Selecting a firearm for CCW for self-defense

[ursavus.elemensis]

I have a reasonable background in safe use and handling of firearms. I intend to practice at a range to develop proficiency with whatever handgun I ultimately purchase to carry for self defense. I flinch at heavy recoil firearms.

I am looking for advice on what gun to purchase for self defense carrying. I walk around Lancaster city, and I do a lot of remote hiking in the northeastern part of the State on public land. I've had incidents where dogs have attached my dog while hiking, and I have had numerous non-confrontations to date with strange, presumably unstable people encountered deep in the woods. I want to be able to protect myself while hiking in case one of those encounters goes from "strange" to "threatening". I also want to protect myself from animal attacks including the mountain lions that are supposedly extinct in PA, but that have had over 2,000 credible but unverified sightings. (mountain lions have two predatory behaviors that concern me with regard to my hiking alone with my dog deep into the woods: 1. They stalk prey for miles, and will ultimately circle around in front and attack, and 2. they can hang out on tree limbs overhanging walking trails and drop down onto humans or animals). While it is not as crazy as needing protection from space aliens or dinosaurs, I admit that mountain lion attack is less likely than unfriendly encounters with other humans.

My buddy with a lifetime of firearms experience suggests a Ruger .22 with hollow point ammo. He sys it is the easiest gun to handle, and can stop a predatory human. Everyone else in America suggests a 9 mm or a .40 caliber. I shot a buddy's 9 mm about 10 years ago, and while it was "totally cool" it was not something I could see doing with any degree of accuracy. I want something with a magazine holding ammo, not a revolver with six shot maximum. I have shot a 357 magnum in the past, and liked that, but do not want a revolver.

Advice? (I mean, advice about selecting a gun, not advice to stay out of the woods until the mountain lions become extinct again -- just in case anyone was tempted to offer that advice...)

[TonyF]

You have quite a range of potential threats to deal with.

To begin with, pound for pound animals are MUCH stronger than humans. In that context I doubt very much the typical auto-loading self defense caliber will suffice. Dogs are particularly difficult to stop with a handgun cartridge. I would expect a cougar to be even more so.

If I had your concerns, I would strongly reconsider a revolver chambered in 44 Spl or 45 Colt. The .22 LR may do well against humans with good shot placement but against an animals weighing in excess of 50 lbs. it would probably be just about useless.

The only choice in an autoloader that I can think of would be a Glock 20 in 10mm but if you had trouble with a 9mm, the increased recoil of the 10mm would only make matters worse.

[rwilson452]

For self defence a 9mm is as small as I would go. A 22 will be as effective against an attacking mountain lion as a cap gun. If you know of a range that rents firearms, go there and try all you can and see what feels right for you. Go to a store and see what passes your personal "fondle test". Then see if you can rent that one. I have big hands and have been around firearms all my life. I carry a doublestack. A somewhat large pistol, a Springfield XD. I prefer a .45ACP. In the final analysis only you can decide what fits you best. Once you get it get some profesional training. Then practice, practice, practice.

[Lycanthrope]

Lions are thin skinned.....a black bear would be harder to take down. With that in mind the Glock 20 is a really good choice and the recoil is manageable with practice.

Another great option would be a 5" 1911 in .45 ACP. Hundreds of ways to modify the gun to fit your needs and with another $295 you can add a .460 Rowland conversion which would give you .44 magnum performance when needed.

http://www.clarkcustomguns.com/rowland.htm

[Emptymag]

My thought as I read your post is that you are looking for something that doesn't exist.
A little to no recoil caliber that stops both two and four legged critters looking to do you harm? You may need to re-think this.

Most firearms are a trade off. There is no "one" firearm that is "perfect" for every type of situation/task. There are many however that will handle several tasks well. I'm sure you will get good advice here, but I will leave that to someone with more experience with the type of firearms that would work for your needs.

Good luck and welcome to the forum!

[Lycanthrope]

The simple solution would be a 10mm or hotter with a good compensator. I believe the drop in Glock barrels with comps are relatively cheap. The Rowland conversion also has a decent comp. Loud and flashy, but a good comp will divert most of the recoil out of the heavy calibers (note: porting isn't as effective as a true compesator).

[Chunky Monkey]

My thought as I read your post is that you are looking for something that doesn't exist.
A little to no recoil caliber that stops both two and four legged critters looking to do you harm? You may need to re-think this.

Most firearms are a trade off. There is no "one" firearm that is "perfect" for every type of situation/task. There are many however that will handle several tasks well. I'm sure you will get good advice here, but I will leave that to someone with more experience with the type of firearms that would work for your needs.

Good luck and welcome to the forum!

EXACTLY! When I head to the woods I carry Super Redhawk 44 Mag. When just working/monkeying around the house its a 45 P345.

I have ordered an XD 9MM Sub-compact for CCW. As EMPTYMAG suggests you need more than one gun.

[Montell C. Williams]

No handgun under a 4 inch .357mag is going to be effective aginst large animals unless you make a brain or upper spine hit, for self defense a 3 inch bbl 5 shot .38spl is nice or a Kahr P9 9mm is pretty small and still large enough to shoot well with a moderate amount of practice. If you get a semi-auto I would get night sights if you can afford them.

[jdlv4_0]

Two gun solution, get a Beretta .380: http://www.berettausa.com/product/pr...stols_main.htm
for startes as a carry gun while your in town, if you find the .380 agreeable you can stick with it or move up to a 9mm.

.380 is the smallest round I'd recommned for self defense against two legged critters, normally when people are looking at .380s they are looking for small guns, but you asked for low recoil and accuracy, the Beretta comes to mind. It will give you high capacity and low recoil during your city walks.

As for the field, well you need a .45ACP or 10mm auto, or a .44mag or .45LC revolver to take care of the four legged stuff.

This is the one and only time I will ever say this to anyone....if you have the cash buy a Desert Eagle in .44 mag for the woods...

Or you can go the NFA route and get a Serbu Super Shorty Shotgun/Pistol (AOW), you'll have only 3 rounds, but 3 12guage shells are nothing to sneer at.

[RoyJackson]

I'd carry a small .357 (Ruger SP101 comes to mind) and a can of pepper spray. The pepper spray will probably work better on the dogs, the revolver on 2 legged critters and the mountain lions.

Although I'm a big Taurus fan and do suggest you look at their small frame .357's (as well as the Ruger), I would go for stainless and avoid the titanium models.