Compact Caliber Preference?

I'm pretty sure this question has been asked more than a few times but I figure I go ahead and ask it anyway. I myself are looking at purchasing my first compact and I'm wondering what everyone's preference is on caliber and what would be the better of the pic. I have been getting this itch to buy a 9mm Compact considering that I carry a .40 G35. Basically want something a bit smaller but not wanting to go too small. What would you all think I should hit for as in a better purchase? Reason why I am asking is Im used to full size pistols and not compacts. This is just a legimate question and not needing any sarcasm on reply's. Thank you!

10mm out of a G29

If it doesn't start with a 4 I won't carry it.

I have two compact 9mm's. I recommend both. The first is a PF-9 by Keltec. It had a single stack 7rd magazine but it is small and lighweight. I also have a Beretta 9000S which holds 12 rounds. Both are great guns. I wouldn't go any smaller than 9mm for a primary carry gun.

well it really depends on what you concider "compact" to me a glock 23 is compact. because it is not a full size. and its not a ruger LCP. haha

so with that said. .40 or up. ? depending on the mag capacity. 9mm has a history of making holes, but not stopping targets. so if you can get a compact with a 12rnd mag or higher. 9mm is fine. however if you are 10rnds or under...............i would say .40 .45acp or .357sig. all three have respectable energy transfer behind them. and when you have limited ammo, bigger is always better. 10mm will drop a deer with 1 round. so that works too ;-)

stay away from .380 its a hoax round unless your dang good at shot placement.
.22..........deadly
.25....hahahahhahahaha


revolver ammo

357 great
.44mag amazing
327 federal rocks
.38 okay but loses alot of accuracy with distance *unless its a 6"bbl*
.500S&W creme de la creme will remove any appendage aimed at. *downside it kicks like a pissed off mule on steroids*

carry for myself said:

well it really depends on what you concider "compact" to me a glock 23 is compact. because it is not a full size. and its not a ruger LCP. haha

so with that said. .40 or up. ? depending on the mag capacity. 9mm has a history of making holes, but not stopping targets. so if you can get a compact with a 12rnd mag or higher. 9mm is fine. however if you are 10rnds or under...............i would say .40 .45acp or .357sig. all three have respectable energy transfer behind them. and when you have limited ammo, bigger is always better. 10mm will drop a deer with 1 round. so that works too ;-)

stay away from .380 its a hoax round unless your dang good at shot placement.
.22..........deadly
.25....hahahahhahahaha


revolver ammo

357 great
.44mag amazing
327 federal rocks
.38 okay but loses alot of accuracy with distance *unless its a 6"bbl*
.500S&W creme de la creme will remove any appendage aimed at. *downside it kicks like a pissed off mule on steroids*

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Yes, the Glock 23 is classed as a compact pistol. It's larger brother, the Glock 22, is considered full size and the "baby" Glock 27 is a subcompact.

These three Glock pistols are excellent examples of these size classifications. As for pistols such as the Ruger LCP, the Kel-Tec P3AT, and the Taurus 738 TCP... these little guns are generally referred to as "mini" or "micro" guns.

Hmmm so many choices!!!! bahhh! lol yes I do agree .40 Cal is good to stick with as it has more energy to stop a target. But whats been bugging me is the price of .40 ammo compared to 9mm. That can be said the same for other calibers and so on, but I guess Im just being a drama queen on ammo prices lol. I do want a compact but I guess its going to take time for me to find the right one that I would like to have. I keep my firearms and don't feel the need to sell them as I more like to keep them forever

DWCook said:

Hmmm so many choices!!!! bahhh! lol yes I do agree .40 Cal is good to stick with as it has more energy to stop a target. But whats been bugging me is the price of .40 ammo compared to 9mm. That can be said the same for other calibers and so on, but I guess Im just being a drama queen on ammo prices lol. I do want a compact but I guess its going to take time for me to find the right one that I would like to have. I keep my firearms and don't feel the need to sell them as I more like to keep them forever

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You do have some excellent choices in this market: Ruger, the two popular Glocks (models 19 and 23), Kahr K9 and K40 which are all steel, Sig Sauer, Springfield Armory XD series, and the Smith and Wesson M&P series. All of these are either compact by design or make compact versions of their full sized guns. I prefer the .40S&W cartridge over the 9mm most always, but I do carry one of my 9's from time to time. With a good self defense load, this is an effective and proven caliber; shot placement and followup being your main concerns.

