gun you can conceal with the most capacity. Carry a spare mag. Use a quality holster and belt. Practice and get at least a little training. And carry your gun until it no longer feels like you've got a giant tumor stuck to your hip. It will happen!

[old guy 2]

3 to 7 feet?, How many attacks lately have been AK type weapons, how well do you do at 50 yds against a rifle? I can't always carry what I want everywhere. I have guns from .380 to .44-.45, I sure hope I have an adequete weapon if and when I need it but we don't know when or where do we.

John