Rethinking my Primary Carry Weapon

[snowwalker]

I've said for a long time that 38th street is Indy's "Corridor of Death" and it has been that way for some time now.

 

[lovemachine]

Cheap is what tends to be the rule of thug guns. Cobra, Lorcin, Jennings, etc. However with cheapy guns like the Hi-point having been on the market awhile now, you see less Raven .25s and more fo-tays and 9mm. .380 and 9 are probably the most common these days. We have had a few .50AE shootings, though, so there's always "that guy" who breaks the mold and carries something bigger (likely stolen, of course).

Revolvers are rare. When one does pop up, most of them are .38s, and every great once in awhile its a .44 special. I think we get more rifles than revolvers these days.

.32s are almost dead now, its going the way of the dodo bird. I've yet to have a thug carrying a .327.

Anyway, they are usually in the "compact" range, not a pocket pistol and not a duty sized gun. Something cheap and needlessly bulky.

Examples:

A guy who pulls a rifle out of his pants:

Interesting. Thanks!

A guy pulling a long gun from his pants? And we have members who would rather carry a .380 pocket pistol? And other members who swear a .22lr is adequate enough to stop a threat?
Ok, makes sense.

 

[TheEngineer]

Am i reading this correctly...the same store was robbed twice in 3 days?

Is there nothing better on 38th for these BGs to stick up? I cant image you'd get much from a Subway...except maybe lunch. After all, armed robbery always makes me pretty hungry

Examples:

A guy who pulls a rifle out of his pants:

 

[led4thehed2]

OP, I too have recently thought of moving from carrying my trusty GLOCK to something smaller, especially with another hot Indiana summer coming. I did not look for a .380, so I cannot really comment on the penetration or expansion documented on current .380 JHPs- but the few times I have seen .380 ballistics tests, JHP tended to come up short of 12" of penetration. If it does penetrate 12", I suppose that's a viable load.

I picked up an M&P Shield in So far, it's great.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

Am i reading this correctly...the same store was robbed twice in 3 days?

Yeah.

 

[lovemachine]

OP, I too have recently thought of moving from carrying my trusty GLOCK to something smaller, especially with another hot Indiana summer coming. I did not look for a .380, so I cannot really comment on the penetration or expansion documented on current .380 JHPs- but the few times I have seen .380 ballistics tests, JHP tended to come up short of 12" of penetration. If it does penetrate 12", I suppose that's a viable load.

I picked up an M&P Shield in So far, it's great.

I'd rather have the S&W shield than a .380 pocket gun.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

I'd rather have the S&W shield than a .380 pocket gun.

Me too. The Shield shoots like a larger gun. Its a pretty reasonable weapon for concealment. The sights are usable, the grip allows a good purchase, its in a proven caliber, capacity is good, trigger is reasonable...all in all, a solid choice.

 

[lovemachine]

Me too. The Shield shoots like a larger gun. Its a pretty reasonable weapon for concealment. The sights are usable, the grip allows a good purchase, its in a proven caliber, capacity is good, trigger is reasonable...all in all, a solid choice.

I've never shot a shield, or even held one. But I was able to hold a blue gun. I liked the wider grip of my Glock 26, but I'd love to try it out.

But today, I don't see why anyone would buy a .380 when you can buy a 9mm that's the same frame size. It's just as easy to conceal a 9mm than a .380.

 

[cbhausen]

IMO it really is all about compromise when it comes to EDC. A compact frame (in my case Glock 19) has the right balance of size, firepower, and simplicity plus (and this is important) a healthy ecosystem of accessories. It's also small enough for me to conceal well with an outer garment although I mostly OC. The holster is just too important for me to pick a weapon with limited choices. If I can't get an effective, simple retention holster for a particular pistol I won't carry it, period.

 

[cbhausen]

I was going to ask BehindBlueI's where those Wanted posters come from but I found it:

Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana

The crimetips.org site is a look into the slimeball element of society cops have to deal with every day... Not pretty.

 

[nashfred01]

JMHO, I like high quality 9mm self defense rounds better than any sort of .380.

 

[6mm Shoot]

A lot of what we carry has to do with where we live. When I lived in Miami I carried a Browning High Power. I also kept a shot gun in the van that I drove. That was at the time of the riots. After the riots I don't think a fully auto would have been over kill.

