Seeking feedback for carry choice

[atxgun]

I'm getting to feel my XD is too large to carry without constantly worrying about printing and what not. Also I have the thought in the back of my head from the school of thought that says "I need to know it will work so I carry a revolver". While I work that personal question out for myself I'm thinking I should get a smaller framed Glock since they are similar to the Springfields I'm used to as well as a revolver.

I want something that can fit nicely in an IWB.

Thoughts for a glock with a more "concealed" frame as well as a revolver?

[Excaliber]

I'm getting to feel my XD is too large to carry without constantly worrying about printing and what not. Also I have the thought in the back of my head from the school of thought that says "I need to know it will work so I carry a revolver". While I work that personal question out for myself I'm thinking I should get a smaller framed Glock since they are similar to the Springfields I'm used to as well as a revolver.

I want something that can fit nicely in an IWB.

Thoughts for a glock with a more "concealed" frame as well as a revolver?

Your printing issue won't be solved with a Glock unless it's a Model 36 in .45 because any gun with a double column magazine requires a thick, blocky grip like that on the XD and most of the Glocks and prints easily. This can be overcome by careful holster and wardrobe selection, but if you're looking to minimize that issue with another gun, you'd do well to consider:

Any 1911 style pistol

Any Kahr pistol

Although most of the S&W M&P series guns have double column magazines, but their grip design is a bit more rounded and may work better for you also.

Revolvers with appropriate grips installed do conceal easily, but be aware that the really small and light ones are much more difficult to shoot well than the guns mentioned above, and you likely won't enjoy putting a lot of rounds through them at one time.

[jbirds1210]

My vote will always be for the Glock, but have you tried the sub compact XD? You might find that everything is in the same place and easier to transition. I really like the feel of the small XD.

I have found the Glock 26 a handy little carry gun. I pocket carry, IWB carry, OWB carry, and carry on my ankle depending on my dress. She has an entire wardrobe of holsters LOL.

Jason

[thankGod]

I have a Glock 19, but it is not a comfortable carry to me. It is difficult to conceal, and prints enough that you can read the serial number.

I prefer a 1911 style, however I am always open to a new purchase just to help the economy. So, yesterday I was strolling through the local Duck Hill mainly interested in shotguns, and the salesman showed me a Walther PPS (the 'S' stands for slim), and it looked liked a nice little piece of tupperware. Much thinner than a 1911. It comes chambered in either 9mm or .40cal.

This is just something you may want to look into. Have sun shopping!

[Purplehood]

I carry my Glock 27 ALL the time.

[BTin]

I just started carrying, and am still very nervous. However, I just tell myself, no matter what you carry, unless it is a small revolver in a pocket holster, it is going to print to some degree. I don't think anyone can totally avoid printing. Please let me know how if you know!

HOWEVER, there is a difference between printing, and printing so that someone knows you have a gun. I suspect that the latter is incredibly rare, even with full size 1911s, double stack, or any gun, really. This is assuming that you are doing a reasonable job concealing, of course.

I was a non-gun person a few months ago, and never-ever noticed a single person carrying a concealed weapon in public. We know that I most likely saw someone carrying because of numbers, but I did not notice. Now that I am a gun person, I look, and I have STILL never seen anyone with a gun that I could tell. How often do you guys pick someone out of a crowd because of printing?

I carry a Hi-Power on a relatively low sitting OWB hip holster, and have not had problems yet. This is a relatively long gun, with a double stack.

I say pick the gun you need to protect yourself and others, and then dress around that. I don't mind wearing a coat when I am hot, because I know I can protect my family.

By the way, is a revolver really more reliable than a good semi-auto? That is a serious question, because after I heard about gaps, and timing, and firing mechanism breakages, I started to question that personally.

To each his own, though. That is the beauty of America! Thank God!

[atxgun]

By the way, is a revolver really more reliable than a good semi-auto? That is a serious question, because after I heard about gaps, and timing, and firing mechanism breakages, I started to question that personally.

My thought on that being you don't need to worry about possible FTE or FTL and you can get 2 shots off in succession quicker when you don't need to wait for the slide to go back, a new round to come up and get chambered.

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone. I'm not really dead set on glock, it was just an initial thought.

[Originalist]

I have had a Taurus PT-111, Beretta 9000S and now have the XD9 Sub and I think it is the easiest gun of the ones I have had to conceal. I have had for about 2 yrs and I still absolutely love it, it is my primary carry piece. Plus I like the 16 rnd mags w/ grip extension for the times concealment isn't an issue. I consistantly carry at about 4 o'clock and COB (both IWB) and even with my snugger/shorter T-Shirts I have no issues. Still turn and ask my wife "can you see it" though.

Good luck
Bryan

[Excaliber]

By the way, is a revolver really more reliable than a good semi-auto? That is a serious question, because after I heard about gaps, and timing, and firing mechanism breakages, I started to question that personally.

The short answer is "No." That's one of the big reasons no major country's military uses them for serious duty.

Revolvers can be put out of commission by a single drop onto a hard surface that causes components to go out of alignment. That takes a gunsmith to restore it to usability. They are also prone to having various screws loosen up and do bad things, like allowing the cylinder and crane to fall out of the gun when trying to reload. I saw this several times during the years when my agency used revolvers.

