Newly 21, whats a good caliber to conceal?

[Pat Cannon]

Come to one of the Gopher breakfasts. The members there will be willing to share from there experience.

Hey, when is the next one, anyway, did I miss the May one on the 1st? (I guess the answer should be in a new thread.)

[ex-LT]

Come to one of the Gopher breakfasts. The members there will be willing to share from there experience.

Hey, when is the next one, anyway, did I miss the May one on the 1st? (I guess the answer should be in a new thread.)

They're not regularly scheduled. IIRC, the last one that was held was April 3.

However, there IS a second Saturday breakfast at the Old Country Buffet in Maplewood this coming Saturday (May 8).

[EJSG19]

If I was to go for a small revolver I'd do a .38 +p if I played it smart. .357's in the equivalent size are usually a little heavier both out of necessity and sometimes just to tame the recoil down. I don't mind weight, but I do mind having too much bulk in my pockets. (I know guys, I don't have to worry about that problem, set myself up...)

Once you find out how well a particular gun conceals for you, and compare that to some others, that will tell you a lot. I carry a Glock 21 for example, and some say it disappears on me almost completely. Other people say a Glock 21 won't conceal at all for them. Just an example. Revolvers are the same. Pocket carry or waistband holster? IWB or OWB? Your method will change concealability a lot, depending what fits on you personally.

As your subject line says, what caliber conceals? Well thats all relative too. .38/.357 obviously is a commonly concealed caliber. anything starting with a .4 will be harder to conceal mainly because of a larger cylinder but again depending on what fits you it might work. .45 acp with moon clips? .44 special? Hard to argue with either of those. Personally I wish they could cram a .44 special into a pocket carry size revolver. I'd be on that like a bum on a ham sandwich.

Pocket auto's tend to conceal just a hair easier than pocket revolvers in my opinion. But I'd much rather carry a .38 +p than I would a .380 auto. In a pocket auto I'd like to stay at 9mm or larger. Just personal preference.

[Norsesmithy]

EJSG19, the Charter Arms Bulldog is a .44 special gun with a 2.5 inch barrel, should be fairly concealable.

Tswitz2007, my boiler plate advice when I am asked what a person should choose for a first pistol is that they should go to a gun store that has a large selection of various types of handguns, even if it is a big box retailer like Cabelas, and handle one of everything. See how the grip feels, see how the trigger feels, see how natural the controls feel for you. Close your eyes and point the handgun at a target you visualize (on a safe backdrop, and after asking permission to point the gun up), and then open your eyes and see how well it points for you.

Select the best 4 or 5, and then go to a rental range, and fire them all.

Then buy the gun you shot the best.

If it's out of your price range, look for one used, or maybe sell blood plasma or something.

A good holster can let you conceal a large gun much better than you can conceal a small gun in a crappy holster.

[livnlg55345]

#1 buy a gun that you can practice with and shoot comfortably. Well, there goes most suggestions right out the door.
#2 get a good holster that does not mean FOBUS or Uncle Mikes etc. Some thing you can reholster with one hand if need be. Get a good belt!
#3 get Quality Training, from an instructor that focuses on mechanics rather then baffling with paper pushing BS in the classroom! You want hands on range time with holster work and live fire so the instructor can help you refine your abilities.....
#3 what ever you buy you need to be competent; and if the gun is not easy to shoot you won't practice and costs will deter practice.

So where does that leave you?

A mid frame 9mm _____________ .
Pro's
Ammo is cheapest of the centerfire and good SD ammo abounds.
Enough gun to shoot with reasonable accuracy.

Con's
None!

[Seismic Sam]

Not enough info - what's your weight, height, and suit size?? Seriously, this is a key element in what you can conceal.

Secondly, what you can conceal in your first two weeks of carrying is DRASTICALLY different than what you can conceal after a year's expereince carrying.

I think the REAL question, which is still a moving target to a newbie, is what is the largest/most powerful caliber that you can shoot quickly and ACCURATELY??

Concealment don't mean Jack Shyte in Minnesota where open carry is legal with a permit, so you're asking the wrong question to begin with.

Go buy Michael Martin's book at Bill's, read the WHOLE thing CAREFULLY, and then get back to us.

[Pat Cannon]

Go buy Michael Martin's book at Bill's, read the WHOLE thing CAREFULLY, and then get back to us.

Then let me borrow it. Then we will both be qualified to have an opinion.

[Seismic Sam]

Go buy Michael Martin's book at Bill's, read the WHOLE thing CAREFULLY, and then get back to us.

Then let me borrow it. Then we will both be qualified to have an opinion.

Pat, Pat, Pat - you look like a derelict who probably has 5 or 6 layers of clothing on him because he can't stuff any more in his two garbage bags of stuff, so concealment for you is in a TOTALLY different ballpark.

[Pat Cannon]

Pat, Pat, Pat - you look like a derelict who probably has 5 or 6 layers of clothing on him because he can't stuff any more in his two garbage bags of stuff, so concealment for you is in a TOTALLY different ballpark.

I limit my possessions to one garbage bag so I can keep my gun hand free.

[VikesFan1]

tswitz2007, for discussions sake, why do you prefer a revolver? (grandpa owned one, reliability, etc.) I happen to be the exact opposite. I've always had accuracy issues with the revolvers I've shot.

[David]

Concealment don't mean Jack Shyte in Minnesota where open carry is legal with a permit, so you're asking the wrong question to begin with.

Just because it's legal doesn't mean everyone has to do it. If he wants to carry concealed (like most of us) that's his prerogative. It's not the wrong question at all.

[mnglocker]

Pat, Pat, Pat - you look like a derelict who probably has 5 or 6 layers of clothing on him because he can't stuff any more in his two garbage bags of stuff, so concealment for you is in a TOTALLY different ballpark.

Just think what he can pack in the grocery cart.

[Spartan117]

Concealment don't mean Jack Shyte in Minnesota where open carry is legal with a permit, so you're asking the wrong question to begin with.

Just because it's legal doesn't mean everyone has to do it. If he wants to carry concealed (like most of us) that's his prerogative. It's not the wrong question at all.

Agreed. Open carry says "shoot me first".

[1911fan]

Questions for the OP, Have you shot before? What do you have now for a handgun? IF you have just started and are looking I have to suggest a good .22 to start.

If you are just getting into shooting larger caliber handguns, and have learned the basics on a .22, I would heavily suggest a 9mm or a .357. There are many good used guns available in those calibers and many of us on this board would be happy to meet up with you and let you see what works for you. I am willing to say that getting 40 different guns to a range on any given day would not be hard to do. Likewise, getting 10 guns for you to try on four different days would be a better deal, but you get the idea. This is a pretty share happy group, and if you planned it right, all of the guns that showed up would have been owned at one time or another by Straddie or Plblark.
(inside joke)

The single main reason for suggesting those two calibers is ammo cost, they are consistently available at a reasonable cost, and if you are going to shoot and carry, you need to practice. Practice is hard to do when the only factory ammo you can find is 35 dollars or more a box of 50.

IF you can, show up on Saturday morning at the old Country Buffet in Maplewood, we meet in the back room and there are usually about 20 or more of us showing up. Once we meet you, taking you shooting is a lot easier.

[Pinnacle]

Who was your instructor?

And who was yours?

On topic -

A new shooter should start will a service sized pistol to build the fundamentals and then move to the smaller frames. Spend 4-500 on a service sized gun and a holster and the requisite mag pouches and go forth and take a shooting class - from a qualified instructor.

Call DonL - he is a member of this forum and is a pretty good gun hand and from what I gather - a qualified instructor.