Concealed Carry Pistols

Handguns are a personal choice, and what feels good to one person may not appeal to another. The heavier and bulkier a gun is, the more trouble it is to carry all the time, and the harder it is to conceal. Unfortunately, it is also true that the lighter a gun is, the harder it recoils (with any particular load). These facts are frequently overlooked in the many magazine articles I have read on this subject, which tend to emphasize stopping power. I have a concealed carry permit, and I have reasonably extensive personal experience with several categories of guns for concealed carry.

In the deep concealment or mini-gun category (see my Deep Concealment Pistols chart), I favor the North American Arms "Black Widow". This is a single action 5-shot mini-revolver with a 2" heavy barrel, and suprisingly comfortable rubber grips. It is made of stainless steel, and chambered for the .22 WMR (Magnum) cartridge. An extra cylinder for .22 LR is also available. It is a very small gun, weighing about 9 ounces. A big plus is its excellent fixed sights, rare in this category of firearm. It can even be had with adjustable sights, but I find them too bulky for this tiny gun. There are other mini-revolvers on the market, but the .22 Mag. Black Widow is my favorite.

I prefer it to the tiny .25 ACP and .22 LR auto pistols because of its ballistic superiority (around 42% one shot stops for the .22 Mag., as compared to around 25% for the .25 and 34% for the .22LR). In my experience, it is more reliable than even the best mini auto pistols. It is also much easier to hit what you shoot at with the Black Widow, because of its aforementioned excellent sights, and decent grips. However, if you prefer to carry a mini-auto, check out the models from Walther, Seecamp, and Beretta.

I do not favor any of the various derringer type of pistols in the deep concealment category. I find two shots inadequate, the grips awkward, and the lack of sights deplorable (after all, if you only have one or two shots, they must be delivered perfectly).

All of these guns are pocketable (particularly in a pocket holster). They can also be carried in an ankle holster (with reasonable comfort), tiny belt holster, belt pouch (my favorite carry), small purse, belly band, or other inconspicous manner. It may be called a "mouse gun", but because it is easy to carry in a very wide range of circumstancs, the deep concealment pistol fufills the first rule of gunfighting (ie: bring a gun).

The next viable step up from the mini guns are the small frame .380 ACP semi-auto pistols. (For a chart detailing these and subsequent guns discussed, see Concealed Handgun Comparison.) These pistols are available in both single action (SA) and double action (DA) style. The most famous of the breed is the Walther PPK. The PPK is available in .380 ACP and .32 ACP. It is a conventional DA/SA pistol with a 6 round single stack magazine, a 3.35" barrel, and weighs 21 ounces in either blue or stainless steel.

The other compact .380 that I particularly like, and the one I believe is the best of the breed, is the DA/SA Sig-Sauer P 232. This pistol has a 3.6" barrel, decent fixed sights, a 7-shot magazine, and weighs 16.2 ounces. The finish is either blue or stainless steel.

Like the .38 snub nose revolvers (see below), the small .380 auto pistols are best carried in a conventional holster (shoulder, belt, and inside the belt styles are all common), holster shirt, fanny pack, purse, daily organizer, briefcase, photographers vest, or large pocket. I find a small fanny pack both comfortable and convenient. The .380 ACP is about the least powerful cartridge (along with the .38 Special) considered suitable by many experts for service use.

About the same size as the .380 autos are the compact, small frame revolvers. My favorite here is the Colt Cobra. This is a typical double action snub nose revolver with a 2" barrel. It is an alloy framed 6-shooter, chambered for the .38 Special cartridge. It weighs 16 ounces (the otherwise identical Detective Special with its blue steel frame weighs 22.5 ounces, and the stainless steel SF-VI weighs 21 ounces). All Colts come with excellent Pachmayr grips. The equivalent S&W models are the 37 (alloy frame) at 13.5 ounces, and 36 (blue steel) or 60 (stainless steel), both at 19.5 ounces. All the Smiths are 5-shooters, and come with inadequate wood grips. Use ONLY standard pressure ammo (not +P) in the above S&W guns. Experts who advise otherwise are WRONG. I have seen less than one box of +P factory ammo bulge the cylinder of a brand new Model 36. The Colts, with their slightly heavier frames and cylinders, are rated for limited +P use (I still don't recommend it, except in an emergency).

These are fine concealed carry guns, but normally require some sort of holster, small fanny pack (my favorite), holster shirt, purse, daily organizer, briefcase, or over-size pocket. A photographers vest works well. I have read of carrying this type of gun in a front pants pocket, or ankle holster, but have found such suggestions impractical, at least for me. An inside the pants holster will work if you are slender and wear your pants a size too large.

