The Gun To Carry If You Can Carry Only One
Published July 26, 2013 by KevinC
Filed under Carry, CCW, Equipment, Self Defense
There’s been some discussion lately over whether the new, popular pocket 9mm are really useful or not. I can dig it. They do seem like a solution in search of a problem. They’re pushing the boundaries of what could be considered a “pocket pistol”, but don’t offer the control and accuracy of a compact or subcompact 9mm.
But.
I consider the ultra-compact 9mm to be the “scout rifle” of concealed carry. No, they are not as concealable as a pocket .380, and no, they are not as powerful as a .45 and no, they are not as accurate as a compact 9mm like a Glock 26 or a Springfield XD-M.
However, a small single-stack 9mm is 85% of all those guns. Just like a scout rifle is the rifle to have if you can have only one, a single-stack 9mm allows you to carry your gun in the front pocket or on your waist and gives you seven rounds (or more of 9mm) to stop the threat.
Small 9mm’s don’t do one thing really well, but an ultracompact 9mm does a whole lot of things fairly well, and they work really well as the CCW gun to have if you can only have one.
Comments
9 responses so far ↓
1 Bevin // Jul 27, 2013 at 6:08 AM
I consider the ultra-compact 9mm to be the “scout rifle” of concealed carry.
Not a bad argument. Makes sense.
Many accused Cooper’s scout rifle of being a solution to a non-problem. I disagree. It is basically an updated bolt action counterpart of the lever action carbines carried by scouts in the Old West. Ditto the ultracompact 9mm.
I dislike large 9mm pistols such as the Beretta M9. A pistol that large should be chambered for .45 acp. But a 9mm compact or ultracompact makes a lot of sense.
I’m a 1911 fan. Fan, as in fanatic. But even I say better the 9mm ultracompact that you have, than the 1911 you don’t have because it was just too heavy to lug around that particular day, say when Susan Gratia-Hupp was dining at Luby’s Cafeteria.
2 Bill Fargo // Jul 27, 2013 at 5:58 PM
Susan Gratia-Huff wasn’t unarmed because of the weight of the gun that she left in the car because of a silly Texas carry law. That is why I chose Wyoming, where I can carry a lawfully owned gun any way I please, except where the top criminals collect, government buildings. They can’t stay in there forever…
3 Bevin // Jul 27, 2013 at 7:18 PM
I am aware of that.
I’m saying that others might not have been armed in her kind of situation for other reasons — bulk.
4 The Gun To Carry If You Can Carry Only One | The Gun Feed // Jul 27, 2013 at 4:55 PM
[…] Go to this article […]
5 Bevin // Jul 27, 2013 at 5:40 PM
Clarification:
I do think the terms “ultracompact” and “subcompact” are not that clearly defined at this point.
For example, I’m not sure I would consider the Glock 26 and Springfield XD-M to be in large class than the Beretta Nano.
No matter. What counts is that I agree that a smaller than standard sized 9mm pistol is a good choice for EDC.
The 9mm is probably as small as one ought to go. The .380 is just too wimpy for my liking.
6 Bill Fargo // Jul 27, 2013 at 6:03 PM
What specific 9mm models are to your liking? The Glock 26 is too big to fit in many pockets without being obvious, which I can be any time I want by carrying my Glock 19 open or poking out of a pocket.
7 Bevin // Jul 27, 2013 at 7:33 PM
I like the form factor of the Beretta Nano.
But some reviewers report reliability issues.
Withholding judgment until more info comes in.
8 TeamGunBlogger // Jul 29, 2013 at 1:21 PM
@Bevin Not coincidentally, I did a round-up of all the mini 9mm’s over here: http://www.teamgunblogger.com/minipocket-9mm-pistols-for-concealed-carry/2013/05/16/
9 Bevin // Jul 29, 2013 at 3:03 PM
Yes.
As you rightly noted,
“I added in other pistols like the the Glock 26, which we don’t often think as part of the “mini 9mm” group but is right in the middle of the pack when it comes to size, weight and firepower… ”
My thoughts too. The G19 of course is another matter. Definitely in a larger category.