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Abraham wrote:TAM,

If you ever come up with a convincing argument for those who just refuse to carry on their person, Puh-Leeze let me know, so I can convince my wife.

I've tried any number of good reasons my wife should carry, provided great holsters and gun belts and she agrees they make sense and then refuses to utilize them.

I just kept reading her self-defense stories that people have posted here of their own experiences. Then the other day, this thread was posted: viewtopic.php?f=53&t=80119. I pointed out to her that this happened in a good neighborhood (WE live in a good neighborhood), in a well-lit spot (OUR street is not that well lit), to a group of THREE victims (we go for walks either just the two of us, or alone), and the bad guys took the woman's purse which, thankfully did not have a gun in it at the time, as she did have her CHL (had my wife had her gun in her purse, which she does 100% of the time, she would have given the bad guys a free gun). It finally sunk in, and she has been carrying on body since Friday.

Abraham wrote:Had she had a limited amount of shots, she might not have prevailed.

I agree.....but she had her undiscovered pistol concealed on her person. My wife has been carrying hers in a purse, which, in the scenario your describe, is as good as not having one at all. If she will agree to carry on-body instead of her purse, then her undiscovered diminished capacity pistol beats having no pistol.....which is what purse carry would amount to in that situation.

Abraham wrote:I'd rather carry a Glock 19 for it's capacity and solid feel.

I remember reading endless comments about carrying a gun isn't about comfort, it's about self defense and how to improve it.

Now, it's all about single stack, comfy guns...

If ever I have to pull my gun, and it only carries 7 rounds, I know I'd be thinking, Egads! Why, Oh Why, do I have a gun with so little capacity?

What was I thinking????

As a BUG, yeah, O.K.

EDC?

NEVER!

I'm married to a redhead. YOU tell her that. I've been trying to tell her things for over 28 years. I'm only the husband.

She's simply not going to carry the G19 she owns (and has a BEAUTIFUL custom holster for, which I got from carlson1 several years ago) unless she is open carrying, and we're camping or something. She spends a large part of each day with our granddaughter in her arms, and for her, apparently a "carry sized" Glock doesn't work. EDC isn't the issue. She already carries a diminished capacity 9mm. I'm just trying to get her one that is better made, lighter, and smaller, so that she will carry it ON BODY. It isn't carry that's an issue for her, it is the method of carry. She has always said recognized that on body was better, and then steadfastly refused to do it......using purse carry instead.....which is just a way to arm a criminal when it is least convenient for you.

What you or I would/should do hasn't got a thing to do in the world with the will of a redheaded woman.

Thanks Charlie. We discussed getting her an XDS-9 a while back, but she is really enamored of the weight/size savings of my PM9......and I don't want to surrender it because I also have an occasional carry need for a tiny 9mm. She has fired my XDS-45 once and didn't particularly like it. (I think she's crazy. ) The XDS-9 actually weighs 1.5 oz more than the .45 due to the smaller ID of the barrel, and even if the size works (maybe), the weight doesn't; and I am trying to make this as easy for her to adapt to as possible.

I was successful the other day in convincing her to use her Belly Band (TheWellArmedWoman.com) daily, and she has been EDC'ing my PM9 since the day before yesterday.

The crucial measurements for the PM9 are:

• Overall Length: 5.42"
  Overall Height: 4.0"
  Overall Width: .90" (the frame is the same width as the slide, not counting the slide stop)
  Barrel length: 3.1" (1:10 polygonal rifling)
  Weight: Pistol 14 ounces, Magazine 1.9 ounces (ammo extra)
  Capacity: 6+1, 7+1 (magazine with grip extension)

The crucial measurements for the G43 are:

• Overall Length: 6.26 in.
  Overall Height: 4.25 in.
  Width: 1.02 in. (across the slide...the frame is wider)
  Barrel length: 3.39 in. (1:984 hexagonal rifling)
  Weights: 17.95 oz. (unloaded), 22.36 oz. (loaded) - presumably the unloaded weight includes the magazine
  Capacity: 6+1

The crucial measurements for the M&P Shield (no thumb safety) are:

• Overall Length: 6.1”
  Overall Height: 4.6”
  Frame Width: .95” (slide is same width at the bottom, narrower at the top)
  Barrel Length: 3.1”
  Weight: 19.0 oz.
  Capacity: 7 and 8 Round Magazines (+1)

The crucial measurements for the XDS-9 are:

• Overall Length: 6.2"
  Overall Height: 4.4" with short mag, 5.5" with extended mag
  Width: .9" (slide & frame)
  Barrel length: 3.3" (1:10, standard rifling)
  Weight: 23 oz with empty magazine
  Capacity: 7 and 8 Round magazines (+1)

I put together this chart to visualize it a bit better: At first glance, the Kahr appears to be a clear winner, but it has several strikes against it that are hard to quantify on this chart. For one thing, it is mine, and I don't want to give it up to my wife.....but that's irrelevant to this comparison. I own an XDS, and I have handled a Shield, and I can state categorically that the build quality is better by far on either of those guns than on the Kahr. Although I can't speak directly the the G43, the two other Glocks we own are very well made. I don't like the Kahr magazines, I don't like they way they fit into the frame, and I don't like the fact that they don't hold the top round very securely in a spare magazine. I don't like the way the Kahr's take down for cleaning. The takedown and the mag quality speaks to cost-cutting during manufacture, even in the VERY expensive PM9 Black with night sights that I own. I bought mine used, so I don't have the $987.00 MSRP in it that is quoted for it, but a new XDS, Shield, or G43 is less today than I paid for my PM9 used, which, when I bought it, the other pistols didn't exist yet.

My primary reasons for interest in the Glock over the others are that 1) my wife is familiar with the platform, and 2) I have come to like it. But if it weren't for her need, I wouldn't be on the market for another pocket pistol right now.

I prefer polygonal/hexagonal rifling because it is easier to clean, and it generates slightly higher muzzle velocities (important in a pocket pistol).

cheezit wrote:Tam I know your asking about the glock, but...
Take a good look at the sig p938. It is the easiest gun to rack the slide on I have found. Factory night sights that are better then avarge too.

b4aftr wrote:TAM, if you would like to try out the 938, let me know I have one to borrow and I come to Gvine and S.L. often.

Thanks for that suggestion guys, but my wife already thinks a 1911 is a complicated gun. I don't think she's going to find a tiny one any easier. That's why I am focused on the G43, and possibly an M&P Shield, compared to the PM9.

My wife has been EDC'ing a Kahr CW9, but she has been just plain resistant to on-body carry all time........says she's gonna do it, but persists in carrying in her purse. I kept telling her that she's going to arm a thief some day. This morning, I read THIS THREAD to her. She finally agreed to carry on body as she went out shopping today, with a belly-band under arm type holster I bought her a long time ago, but she wanted something smaller than the CW9 she has been carrying. So I loaned her my PM9.

But, she owns a G19 and is pretty familiar with the Glock system, so I'm thinking of getting her a G43 to replace my PM9. I have a few questions......

1. Do those of you who own or have owned a G43 have any complaints, or are they the usual boringly reliable Glocks?

2. How do they shoot compared to the other mini-9s? Is the recoil pretty stout, or not too bad for a small pistol?

3. Is there one of you who currently has a G43 live in the Grapevine area, and might you let me run a few rounds through it to see how it shoots, side by side with my PM9?