Handgun Recommendations

rolltide_21

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I’m in the market for a new handgun or two. I grew up shooting long guns but am quite new to handguns. I plan to buy a Ruger .380 LCP for a conceal carry weapon. For home defense it’s down to the Ruger SR9 9mm or a Glock 19 9mm. I have small children in my home so the manual safety on a Ruger is more appealing to me. My firearms are locked away but I would keep a handgun out but in a safe place & out of reach. I’ve shot a Glock numerous times and do like the feel. However the “passive” safety system makes me a little uneasy. Yes, I understand that manual safeties are a false sense of security & the only safety is “between the ears.” I am interested in your opinions and your experience. I know there are several gun enthusiasts on the board.


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TIDE-HSV

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I’m in the market for a new handgun or two. I grew up shooting long guns but am quite new to handguns. I plan to buy a Ruger .380 LCP for a conceal carry weapon. For home defense it’s down to the Ruger SR9 9mm or a Glock 19 9mm. I have small children in my home so the manual safety on a Ruger is more appealing to me. My firearms are locked away but I would keep a handgun out but in a safe place & out of reach. I’ve shot a Glock numerous times and do like the feel. However the “passive” safety system makes me a little uneasy. Yes, I understand that manual safeties are a false sense of security & the only safety is “between the ears.” I am interested in your opinions and your experience. I know there are several gun enthusiasts on the board.


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My carry is a Kahr CM9. People either love them or hate them. However, they are as compact as most .380s. JMO, but I would not carry a 380. There are a lot of YouTubes you can search for comparable penetrating power and it will be hard to choose the 380 after looking at them...
 

4Q Basket Case

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My personal favorite is the Glock. It does require a firm wrist, though. If you shoot with a floppy wrist, the spent cartridge sometimes doesn't fully eject, and you get a jam.

It's a bit counterintuitive, but I'm actually more accurate with the compact version than the full size.

It's personal preference, but for me, the best balance between stopping power, concealability and recoil management is the .40 caliber.
 

tidefanbeezer

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Before you buy anything, go to your local range and try out several. Rent several models in that caliber you are looking at and shoot them all. This will give you a really good idea of what feels comfortable in your hand and how the weapon functions. If you are going to spend several hundred dollars on a weapon, you want to make sure its one that you are absolutely certain you like. Try before you buy.

*Full disclosure, I love Smith & Wesson.

If you are looking for a full size handgun I like the Smith & Wesson M&P 9mm and the Glock 17. Glock 19 is a great compact. For concealed carry the Shield 9mm and the Glock 26 are both nice. I'm not a huge fan of the new single stack 9mm Glock. I've also enjoyed shooting several Sigs and Rugers.

As Basket Case notes, caliber is all about preference. You can tell that I'm a fan of the 9mm. :) Renting a few guns at the range will also help you nail down what caliber you are comfortable with as well.
 

Intl.Aperture

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FWIW my best friend has used a Ruger SR9 for YEARS as his home defense. I've fired it many many times and talked with him about it. It's a really solid weapon and fires clean. It's got a great stock trigger and is very manageable when rapid firing. Glocks are Glocks, there is a ton out there on that brand and you know what you are getting. But Ruger is a great brand and the SR9 has some great features. It has a little fin that pops out of the top of the slide if there is a round in the chamber, so you are never 2nd guessing yourself (of course one should always still visually clear it but it's handy to see) and of course the manual safety.

Outside of that for home defense I'd of course recommend a variety of shotguns. Nothing quite as a effective as a shorter barrel shotgun in a narrow hallway. Another pistol to consider is the Berreta PX4 Storm.

You can get in a variety of calibers - .45 and 9mm being the most popular. It's probably the smoothest gun I've ever shot and I'm actually really sad that I got rid of it. Mine was a double-action so it had a really long pull on it but I liked that and got used to it. So the pull weight was lower but further back - which is why I actually prefer double action to pin fired. I haven't mastered the ability to squeeze hard without affecting aim but I can take a long pull and it just feels more natural.

There are a ton of viable options out there for good home defense pistols. We live in the United States, you almost can't miss with the availability laid before you.

I 2nd what Earle said about your carry caliber. I think you'll want 9mm or .45 acp. I personally opt for 9mm in my carry gun simply because the form factor for carry is automatically smaller and I want more control than stopping power in that moment - and you get more rounds with 9mm than 45 which is crucial in a small carry size frame. For home defense I go .45 and get a full size pistol.
 

Relayer

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Mar 25, 2001
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Are you looking at the LCP II (big improvement over the original LCP) ?

If you like the LCP II, be sure and check out the Ruger LC9s. Only slightly larger, just a little more expensive, but sweet (and 9mm). Rent & shoot everything you can at the local range before you decide.

Don't count on a manual safety to provide any level of safety whatsoever wrt kids in the house.
 

dvldog

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I have a Ruger 2 3/4 in .357 for home defense. It's my CQB weapon of choice. Added benefit ... when fired, it will light up the whole living room. :) No need for a flashlight.
 

