Best Conceal Carry Weapon- Revolver or Automatic?

[Terrywoodenpic]

Self defense -- you need a scattergun.

Shot guns are one of the few you can get a licence for in the UK.

For defence in close quarters, "a sawn off" is a scary and massive deterrent, But totally illegal here.

 

[Thief]

When I think "personal defense" I think close range, chaos, maybe panic. I'd look for something small, easily concealed and quickly deployed; something you could point in the general direction of an assailant and still have some hope of hitting him.
I'd consider a 45/.410 derringer with BB to #4 size shotshells, or maybe those Winchester PDX rounds with 3 stacked disks+12 BB shot.

Oh, and everyone knows Taurus is junk.

Seen some recent reviews about 'heavy' derringers.

Consider the range of the bullet....the recoil...and what you are attempting to do unto someone else.

 

[Thief]

Shot guns are one of the few you can get a licence for in the UK.

For defence in close quarters, "a sawn off" is a scary and massive deterrent, But totally illegal here.

THAT'S WEIRD!

They're not legal in the States as such things are concealable and the shot leaves little ballistic evidence.
In the hands of criminals this would be ideal for them.

 

[Thief]

Black belt here...and living in a no carry zone.

But if ever I get to do so....
My sp101 with five rounds of 38 will do.
I can hit a pop can at seventy five feet....or within inches of it.

At self defense range it's a sure kill.

I might point out....self defense includes the concept that your life is immediately at risk.
Beyond arms reach...or the invasion of your home....your plea of self defense might be questioned.

And then your level of response...your sense of humanity comes to play.
In defense....in court....it will be noted if you were 'self righteous' or 'judgmental'.

Taking someone else's life is serious business.
The question will be asked.....'why did you do that?'

 

[Revoltingest]

Black belt here...and living in a no carry zone.
But if ever I get to do so....
My sp101 with five rounds of 38 will do.
I can hit a pop can at seventy five feet....or within inches of it.

Accuracy suffers under stress.
38 special has a poor one shot stop rating unless you use the nastier high pressure rounds.
Poor stopping power is the reason that US & British military abandoned it in the early 1900s.
I once carried 38 special too, but if one is to carry at all, why not get a better insurance policy for the same cost?

At self defense range it's a sure kill.

There is no such thing as a sure kill.
Things be unpredictable.

I might point out....self defense includes the concept that your life is immediately at risk.
Beyond arms reach...or the invasion of your home....your plea of self defense might be questioned.
And then your level of response...your sense of humanity comes to play.
In defense....in court....it will be noted if you were 'self righteous' or 'judgmental'.
Taking someone else's life is serious business.
The question will be asked.....'why did you do that?'

Very true all dat.

 

[Thief]

Accuracy suffers under stress.
38 special has a poor one shot stop rating unless you use the nastier high pressure rounds.
Poor stopping power is the reason that US & British military abandoned it in the early 1900s.
I once carried 38 special too, but if one is to carry at all, why not get a better insurance policy for the same cost?

There is no such thing as a sure kill.
Things be unpredictable.

Keeping to the gun play....
Self defense and knock down are related....true.

But let's consider a few other factors....like that pistol called 'Judge'.
I've seen two demos on tv.
The first was fairly lack luster but showed the weapon to be of use.
The second showed what it can do if you 'sweeten' the load.
SW makes a shell that spits four balls of steel at once.
The entire package went all the way through 16 inches of ballistic gel.

That's way too much.
Control at short range?...with high powered loads?
IT'S a PROBLEM!
Shot ...almost always...insures a hit, including bystanders.
High powered rounds are for knock down, including others standing behind the target.

I think a bit more consideration of the line drawn between self defense and combat situations should be made.

In the street, the attack that needs defense is close....real close.
In combat, the backdrop is probably enemy territory.

In the home a 9mm will easily pierce your dry wall.
People in the next room are at risk. So too your neighbors.

 

[Jacksnyte]

Revolver: easier maintainance, less likely to jam up.

 

[LegionOnomaMoi]

Accuracy suffers under stress.

As does fine motor coordination. Tunnel vision, lack of fine motor control, tendency to engage it automated responses and/or freeze up...all reasons to take nothing for granted.

38 special has a poor one shot stop rating unless you use the nastier high pressure rounds.

And with the "special rounds" you have to worry that much more about legal issues. Not so much of a problem in some states, but where I live even if you were in your own home and your life was threatened, using a gun with ammo designed maximize the probability of death is going to get you into trouble. Best thing to do is see what load the cops in your area tend to use. If it's any good, going with that will help you out in court. I get the "better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6" and all, but I'd rather neither.

