I had a HK USPc 9mm... Wayy to big to carry. Traded it for a glock 27.

Those Glocks don't look so big but they are. My G27 can sometimes be alot to carry. Hence why Im getting a BG380 for pocket carry. Wanna enjoy my time out and about instead of having that glock grip against my stomach. I have a good desantis leather holster with it that makes it pretty comfortable, carrying a gun like the G27 or any other subcompact feel good once you get used to it.

Good luck carrying a G23. Many pull it off (hell sometimes I carry my brother G19 which is the same gun as the G23) but I highly recommend you at least go down to the 27 if you intend on carrying a big gun. The 27 is bigg enough trust me... Comfortable carry insures you carry all the time! I'm still going to carry my G27 around thats why I recommend it to you. But my LCP is going to be with me where my G27 cant go.

If you already own a 92fs, i'd strongly suggest a px4 compact. A natural familiar transition if you want to stick w/ DA/SA, in which i strongly prefer for ccw.

A gun has to be big enough to fight with but small enough to conceal.

One of the most important things is a quality holster. Mid frame guns such as the Glock 19/23 can be easily concealed in a number of different holsters and provide enough firepower should you need it.

If you are already familiar with the DA/SA system you may look at guns with similar designs. All depends on what you want. I have several different handguns that I carry depending on what my activity is for the given situation. A good step may be to rent or shoot a friends gun to see what you may want.

S&W M&P 9/40c/Shield, Ruger SR 9/40c, Glock 19/23, Springfield XD 9/40c, CZ 75 Compact/PCR, P-01/06, 07 Duty, Caracal C 9/40, Beretta PX and Walther PPQ would all be great CCWs. Go rent a few and see what works for you.

Originally Posted by tacman605

A gun has to be big enough to fight with but small enough to conceal.

One of the most important things is a quality holster. Mid frame guns such as the Glock 19/23 can be easily concealed in a number of different holsters and provide enough firepower should you need it.

If you are already familiar with the DA/SA system you may look at guns with similar designs. All depends on what you want. I have several different handguns that I carry depending on what my activity is for the given situation. A good step may be to rent or shoot a friends gun to see what you may want.

In addition to what tacman has said, do not forget a good gun belt. That along with a good holster makes concealing a pistol easier. Good luck.

Ruger LCR is a very light little revolver that shoots and conceals well.

I carry a 9mm, I love it,...but im looking for a nice 40 or 45 cal. to carry

Little guns are great if you will be fighting little people or they're better than nothing at all, but, you can carry a full size 1911 without much problem and that's not a bad gun to have if things truly go south. If fact it might even save you from having to pull the trigger as everyone knows the "legend" of the 1911, but a Ruger LCP they would just laugh at. If you want something a little smaller - a Commander size fits the bill. Next is how much fun is you carry gun to shoot? If you hate practicing with it with the ammo that you carry, it won't do you much good. Shooting .38 special wad-cutters in a little LCR is great but if you carry 158gr .357 mag hollow points in it for carry, how proficient will you be? I come at this from a NRA instructor (rifle, pistol, shotgun, home defense), Police instructor, IPSC shooter point of view and yes I do carry a LCP, but my mindset is totally different with that gun (absolutely last line of defense, run if you can), than it is with a full size Colt (last line of defense, run if you can but maybe not as fast). Lots to think about, but whatever you carry - Practice, practice, practice and get training.

Belt. Holster.
That said (again)
I carry and conceal: M&P 9c; 45c; Glock 19; 36; or a snubby revolver. Some conceal a bit better than others. All conceal well enough for me that I am still employed.
That said, IWB, I found my FS M&P most comfortable. But the longer grip made it just a bit too hard to consistently conceal.

I like my M&P Shield -




and my M&P 9c



Both have good triggers

And are good shooters.

And are small.

I also have a Glock 26, but it is much bulker to me.

I could give you 3 bags of bla.bla.bla.
or just tell you to go pick up a Kahr PM9 and be done with it ...love mine..

Kahr cm9 7+1 $360, Glock 26 $529 10+1, 12+1, 15+1, 17+1, 33+1.

Originally Posted by Sweet

Kahr cm9 7+1 $360, Glock 26 $529 10+1, 12+1, 15+1, 17+1, 33+1.

You can go to 8 + 1 with the kahr if you want mags hanging out the bottom of your gun

I have been carrying concealed handguns for almost 35 years. What is considered a good concealed carry handgun has changed a lot. One constant seems to be that one should carry the largest handgun one can. For me, it is normally a Glock 27 in an IWB holster. Recently, I have started to carry a Glock 19 Gen4 IWB and it is actually just easy for me to conceal. I expect the Glock 23 would be just as easy.

Another handgun I finally bought is a Kahr PM9. Right now, I have it in a pocket holster and my Glock 19 in the IWB holster.

The thing you need to decide is what your objective is. For me, I do not like to dress tactical looking. For deep concealment, I used to carry my Kahr P380 or Ruger LCR. I just did not trust the 380 ACP for combat, even with the so called +P ammo. The Ruger is loaded with Speer 38 SPL +P 135 grain Short Barrel ammo, which had done very well with police.

Anyway, you might want to test fire possible handguns to see which you like. It may not agree with what others like. Some small revolvers can be brutal with recoil. Some small semi-automatics are more finicky with ammo than service sized weapons. They will also likely have very strong springs to make up for having lighter slides.

I have become a big Kahr PM9 fan. I am even a bigger Glock fan. You might like something else more. I have noticed that expensive is not necessarily better. For many a Ruger LC9 is ideal.

Glock 27 gen 4 .40 caliber is very sweet. Just picked up one of these pocket cannons. As Hickok45 says 'Life is good'