TIDE-HSV

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One more thought - you might think about an AR-15 for your primary home defense weapon, with your carry weapon as a backup. That's my system...
 

Wilson Monroe

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A few thoughts:

First decide what trigger action you prefer. I know you may like a manual safety, but they aren’t putting them on most of the new firearms these days. Handguns have a wide variety of actions and I recommend you think about how you would prefer a pistol behave in your hand and find the action that fits what you envision.

Next find the best trigger on the handgun that behaves like you would want. Some firearms have great triggers out of the box and some don’t. It will affect accurate shooting more than any feature on the pistol.

I would highly recommend that you don’t get a .380 first. If you are dead set on it, fine, but I don’t know anyone that thinks it packs enough punch to be a primary carry weapon. As a backup, maybe.

That’s what gets me in trouble with everyone. I don’t recommend a Glock to anyone that isn’t pretty darn familiar with pistols. The triggers aren’t great out of the box. Most of the folks I know that have a Glock and take shooting seriously replace the factory trigger with an aftermarket one. This costs money and you will either need to do it yourself (not that hard really, but if you don’t know EXACTLY what you are doing don’t try) or get a gunsmith to do it for you (more money).

I highly recommend you take a look at striker fired actions. There are now articles talking about how a striker fire system leaps a new shooter ahead of others in accuracy.

The Kahr that Earle recommended is a solid choice. They are high quality and aren’t overpriced. Trigger is solid out of the box. I know a gunsmith that carries one every day and leaves his Glock, Sig, and many others in the safe.

I also will tell you that every one of them that catches your eye should be researched thoroughly. People will tell you a handgun is great if they bought it, whether it’s honestly great or not. Check out HickoK45 on YouTube. Probably the most down to earth and well respected firearm reviewer around.

I carry a H&K VP9. I love it and highly recommend it. Not overpriced at all, but I am kind of looking over the fence at the VP9SK. It’s a bit smaller, but functions the same. I may end up with one of those also.

Here are a few more to check out. I know for a fact these are high quality firearms. They are all 9x19 though. If you want more thoughts on calibers, just look on any gun forum and you’ll see people get downright nasty about it. It gets a little nutty.

Walther PPQ and PPS
Ruger LC9s 2
S&W M&P Shield
Desert Eagle Baby Eagle
Sig P226
CZ75
 

crimsonaudio

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Handguns are a very personal choice as every person's physiology is slightly different, so grip angles, positioning of safeties, etc. can be great for one person but terrible for another. Go try a few out, see how they feel, see how they shoot, then decide. As long as you avoid the stupid-cheap brands like Hi-point, you'll be fine - just buy from a reputable firearms dealer and ask them plenty of questions - the good ones will help you through the process.

One point of contention, however:

My firearms are locked away but I would keep a handgun out but in a safe place & out of reach. I’ve shot a Glock numerous times and do like the feel. However the “passive” safety system makes me a little uneasy. Yes, I understand that manual safeties are a false sense of security & the only safety is “between the ears.”
There is literally no 'safe place out of reach' for a handgun with kids around, unless it's a small safe. There are numerous manufacturers of inexpensive small personal firearms safes now, some of which can be opened with a quick finger tumbler (or even biometrically) very quickly. Unless you're involved in illicit activity, the dangers of one of your kids (or one of their friends) coming across your 'safe, out of reach' place is far higher than the chance that you'll ever need it.

Avoid a lifetime of regret - unless you are in control of the firearm, lock it up.

</sandbox>
 

Wilson Monroe

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One other thought. So many people spend hours and hundreds on their firearm and then just grab some cheap holster like it's an afterthought. Don't do this. Budget in a really high quality holster when determining how much you can spend. I assure you that your firearm will spend much more time in the holster than in your hand. It is critical to get the holster right or any firearm will be awful to carry around all day.
 

formersoldier71

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My 2 cents:

I'm not going to argue that .380 is a better round than 9mm, or .40 S&W, or .223. I wouldn't use a .380 as my primary home defense weapon. For concealed carry use, I think a couple of things need to be considered: how is the weapon concealed and what is the legitimate range of expected engagement.

If you're going to carry inside the waistband, small of the back, for example, a compact 9mm or .40 is doable. If you want to pocket carry, a .380 is a more reasonable option. Note these are not the only options for concealed carry, just a couple of possibilities. Point is, you need to consider how you will conceal carry and what size weapon you can conceal with that method.

Second, at what range are the threats you expect to have to defend yourself? I would argue that if that range is past a typical self defense scenario, forget concealed carry and tote around an AR. At what range do self defense engagement typically happen? You can find different numbers online, of course, but I would say 7 yards and in is a pretty reasonable expectation. Being accosted approaching your car in a parking lot, for example. That's going to happen at a close range. I still won't argue that .380 is the best round, but within 21 feet I would argue that if you can't or don't want to conceal carry something bigger, a .380 will do the job. As with any other round, shot placement is key.

So, figure out how you will be carrying, test guns you can carry that way, and find out what you can handle and shoot comfortably and put rounds where you want them. Then practice shooting from 2 yards out to 7 yards until you're good. Then practice at these ranges while drawing from your concealed carry method until you're good. Only after this would I worry about practicing at longer ranges.
 