Poor stopping power is the reason that US & British military abandoned it in the early 1900s.

Yes, but trading the .45 for a 9mm? Most military guys I've known who either carry only a sidearm (i.e., guys who aren't in the field) or are likely to use theirs (SF, SEALs, USAISA, etc.) don't carry the M9 and either have a non-standard issue back-up or carry some version of the M1911 they've had tinkered with.

I think a bit more consideration of the line drawn between self defense and combat situations should be made.

In the street, the attack that needs defense is close....real close.

Usually, yes. But not always. If the situation is a robbery or a person walking into a church or some building equally large or larger with a high-capacity weapon, chances are you won't be withing the typical 1-3 yards.

In combat, the backdrop is probably enemy territory.

The head instructor who first taught me to shoot a carbine was a former SEAL team 6 sniper (he's actually in one of the pictures of me posted here, only he asked to have his face blacked out of any pictures). He and most of the guys he knew in either the Special ops community or the high-end contracting teams later would fix their carbine sites for 100 yards. The difference you have to account for in terms of your site picture versus where your bullet will go at any distance shorter than this is marginal, and in all probability they wouldn't be shooting beyond that distance, but closer. Urban combat changed a lot of the rules, and Mogadishu changed urban combat.

In the home a 9mm will easily pierce your dry wall.
People in the next room are at risk. So too your neighbors.

So why not carry a .45? Heavy, slower than the speed of sound, and a lot of stopping power.

 

[Thief]

As does fine motor coordination. Tunnel vision, lack of fine motor control, tendency to engage it automated responses and/or freeze up...all reasons to take nothing for granted.



And with the "special rounds" you have to worry that much more about legal issues. Not so much of a problem in some states, but where I live even if you were in your own home and your life was threatened, using a gun with ammo designed maximize the probability of death is going to get you into trouble. Best thing to do is see what load the cops in your area tend to use. If it's any good, going with that will help you out in court. I get the "better to be judged by 12 than carried by 6" and all, but I'd rather neither.


Yes, but trading the .45 for a 9mm? Most military guys I've known who either carry only a sidearm (i.e., guys who aren't in the field) or are likely to use theirs (SF, SEALs, USAISA, etc.) don't carry the M9 and either have a non-standard issue back-up or carry some version of the M1911 they've had tinkered with.



Usually, yes. But not always. If the situation is a robbery or a person walking into a church or some building equally large or larger with a high-capacity weapon, chances are you won't be withing the typical 1-3 yards.



The head instructor who first taught me to shoot a carbine was a former SEAL team 6 sniper (he's actually in one of the pictures of me posted here, only he asked to have his face blacked out of any pictures). He and most of the guys he knew in either the Special ops community or the high-end contracting teams later would fix their carbine sites for 100 yards. The difference you have to account for in terms of your site picture versus where your bullet will go at any distance shorter than this is marginal, and in all probability they wouldn't be shooting beyond that distance, but closer. Urban combat changed a lot of the rules, and Mogadishu changed urban combat.


So why not carry a .45? Heavy, slower than the speed of sound, and a lot of stopping power.

Thank you.

I grew up in a bad neighborhood.
Greetings were occasionally dealt by a swift punch to the eye.
Cause for self defense...yeah
Cause for a weapon?

You mentioned a the scenario of attack unto a crowd.
That scenario led to the carry law in Texas....and probably other States of the Union.

One state does the opposite by imposing bans.

I say, we should carry.
Workplace and public assault would lessen if it were known the general public could be armed.

But every citizen should then consider....this is not war.
Self defense has a VERY specific target.

The bullet of choice matters.

My sp101 with five rounds of 38 would discourage most attackers.
First two rounds at the belt.
The next three with more discretion....and responsibility.

An alternate would be my Walther 22 with ten rounds...semi auto.
The 22 hollow point is greatly underestimated.
Wouldn't want the first five rounds to happen to me.

 

[angellous_evangellous]

I've carried both, but settled on a semi-auto.
Reasons:
- More concealable because it's thinner than the cylinder on a revolver.
- Higher capacity.
- Very safe carry mode when the chamber is empty.
- Racking the slide offers an announcement of intent, which would diffuse many a situation.
- More natural pointer.

I'm not worried about spent brass being used as evidence.
It's likely that I'd stick around for the cops to arrive anyway after a self-defense incident.

This is about where I stand, too, but I just like the revolver. Four, five, or six shots force you to be a bit more responsible with your ammo... and you won't end up shooting someone 15 times.

