A Couple Questions - Pistol Recommendation and CC Stats by State?

[sdgmcdon]

First off, I'm new to guns in general and new to conceal and carry...just applied for and waiting to receive Oregon & Washington licenses. Now time to pick a pistol.

The obvious concern is that it's easily accessible and goes bang when I need it to.

The issues are, I wear slacks and tucked in button up shirt most of the time, thus I think I'll need IWB. Also, I'm REALLY concerned about accidental discharge, so something that's extremely safe in terms of holstering/unholstering, carrying all day in a LOT of different environments (Realtor, so in lots of different homes, businesses etc all day every day).

Pistol recommendations? I'm so far leaning towards a micro-compact 1911, there's just an awful lot on the back of those to get caught in shirt, pants etc.

Second question, I am wondering if there is some place reliable online where I can look up (curious) how many conceal and carry license holders there are in various states, primarily Oregon & Washington?

Thanks!

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[XD in SC]

Type of weapon: Springfield Armory XD series.

Carry options: Start reading now, they vary and you will only be able to figure out which one you can live with by trying many of them.

Stats: I do not know of any

[archer51]

A lot of the people here carry compact 1911's with no problem, or you might want to look at the CZ RAMI. 3" barrel, avalaiable in 9mm or 40 cal. I have on in 40 that I carry on occasion. My primary carry is a CZ75 P-06 40 cal. Any of them will work well. For a holster you will probanbly want a IWB tuckable holster. Check out GALCO for some ideas on them.

Galco holsters; Holsters; Gun holster, pistol holsters, western holsters, shoulder holsters, leather holster and Glock holsters

[Texas Yankee]

You may have to change the way you dress a bit. Pocket carry with a snub nose or one of the small .380 or 9 mm autos, think Kel tec, Ruger LCP, Seacamp, etc. may work best for you. I have carried a 3 inch .45 in my pocket but it really is kind of big for that. You need real big pockets. I do regularly pocket carry a Kel Tec P 11.

[TOF]

Do you commonly wear a jacket of any kind? IWB with a tuckable holster and fully buttoned shirt is much more difficult for me to access than regular IWB with cover garment. Also if wearing a jacket most of the time it would be doubly difficult to clear both shirt and jacket. IMHO

Welcome to the world of CC

[DMSC]

I wear polo shirt and khaki pants every day for work. I carry a Kel-tec PF-9 in Desantis Super-Fly pocket holster.

If you wear a jacket, you can carry pretty much anything you want to. I recommend a snap on holster like an Alessi CQC/S or maybe a paddle holster. It's easier to take off and put on...IF that's something you'll be doing.

[C Paul Lincoln]

I'm a big 1911 fan, and love mine. It is definitely my preferred everyday carry, but not always practical due to the constraints of my work environment. Like you, I am often in slacks and a tucked in shirt -- a .45 on my hip wouldn't go over well.

I've carried a 1911 for more than 20 years, and I'm still not comfortable with it in a deep concealment holster. You're right that there is a lot to snag on a 1911, which could make drawing from a tuckable holster problematic.

For deep concealment like a tuckable IWB holser, consider a DAO pistol. The Kahr polymer series are very light, reasonably priced, accurate, and reliable. I carry my PM40 in either Thunderwear (takes some getting used to) or in a Desantis pocket holster. The Thunderwear seems to be absolutely undetectable -- even the LEOs that I work around (regularly) apparently have not detected it.

[bluelineman]

I would suggest a SW J frame (SW 442 in my case) pocket carry. Or maybe an MTAC with a Glock. Both can be done with a tucked in shirt. Keep your finger off the trigger & pull back any loose clothing when holstering. For pocket carry, nothing else goes in the gun pocket. Another consideration is a Smart Carry system.

SmartCarry

MTAC

Mikas Pocket Holsters

[Swamp Fox]

The issues are, I wear slacks and tucked in button up shirt most of the time, thus I think I'll need IWB. Also, I'm REALLY concerned about accidental discharge, so something that's extremely safe in terms of holstering/unholstering, carrying all day in a LOT of different environments (Realtor, so in lots of different homes, businesses etc all day every day).

I wear a 5" Government Model 1911 and a Milt Sparks Summer Special II holster and dress just like you. Wear a t-shirt and blouse your shirt over your gun. I ask my wife before I walk out the door and she can't even tell its there.

