Advice for a USMC veteran for a new hand gun

[draginteg68]

I'm looking to buy my first handgun and get my conceled weapons permit. what would be the best gun to get thats a medium size?

[shotdown]

Glock 19 or 23, H&K P2000 9mm or 40 S&W to name a few.

[castanagajt]

Welcome USMC Vet. Thank you for your service fortunately, their are so many handguns that are so good even against that piece of what you call the M9 Beretta. I would have to say buy on your price range and what you can afford like I have. When you mean medium sized you probably meant guns that are 4 inches on the barrel?

I ended up in purchasing a Springfield Armory XD9, liked it so much I got the smaller brother the XD9 subcompact many months forward. Other ones as mentioned before say a Glock 19 which are decent, I had that for exactly 3 days til I sold it for how much I paid for and added 40 on top to get my XD9. I don't own a Ruger SR9 but I think I would actually like that one alot.

[#5MK1]

You might want to go to a range that rents hand guns and try out a few.

The options are endless.

FWIW- ONE of the hand guns several of our shooters changed to for CCW is the Bersa .380 They are relatively cheap and very reliable. Easy to carry, they are modelled after the Walther PPK. Thin and fit well in the hand. Accurate also.

A good choice if money is a factor. Bersa .380 are around $300 new are reliable.

Some of us that use the Bersa .380 have the option to carry anything we want in price or cal. and we choose the Bersa.

Easy to replace if lost or stolen. Not so with my high dollar hand guns.

The cal. is 9X17 and very close to the 9X18 Makarov that the Soviet block police carried, so the cal. is sufficient.

Arguments on cal. are endless, so its your choice.

It is interesting to note that folks who are big cal. fans like .45 ACP etc. now carry the .380 Bersas. I am one of them.

Just something to consider in your choices.

I persoanlly have a long list of CCW guns. Different situations call for different guns.
But the .380 is alwasy near, either in the car or on me. Same with my .45 compact.
I have at least eight guns listed on my CCW for this reason.

You will get all kinds of opinions on forums and the only way to sort it all out, is to try it out for yourself. To see what fits best for you.

There are many choices for you and what is best for a hand gun choice is very subjective. So all of the opinions are valid.

You will have to try out what works best for you in size and cal. revolver or semi auto.
Body size, hand size, and experience all are a factor.

Function and recoil are a consideration.

BTW- Thanks for your service and I hope you find what suits you.

[vegas_sig]

Originally Posted by draginteg68

I'm looking to buy my first handgun and get my conceled weapons permit. what would be the best gun to get thats a medium size?

I really think this is not a question others can answer for you. Head on down to one of the local gun stores that have a range and rental program and shoot. See what feels good to you, but remember to consider how you will be carrying it. I would certainly look at Glock, Sig, 1911s, Kahr, and XD.

Thank you for your service!

[USAFshooter]

or come out to pahrump on the 20th or 21st to the Nevadashooters shoot and try some out. I'll be there on the 20th and you're welcome to try my Springfield XD9. i'm sure there will be a wide variety of handguns available to try out

[titanNV]

Originally Posted by USAFshooter

or come out to pahrump on the 20th or 21st to the Nevadashooters shoot and try some out. I'll be there on the 20th and you're welcome to try my Springfield XD9. i'm sure there will be a wide variety of handguns available to try out

That's a real good idea!

[Gunhand]

From my over 30 years as a firearms instructor, I will echo the sage advise given by some of the contributors already. The best gun for you, is the one that feels the best to you, the one you shoot the best, and the one that you can conceal the best.

As far as caliber goes, remember with a handgun reguardless of the caliber, it's shot placement. The old adage "a hit with a .22 is better than a miss with a .44" comes to mind. No matter what caliber you chose, you need to be able to put good hits on vital areas of the target. If you can do it with a .500 S&W, and you can conceal it, great! If not, then good shot placement with a 9mm or .380 is the ticket.

You also must consider concealment. We live in a very warm climate. The summers will preclude you from wearing a jacket that would assist in the concealment of some full size pistols. One of the worst things you can do is be the guy wearing a jacket or safari vest when it's 115 degrees outside. All you are doing is advertising to anyone (criminals, law enforcement, security) that you are armed.

My last thought is make sure you train often! I see so many people who go and get their CCW, and then don't shoot their weapons until they have to qualify again. Proper operation of a handgun in a defensive mode is a VERY perishable skill! Remember when you carry a firearm, you may have to deploy it at the worst possible time. So you need to make sure you can use it without a "warm up". You have to be able to accurately operate the weapon cold, and on demand. Proper dry practice and regular trips to the range will go a long way to keeping your skills up to speed.

[Glocksterpaulie]

I have been a Glock guy since the mid 80's. Try before you buy that way you can see what works for you before putting the cash out for one.

Thank you for your service.

Paulie

[VegasGeorge]

Seriously, renting a few pistols and trying them out is the ticket. That's how I chose mine, and I've been happy with it ever since.