Getting my CCW... What should I carry???

Are you carrying on your body or in your purse?

I am pretty knew to the CCW game and Garth hit it right on - go spend the extra time and money and shoot as many guns as you can before you buy. It will be worth it in the end.

As far as recs, the S&W 442 or 642 is a great option for CCW (I carry one when I cant carry my Glock 26 or 30), but please go and shoot it first - I bought a 642 for my wife without her trying it out first and she really really hated it. The recoil is pretty stout and youd need to shoot it quite a bit to get accurate with it. But once you get a handle on it, its a great accurate little belly gun.


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TrailWolf said:
Are you carrying on your body or in your purse?

I am pretty knew to the CCW game and Garth hit it right on - go spend the extra time and money and shoot as many guns as you can before you buy. It will be worth it in the end.

As far as recs, the S&W 442 or 642 is a great option for CCW (I carry one when I cant carry my Glock 26 or 30), but please go and shoot it first - I bought a 642 for my wife without her trying it out first and she really really hated it. The recoil is pretty stout and youd need to shoot it quite a bit to get accurate with it. But once you get a handle on it, its a great accurate little belly gun.


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It probably depends on where I am, but mostly on my body.
 
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Not sure if this has been mentioned yet but Bersa recently came out with a new polymer frame 9mm that seems to be great for concealed carry.
It's called the bp9cc and looks to be a great gun from what others have told me. I've personally held one but haven't gotten a chance to shoot.
9mm is a great caliber for beginners and it's fairly cheap :D. Strongly considering buying this one for my own concealed carry.

Here's a video review on the gun :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzWJgHfqRAw
 
I expect by now that you are starting to look at shooting various pistols to try to get a feel of what works best for you ... and with that in mind I thought I would post some very useful targets to train with.

They show just how small the key areas are for stopping an attacker ... and give you an idea of how these can be obscured by body position in relation to an armed attacker ...

Here are the targets ...


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01-No-Helm-235x300.jpg


Please notice that if the attacker is armed and pointing a weapon at you ... the only way to guarantee him not getting a shot off is to hit him in the 10 region in the head or in the spine in the throat/thorax region ... anything below his arms and his motor neurone reflexes will not be shut down and he can fire back ... even if fatally hit in the centre torso ...

The targets are from the "Trigger Happy Target Company" ( not the best of names ... but their targets make a lot of sense ).
 
If you have shot many pistols, you may already know what you like. I can give you my experience. I got my CCW about 10 years ago. I immediately purchased a custom 1911 and spent a ton of money. It was much too heavy and cumbersome to carry, so I went to my Colt Cobra revolver, alloy frame, light gun. Still too large most times, especially in the summer with shorts and a t shirt. I just purchased a Diamondback DB380 with crimson trace laser and its really an nice package. Its my carry weapon of choice as I can carry it in my front pocket with ease.
Now my daughters are going to get their carry permits in a few months. They are 22 and 25 years old and they wanted a nice and small gun like dads...but we found a problem...They cannot easily pull the slide back...It's not that tight but since the gun is small, its hard for them to do...A real problem in an emergency situation, especially if the gun jams !!
We have decided that we will probably go for the Lady Smiths for them since with a revolver, they won't have to worry about jams. If you pull the trigger, it will fire...Something to think about.
Try all the guns you can get your hands on and you will know if its right for you, and foremost, please spend a little time at the range at least once a month to maintain familiarity with your carry weapon. You don't need to try and remember how it works when you are under pressure.
Good Luck on the CCW course and most of all, have fun with it !!
 
Pokey, as a first gun I would agree with anyone who said a small framed revolver, preferably concealed hammer in 38 special. They are perfect. Taurus makes a few that don't break the bank. once you get the knack of shooting and enjoy it, then the only other way to go is a 1911 variant.

Nothing cooler than a woman shooting a 1911.
 
Cobalt said:
Pokey, as a first gun I would agree with anyone who said a small framed revolver, preferably concealed hammer in 38 special. They are perfect. Taurus makes a few that don't break the bank. once you get the knack of shooting and enjoy it, then the only other way to go is a 1911 variant.

Nothing cooler than a woman shooting a 1911.
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Or you could cut to the chase and get a Sig P238. It's about the same size as the other .380's (albeit a little bit heavier). Perfect for pocket carry, and it's a shoe in if you intend on a 1911 to be your full size pistol as it's basically a mini 1911. I have one, and love it. Only thing I regret is that I can't carry at work.
 
The reason why a revolver is a good first gun for women is the "Limp Wrist" issue with many women, where autos will definitely jam. Men have this issue as well.
 
Hello,

My name is Gabor.
I'm Hungarian and i live Hungary.
I speak englis litle, but i very like this forum.

The Hungary gun law is very bad, because people can't buy for self-defense gun.
 
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Glock 19. 9mm is beginner friendly. The size and weight is small enough to be CCW friendly, but it has the performance characteristics of a full sized pistol. Glocks also have the integrated safety system so you don't have to worry about flicking a switch or lever in a bad situation. Round in the chamber and good to go.
 
Pokey 1, is this good for you: Smith & Wesson BodyGuard .380 ?

[video=youtube;plrIr7oHrJo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=plrIr7oHrJo[/video]

Or Szilard wrote right ie you buy Glock. It is big best.
 
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She's a woman, not a child. I would think she would get the limp wristing issue - that is if she has this problem - taken care of before committing to conceal carrying. Some people here sound like this is an issue that women NEVER get over. Perhaps it's just me, but in my experience, women learn to get over limp wristing very quickly. Then again, my range is owned by two sisters and women shooters are common place. You teach a new person the proper mechanics of shooting and they will not limp wrist. Hell, I let a friend that weighs a hair over a buck shoot my .45. I started her out on 9mm of course. She's never gone shooting before. Never once did she limp wrist, not with the 9 and not with the .45, and these were all full power loads. All I did was teach her safe firearm handling skills, proper grip, trigger control, and a few different stances. Admittedly she only shot at 5 yards, but the majority of those shots were within a 5 inch grouping from center of mass.

That said, S&W just came out with the M&P Shield. http://www.smith-wesson.com/wcsstore/SmWesson2/MP_Shield/index.html

SWshield_041212D.jpg


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IMO, the pros of an autoloader are just too good to pass up in favor of a revolver.

BUT, if she personally wants to get a revolver, I would recommend the Chiappa Rhino 20ds in .357 magnum. The Rhinos are designed different from most revolvers on the market out right now because the barrel is aligned with the bottom most cylinder, which lowers the pivot point of the recoil impulse.
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