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Ok, so I don't really know much about guns. But, I decided to purchase one. It's really just for self defense. Nothing else. I really do love the Beretta U22. Very nice design and it looks awesome, AND it's relatively affordable. It comes in different versions and I'm talking about the 4.5 barrel version because that one is 8.8 inches long. But now I was told a 22 might not be the best caliber for self defense. Honestly, I did not even know there was such a big difference in firepower between all those calibers.I went to Academy and looked at some 380. The design just sucks, but I guess that's ok. The only one I really do like in terms of the design is the Beretta anyway. I don't want to spend much money and would like to stay at around 250 Dollars. It just needs to be small ( no more than 8-9 inches long ) and at least a 380. Or would a 22 still do the job? I don't want to kill anybody but someone told me heard of someone shooting 6 times and he still was running around. And if somebody breaks into your house and has possibly a gun himself, I guess that wouldn't help you much. So that didn't do much. Of course, that's just what I was told. Academy has a 9mm on its website for 300, but it's pretty ugly ( I know, doesn't matter that much) and I don't think I need a 9mm. That's too much. Does anybody have some input?
A .22 is the perfect firearm for personal defense if you don't mind getting your ass kicked by the guy you just shot before he dies.
Seriously, a .22 is a terrible self defense round. It's tiny and has little stopping power. 9mm, .40, .45 are all good self defense rounds that can provide some good stopping power with the right ammunition. I'd look beyond the .22 for that purpose. Once you do buy something, practice practice practice until it becomes perfectly natural to operate it. Simply having a gun handy is of little use unless you are proficient with it.
A .22 is the perfect firearm for personal defense if you don't mind getting your ass kicked by the guy you just shot before he dies.
Seriously, a .22 is a terrible self defense round. It's tiny and has little stopping power. 9mm, .40, .45 are all good self defense rounds that can provide some good stopping power with the right ammunition. I'd look beyond the .22 for that purpose. Once you do buy something, practice practice practice until it becomes perfectly natural to operate it. Simply having a gun handy is of little use unless you are proficient with it.
Kel-Tec PF-9. Very (or fairly - prices are relative to wallet size) inexpensive, one of the more compact 9mm's on the market in terms of concealability, is pretty light, and has earned a reputation of being one of their better guns reliability-wise in the cheap gun market, which is important if the purpose is for defense.
They make a .380 model that is even smaller and more concealable... but people here will probably steer you away from anything under 9mm (or even away from the 9mm itself) because too many people read the gun magazines/Internet way too much and have been mildly infected with Dirty Harry-itis.
This is the gun I carry. It is a Kimber pro-carry II in .45ACP which is the minimum round I would ever consider for a personal defense round.
Does the gun "look good"? Who cares? It's function is not a fashion accesory, its only purpose is to propel 230 grains of bullet out of the barrel at over 900 feet per second and deliver 414 ft·lbf of energy to the target.
The reason I will only buy 1911 style handguns is simple. Do you see the grip safety below the trigger? The firearm will not discharge unless a hand is firmly gripping the weapon. Secondly, the weapon can safely be carried cocked and the positioning of the manual safety allows for quick release.
All in all, ugly or not, it is a design that has been around for a hundred years and has worked well.
Kahr PM9 One of the smallest 9mm made. My hubby loves this gun. You can not see it, it light weight and he likes the way it shoots. Kahr Arms PM9 Pistol 9mm 8rd Stainless PM9093A
I carry a Kel Tec P11. Its a small double stack 9MM that weighs less loaded than my 380 does empty.
There is really alot more to consider than just caliber. My P11 is a DAO (double action only) action. It takes a long deliberate trigger pull but is very safe and simple to operate. The Kimber pictured above is single action. The hammer needs to be back and the grip saftey depressed before you can shoot it. It too is very safe but not so simple to a new shooter. It can be carried cocked & locked if a person likes or with the hammer down if its a newer model, I'd carry it decocked but thats just me. One way you need to thumb off a saftey to shoot, the other you need to thumb back the hammer, neither is hard to master and to me an uncocked gun is always safer than a cocked one. There are guns that are double action for the first shot & single action for the rest. Thats likely the most common set up. That way you can carry with the hammer down & just squeeze the trigger to shoot but the following shots will be single action. Single action fire is usually easier to master, but going from double to single can be tough under pressure.
Then there are revolvers too. Alot to choose from & while caliber is important a comfortable platform you are familiar with is too. IMHO you are better off with a 22 you can shoot well & comfortably than a bigger gun you are fumbling with.
Whatever gun you choose you should shoot with alot at first to gain familiarity with it. Thats another reason I chose a 9mm. Ammo is relatively cheap so I can shoot it alot. .380 has come down but other than 22 not much is cheaper than 9mm. If you shoot alot you will be able to hit things much better and manipulate your gun better too. Hopefully you never need it but if you do you dont want to be flipping it over trying to figure out what does what. Thats why I ended up with a double actio only semi auto. There are no controls & no saftey. You just point & shoot.
Kahr PM9 One of the smallest 9mm made. My hubby loves this gun. You can not see it, it light weight and he likes the way it shoots. Kahr Arms PM9 Pistol 9mm 8rd Stainless PM9093A
Kahrs are nice pistols, but a bit pricey ($500+) unless one gets a CW or CM model - those will run around $350 - $400.
This is the gun I carry. It is a Kimber pro-carry II in .45ACP which is the minimum round I would ever consider for a personal defense round.
Does the gun "look good"? Who cares? It's function is not a fashion accesory, its only purpose is to propel 230 grains of bullet out of the barrel at over 900 feet per second and deliver 414 ft·lbf of energy to the target.
The reason I will only buy 1911 style handguns is simple. Do you see the grip safety below the trigger? The firearm will not discharge unless a hand is firmly gripping the weapon. Secondly, the weapon can safely be carried cocked and the positioning of the manual safety allows for quick release.
All in all, ugly or not, it is a design that has been around for a hundred years and has worked well.
Well, but isn't this gun expensive as hell? Quickly gogoled it and saw it's about 1000 bucks. If I looked at the right one..
And thanks for the suggestions, everybody. I will check them out. Like I said, it's really just for self defense. If it wasn't, I guess I would be ok with shelling out more money for a pistol, but that's why I don't want to spend too much. I guess you're right that the look dosen't matter, but damn.. some of them are extremely ugly, to say the least! Don't understand at all why they do not come up with better designs - like the Beretta U22.
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If I looked at the right one..
