How To Choose Your Concealed Carry Gun

This is highly personal choice that no one can give you a definitive answer on but I'll do my best to help you make the choice that's best for you.

These are some questions to ask yourself when your deciding what gun you want for concealed carry:

• Do you want a full size, compact or sub-compact gun?
• Is it going to be a semi-auto or revolver?
• Ammo capacity?
• .22 LR, .380, 9mm, 40 ACP, or 45 S&W?
• How does it feel in your hand?
• How will I carry it?
• How easy is it to conceal with how I plan to carry the firearm?

I wouldn't worry too much about brands at first, I'd just start with these questions, now we can tackle each one by one.

Full size, compact, or sub-compact

A full size gun is typically about 5 inches in height, with a barrel length of 4 inches or more about 1 inch thick. This is the size of most hand guns. 

A compact model is slightly smaller than a full size with a 3.5-4.5 inch barrel and the pistol grip is shorter. The pistol grip will usually fit a shooters hand without the magazine in it making it more concealable than a full size. 

The sub-compact model is all the rage right now for concealed carry. A sub-compact gun is basically any pistol that has barrel size of 3-3.5 inches and the grip usually doesn't quite fit the pinky finger. Most shooters don't like this because you lose some leverage on the pistol to control recoil if you can't get your whole hand around it. The new sub-compact models on the market today tend to include magazines that allow you to get the pinky on it to fix this issue. 

When it comes to concealed carry most civilians today are opting for the sub-compact model due to ease of concealment. There are some out there that like to tote around a full size 40 cal. as their carry gun. While this is definitely possible, I don't think this is realistic for most people. In the fall and winter it's much easier because your wearing more clothes, and bigger clothes. Those sweatshirts and hoodies allow you to hide all kinds of goodies. 

When the weather gets nice and hot and you start wearing t-shirts, shorts, dresses, skirts, then what? You don't want to be left unarmed just because it's nice outside right? And if your from the Chicago area like me, you know it tends to get much more violent when it's warm outside. This is where the micro or sub-compacts shine.

What makes the new sub-compact models on the market today great is that many have a capacity that can rival a lot of full size pistols.

The Springfield Hellcat for instance comes with an extended magazine that will get you 13 rounds of ammo in a tiny package. 

You also have the Sig Sauer p365 (my choice would be the XL) comes with a 10, the Smith and Wesson Shield Plus with 13+1, the Ruger Max 9 comes with 12+1, and the Glock 43x with 10. 

Between these 5 micro's you can't really go wrong, it all comes to preference in my opinion. 

Semi-Auto or Revolver

Ah the ongoing, never ending debate in the firearms community. Actually it's a few never ending debates that you'll notice the more you get involved in guns. 

The revolver is the simple wheel gun you see in all the old westerns. It works simply and reliably, this is why many consider a revolver when they think of their first concealed carry pistol.

While simplicity and reliability are important considerations it doesn't tell the whole story. 

I personally really like revolvers but their are some trade offs to keep in mind when it comes to using one as your concealed carry gun. These are:

• width of gun
• capacity
• speed of reload

If you carry a revolver on your body somewhere you have to account for the "wheel" of the gun, it's gonna poke out. Like we discussed earlier if your wearing big winter clothes it won't be a problem but if it's hot outside, you've gotta consider that. Also depending on where you carry the gun the wheel can be uncomfortable. The flatter semi-automatic can be more easy to conceal. 

Next is capacity. A revolver typically only carries 5-6 shots. 

If your a good shot, that should be plenty but what if you have multiple attackers? What if other circumstances cause you to miss? What if the shots you landed just didn't' out the criminal down?

Now you've got to reload and even with a speed loader, it's gonna be really hard to get as fast as just dropping the mag and popping in another like you can with semi-auto. Also keep in mind if the guy shooting at you has one of those high capacity micro 9mm's they will still be shooting at you with another 5 or 6 bullets while you have to reload.

Now what about the semi-auto. The semi-auto has more moving parts than a revolver and because of that it is more prone to jam. This used to be the main argument against the semi-auto before it became standard issue for the police. The quality of the semi-autos on the market today are so good that it won't be a issue for most people unless you are completely negligent with your gun. 