 

[Revoltingest]

This is about where I stand, too, but I just like the revolver. Four, five, or six shots force you to be a bit more responsible with your ammo... and you won't end up shooting someone 15 times.

A revolver is certainly a fine piece of machinery, & better than a semi-auto for heavier rounds, & handling a variety of ammo.
Personally, I favor single shot rifles. But they aren't suited for carry or self-defense.

 

[Revoltingest]

Keeping to the gun play....
Self defense and knock down are related....true.

But let's consider a few other factors....like that pistol called 'Judge'.
I've seen two demos on tv.
The first was fairly lack luster but showed the weapon to be of use.
The second showed what it can do if you 'sweeten' the load.
SW makes a shell that spits four balls of steel at once.
The entire package went all the way through 16 inches of ballistic gel.

That's way too much.
Control at short range?...with high powered loads?
IT'S a PROBLEM!
Shot ...almost always...insures a hit, including bystanders.
High powered rounds are for knock down, including others standing behind the target.

I think a bit more consideration of the line drawn between self defense and combat situations should be made.

In the street, the attack that needs defense is close....real close.
In combat, the backdrop is probably enemy territory.

In the home a 9mm will easily pierce your dry wall.
People in the next room are at risk. So too your neighbors.

A 9mm won't pierce many layers of drywall if one uses fragmenting ammo (eg, Magsafe, Glaser).
Those don't ricochet either. I carry with Glaser Blue rounds. Most effective & most safe.
This stuff sure requires a lot of careful thought, eh?

 

[Valjean]

Shot guns are one of the few you can get a licence for in the UK.

For defence in close quarters, "a sawn off" is a scary and massive deterrent, But totally illegal here.

I was thinking more of a revolver or, especially, a derringer, using .410 shotshells.

Easily concealed, carried and deployed, hard to miss your target, little chance of a round ending up in your neighbor's bedroom, and rounds easily tailored to specific needs.

 

[Terrywoodenpic]

I was thinking more of a revolver or, especially, a derringer, using .410 shotshells.

Easily concealed, carried and deployed, hard to miss your target, little chance of a round ending up in your neighbor's bedroom, and rounds easily tailored to specific needs.

I did not know you could get a 410 hand gun.
I used to have a 410 single shot that came into 3 pieces with out tools.

Loaded with rock salt would be a painful deterrant.

 

[Trey of Diamonds]

This is the best concealed weapon ever!

Spoiler: Warning, graphic image!

 

[Revoltingest]

This is the best concealed weapon ever!

Spoiler: Warning, graphic image!

Do you pull it out & throw it at them?

 

[Valjean]

I did not know you could get a 410 hand gun.
I used to have a 410 single shot that came into 3 pieces with out tools.

Loaded with rock salt would be a painful deterrant.

There are several companies marketing revolvers chambered for .410 shotshells &/or .45 handgun rounds, and with the dozens of different .410 loads -- slugs to birdshot to slug-shot combinations, or mixed .45s and shotshells -- you can tailor your rounds to your own particular needs.
These are big revolvers, though, not easily concealed. A stacked derringer might be more practical, with maybe BB shot in the top barrel and a .45 or a Winchester PDX1 as backup, in case an assailant doesn't get the message.

 

[Revoltingest]

There are several companies marketing revolvers chambered for .410 shotshells &/or .45 handgun rounds, and with the dozens of different .410 loads -- slugs to birdshot to slug-shot combinations, or mixed .45s and shotshells -- you can tailor your rounds to your own particular needs.
These are big revolvers, though, not easily concealed. A stacked derringer might be more practical, with maybe BB shot in the top barrel and a .45 or a Winchester PDX1 as backup, in case an assailant doesn't get the message.

Of all the people I know who carry concealed (cops & civilians) on a daily or infrequent basis, not one has ever chosen a scattergun.
I see disadvantages, but no real advantages. For less than lethal loads (eg, rock salt), i'd prefer pepper spray or a Taser to a .410.
Scatterguns (eg, Angelous's "shotty") make sense in at-home scenarios though.

 

[Trey of Diamonds]

Do you pull it out & throw it at them?

You're thinking of a Brainarang.

To be honest, I simply don't place myself in a situation in which I need to protect myself with a weapon. I don't go to bars anymore, I don't stay out late, I don't walk down dark lonely alleys or through the park at night. In other words, I'm getting very boring in my old age.

 

[LegionOnomaMoi]

These are big revolvers, though, not easily concealed.

Yes, concealing both of my 15 in. long 5 pound S&W 500 revolvers is a challenge, but walking like a duck just makes me look that much more suave. People refuse to walk on the same side of the street as I am I'm so cool looking.