The snub nose .38 revolver makes an interesting comparison with the compact .380 ACP semi-auto pistol. Both have about the same stopping power (67-70% with good ammo), and are similar in size and weight. When I found that I could carry the Cobra, literally in every way, interchangably with my Colt Pocketlite .380, I got rid of the little auto. I could shoot the Cobra better, and it proved to be more reliable ("six for sure" with a revolver is no idle boast). For the person who prefers to carry a revolver, a .38 Special snubby is hard to beat.

Similar in size to a .38 snubby or most .380 autos, is the new generation of super compact 9mm autos. My favorites are the DAO Kahr PMP-9 (about 16 ounces), and the Glock 26. The G-26 is a "safe action" 9X19 (9mm Luger) caliber pistol with a 3.5" barrel, and weighs 19.7 ounces. It uses a 10 round, double row, magazine. It will also accept the longer magazines from Glock models 17, 18, or 19, in a pinch. This means the 26 is, unfortunately, as thick as the larger Glocks. The Kahr's big advantage is its single row magazine that allows it to be thinner and easier to conceal.

The 9mm Parabellum (another name for the 9X19 cartridge) is somewhat more powerful than the .38 Spec. In fact, in terms of stopping power, the 9mm, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP are suprisingly similar--the top loads for each are over 90%. (See my Handgun Cartridge Power chart.) The best stopper of them all is the .357 Mag., and while .357 concealed carry revolvers are made, they kick like hell. And the flash (at night) and blast (anytime) from a short barreled .357 is severe, especially indoors. Who wants to be blind and deaf in the middle of a gunfight? So, what I am saying is, the 9mm is probably as powerful as you need for civilian concealed carry. It kicks less than the .40 and .45, and hits almost as hard.

Carry modes are the same as for the .38 snubby, or .380 auto pistol, with the probable exception of an inside the pants holster. I think the G 26 is too thick for these, although some folks like to carry it this way. Again, I prefer a small fanny pack.

Glocks are very reliable semi-auto pistols. They have good sights, either fixed or adjustable (your choice). And their "safe action" mechanism is the simpliest of all auto pistols. I can see little reason to carry a typical .380 compact pistol when the Glock 26 is available (the 26 is actually a bit smaller than the Sig P 230, my favorite .380).

The concealed carry pistol that I can shoot best is the Glock 19. This is a "safe action" semi-auto pistol with a 4" barrel. Its magazine holds 15 rounds of 9X19, and it weighs 21.2 ounces. It is about 1/2" longer, and 1/2" taller than the model 26. It is therefore harder to conceal, but much easier to shoot.

The Glock 19 is an outstanding representative of the compact service pistol category. These are basically service pistols with a slightly shorter barrel and grip. Fine pistols of this type are also made by Colt, H&K, Beretta, Sig, and others. (For information about the full size originals, see my Service and Home Defense Handguns table.) The wide range of guns of this basic size include SA, DA, and DAO models. This class includes about the largest guns most people can, or are willing to, carry concealed. This is the gun I would carry if I had to go to a higher-than-normal risk area. Or if longer range shooting might be called for (as example, from a boat underway, or out in the country). The G 19 is not more accurate than a Colt Cobra, but with its large grip and long sight radius it is easier to shoot accurately. The G 19 is also my first choice as a home defence pistol.

The other gun I would specifically like to mention in this category is the Russian made Baikal IJ 70 pistol. I recommend one chambered for the common .380 ACP, not the 9X18 (Makarov) Russian cartridge. It is a lot easier to buy high performance hollow point ammo for the .380! This conventional DA semi-auto pistol has a 3.7" barrel, weighs 24 ounces, and has an 8 round magazine. It comes with adjustable sights, although they are not as easy to see as some modern high visibility sights. It is, however, every bit as accurate as most other compact service pistols, suprisingly well made, and a great bargain. I call it "The Gun That Lost the East".

Some of my shooting friends also have Russian IJ 70 pistols, and we all agree that while it is not the most size efficient pistol in the world, given its caliber, it is certainly the most cost efficient. It is the only inexpensive pistol I have ever bought that I would not call "cheap".

I recommend carrying any of the compact service pistols in a large fanny pack. Other methods would include a belt or shoulder holster, large purse, daily organizer, or briefcase. For me, they are too large for comfortable carry in an inside the pants holster, although I have read articles touting that method of carry. The compact service pistols are the first choice of many knowledgable shooters.

All of the above guns are as good for a woman as for a man. There is no difference between a man's gun and a woman's gun. There are strong women and weak men, and anyone can pull a trigger. The important thing is that the gun feel good and point naturally for the shooter. And, of course, that it can be worn, comfortably, concealed.