Looking for a carry piece - opinions?

[TKE JAW]

I have a beretta 96fs inox brigadier (.40) and a series 70 colt government (.45) - both big heavy guns not easily carried much less concealed. I'm looking for a smaller piece that I could carry. I won't be carrying much but would like to start since I've been shooting for years and have had my permit for over 6 years.

I've been looking at a Glock 26 because my coworker has one and I shoot it quite well. The other option, on the other side of the spectrum, is a subcompact 1911 or possibly a Springfileld EMP (somewhat cost prohibitive). I love 1911s and thougt a subcompact 1911 would fuel my 1911 love while simultaneously working as a carry piece. Also - I'm thinking that maybe the mags would be interchangeable.

Love to hear opinions on this. Also - will subcompact 1911 mags work in a full size series 70?

Thanks all for replying to my first post!

[DBZ220]

Welcome to the forum!
The fullsize 1911 mags will work in the compact in most cases, but not the other way around since the compact mags are shorter. For a general purpose carry pistol, I've found the Glock 19/23 to be a nice combination of size and firepower. Could also check out the Glock 30 or 36 if you'd like to go with the .45acp. The G26 you mentioned is also an excellent choice. Hard to go wrong with most of them. Alot of reviews and forums I read indicate that alot of the 3-inch barrel 1911 platforms can be very tricky to get running 100% most people tend to say stick with a 4-5inch Government model. The series 70 Colt is hard to beat for a 1911 in my opinion. With the right holster/belt combo, you may be able to carry it rather easily.

[TXDMERC73]

if you need something light get the sub compact XD45 i wanted to carry a Beretta 92sf but the handle was too large it would stick ou tunde rmy shirt so i went and bought a Taurus PT92 Compact , same as the beretta only smaller handle less mag capacity and easier to hide, its the handle that you need to hide good not the barrel . u can stick a 9 inch barrel in your pants wont be seen but the 17 round mag in your beretta will show a bump if your CC, u can always OC with any gun anyways.

[JoeWilliams]

I liked the Glock 19 I owned many years ago for it's size, liked my wife's M&P 9c better, though.

Of course, I do carry my 92FS concealed, so stepping down (in size) to one of those is kind of like going to a Noisy Cricket LOL.

[TKE JAW]

DBZ220 - I absolutely love my colt. I bought used from a guy that did some great stuff to it. match barrel, polished feed ramp, adjustable trigger, bomar sights, etc. For carrying, I bought a kydex type holster but the high bomar front sight prevented it from going in and out easily so I returned it. Also, the gun is pristine and sort of want it to be a safe queen - only bringing it out to shoot on special occassions and then rub it with a diaper.

TXDMERC73 - The grip width is the problem I too have with my 96. Added to the already large grip is the brigadier thick wrap around pachmyr grips. Awesome looking piece that I'll never part with but almost impossible to comfortably carry.

I also should have mentioned, I'm considering the G-26 and the Springfield EMP because I don't have a 9mm and would like to add that caliber to my collection. My dad's got a mint ruger bearcat revolver he bought about 40 years ago I'm waiting to get so a 9mm, added to the .22 bear cat, would round out the calibers/styles that I want.

[Palerider]

You mention grip width being an issue. It is for me as well especially in the summer. I'm 5'8" 150 lbs so I don't have a large frame for it to blend in with. I recently went with a Kahr PM9. It disappears in front khaki pockets and if that's uncomfortable it conceals incredibly well IWB.

If the PM or MK series are too small for you, look at their bigger frames. The single stack 9mm grips are quite slim.

[JoeWilliams]

Also look at used S&W 3913s and new or used 908s

[Shawn.L]

I have a beretta 96fs inox brigadier (.40) and a series 70 colt government (.45) - both big heavy guns not easily carried much less concealed. I'm looking for a smaller piece that I could carry. I won't be carrying much but would like to start since I've been shooting for years and have had my permit for over 6 years.

I've been looking at a Glock 26 because my coworker has one and I shoot it quite well. The other option, on the other side of the spectrum, is a subcompact 1911 or possibly a Springfileld EMP (somewhat cost prohibitive). I love 1911s and thougt a subcompact 1911 would fuel my 1911 love while simultaneously working as a carry piece. Also - I'm thinking that maybe the mags would be interchangeable.

Love to hear opinions on this. Also - will subcompact 1911 mags work in a full size series 70?

Thanks all for replying to my first post!

full size 1911 mags will work in smaller 1911's so long as they are single stack 45's.

why dont you look into a Springfield "champion" or Colt "commander" size 1911.
personally, I think a full size 1911 conceals just fine under a loose T with a proper belt and pancake style holster.

Stay away from the EMP, too small to shoot well easily, and (while this is antectdotal) all I ever hear is about people who cant get them to run.

If you want to go small, 1911, and get into a smaller more managable calliber in that size then look at STI.

I have been lusting after a 9mm Para Hawg............

1911's are thin, and if thats what you shoot, like to shoot, and shoot a lot, then you should prob steer that way on your carry piece.

I carry a full size 1911, sometimes CC, sometimes OC. I love it.

[pyld]

How are you going to conceal it?

That makes a difference.

When I have the chance to wear a large T-shirt or jacket, I will carry a Springfield XD45c, IWB. When active or not wanting to tote around a heavy (er) piece all day, I'll carry either a G26 or XD-9sc IWB (I bought the baby XD because I liked the 45 so much better than my larger Glocks, but have found that the G26 actually conceals easier).

When I can't conceal anything else, I drop a Kel-Tec P32 in my pocket. I've thought about moving to a P3AT or a Ruger LCP, but I have a fairly significant stock of .32 ACP on hand and don't want to buy a .380 that I can't find ammo for at this point. I've considered a Kahr PM-9 and Kel-Tec PF9, but I think they may just be a smidge to large and heavy for pocket carry for formal-ish occasions. More often than not, particularly going to and from work (because of what I do and how I have to dress), pocket carry is the only reasonable option.

The G26 is a very reasonable carry piece. It's easy to conceal IWB. It works well with the various tuckable IWB offerings for a lot of people (I could never make the tuckable IWB holsters work). If you do something like smartcarry, it's small relative to it's peers. It's a Glock, ergo it probably won't rust or be negatively impacted by the rigors of carry (mine has not been, and it's going on 7 or 8 years old with 10k + rounds--on stock parts). You won't spend a fortune to make it run right, parts are readily available and cheap, everyone makes a holster for it. Cons are that it's a glock (and thus it's trigger sucks relative to most things) and the 1911 crowd will mock you mercilessly . (I own and love an old government model s80, but choose not to carry it for the reasons I've outlined).

The biggest problem I have with a 1911 (or, for that matter, just about any steel or aluminum framed semiauto) for concealed carry is the weight. If I had a job that afforded me the chance to dress a bit more casually or even OC, the weight thing would become a non-issue.

However, as I said above, how you plan to carry and what dress that dictates should play a big role in your decision process.

[Shawn.L]

The biggest problem I have with a 1911 (or, for that matter, just about any steel or aluminum framed semiauto) for concealed carry is the weight.
.

with a proper purpose built gun belt you can carry a cinderblock more comfortably than a baby glock if you are using a cheapo holster and belt you grabbed at marshalls that looked wide.

a proper gun belt is always important, but carrying a heavier gun will really pronounce that importance.