A good rule of thumb is to carry the most powerful caliber/gun combination you can with which you can consistently and effectively deliver rounds to target. If that is a .45ACP, .357 Sig, or .40S&W, so be it. If it happens to be a 9mm, then that is what you should use. The key is being able to be effective and deliberate with your weapon system and have confidence that you can use it consistently and confidently.

Gun shows are excellent vehicles for multiple and varied selections for you to handle and consider good candidates for a SD handgun. Take advantage of them. And generally the prices are below what you will find in local shops, though throwing a bone to your local shop(s) is always a good thing since you might want/need their services down the road.

Once you have narrowed your choice down to a few candidates, do as much research as you can on them. View videos and read reports/opinions/critiques, especially paying attention to any negatives. If you see a negative pattern developing, that is not preference or bias based, that may be a good indication to bypass that particular gun. Also remember that you can always make a few modifications or alterations to bring the gun more in line with your particular needs and desires. For example, many people complain about Glock triggers. These concerns are easy, simple, and very inexpensive to address to provide a significantly better trigger as you may already know. Just be careful when doing any modifications as you do NOT want to disrupt its reliability or safety.

So two fine examples of a compact pistol, since you are already comfortable and familiar with the Glock, would be the 19 and 23. If you are willing to go up slightly in size, the M&P Smith and Wesson in either 9mm or .40S&W is an excellent consideration with superb feel and hand fit.

Lots of good stuff out there.

I don't tend to mix and match platforms much, so it would be .45 acp in one of the compact 1911 style pistols on the market. I have a 3" Kimber that I gave to my Dad because at 81 years young he was looking for something a little lighter to pack around.

.45acp said:

I don't tend to mix and match platforms much, so it would be .45 acp in one of the compact 1911 style pistols on the market. I have a 3" Kimber that I gave to my Dad because at 81 years young he was looking for something a little lighter to pack around.

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I am a strong believer in using what is best for you and what you can consistently and reliably use to deliver effective rounds to your target. This covers both the instrument (gun) and the caliber/load assignment. A citizen who decides to carry a Glock 19 and trains with it enough to where he can rely upon it with his life is far better off than one who selects a .357 Magnum simply because he read somewhere that it has a record of 96% one shot stops, then after 20 rounds on a range, straps it on and goes about his life. A hit from two or three, or more, well placed shots from a G19 with high quality and powerful ammunition is heads and shoulders better than misses and poor hits from a .357 Magnum with target ammunition.

I have a neighbor who happens to be one of the best combat citizen shooters I have ever had the pleasure knowing, who's choice is a 9mm. I KNOW I would NOT want to be the recipient of his gun's attention were I a BG bent upon doing him or his evil deeds.

I am actually consider the compact 1911 .45ACP. After hearing everyones words on I much rather carry one just for sakes. I am also wanting a full metal frame besides the Glock style frame too. I know you can buy a race metal frame for the Glock but I much rather not get into changing out parts even if its easy as 1,2,3. So today I will be looking at prices for the compact .45ACP preferably the Kimber 1911 styles. Yes I know there more expensive but I have always been a 1911 fan and the Kimbers have always been great quality and such.

http://www.kimberamerica.com/1911/compact-ii-pro-carry-ii/pro-carry-ii


What you all think of this Kimber 1911 Pro Carry II? Just checked it out on the site and Im liking the black look. Was considering the stainless steel but not sure if I want to pay the extra $200 for it.


