Guns for Concealed Carry
In most states in the USA, the lawful concealed carry of firearms is allowed with a special permit bestowed upon him or her after certain conditions are met. These conditions usually mean a class regarding firearm safety, written test, background check, evaluation of your abilities with a firearm or other such things. All of those may be used and sometimes more or less depending on the area. A fee is paid and a license is given to the person, lawfully allowing them to carry a concealed handgun on their person. But some people may not know exactly what kind of gun to use to protect themselves. That's why I'm making this entry.
To start off is caliber. In pistols they range from the diminutive .17 caliber to the big mother--500 Magnum. Although the 500 Magnum is not necessary (or adviseable or even feasable) the small calibers aren't recommended either. The .22 Long Rifle, .25 ACP, .32 ACP, and .380 ACP are all small and used often in small pistols, but they are not effective man-stoppers when the point is to stop a violent assault on your person. You just need bigger.
For semi-automatic handguns one shouldn't choose anything weaker than the popular 9mm Parabellum cartridge. But .40 S&W and .45 ACP are more effective, there's nothing wrong with 9mm. For revolvers, one shouldn't go lower than .38 Special. But as with semi-autos, there are more powerful and proven calibers like the .357 Magnum, .44 Special, .44 Magnum, and .45 Long Colt.
As for specific bullet types, there are several. Full Metal Jacket, Jacketed Soft Point, Jacketed Hollow Point, Wadcutter, Semi-wadcutter, etc. Full Metal Jacket is a simple lead bullet covered in a tight jacket of copper to hold it together. This enables it to penetrate mor easily, but it also makes the bullet not expend as much energy into the target. And it risks the bullet going through and hitting innocent bystanders. Bad. They're fine for practice because they're cheaper, but they're not to be used for self defense. In that role they're less effective and more dangerous. The best to use would be the Semi-jacketed Hollow Point.
Unlike a Full Metal Jacket, the copper jacket on this bullet type only goes half-way up, showing lead at the top half. The Hollow point refers to a hole-like recess in the end of the bullet. This allows it to expand better inside what it hits, creating a larger wound channel, enable to do more damage to internal organs and possible break bones. Sound morbid? It is. But when considering the protection of yourself and possibly your spouse or children you must use the most effective, and consequently lethal, round available. You shouldn't even be drawing a pistol toward an attacker unless you're sure he is a very serious threat to your life or those around you. When you pull the trigger you want as close to an immediate stop as you can, whether that means a fatal shot or one just disallows him to continue forward. And when buying ammunition for self-defense, don't buy the cheap stuff. It's just not as good. Speer Gold Dot, Federal Premium Hydra Shock, and TAP Personal Defense Ammo are some of the big names and are proven effective.
As far as specific guns are concerned, I don't have enough room to discuss that here in enough depth. So I'll just name a few good pieces and let you do the research. Tomorrow I'll do an article on semi-autos and revolvers in a personal defense role.
Compact Semi-Automatic Handguns:
Glock 26 (9mm) 27 (.40 S&W) 28 (.380 ACP) and 29 (10mm)
Walther PPS
Beretta Cheetah
1911 Compact
Campact Revolvers:
Smith & Wesson Airweight series
Ruger SP-101
Taurus Ultra-Light
Colt Detective Special (used)
To start off is caliber. In pistols they range from the diminutive .17 caliber to the big mother--500 Magnum. Although the 500 Magnum is not necessary (or adviseable or even feasable) the small calibers aren't recommended either. The .22 Long Rifle, .25 ACP, .32 ACP, and .380 ACP are all small and used often in small pistols, but they are not effective man-stoppers when the point is to stop a violent assault on your person. You just need bigger.
For semi-automatic handguns one shouldn't choose anything weaker than the popular 9mm Parabellum cartridge. But .40 S&W and .45 ACP are more effective, there's nothing wrong with 9mm. For revolvers, one shouldn't go lower than .38 Special. But as with semi-autos, there are more powerful and proven calibers like the .357 Magnum, .44 Special, .44 Magnum, and .45 Long Colt.
As for specific bullet types, there are several. Full Metal Jacket, Jacketed Soft Point, Jacketed Hollow Point, Wadcutter, Semi-wadcutter, etc. Full Metal Jacket is a simple lead bullet covered in a tight jacket of copper to hold it together. This enables it to penetrate mor easily, but it also makes the bullet not expend as much energy into the target. And it risks the bullet going through and hitting innocent bystanders. Bad. They're fine for practice because they're cheaper, but they're not to be used for self defense. In that role they're less effective and more dangerous. The best to use would be the Semi-jacketed Hollow Point.
Unlike a Full Metal Jacket, the copper jacket on this bullet type only goes half-way up, showing lead at the top half. The Hollow point refers to a hole-like recess in the end of the bullet. This allows it to expand better inside what it hits, creating a larger wound channel, enable to do more damage to internal organs and possible break bones. Sound morbid? It is. But when considering the protection of yourself and possibly your spouse or children you must use the most effective, and consequently lethal, round available. You shouldn't even be drawing a pistol toward an attacker unless you're sure he is a very serious threat to your life or those around you. When you pull the trigger you want as close to an immediate stop as you can, whether that means a fatal shot or one just disallows him to continue forward. And when buying ammunition for self-defense, don't buy the cheap stuff. It's just not as good. Speer Gold Dot, Federal Premium Hydra Shock, and TAP Personal Defense Ammo are some of the big names and are proven effective.
As far as specific guns are concerned, I don't have enough room to discuss that here in enough depth. So I'll just name a few good pieces and let you do the research. Tomorrow I'll do an article on semi-autos and revolvers in a personal defense role.
Compact Semi-Automatic Handguns:
Glock 26 (9mm) 27 (.40 S&W) 28 (.380 ACP) and 29 (10mm)
Walther PPS
Beretta Cheetah
1911 Compact
Campact Revolvers:
Smith & Wesson Airweight series
Ruger SP-101
Taurus Ultra-Light
Colt Detective Special (used)
Leave a Comment