In my experience working as a Firearms Specialist at one of largest retailers in the country most times a semi-auto jams it's due to the shooter not the gun. A common one is using the wrong ammo. When you purchase your gun you've got to read the manual and pay attention to what ammo it says the gun can take and what it can't. 

That's the biggest draw-back of a semi-auto is the propensity to jam vs a revolver. While a revolver can jam as well it happens rarely. You can also be pretty negligent with the care of a revolver and it will still go bang when you need it to. Semi-autos tend to need more care. 

In my opinion the advantages of the semi-auto when it comes to capacity, conceal-ability, and speed of reload make it the go to choice if I had to choose one, but their is another option...

Just carry both. 

Keep a semi-auto with extra mags on your hip and a 5 shot snub nose revolver on your ankle so you know if something goes wrong with the semi-auto you've still got something that is for sure to go bang.

Ammo Capacity

We already touched on this quite a bit in the last section so I won't beat a dead horse, but capacity matters. Shot placement is probably more important than capacity but you could be putting bullets in all the right places and the threat may still not be immobilized so...

You've got to keep shooting. 

Guns with higher capacity give you the ability to stay in the fight longer without having to reload as frequently. A higher capacity gun also increases your margin for error because you simply have more shots. This can be a good thing and a bad thing. 

The fact that you have more shots can make you more careless when it comes to shot placement. That can also lead to bullets hitting people that you didn't mean to hit. So as always train with your weapon a lot. Train to be as accurate as possible with the least amount of shots possible. Look at the extra capacity as insurance. 

What Caliber?

.22 LR

The .22 stands for .22 of an inch bullet size, this is a small bullet. Rifles or pistols in this caliber make great survival tools for hunting small game, not for self defense. If that's all you have, by all means use it. It's not fun to be shot by anything, it may save your life. The .22 is just known to not be a self defense round due to it's low power. I'd keep the .22 rounds to hunting small game, plinking, or just having fun shooting. 

.380 ACP 

The .380 ACP bullet was developed by John Browning and was introduced in 1908 by colt as a self defense round. Better than the .22 but not as powerful as the 9mm bullet. The .380 was actually known to be the smallest concealed weapon caliber for a long time until the small "wondernines" came to dominate the market. These bullets are a little easier to handle than the 9mm and the guns are tiny, really easy to conceal. 

9mm

The 9mm bullet was created by George Luger in 1902 for Luger semi-automatic pistol. This bullet has become the standard for self defense. The police use it, the military use it, and this is the perfect middle ground for most civilians. It's a round powerful enough to get the job done, but not so powerful that you won't be able to handle the recoil. Remember those sub-compact semi-autos I was talking about? Those are all 9mm. 

.40 S&W

The .40 caliber bullet was jointly developed by Smith & Wesson and Winchester. It is more powerful than the 9mm but less than the .45 ACP and 10mm. At one point this was the go to round for the police because you got more power than the 9mm and more capacity than the .45. Now a days it seems like the 9mm has taken over that top spot. The reason for that is because of how versatile 9mm is and it's easier to control with less recoil than the .40 cal.

.45 ACP

Also created by John Browning like the .380 ACP. This round was created because the U.S. military saw how ineffective the smaller rounds were against a determined opponent like the "Moros" in the Philippine American War. Hit a human with a .45 caliber bullet, the threat is likely over. Because of that, the bullet is usually too much for people to handle and the guns are full size which makes it not a carry option for most people.

How does it feel in your hand?

When I bought my first 2 handguns I bought them sight unseen. I had never shot them before, and I had never held them before. I went purely off of what I saw from reviews and youtube videos. In my part-time job as a Firearm Specialist I recommend new people looking for a CCW to handle that gun before you buy. 

When you buy a gun, you can't just return it like a shirt that doesn't fit well, that gun is YOURS. If you have an issue with that gun you will be referred to the manufacturer for service. For that reason It's important you get a feel for the gun before you buy. 

As mentioned earlier we there are full size guns, compact guns, sub-compact guns. Not only do you want to consider the different styles for conceal-ability but you also want to consider whether you have small hands or bigger hands. There are some full size guns that come with different back straps on the handle that are great for customizing fit.