TIDE-HSV

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My 2 cents:

I'm not going to argue that .380 is a better round than 9mm, or .40 S&W, or .223. I wouldn't use a .380 as my primary home defense weapon. For concealed carry use, I think a couple of things need to be considered: how is the weapon concealed and what is the legitimate range of expected engagement.

If you're going to carry inside the waistband, small of the back, for example, a compact 9mm or .40 is doable. If you want to pocket carry, a .380 is a more reasonable option. Note these are not the only options for concealed carry, just a couple of possibilities. Point is, you need to consider how you will conceal carry and what size weapon you can conceal with that method.

Second, at what range are the threats you expect to have to defend yourself? I would argue that if that range is past a typical self defense scenario, forget concealed carry and tote around an AR. At what range do self defense engagement typically happen? You can find different numbers online, of course, but I would say 7 yards and in is a pretty reasonable expectation. Being accosted approaching your car in a parking lot, for example. That's going to happen at a close range. I still won't argue that .380 is the best round, but within 21 feet I would argue that if you can't or don't want to conceal carry something bigger, a .380 will do the job. As with any other round, shot placement is key.

So, figure out how you will be carrying, test guns you can carry that way, and find out what you can handle and shoot comfortably and put rounds where you want them. Then practice shooting from 2 yards out to 7 yards until you're good. Then practice at these ranges while drawing from your concealed carry method until you're good. Only after this would I worry about practicing at longer ranges.
I would say that I pocket-carry my Kahr CM-9 in a DiSantis pocket holster from time to time and it fits easily, being only 5.5" long, smaller than many 380s...
 

formersoldier71

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I would say that I pocket-carry my Kahr CM-9 in a DiSantis pocket holster from time to time and it fits easily, being only 5.5" long, smaller than many 380s...
I do not have any personal experience with Kahr pistols; I have read good reviews about them.

My advice was certainly general in many respects, but I think it holds water. I was trying not to write a treatise on the subject. Cost is a consideration. For example, If I could prove that a Sig P226 is the best option for self defense, bar none, That's not helpful to a feller that can't afford to buy one. There are other variables, too.

I think that a person needs to know how they want to carry and go from there, testing, etc. I'll compare the LCP 2 and Kahr CM-9 since they have been mentioned in this thread. Information is from the respective company websites.
A LCP 2 is 5.17" long, 3.71" tall, .75" slide width, and 10.6 oz weight
A CM-9 is 5.42" long, 4.0" tall, .9" slide width, and 14 oz weight
This information is useful, but it doesn't tell me how either feels in my hand, or feels in my pocket, or how I feel the recoil.

It's something a person has to put some thought and effort into. If I can can carry small of the back, I might go with a Glock 19 or 23. If I felt I had to pocket carry, I might go with a LCP 2, but I also might check out a Kahr CM-9 and see how it feels in my pocket and If I like it,, then test and go from there.
 

rolltide_21

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Thank you for all the replies. You’ve all been very helpful and have given me some great advice. I guess I should give a little more info as to what I’m looking for in a pistol. I’m a runner but had stopped running in town due to no leash laws and a lot of transient people/traffic in our small town, especially around the jail. That’s what I wanted a pocket pistol such as the 380. But after reading your responses I’m going to look @ a few others too. Might be a good idea to get one pistol which can serve more than one purpose. Seems like the Kahr cm- 9 might be a good multi purpose gun for me. I do plan to go to a place like Hoover Tactical and rent/try out some pistols.


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Wilson Monroe

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Running and conceal carry would be tough to pull off. You'll need a very good and tight retention system to pull that off. Belly bands seem to be the most common choice of runners that carry while on the trail.

I see why you were looking at a small .380 now.
 

gtowntide

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I'm not a big gun enthusiast but I bought a 40 cal Glock about 5 years ago and I really like this gun. I would also recommend you shoot a few before you decide. Buy the one that you like.
 

bama_wayne1

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Just a word about home protection where the home is occupied by children. It's difficult to know where everyone is, especially in the dark, I would recommend you consider a shotgun with about 4 shot. It won't continue through walls and wound or kill someone you can't see in the next room.

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rolltide_21

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Just a word about home protection where the home is occupied by children. It's difficult to know where everyone is, especially in the dark, I would recommend you consider a shotgun with about 4 shot. It won't continue through walls and wound or kill someone you can't see in the next room.

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I have a shot gun (actually have had multiple but down to one right now). It’s the primary reason I’ve never bought a pistol for home defense.


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rolltide_21

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Running and conceal carry would be tough to pull off. You'll need a very good and tight retention system to pull that off. Belly bands seem to be the most common choice of runners that carry while on the trail.

I see why you were looking at a small .380 now.
For a long time I carried powerful pepper spray. But with the problems we’re having it’s not enough. At any rate I see what you’re saying. One runner suggested carrying in the small of the back. I’m not sure I’ll carry it while running especially if I don’t feel comfortable with it. A 380 type/size was recommended with a good pocket holster too.


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