.40 for home defense, general carrying?

[MrMatt]

Seeing as how I'm getting my CCW soon, I figured I should start looking at firearms. Since it'd be used virtually exclusively for home defense I wanted something that wasn't too unwieldy, but also with enough stopping power. I think a .40 would fit the bill, based on weapons I've fired in the past. As for brand, is there any reason to look at anything other than a glock?

 

[spidey07]

Other than glocks explode if you look at them funny, yes.

 

[Demo24]

Glock makes somewhat chunky guns which can be difficult to conceal if you really want that. Also some don't particularly like the feel of them. Good guns and all, although I've heard of issues with the latest gen (might be fixed now).

.40 is a good round, especially if you get 'defensive' ammo (aka, hollow points that spread a lot on impact)

 

[MrMatt]

Glock makes somewhat chunky guns which can be difficult to conceal if you really want that. Also some don't particularly like the feel of them. Good guns and all, although I've heard of issues with the latest gen (might be fixed now).

.40 is a good round, especially if you get 'defensive' ammo (aka, hollow points that spread a lot on impact)

yeah, absolutely going with hollow points.

 

[eldorado99]

Home defense really ought to be a 12 gauge IMO.

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

Get whatever you shoot best.

 

[GuitarDaddy]

Go to a range and fire several different cals .40, 9mm, 10mm, and go with what your most comfortable with. The one which allows you to put the most shots on target in the least amount of time is what I would go with. Accuracy and repeatability is what you want, knockdown power of a single round is over rated IMO.

Many people claim a 9mm is too weak for home defense, I say BS, if you can quickly rattle off several rounds accurately at center mass you will stop any intruder not wearing body armor.

My dad who is a vet and a certified army marksmen uses a lowly .380 auto as his CCW. And I guarntee with 10 in the clip you don't want to be on the recieving end.

 

[Fritzo]

Is it just me, or does anyone else sigh and roll their eyes when they see a non-law enforcement officer openly carrying around a gun in a place like a store or a movie theater?

 

[TheVrolok]

Home defense really ought to be a 12 gauge IMO.

Came here to post this, if it's exclusively for home defense I'd also recommend a shotgun. If you do plan on carrying sometimes, though, then yeah, get a handgun.

Is it just me, or does anyone else sigh and roll their eyes when they see a non-law enforcement officer openly carrying around a gun in a place like a store or a movie theater?

I'm not a huge fan of open carry. Concealed is one thing, but open is a whole different monster.

 

[Viper GTS]

Open carry is the nutjob fringe of gun owners - Think Westboro Baptist to mainstream religious. They are to be avoided IMO.

On topic I really loved my Benelli Nova tactical. The Super Nova would be even more entertaining. They're also a whole lot cheaper than a decent carry gun.

Viper GTS

 

[deadlyapp]

Is it just me, or does anyone else sigh and roll their eyes when they see a non-law enforcement officer openly carrying around a gun in a place like a store or a movie theater?

Only the sheeple.

I prefer open carrying over conceal carrying because it is so much more comfortable and visually a deterrent to most criminals that might think about doing something.

Please kindly stay out of the thread if you're an anti-gun fanatic.

To the OP:
.40 is a great round, lots of people I know use it rather than 9mm or .45 for various reasons. Personally I don't like the recoil that a sub compact .40 provides, it feels....sharper than a sub compact .45 to me. If you're going to conceal you'll definitely want a sub compact and then you can opt to have a short grip or run a short grip with pinky extension mags. I personally can't handle any sub compact without some sort of grip extension or pinky extension.

You have lots of choices in .40, as there is the glock, Springfield XD, 1911 conversions, and plenty of other choices. Try shooting a few of them to see what you like best. I can't deal with the grip angle on a glock so I opted to get an XD - But I don't carry it day to day, its my home defense pistol.

Also - While a multi purpose gun is good in theory, I opted to go with one for HD, and another for carrying. My HD pistol was a 4" XD 45, while I CC a kimber ultra carry II. HD a low recoil weapon with high capacity, carry a small concealable low cap gun for weight.

 

[sdifox]

smaller calibre, but much better rate of fire.

http://www.kitsune.addr.com/Firearms/Machine-Guns/GE_XM214_Minigun.htm

 

[krunchykrome]

H&k usp 40

 

[IceBergSLiM]

really like my springfield XDM .40 high 16+1 capacity mag ftw! I hope I can hit something with 17 chances.

 

[krunchykrome]

really like my springfield XDM .40 high 16+1 capacity mag ftw! I hope I can hit something with 17 chances.

Never shot an XDM; but I am a fan of the Springfield XD's

 

[spidey07]

Never shot an XDM; but I am a fan of the Springfield XD's

I really like the XD and now XDM but think they are too big/heavy for carry.

 

[alkemyst]

I like the .40. My dad likes 9mm, 357 sig, 40 and 45. My brother uses .380. I love his Sig...very balanced and easy to empty the whole clip accurately and quickly.

My brother carries it a lot.

 

[Fritzo]

Only the sheeple.

I prefer open carrying over conceal carrying because it is so much more comfortable and visually a deterrent to most criminals that might think about doing something.

Please kindly stay out of the thread if you're an anti-gun fanatic.

