Concealed Carry 9Mm Or .45 Acp ?

[CrossK]

In your opinion what is the better caliber for concealed carry? I've always liked the .45 ACP because if heaven forbid I ever have to shoot someone, I'd rather it only take one bullet and the FNP 45 Tactical is in .45 ACP haha that is one sick gun. But does anyone else have a different view?

Thanks

[BamaBassChaser]

[bigbill]

I like the 45acp round too over the 9mm luger/parabellium. In what make and model handgun were you thinking of in 45acp? 1911a1 or glock or CZ?

I've heard good things about the CZ pistol in 45acp. If the cz has the double action first shot it gets my vote. You can get a decent 1911 for around $600. I prefer a plain jane model with no bells, no frills and no whistles. But it depends on what you want too.

[Teal]

It really comes down to budget and what you are comfortable with and how you plan on concealing it. Yes, the 45 is a larger pill and has what I call more knock down power. But a good hollow point round like the SPEER GOLD DOT JACKETED HOLLOW POINT in the hands of a skilled shooter in 9mm is a one shot kinda deal.

Seems like alot of questions need to be answered, but i wouldnt automatically choose a 45 over a 9mm just for the knock down power. I have a sub compact 9mm and I absolutley love it, and if you think I cant. "Neutralize a threat" with one shot, you have another thing coming. ....and honestly, If im in a situation where i feel deadly force is authorized, im going to empty the magazine (or cylinder) anyway.

[Teal]

I sayy the above, not to discourage the 45... i am a 1911 fanatic...and love a 45... but 9mm is no slouch.

[CrossK]

I'm lookin at a FNP .45 Tactical haha it's expensive but sick, and I'm not knocking the 9mm at all I just love the .45

[jbsoonerfan]

I had a Kimber Ultra Carry II in .45 and it was too bulky. I now carry a Ruger LC9.

 

If I ever need to use my side arm, I am plenty confident in the 9mm.

[Raider Nation Fisher]

9mm. Shoots faster and holds more rounds. Less recoil. Deep cut hollow points leave large wound channels. So I'm not as concerned with knock down power. .45ACP is still a good round though. If I didn't have my twin glock 9mm's I would own a 1911.

All boils down to personal preference. Either will eject the contents of the cranial cavity. So go for what you like.

[I.rar]

I prefer 9mm. Cheaper to shoot means more practice time means more proficient. I have my p95 magazines filled with 124gr +p pdx1 and am very confident in those rounds. I also have some 147gr hydrashock and those are pretty nasty too.

Plan on picking up a lc9 there soon to carry only because the shield is out of my price range and impossible to find in my area.

Good luck with your decision.

[SPEEDBEAD.]

I carry both, depending on the flavor of the day.

 

Mostly it's my .45's though as they are the smaller pistols compared to my m&p 9. I have no qualms about carrying 9mm with a quality protection round in it. I prefer the PDX1 Winchesters but the Hornady, Speer, Remington, Federal, etc all produce bullets that are capable of performing their duty.

 

Carry what you are confident in and what you have practiced with most.

[FD.]

SR9c.

 

It fits in the small of my back or the front pocket of my backpack with no problems.

 

 

 

"knock down" power is a myth.  It comes down to what you are comfortable with both to carry and shoot.

[Goose21]

I narrowed it down to my xds .45 or gen 4 glock 19. Both great guns but I carry the g19, I'm more accurate on quick follow up shots and like the capacity it holds in case I ever had to engage multiple targets. Conceals fairly easily even on a small framed guy and when I pull the trigger it goes bang every time.

I read a VERY interesting conversation between a forum crowd and a medical examiner working in the city of Atlanta.

Man has performed thousands of autopsy and has come to favor the .45 round by a large margin for carry.. I believe the .357mag was next followed by .40 then 9mm. I will try to post a link later.

I agree with everyone above though, carry something youre confident you can be proficient and accurate with and isn't a pain to carry. I'm confident with the 9 mm hollow point, prefer anything from 124+p to 147grain.

[K_Mac]

I really like BamaBassChaser's comment! If you had a nickle for every word written on the interwebz on this subject, you would be very wealthy. Either one, on target, will do the job just fine.

 

I think the .45acp is a fine cartridge, and would love to have a good 1911. I would not conceal carry it under normal conditions though. A "plastic" 9mm is my choice for this. Like FishinDaddy I carry an SR9c. It  is light enough, concealable, has been completely dependable. As important, I shoot it well. 

[flechero]

The 9 and the 45 are both proven effective with good shot placement.  Both are also proven ineffective with poor shot placement.  The bottom line is to buy something that you will actually carry, and carry what you shoot well.  In my case, I prefer the 45 but carry the 9 more often because in guns I currently own, the 9 fits into my summer time dress code easier.  Hoping to change that with a new XDs, so I can carry the 45 more often.