Heres the link for the stainless steel model......What would be the advantage for the stainless steel model? Other than looks?

http://www.kimberamerica.com/1911/compact-ii-pro-carry-ii/compact-stainless-ii

My ccw firearm is a ppk .38...so small and light...I feel like 007 when I wear it...haha

If you are already shooting a fullsize 40 I would stay with 40 caliber for your compact.

The only reason to shoot 9mm IMHO is if you can't handle something bigger.

I have a Kahr MK40 that I like and pocket carry. Typically I CC a Sig Sauer P220 Compact SAS G2 which has night sights and a short reset trigger. It does print a bit though so when I go to states that have laws against printing the Kahr becomes my primary CC gun. http://www.kahr.com/Pistols/Kahr-MK40-Elite.asp



I addes a Crimson Trace laser to the Kahr and like it alot.

If the all steel version is too heavy for you they have a PM40 which is polymer frame.

I had thought about getting the PM45 from Kahr but since I already had the MK40 I figure I didn't it.

I chose the Sig because I have other Sig's (my usual primary OC gun is a Sig P220 stainless elite) so they can interchange mags.

http://www.sigsauer.com/CatalogProductDetails/p220-compact-sas-gen-2.aspx



The real problem with compact guns is magazine capacity. The Kahr MK40 is 5+1 but you can get an extended mag for 6+1. The Sig is 6+1 but it will function with the normal (fullsize) P220 mags 8+1.

I tend to OC and use the compact CC gun as a BUG unless I am going to someplace like Florida that prohibits OC.


ETA: as far as comfort in shooting the Sig wins hands down but I can be very accurate with both. The Kahr isn't a shoot-all-day at the range gun but is sufficient for its purpose. Compact guns tend to be less enjoyable to shoot but the Sig doesn't fit into that category.

ETaA: I would choose a caliber the same as your primary gun so that ammo is interchangeable (if not mags like the Sig) and stocking is easier.

Hi DW, I can unreservedly recommend the Kimber Ultra Carry II in .45acp ... I am a small framed woman with 'small paws' syndrome and the kimber is such a nice fit that I carry it more often than the Springfield EMP 9mm. However, my next acquisition will be the EMP in .45

The only other suggestion would be to get the extra mags and mag carrier so you can have more than Monday through Sunday

hmmm yeah Im either conflicting between the Sig or the Kimber. But for some odd reason I spotted Kimber Custom II 1911 Full Size and I about died looking at it. Now I have this urge to buy another full size pistol. Im horrible at making these decisions. Hell I might buy a full size Kimber 1911 and a compact just for ***** and giggles. I do need to though get a compact just for the places that don't allow OC. Thats my ONLY reason on buying a compact, but I could end up buying both a full size and a compact at the same time Well only my decision making skills (which are horrible with no logic) will determine what is purchased!

DWCook said:

hmmm yeah Im either conflicting between the Sig or the Kimber. But for some odd reason I spotted Kimber Custom II 1911 Full Size and I about died looking at it. Now I have this urge to buy another full size pistol. Im horrible at making these decisions. Hell I might buy a full size Kimber 1911 and a compact just for ***** and giggles. I do need to though get a compact just for the places that don't allow OC. Thats my ONLY reason on buying a compact, but I could end up buying both a full size and a compact at the same time Well only my decision making skills (which are horrible with no logic) will determine what is purchased!

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Well you could get a Ultra CDP II with or without crimson trace laser as your compact and a Custom CDP II as your fullsize and they would match. :lol:

http://www.kimberamerica.com/1911/cdp-ii

I was actually considering that funny thing It might happen too! If I cant figure which one I want more of I will just get both Doesn't hurt to have 2 .45ACP Pistols does it

So I just purchased 500 Rounds of Fiocchi .40 S&W 180 Grain FMJ Rounds for $175.62 on "Ammuninitiontogo.com" what you all think of that price? That includes the $16 in shipping charges from UPS Ground Delivery.

I have a Kimber tactical ultra .45 and love the little gun. I chose the tactical because of the extra 1/4" on the grip from the mag well.