Smallest caliber you'd feel comfortable carrying?

[Mac66]

I sometimes carried a 22 auto (Sterling 302) as a back up gun back in the 70s early 80s when I was a cop because I thought it better than a .25 auto a lot of guys were carrying. Wouldn't choose it as a primary weapon however. Eventually went to a AMT 380 Backup and at times a Keltec P32, both of which was better than a 22. These days I occasionally carry my Kel Tec P17 while walking in the woods. It's not really for protection as much as potting an occasional squirrel, rabbit, or racoon or for impromptu plinking.

[David]

I guess it depends on the situation but years ago I used to carry a Jenning J22 in 22lr while fishing at night and I never felt under armed.
These days I frequently go walking around the neighborhood at night and I just carry a S&W AirLite 317 loaded with 8 rounds of CCI Minimag.

I think many of us that have been around firearms for any serious length of time occasionally have the (unfortunate) tendency to 'look down' on the 22lr as a defensive weapon. True, you're not likely to stop a charging rhino with it. True it is small and won't cause the amount of damage a larger caliber will do (generally). But on the other hand, they use .22 pellets from a rifle to take hog (which is a lot less powerful than a 22lr). So placed in the right spot it is obviously lethal. And the fact that recoil is next to nothing will allow for the possibility of rapid, accurate follow up shots.

With that in mind, it's the reason I bought that LCP II 22lr for the wife. I'd rather have her have a platform that gives her access to ten .22 lr rounds that she isn't afraid to fire than a more powerful round in a platform she's not been able to train with due to recoil and therefore flinches and is slow. And the pistol is tiny enough to be on her person. Right now it's in her purse but I'm working her towards on-body carry.

[cityfarmer]

I have great respect for 22lr caliber lethality.
About 30 years ago my best friend's mom and dad were killed by a armed burglar in their house. They came in the house and were immediately shot by a 22lr revolver. His dad was shot once in the face and his mom was shot once in the chest and once in the neck...both died in the house. Found out later that they were shot when they walked in on a burglary. It was a 4" S&W model 63 loaded revolver with Winchester 36gr High Velocity ammo.
Currently my elderly parents are armed with a 6" S&W model 422 and a Ruger 10/22 with 25 round mag...both loaded with CCI Velocitor ammo. They know to empty the magazine on any perpetrator.

[David]

Saw this and thought it was pretty cool.

https://zetasix.com/product/j-clip/

[David]

Saw this on another board and found it very applicable since both firearms used were small pocket-type firearms.



NOTE: The above video can still be viewed by clicking on it and watching it on YT. It is a video of an actual shooting.

[bdcochran]

Had seen the film before. When we think we could do better, we still learn: 1. stay in the fight; 2. don't assume that the other side will stop fighting and simply leave. The bad guy not only stayed in the fight, he came back.

John's style of shooting will cause him to go static. If he had proper training, he would be able to load, unload, reload while in movement and without a scope or special sight. He would be able to be accurate even with the sights taped over with electrician tape.

[David]

I sold the LCP II 22lr yesterday. Wife wasn't comfortable with the two mis-feeds it had or the couple of times the round didn't go bang. Good primer strike but we all know that .22 ammo isn't always the most reliable. So it went bye-bye.

Now I'm on the hunt for another option for her as a small carry pistol. She loves the S&W 380EZ we bought for her, but she doesn't carry it. It is often in her purse and unfortunately that purse is often left at home. Not the best option by far. So it's really going to need to be a small pocket pistol for her or at most one that can fit in an OWB holster yet is still small and unnoticeable.

Option one is that she uses my little pink LCP. With the Hogue Handall grip and the base plate extension the recoil is reduced about as much as it's going to be reduced. Drawback is that she has a really hard time racking the slide. Those that have had an LCP know that the slide has a bit of a hang up and there isn't a lot of real estate to grab.

Option two is get her something like an LCP II (in .380) or a 380 Bodyguard. From what I understand, the LCP II slide doesn't have the same hang up as the LCP. I don't recall on the 380 BG that I had. Also, and this is for Mac, someone is offering one of those RM380's with five mags and a holster for $275. It would be a bit of a drive, but what are your thoughts? I know you have one, or had one. But don't recall your experience with it.