I live out in the country now and I carry a Glock 36 most of the time. My wife keeps up with the news and had told me that in the past five years that there has only been two murders in our area. Now we only live about thirty miles from Cincinnati and I think they have a murder about every day. It seems like that anyway. I keep out of Cincinnati as much as I can. Being retired that isn't hard, but some times I do have to go their. The Glock 36 and a shotgun goes with me.

My point is that if I lived in Cincinnati I would carry my Glock 21 and a back up gun like a Glock 17 or my Browning Hi Power. The risk of me being in an event is much greater there than where I live. I have a much better chance of being mauled by an animal than being harmed by a human. I am not saying that it couldn't happen. That is why I carry the Glock 36.

It is all in what we see as a threat to our lives as to what we carry. I would say that most of the people that carry the little guns such as the 22 or 380 don't think they will be involved in an event and are carrying just in case. To be on the safe side so to speak. Most people that carry will carry most of there lives and never have to use it. Should they stop carrying? No! No way, no how? You stop and chances are that is when things will go bad wrong.

If you truly believe that you are going to have to defend your life or your families when you walk out your front door you will want to carry the gun that you can shoot the best and have as much ammo as you can carry. None of us believe that is going to happen so we compromise on what we carry.

I will carry this because it is lighter and almost as powerful as the other. If I am ever in a fight I will not need more than eight rounds. That is what the stats say. There are all sorts of reasons to explain what we are carrying. In reality we only carry what we think we will need. If we ever have to use it and make it through to the other side we will change what we think and do. I have a friend in Miami that was in an event and now he carries a Glock 20 and two inch S&W for back up. He wears a vest all the time he is out of his house.

We don't know what the future will bring. We can only plan for what we think might happen and try and not let fear run our lives. Carry what you think you will need and I pray that you never have to use it.

 

[Expat]

I just picked up a Shield 9 for summer carry. It will be the first 9 mm that I have ever carried for SD. A little nervous about it, but we will see.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

I just picked up a Shield 9 for summer carry. It will be the first 9 mm that I have ever carried for SD. A little nervous about it, but we will see.

AHHHH!!! PANIC!!!!

(you'll be fine, but I've got a certain reputation to uphold in front of my fellow .45 buffs)

 

[cedartop]

I just picked up a Shield 9 for summer carry. It will be the first 9 mm that I have ever carried for SD. A little nervous about it, but we will see.

The PD I was with shot 9mm Sig 226 's when I was there. They have since switched to .40's but because of a deal SIG gave them not because of any problems. I can think of three deadly force shootings where the Federal 9BPLE load they were using performed flawlessly. Of course this was in combination with good marksmanship. Some of the guys there now tell me the ,40's are more effective against dogs.

 

[tackshot]

well I do not own a 380 but I have a glock 19 and 23 (the 23 I just got in on trade) I all most always grab the 19 over 23 because I am so much more accurate with the 9mm over the 40 cal.
Just my

 

[Birds Away]

I am a proponent of carrying what you shoot best. You can find a rig for virtually any gun that will allow you to carry with reasonable comfort. It frustrates me when I see so many people putting comfort ahead of their ability to effectively use their carry gun.

 

[lovemachine]

I am a proponent of carrying what you shoot best. You can find a rig for virtually any gun that will allow you to carry with reasonable comfort. It frustrates me when I see so many people putting comfort ahead of their ability to effectively use their carry gun.

Yep.

 

[88E30M50]

I am a proponent of carrying what you shoot best. You can find a rig for virtually any gun that will allow you to carry with reasonable comfort. It frustrates me when I see so many people putting comfort ahead of their ability to effectively use their carry gun.

I agree. Choosing a lesser gun for comfort over capability is like a mechanic buying sub standard tools because they fit in his rollaway better. Just about any compact sized gun and most full sized guns can be carried comfortably and concealed reasonably well if you buy the right carry gear.

 

[ChalupaCabras]

How is a 380+P any different than a 9mm?

If you think 380+P will be effective with a flat nosed lead bullet, how would a 9mm not be just as effective if it were loaded with that same bullet?

I understand that you have no faith in an old style round nose FMJ in 9mm ... why not just use any of the premium hollow points already availible? They have prooven to be much more effective.