To the OP:
.40 is a great round, lots of people I know use it rather than 9mm or .45 for various reasons. Personally I don't like the recoil that a sub compact .40 provides, it feels....sharper than a sub compact .45 to me. If you're going to conceal you'll definitely want a sub compact and then you can opt to have a short grip or run a short grip with pinky extension mags. I personally can't handle any sub compact without some sort of grip extension or pinky extension.

You have lots of choices in .40, as there is the glock, Springfield XD, 1911 conversions, and plenty of other choices. Try shooting a few of them to see what you like best. I can't deal with the grip angle on a glock so I opted to get an XD - But I don't carry it day to day, its my home defense pistol.

Also - While a multi purpose gun is good in theory, I opted to go with one for HD, and another for carrying. My HD pistol was a 4" XD 45, while I CC a kimber ultra carry II. HD a low recoil weapon with high capacity, carry a small concealable low cap gun for weight.

I'm not anti-gun by any means, but open carrying not only looks douchey and threatening, I'm sure it invites more trouble than it prevents.

 

[thepd7]

Home defense really ought to be a 12 gauge IMO.

not really, completely depends on the place. If you live in a tiny apartment with small hallways even my 18.5" Mossberg might not work out well.

Go to a range and fire several different cals .40, 9mm, 10mm, and go with what your most comfortable with. The one which allows you to put the most shots on target in the least amount of time is what I would go with. Accuracy and repeatability is what you want, knockdown power of a single round is over rated IMO.

Many people claim a 9mm is too weak for home defense, I say BS, if you can quickly rattle off several rounds accurately at center mass you will stop any intruder not wearing body armor.

My dad who is a vet and a certified army marksmen uses a lowly .380 auto as his CCW. And I guarntee with 10 in the clip you don't want to be on the recieving end.

This.

And another vote for the xD. I have an xD-9 compact, 16 rounds of 9mm hollow points is plenty of stopping power. If I was going to carry I would get the xD-40 subcompact though.

 

[irishScott]

I'm not anti-gun by any means, but open carrying not only looks douchey and threatening, I'm sure it invites more trouble than it prevents.

If it's the only legal option in a given area then I wouldn't see it as such. If concealed carry is an option then yeah, kinda douchey.

That said, if you're a criminal are you going to fuck with the guy with a 1911 on his hip? :awe:

 

[sourceninja]

I'm a big fan of walther P99c in either 9mm or 40.

My general carry is a walther pps 9mm. My friend has a 40 and I don't really like the recoil on it. If I can't stop it with 7 rounds of 9mm it probably doesn't need stopping.

 

[sourceninja]

If it's the only legal option in a given area then I wouldn't see it as such. If concealed carry is an option then yeah, kinda douchey.

That said, if you're a criminal are you going to fuck with the guy with a 1911 on his hip? :awe:

The more you conceal a weapon the harder it is to get it when you need it.

I personally carry IWB at 4 o'clock. I use a tuckable holster so it takes me a second longer to draw then it does in the winter when I carry OWB with a jacket.

 

[Fritzo]

If it's the only legal option in a given area then I wouldn't see it as such. If concealed carry is an option then yeah, kinda douchey.

That said, if you're a criminal are you going to fuck with the guy with a 1911 on his hip? :awe:

What if the criminal came up from behind and stole his gun?

 

[bfdd]

Go to a range and fire several different cals .40, 9mm, 10mm, and go with what your most comfortable with. The one which allows you to put the most shots on target in the least amount of time is what I would go with. Accuracy and repeatability is what you want, knockdown power of a single round is over rated IMO.

Many people claim a 9mm is too weak for home defense, I say BS, if you can quickly rattle off several rounds accurately at center mass you will stop any intruder not wearing body armor.

My dad who is a vet and a certified army marksmen uses a lowly .380 auto as his CCW. And I guarntee with 10 in the clip you don't want to be on the recieving end.

10mm is a tight ass round. I've only fired it once from a 10mm Glock, but that shit was badass as fuck.

 

[boomhower]

Go rent a 9mm, .40, and a .45 and see what you think. Typically for new shooters the .40 is the hardest to handle. It is snappier with a more pronounced muzzle flip that makes follow up shots more difficult. The .45 has more of a lateral shove. The 9mm is by far the easiest to handle. For a CCW for a new shooter I would go with a Glock 26. 9mm being easier to handle, and most importantly cheaper to feed. For a new shooter you need lots and lots of trigger time. Size is very easy to conceal, it's not the smallest thing out there but isn't an issue. I CCW a Glock 27 off-duty and it's not a problem with a quality IWB holster. I personally use a Comp-Tech M-TAC. The S&W M&P 9C with no safeties would be my second choice. The XD's would also be a fine choice reliability wise, I just hate the damn safeties.

Now if it was a dedicated CCW piece and not doubling as a home defense weapon then I would take a serious look at a wheel gun.

It doesn't matter if you are shooting a 9mm or 45, if you shoot the bad guy in the leg instead of center mass you are still screwed. Shot placement is more important than caliber. Reason I like Glocks is they as reliable as anything out there and there is no safety. In the heat of the moment you don't need to be trying to flip off a safety, don't even get me started on grip safeties.

Open carry is retarded. Only reason I will accept open carry is if your state doesn't allow CCW, then I am OK with it. It does nothing to deter crime. If your OCing in areas with real crime then you are just making yourself a target. It doesn't make the news but people get jacked of their open carry piece more than you would think.

Open carry is CA is the most retarded thing ever. Open carry an unloaded weapon, what the hell is the point?