With the sub-compact guns some of them are so small that you can't get a pinky on them. Many people (including myself) don't like this. It just doesn't feel like you have enough control of the gun. But I do believe that one can get used to anything if they practice with it enough. 

My recommendation is if you see a gun you life either at a gun shop, gun show, or online get it in your hand at the very least. Play with it a little, rack the slide a few times, test the trigger, drop the mag, use the sights, get a feel for the gun. 

Then check your local gun range to see if they have that same gun available for you to shoot, that's the final test. If that feels good to you, you may have found your gun. Be careful not to write off a gun because of a few nagging issues though. As I stated earlier if you like that gun, those issues can most likely be overcome with some practice.

How will you carry the gun

There are a few different carry options out there and some will be more comfortable than others depending on various factors such as:

• The material of holster: leather or kydex
• Where you carry on your body
• What kind of belt your using
• The size of the gun your carrying
• Whether is a semi-auto or revolver
• Are you carrying extra magazines?

Leather or Kydex

Kydex is basically a hard plastic type of material. It's popular for gun holsters because of it's ability to retain and re-holster your pistol. A kydex holster usually has retention screws that allows you to customize how tight you want the holster to keep your gun. This is important because if your running or fighting an assailant you don't want your gun to accidentally fall out of the holster. 

Leather is known to be more comfortable for all day carry and lasts forever. One of the downsides of leather is that it can be more difficult to re-holster due to having less rigidity than kydex. This is not a huge thing for me because I'm of the opinion that I can take more time to re-holster my gun carefully. As long as it comes out fast without a hitch and keeps the trigger guard safe, I'm good. 

Where you will carry gun

There are numerous ways to carry a gun and numerous holstering options to go with it. 

If you are carrying a gun for protection, I don't recommend ever carrying in a bag. Doesn't matter if your male or female. If a bad guy want's to rob you and you got a bag in your hand or on our waist where do you think they are going first? Now what if he's not a "purse snatcher" and he puts a gun in your face and tells you give up the bag? Do you really want to give up the bag that is carrying your gun? Now the guy has your bag and your gun. No good. So don't keep your gun in a bag, keep it on your body.

You can carry on the waist, with a shoulder strap, on your chest, with a belly band, or on the ankle. The most popular are Inside the waistband (IWB) in an appendix carry position (front of your stomach), or strong side which means at the 3, 4 or 5 o' clock position on your strong side hand.

It's all a matter of experimentation to decide which carry position works best for you. The only ones I wouldn't recommend are:

• The small of the back because it's hard to get to and if your fall you've got hard plastic and metal jamming into your spine.
• Open carry because your advertising the fact that you have a gun, and if a criminal is bold enough, they might just attempt to take the gun right out your holster.
• In a bag for reasons already discussed.

What kind of belt

You can't use a regular fashion belt to carry a gun, you need a gun belt. The gun belt will either be a thick rigid leather, or a tough nylon. The biggest thing is that you want a belt that will hold up. The belt has to keep your weapon snug in place, carry the gun, holster, extra mags, and whatever else you might want to hang from it. Think the batman utility belt. 

There are tons of different options for a gun belt many can be found on amazon. 

Size of gun your carrying

Earlier I broke down full-size, compact, and sub-compact. The size of gun you choose to carry will have an affect on how you carry your weapon. You may have to get pants sizes a couple of sizes larger in the waist, maybe wear your shirts a little bigger, wear a jacket perhaps. I've found all of these size guns can be concealed effectively with some proper planning. Again experimentation is key to find what works best for you.

Semi-auto or revolver

Biggest difference between these is the cylinder on the revolver. The cylinder doesn't make the revolver harder to conceal, it just may affect how comfortable it is. The flatness of the semi-auto tends to make it easier to hide. For concealment a snub nose revolver tends to be the easiest. These can even be concealed in a pocket with a good pocket holster.

Extra Magazines

Another consideration. Every time your out an armed you want to be prepared for whatever life may bring. Having some extra mags with you in case things go left is always a good idea. Inside the jacket is a good place, on the ankle, and of course on your gun belt are all great options. 

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