Springfield Armory

[IamJEEP]

^^^^^Im having a Don Issue today with big thumbs and small phone keys, LOL.

[Sal-XK]

Let me see if I can shed some light on your thoughts here Caleb. You're basically looking for personal protection which as stated would put you with in 20' or so. Now ammo has little effect on accuracy at that range or I should say no effect at that range. When you start stepping out to 100+ meters then ammo is a concern but not with a hang gun obviously. The biggest factor in accuracy is the shooter of the weapon the second would be make model design quality of the firearm. Now at 20' or less I would say you probably can't shoot well enough to take advantage of a very expensive weapon. For personal defense stopping power needs to be a concern with reliability. You need to be able to get 3-4 shots of quickly and with general accuracy. For outstanding accuracy just get a revolver with a 6" barrel and blow the semiautomatics out of the water. Of course revolvers aren't cool there just effective so you'll probably go semiautomatic so I would look for reliability and capacity and stopping power. At close range big bullets moving slowly put people down with one shot not the smaller ones with some ridiculous FPS rating that burns threw people so they don't even feel it, trust me on this ones the delay from getting shot by these types of rounds and going down is long enough to have someone throw some rounds back at you. So pretty much it doesn't matter get a cheap one that holds big bullets and you'll be fine. Ruger makes good cheap reliable weapons there not flashy they just get the job done.

[LWM]

My suggestion on a CCW weapon is smaller is better. Find a weapon that you are comfortable with that is EASY to conceal and that you will not mind carrying EVERYWHERE with you. If the weapon is too big you will pick and choose when to carry and then you might as well leave it at home because the bad guy will strike the time you deceide not to carry anyway.

Also pick a weapon that you can manipulate without much thought, I love the Glock for that reason. You point the weapon and pull the trigger, you do not need to mess with the safety as it is built into the trigger.

[hoaxci5]

When we were shopping for our first pistol (my wife enjoys shooting too) we went to the range and rented.. Turned out we both liked the feel of the XD best of the couple choices we had. So we rented one and shot for the day and left with a new one. I'd recommend doing the same if possible. Renting is usually only about $10 per pistol, and then you will know for sure if you like the way it handles or not. I personally feel that a service size pistol (in my case xd9 with 4" barrel) is too large to comfortably conceal. Can I do it? Sure, but not with my typical shorts and t-shirt attire. Just another thing to keep in mind.

[Tymac]

Great suggestion. When purchasing a weapon, holster or accesories always wear the clothes you'd typically have on when you plan to carry. It's make for a better purchase.

7 months of the year I'm in shorts and tshirt the rest of the time is a fleece pull over and jeans.