I would like to learn from the best - LCP 1911

[Wise Old Owl]

OK let me be very open about this - I know little about guns... I have read books, watched videos, read the laws etc. I attempted to search on the blog... so if I am beating a dead horse, my apologies.

Here is the motivation... I hike lots of trails and at 55 years of age - after some odd altercations with gangs in NY and other idiot moments. I am considering a light wight aluminum .38 or 9mm. Lets be honest, this is not a revolver thread. I fully plan to take a law course and a safety course.

I am looking at this as being safe on a trail, the rest of the time its in a safe.

Feel free with the thoughts and comments. I appreciate the camaraderie that I have found on this blog.

[rebel]

This is going to be like the best knife thread. Standby for lots of opinions.

[Wise Old Owl]

This is going to be like the best knife thread. Standby for lots of opinions.

Yea - I have way to many knifes... 4 in fact.

My first question is easy - most LCP is 5" inch barrel and part of this is reduce the kickback and salvage the aim. Some are 4" barrel for conceal carry and they apparent still perform. SO what is the better choice?

[rebel]

I think you answered your question.

[rebel]

I've worked in and out of law enforcement for the past forty years. At local, state and federal level. If you pull that gun it'd better be as a last resort. Except for your life or a loved one there is nothing worth the trouble. As for pistol vs. revolver. My comfort and experience level may not be the same as yours.

[crashdive123]

What firearms do you have experience with?

[Graf]

Another option is Bond Arms derringer I have the Cowboy defender shoots .410 or .45 long colt also a second set of barrels that shoots .40 SW with the .410 you wouldn't even need to aim precise not a lot of kick easy to conceal

[hunter63]

Lets define our terms....Ruger LCP?...Not aware of any barrel length longer than 2.75"
.380 auto loader, 2.75 barrel?

http://www.ruger-firearms.com/products/lcp/models.html

This is my CCW when not carrying the NAA Mini .22 Mag.

[pete lynch]

If you plan to do any hiking in PA state parks while carrying a firearm you need a LTCF (license to carry firearm). They are fairly easy to obtain from your county sheriff.
Check this out:
http://www.handgunlaw.us/states/pennsylvania.pdf

[Rick]

WOO-Ask some of your friends that are gun owners which gun shops they like and which ones have a range. Talk to the shop owner, explain your need, then test fire some handguns. Even if two people agree on a given gun it may not fit your hand or it may not feel balanced to you. If you can actually fire it then you'll know what YOU like. As for caliber, I am not sure why you are limiting yourself to just those although both a good. My EDC is a Kel-Tec PF9. It's lightweight and I've never had a problem with it. BUT...my woods gun is a .45. If you hike the woods in winter then clothing adds bulk and that .9mm won't penetrate all that clothing like the .45.

A lot will depend on how you plan to carry it. My state allows open carry so hossin' a .45 on a pistol belt in the woods is no bid deal for me. Carrying it concealed on a pancake holster or a 1.5 inch belt would be. I would find that very uncomfortable, which is why my EDC is much smaller.

We need a license to carry here as well.

Find a range that will let you test fire different types of handguns then decide for yourself what fits you.

[kyratshooter]

My first question is easy - most LCP is 5" inch barrel and part of this is reduce the kickback and salvage the aim. Some are 4" barrel for conceal carry and they apparent still perform. SO what is the better choice?

This is very vague. You seem to be using the LCP term as a generic gun when it is not. LCP is a specific Ruger semi-automatic pistol, as Hunter stated.

Do you own 5" barreled pistols?

Do you own 4" barreled pistols?

Do you already own any handguns at all? Based on what you reprieve are your choices I feel you are lacking in current firearms knowledge and availability. Lightweight no longer means aluminum, it means polymer. And your choices extend well beyond your 38/9mm restriction.

Are you intending to carry this weapon concealed or on your belt, visible to the world?

Are you going to carry for endless miles while back packing or will the hikes be for a single day or a few hours?

Will you always be in the PA woods or will you be all over the U.S. confronting dangerous game as well as stupid people?

(As a side note I once had U.S. Marshals enter a shelter on the AT and remove a hiker on a murder warrant. He had been acting spooky and someone had dropped a dime on him at a crossroad store. It happens!)

I am staying out of the legal questions since they are irrelevant to the question, which is about the best "trail gun" and different for each and every state. You are on your own with that,

My own choices change with the situation of the outing, season of the year, companions involved and even what holster is being used.

So I do not have a single "best gun". I can not imagine anyone trying to get by with one pistol any more than trying to live with one set of underwear, the experience would soon stink.