[David]

Well we did get an LCP II for my wife. It turns out that it really is easier to rack than the LCP. The LCP hits a little wall and then racks the rest of the way whereas the LCP II seems to be smooth all the way through. Not as easy as the .22lr version but much smoother than the LCP. Came with a 7-round magazine which is a nice bonus. And I’m able to get a full three-finger grip on it which came as a nice surprise.

Plan is to run some rounds through it Monday, both FMJ and some XTP HP’s. She likes a laser so I would imagine we’ll get one to put on. I ordered a Garrison grip micro trigger stop as an added safety. Gives her a bit more comfort carrying it.

[Mac66]

I sold the LCP II 22lr yesterday. Wife wasn't comfortable with the two mis-feeds it had or the couple of times the round didn't go bang. Good primer strike but we all know that .22 ammo isn't always the most reliable. So it went bye-bye.

Now I'm on the hunt for another option for her as a small carry pistol. She loves the S&W 380EZ we bought for her, but she doesn't carry it. It is often in her purse and unfortunately that purse is often left at home. Not the best option by far. So it's really going to need to be a small pocket pistol for her or at most one that can fit in an OWB holster yet is still small and unnoticeable.

Option one is that she uses my little pink LCP. With the Hogue Handall grip and the base plate extension the recoil is reduced about as much as it's going to be reduced. Drawback is that she has a really hard time racking the slide. Those that have had an LCP know that the slide has a bit of a hang up and there isn't a lot of real estate to grab.

Option two is get her something like an LCP II (in .380) or a 380 Bodyguard. From what I understand, the LCP II slide doesn't have the same hang up as the LCP. I don't recall on the 380 BG that I had. Also, and this is for Mac, someone is offering one of those RM380's with five mags and a holster for $275. It would be a bit of a drive, but what are your thoughts? I know you have one, or had one. But don't recall your experience with it.

The RM380 was a nice sized pistol but had the worse double action trigger I've ever experienced on a pistol. It was very heavy with lots of stacking and it never felt the same way twice. I couldn't shoot it so I sold it.

I think you'll be happy with the LCP II

[David]

I think you'll be happy with the LCP II

I put a full review in the 'Range Report' thread, but I'll include a few thoughts here as well because it's applicable to the thread. You're right, liked the LCP II quite a bit. It was immediately apparent to me that it's a softer shooting pistol than the LCP. The LCP, without a Hogue Handall or mag extension is a very snappy little pistol that can actually hurt. And I'm not a wimp about recoil. But it's such a light pistol that even .380 snaps it enough to hurt my fingers and thump the palm of my hand. After just a mag or two I'm ready to call it quits. The Hogue Handall and the mag extension go a LONG way to taming it and I can shoot a box or more before I'm ready to be done with it.

The LCP II though was fairly pleasant to shoot. And I don't have any type of grip wrap on it at all. The 7-round magazine give me a full three-finger grip which helps as well. In some of the reviews they mention that the shape of the grip in the back of the LCP II is wider which helps to distribute the recoil. I think they're right on that point. I had already shot 45+P, 40 S&W, 357sig and 9mm and the LCP II was the last pistol of the range trip. Even after shooting all of those other pistols/calibers I shot more than a box out of the LCP II including the Fiocchi XTP's which have a little more pepper on them than the range ammo. And I could have shot a lot more. Very impressed.

We bought the LCP II for my wife. But women of course change their minds and she decided to go with the pink Muddy Girl camo LCP. Basically because I already have a laser on it and she likes laser and doesn't want to put one on the LCP II. That's fine. With the grip and the extension she should be able to handle it well enough. And she feels safer with the long DA trigger on the LCP as well as that trigger stop that arrived. She's considering a Flash Bang bra holster so it's important for it to be safe. This means the LCP II will become my pocket pistol and I'm fine with that. It will actually be even better as it will be just a tad flatter in my pocket since I don't need a grip wrap to tame the recoil. I just need to put a little red or orange paint on the front sight and I'll be good to go.