Autos, on the other hand, are sensitive to bad ammo, poor grip, and magazines that are out of spec even though they look fine to the naked eye, or not fully locked into the frame.

That being said, reliability issues aren't a serious concern with a quality gun in either flavor if it has been verified as functional with a few hundred rounds of your carry ammo, and it is kept clean and lubricated, and you have trained to use it well.

[mr.72]

The time it takes to cycle the slide is not an issue. I seriously doubt anyone can attempt to fire a normal semi-auto pistol faster than it can cycle.

[mr.72]

BTW my Kahr is way easier to conceal, and way more comfortable to carry due to the thin profile vs. my double-stack 9mm.

Not only that, but the Kahr is a joy to shoot, has been extremely reliable except one little niggle, and Kahr's customer service has been excellent.

I don't think a G26 is going to be noticeably less likely to print than any other double-stack 9mm. A G36 is really not that much thinner either.

[AggieMM]

+1 on Kahr. I have a CW9, and love it. Fits nicely in a OWB and IWB, depending upon what clothes I'm wearing that day..

Ryan

[troglodyte]

I carry a Colt Defender and an XD9 subcompact pretty interchangably. While I think the 1911 is a little easier to conceal (and I really think it is more the holsters than the guns) I have not had to change anything to carry the XD in the same position. I do have a bump or bulge but nothing you could tell was a gun, phone, insulin pump, knife, or just a fold in the fabric. For the most part, nobody in looking.

As for the revolver issue. I recently read a blog where the author (trusted) touched on the primary reason to carry a pistol. Quite simply it was capacity. Pistols allow more on-gun capacity, quicker reloads, and, generally, easier malfunction clearing. Not to start a pistol v. revolver debate, I have carried both without issue, just thought he made a lot of sense. Especially when he cited a case where 7 shots were fired in rapid succession. They heated up the cylinder (or the brass was hot enough) to stick the brass in the cylinder and could not be removed. Not good for a tactical reload.

YMMV

[NcongruNt]

I just started carrying, and am still very nervous. However, I just tell myself, no matter what you carry, unless it is a small revolver in a pocket holster, it is going to print to some degree. I don't think anyone can totally avoid printing. Please let me know how if you know!

HOWEVER, there is a difference between printing, and printing so that someone knows you have a gun. I suspect that the latter is incredibly rare, even with full size 1911s, double stack, or any gun, really. This is assuming that you are doing a reasonable job concealing, of course.

I was a non-gun person a few months ago, and never-ever noticed a single person carrying a concealed weapon in public. We know that I most likely saw someone carrying because of numbers, but I did not notice. Now that I am a gun person, I look, and I have STILL never seen anyone with a gun that I could tell. How often do you guys pick someone out of a crowd because of printing?

I carry a Hi-Power on a relatively low sitting OWB hip holster, and have not had problems yet. This is a relatively long gun, with a double stack.

I say pick the gun you need to protect yourself and others, and then dress around that. I don't mind wearing a coat when I am hot, because I know I can protect my family.

By the way, is a revolver really more reliable than a good semi-auto? That is a serious question, because after I heard about gaps, and timing, and firing mechanism breakages, I started to question that personally.

To each his own, though. That is the beauty of America! Thank God!

I also carry a Hi-Power in an OWB holster (at about 3:30), though it is high-riding ( http://www.usgalco.com/HolsterPG3.asp?P ... 5&GunID=23" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ). I also carry 2 mags in an OWB mag carrier ( http://www.safariland.com/product.aspx?pid=73" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ) on the weak side at about 8:00. This particular gun has been my carry for well over a year, and the only person to ever notice it was someone who already knew it was there, while I was squatting in an awkward position. I have taken friends who see me nearly every day shooting for the first time, and were shocked at what I had on, and that I had carried that gun in that position for nearly a year (at the time). All of the friends not in the know who I take shooting for the first time are surprised when I pull out my pistol from the holster on the firing line.

Part of it is what I wear. Before I started carrying, I tended to wear work shirts over the top of t-shirts, and this went to an every day practice when I started carrying. Dickies work shirts are good, and I have recently found that the 5.11 button up shirts ( http://www.511tactical.com/browse/Home/ ... 01/I/71152" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ) do an excellent job as well. They are designed to drape over a shoulder-holstered gun for concealment, but I have found that they do a great job for my high-riding OWB rig. I add in a 5.11 holster shirt ( http://www.511tactical.com/browse/Home/ ... 01/I/40011" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ) a good amount of the time instead of the t-shirt, which gives me a good place for my BUG and its extra mag (Ruger LCP).

Below is a couple of pictures of my carry setup last year just after I started carrying the Hi-Power. This was before I got a good gun belt ( http://www.thebeltman.net" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; ) and stepped up my cover shirt one size (because of length/fit concerns), but you can get the idea.

[Excaliber]

Dickies work shirts are good,

Dickies lightweight plaid pattern shirts are also excellent for concealment wear.

A couple of other tips:

Shirts with patterns are MUCH better at resisting visible printing. The eye just doesn't pick out bulges nearly as easily when looking at them. Darker patterns are somewhat better than light ones, but both work.

Dark single color shirts are also harder to see a definable print on than light shirts.

Loose fitting lightweight shirts like fishing guides wear, although light in color, conceal well also due to their hang and fit.

Try different shirts you already own in the above categories in front of the mirror - you'll quickly see the differences.