For a new owner finding the perfect pistol seems like an impossible task, because it is. I am not willing to state how many pistols I have in this house, but I can say one thing, none of them are the perfect gun for all purposes, or even for all hiking trails.

At this point I can only recommend that you open a catalog and point, because we need more specifics and you may not know them.

[hunter63]

LCP ...Is a Ruger "Lightweight, compact pistol

I guess we do need you to "point to a catalog" hint....of what you are considering.
A good gun store is an advantage....Less BS when you are standing there....Interweb is not always truthful...
.
Just reading about a guy shooting 3" groups, at 100 yrds with a LCP, a LC9 and Hogleg(?) posted targets...mostly can't see the powder burns on the paper.

Don't feel bad....I even hate looking at all the plastic offerings....Different makes, models, calibers, magazine sizes, sights...now designer colors,...On and on.

Reminders me of trying to pick out a blender at Walmart.....I want a margarita....but how good do i need to blend it?

[madmax]

3" groups at 100yds with a LCP?

[hunter63]

3" groups at 100yds with a LCP?

Yeah........Bhohahahaha
Was posted else where.....not many serious posts....Didn't throw up the BS flag, as any desertion of any kind is frowned upon.

I wonder if anyone realizes of these MOBS targets....are "Out There"

You would have to "run op there and bang away".....at least with mine.....
15 FEET I would believe,... even 15 yards......not 100....unless I am standing there and sober.

[kyratshooter]

Yes, there is no calling BS at that other place, so the myth is perpetuated and everyone expects their next purchase to do just as well.

I have my own accuracy standards for various things at different ranges. I think one should be able to peg a bunny, bird or squirrel from 15-25 yards and leave some meat intact, but have enough power for defense from the muzzle out to 50 yards.

You should be able to carry the firearm all day without wishing you had left it at home. And this carrying in the pack stuff is not for me. If I am going to need a pistol I am going to need it RIGHT NOW. That is the situation I bought the pistol to fulfill, otherwise I would have a break down shotgun or rifle in the pack, not my pistol.

Ammo capacity might be an issue, but not a big one. Still, I do not want my belt clogged up with extra magazines and junk to support the firearm, since the firearm is not the central focus of the event, the hike is the central focus. The gun fully loaded and a few extra rounds in the pocket or pack should be enough for anything short of a SHTF zombie shootout.

I am going to stick my neck out and make a recommendation based on my own camping, hiking and woods roaming experiences.

Were I buying a pistol for use as a hiking kit gun and general outdoor toy with occasional concealed carry use I would probably choose a Charter Arms 2"-3" barrel .357 and load it with +p .38spl cartridges.

Now that is just me, and anyone that wants to do something else that is lighter or heavier or bigger or littler can do so.

Every day when I walk out the door for my little doctor mandated walk in the woods I drop a small pistol into my pocket or tuck it into my belt. Most of the time it is a nice flat 9mm auto pistol, but when it is cold and I am wearing a coat that limits my access I often drop a light J frame, or a J frame knockoff, into my coat pocket.

You got your snake loads, and your wadcutters and your JHPs and your lead round nose and your JSPs and you can actually load one of each and the revolver will go BOOM every time you pull the trigger.

2" snubbies make better woods guns than you would expect.

Especially since we now know they will all shoot 3" groups at 100 yards!

[Shady Slim]

I would visit a local gun shop, explain what you are looking for and they will accommodate you. If the place is a full service store, they will offer concealed carry classes, safety classes and basic firearm classes.

You will only be fooling around to try any of this on your own as a novice. We were all novices at one time.

[kyratshooter]

Gun shops are there to sell what they have, not what you need. They are not saints with firearms in the case.

Most definitely do not walk into a shop and tell them your price range and ask them what you need!

Going to a big shop that has a range and rents pistols will help you decide what you can shoot, but give you no idea of how it feels to carry a specific pistol over 15 miles of rough country.

That is why some of us own a couple of dozen pistols, a big box full of old holsters and 15 or 20 sets of grips.

It will also not show you what will last for 50 years, hold up through rain and snow and still work after you poke the mud out of the bore with a stick and slosh it around in a mud hole.

Asking here cost nothing, the bunch has enough experience to have owned almost everything that has been on the market for the past 50 yeas, or in RandyT's case the last 150 years and we are not working on commission.

[Graf]

3" groups at 100yds with a LCP?

That's funny

[hunter63]

That's funny

Yeah...I asked him how high did he have to hold....no answer....LOL ....around 13"

[rebel]

When I lived in NC and would hike different sections of the AT they made it legal to carry a 22. I picked up a berreta bobcat. There's not much you can do with it but, I like the size.