[tritonguy]

I'm a huge 1911 fan and shoot one a lot but I carry a 9mm most of the time because of the weight.  If I ever have to pull my firearm to protect my family the last thing that will go through my mind will be what caliber it is.  Be prepared or be a victim.

[Brian Needham]

 

 

"knock down" power is a myth.  It comes down to what you are comfortable with both to carry and shoot.

 

^THIS!

 

I like the 9mm cause I can put 3 to 1 down range against other calibers I have shot.

give me shot placement and time on target over "knock down" any day. If your hit twice in the chest and once in the head you will be KNOCKED DOWN!

[FishingMastah1]

Really. The only logical answer to which you should carry, is... Carry the one that you can manage the best and shoot accurately with.

[Jerry in SC]

If a person can handle recoil, I'd recommend a .45 ACP every time. Most don't shoot enough to master it though. For a novice shooter wanting to move up in caliber, I'd recommend a S&W M&P, it's a soft shooter for a .45 and extremely reliable. I don't consider a 1911 platform pistol reliable until I put at least a thousand trouble free rounds down range. I'd dare say 90% of new 1911 buyers can't detail strip it, tune an extractor, or properly diagnose a FTF. I've carried one off and on since 1972; they are aficionado pistols in my opinion.

[Hi Salenity]

Really. The only logical answer to which you should carry, is... Carry the one that you can manage the best and shoot accurately with.

You have the best avatar ever!!!

[Hi Salenity]

I have a full size 45 and a 9mm subcompact both are XDs and fit in the same crossbreed holster

And if I remember both hold 13+1

[deputybc]

After working in Law Enforcement for 10 yrs I don't want to get shot with either one. That being said carry the one you can shoot the best. If you can shoot tighter groups with a 9mm than a 45acp then its a no brainer.

[bigbill]

I just finished my 1911 build using the Chinese norinco 1911 as my build platform because of its quality forged frame and slide. It's our own railroad track steel being sold back to us. I installed and fitted a Surplus USGI New barrel in 45acp, a national match barrel bushing, a full length guide rod kit w/18# recoil spring and the full wrap around rubber grips. I did the feed ramp, the disconnection ramp and fitting the barrel/ barrel bushing myself. I never seen a 1911 cycle this fast and smooth before. It's like a race gun. Now even with a loose slide to frame fit she shoots one clover leaf per 8rd mag. Using Russian wolf 45acp fmj ball ammo at 25 yds. I'm sure it will shoot better with target loads. I wanted to do a build using a surplus New barrel, IAI barrel bushing and a FLGR kit. Using all affordable parts to see how good could a low budget build could shoot. I wanted a cheap 1911 for ccw but this norc turned out better than that. I purchased all the dvds, vhs videos and the Jerry k book on how to repair, build and modify the 1911s. I purchased all the 1911 gun Smith tools I needed from brownells.

I originally got fed up owning two brand new colt 1911s in the past that had quality problems. I figured if I'm going to shoot and own the 1911 pistols I better know how to repair them.

After doing this build I remembered I had a new SA series 90 1911 in the safe tucked away since I purchased it brand new since 1990 because

of it jamming one round per mag. Upon inspecting it I found out the extractor needed tuning. It wouldn't hold the spent case firmly. After using my extractor tuning tools from brownells she functions the way a

brand new 1911 should. I kept it in the safe for all these many years because it came with some optional items from the factory. Plus the black parkerized finish looked awesome too.

If your going to own and shoot the 1911 you better learn and know everything about them.

Only feed the chamber from the magazine. If you want to put a round in the chamber then install the full magazine. Load the first round from the mag then add another round in the mag. By putting a round in the chamber by hand then closing the slide over the round can detune the extractor. It takes the spring tention out of the extractor.

Only feed any pistol from the magazine why beat up the extractor for nothing.

I do all my own gun Smith work to learn. I changed barrels in a 98k German mauser so far too. I checked the headspace and it's dead on.

My point is we have everything at our finger tips if we want to learn the learning tool is right in front of us its our puter.

[QUAKEnSHAKE]

 What did this Oregon Officer use on this guy in video that came out about a week ago? The guy got shot in chest but didnt skip a beat. Was able to get more shots off then drove off and a 1/2 mile later well didnt make it.  

 

http://media2.s-nbcnews.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Video/__NEW/tdy_mor_dash_shoot_131004.vembedlarge456.jpg

 

 

[bigbill]

This is why I ccw carried a 44mag for all these many years. Now I ccw a s&w 41mag.

[A-Jay]

I just added a CZ 75 SP-01 Phantom to the Armory ~ Really Nice.

 

And I got a Very Sweet deal on it too.

 

Speer Gold Dot +P 124 Grain Jacketed Hollow - that Is All.

 

A-Jay