As far as snagging, imho, if you havn't identified a potential threat in time to have your gun free , it's probably too late anyway.

[Rob72]

Type of weapon: Springfield Armory XD series.

I'm a "Hardcore Glocker." I wash my hands and pray for cleanliness after handling an XD, but that would be my recommendation, given your concerns. Tucker Gunleather makes some nice "tuckables" as do many other makers.

1911s are nice, but would not be something I would carry for "deep concealment," nor would a sub/ultra compact 1911 be a choice for "something that goes bang everytime." Yes, lots of good ones are owned by folks on this board, but overall, it seems about 50/50 as to people's experiences with reliability and the shorties. Not worth the time and $$, when the XDs and Glocks are available. MHO.

[sdgmcdon]

Type of weapon: Springfield Armory XD series

Actually in the last few months I've fired a good variety of pistols and the only one to not go bang when I pulled the trigger was an XD and it happened a couple times with it. The XDM I fired after that didn't seem to have any issues, but now having put 7-800 rounds through my Glock and it's gone bang every time, when that XD wouldn't...Left a bad taste in my mouth for XD's, I just don't trust them now.

[NickEMT]

Congratulations on taking the first step towards being a sheepdog. You could ask 25 people what gun they recommend and you could get 25 different answers. I'm a Sig Sauer man myself, they make a great concealable pistol called the P-239. It is Double Action/Single Action and has a heavy trigger pull in double action mode(not overly so) which could help prevent accidental discharges. What can prevent an accidental discharge entirely however, is to keep your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot. If you do not like the Sigs, look at Glocks, Heckler and Koch's, Springfield Armory XD's, and Kahrs. All are very popular CCW guns. As far as holsters go, I would go with the Smart Carry. It is an IWB holster that you wear in front of your groin. No, it doesn't point at your junk, don't worry. It is almost impossible to detect unless your crotch is routinely stared at by FBI agents. Hope this helps.

[XD in SC]

Actually in the last few months I've fired a good variety of pistols and the only one to not go bang when I pulled the trigger was an XD and it happened a couple times with it. The XDM I fired after that didn't seem to have any issues, but now having put 7-800 rounds through my Glock and it's gone bang every time, when that XD wouldn't...Left a bad taste in my mouth for XD's, I just don't trust them now.

You know you have to load them right??

It was probably an ammo related issue, which could happen to any weapon. I happen to not be a fan of Glocks exploding in my hands.

[sdgmcdon]

It was range issued ammo...My understanding (limited of course, just researching online and talking to some NRA folks and gun shops in the area) is that the issues of "exploding Glocks" is actually something that is relevant to all similar polymer pistols and that when it does happen on a Glock it's almost always because the user is using reloads which Glock specifically says not to do in the manual...I don't plan on doing reloads, ever, so...

[calmp9]

First off, I'm new to guns in general and new to conceal and carry...just applied for and waiting to receive Oregon & Washington licenses. Now time to pick a pistol.

Pistol recommendations? I'm so far leaning towards a micro-compact 1911, there's just an awful lot on the back of those to get caught in shirt, pants etc.

Second question, I am wondering if there is some place reliable online where I can look up (curious) how many conceal and carry license holders there are in various states, primarily Oregon & Washington?

Thanks!

Well, a lot of people are afraid to carry a cocked and locked 1911 inside their pants. It's safter than most people think because it has a grip safety and a manual safety too. The looks of the cocked and locked 1911 is intimidating because the hammer is visible. People can see that the it is cocked and ready to go.

I have two Smith & Wesson M&P autos, which are essentially safe action pistols without a manual safety. There is a trigger safety, which basically means that if you don't put your finger inside the trigger guard and touch the trigger, it won't go off. I wasn't afraid to carry them with a chambered cartridge, but I had to get used to it. I practiced at home carrying in a DeSantis Speed Scabbard.

If you're concerned about either type, you might want to consider an auto with a decocker, which would make the first shot a double action shot where the hammer has to move backward and then forward to fire. The trigger pull on such a shot is heavier. The subsequent shots are single action shots, where the hammer only needs to go forward to fire since the hammer is automatically cocked after the first shot. The trigger pull on these is considerably lighter.

A lot of people go with a revolver because it is double action, unless you cock the hammer back manually. Shot capacity is less than the semiautomatics mentioned above, but the revolver is more reliable and it won't jam up on you.