I am looking for a small concealed carry gun and would love some direction and recommendations. Also sounds like I may be able to use my Utah concealed carry permit here in Colorado. We will see how that turns out. Anyway, like to get your opinions on the best small frame hand gun.

Here is the article on 49-State Concealed Carry:

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1111/68541.html

What caliber? I would recommend a kahr pm9 or a ruger lcp is good. A kimber ultra compact. Or a GLOCK sub is great

Ruger LC9 is a nice weapon. 9mm and small enough for good conceal. I think it's pretty close to the Kahr pm9.

Also keep in mind that a smaller caliber can be better for accuracy. All the stopping power in the world won't help you if you can't hit your target. x2 on Zilla's suggestion to find a range that rents guns. I used to shoot at a place that had a flat rate $15 flat rate rental fee to shoot any of the 50ish guns in their case. If you wanted to try something else out, you just took the one you were using back to the counter, swapped it out and bought another box of ammo. I found a .38 Beretta that I could shoot much better groupings with than almost anything in the case by a decent margin.

I think that Colorado does not recognize a Utah permit, unless you are a Utah resident. Check out rmgo.org.

I carry a Smith & Wesson M&P 40 compact & love it. Made in the USA, lifetime warranty & great customer service.

Chad

edit: here it is:
http://www.rmgo.org/concealed-carry-gui ... ed-7-11-07

You saw what I carry. Easy to shoot and has been reliable so far. I havent shot to many rounds through it yet(maybe 100) but it has been good so far.

I know the range in cherry creek state park has gun rentals. I like my 1911 but it's so darn big for cc . I have a couple .380's and the one I like is the Sig my wifes father gave her, but it's bigger than my LC9. As zillla said find what fits you best? Here there's no wrong answer only what you like best.

I forgot to mention a good hammer less wheel gun. S&W airlight is awesome. Scandium or titanium frames. Idiot proof and always works. I'm a fan of autos but you need to train and train alot. Practice malfunction etc. You add stress and and the adrenaline dump you experience when you pull a weapon on a person and you believe you will need to shoot better know how to use it

Thanks for the info guys. I knew you guys would be able to point me in a direction. ZOSO's LCP is definitely a sweet gun and likely the gun I will go with since it is SO small. I will hit some of the Gun Stores and hold a few of the others. Thanks again.

I've got 2lcp pistols and love them. Long trigger pull(don't have to worry about a discharge ) no safety. As close to a revolver as you can get. Good choice

Buy a new one if you can the early run did have a firing pin issue. It was fixed but do ur home work

I agree with Zilla. Do lots of homework and shoot as many different guns as you can. I carry a Springfield XD sub compact in .40 cal and a styer s model in .40cal. If money is no object then kimber and sig sauer make some very nice guns but they are pricey. As far as caliber, bigger is not always better (in this dept). What ever you buy you need to shoot it often and in different situations. Good luck with your decision. JP

I bought a Bersa Thunder 380 for CCW, but have yet to take the class. It's small, rounded corners and should be pretty comfortable for CCW.

That cool Zilla. Might have to look into that. What do you do with your money?

I have wanted to get my permit for some time, just never have made it a priority. I do have a question about another student whom asked me to take his handgun home for him a few weeks back. He didnt want to wait an extra 15 minutes to get it from another student who he was trying to sell it to. That person didnt want to take it home either, but he ended up with it because the seller just left it and took off. Apparantly he is working graveyards and school during the day and not sleeping when he is off because he has to spend time with his girlfriend. I saw all sorts of black flags and told him no. I didnt feel comfortable. He says its not illegal and thats all fine and dandy, but I dont know this guy very well and if I get stopped for no particular reason and that turns into suspicion and a search and that handgun turns up with a connection I become a suspect. I am trying to summarize this as short as possible. What would you do?

#1 Make sure it has a serial number on it, any gun with the s/n removed is illegal.

I guess if you are worried, I'd go to the county Sheriff and ask what to do. Maybe they could run the s/n.

Not worried about it, just think it is odd someone would ask someone else to carry a gun for them.

I agree and would have the same concerns.

I have one gun that is so old it doesn't have a serial number.

Yeah, so do I, my granddad's 22 Springfield. Sometime in the 60's the Feds started requiring s/ns. I should have been clearer, if a s/n is removed/defaced/destroyed the gun is illegal.

Mine is my grandpa's Savage model 24B, 22mag over .410 combination rifle. It's great on rabbits and squirrels.

My dad has a S&W Chiefs Special in .38 special. He took it into a gun shop a while back to get a new cylinder release. The gunsmith ended up calling S&W and they both were looking at a bunch of different models on the internet to figure out the model. The gun had a serial number but no model number. They found out it was from sometime early 40's or late 30's build (if I remember correctly) The gun has the original grips and bluing is almost worn off but it's still a nice small piece. Shoots good too. The gunsmith asked him if he wanted to sell it because it is rare and worth more than just a few bucks. I think dad's planning on using it as his carry pistol unless he carries his .32.

I have several, but the one I never leave home without is my Black Widow .22 Mag from American Arms. Even invisible in front pocket of my shorts. With a hollow pt. round, the .22 Mag isn't enough to fight a drug cartel, but definitely good enough to turn a meth head wanting my wallet at a truck stop. And it's crazy safe.

Scott Barnes - I'll be damned! How are you? What brings you to this neck of the woods?

J.D. Myers. Met you at the BCB's open house in Ingram a few years ago. You are from Parker right? Anyway, moved back home to CO in 2009.

My initial CCW gun was a Glock 19. I liked the small frame and the price was pretty good with the LE/Military purchase program that some shops in Colorado participate in. I also chose it because I've handled Glocks on a pretty regular basis for work and was familiar with the pistol.

Eventually I found a great deal on a Springfield 1911 so I jumped on it. The 1911 is another gun I have used regularly at work.

For both pistols I used Galco, inside the waistband holsters. The Glock got the Ultimate Second Amendment (USA, catchy, huh?).

The small J-hook on the plastic belt retainer did a decent job of keeping the holster in the waistband during the day but there was some shifting.

And the 1911 now resides in the Skyops.

This holster uses a Y-hook. Two tabs on the top and one on the bottom to pinch the belt and keep the holster in place. I also like the forward rake as the 1911 is about 1.5" longer than the Glock.

The 1911 is really not that much wider than the Glock, with the ambidextrous safety pushing it over the Glock width. Magazine capacity is lower (7+1 versus 15+1) but I've always said that if I need anything more than 24 rounds (I carry two 8 mags in my back pocket) then I probably should have brought a rifle to the fight.

I carry every day, regardless of where I am going or what I am doing. The only exceptions to that are when I know I will heading in to a place that I am restricted, according to law, from carrying. Yes, the 1911 is a bit heavier than most CCW rigs, but it's a gun I am very confident in shooting and handling so the extra weight is worth it to me. Plus, it's a 1911!

Everyone has brought up some good points. And to paraphrase with an analogy, you already know you want a car. Now you need to get out there and test drive some to see what you like best. Just don't go buying a Ferrari when you can only realistically drive a Focus.

akaFrankCastle -- I'm not sure if you've seen the Cold New Agent, but it's basically a baby 1911. I picked one up a few months ago because I also love the 1911 -- I just didn't like the size for a concealed carry. The New Agent fixes that..you should check it out..it's pretty cool!

I really would like to carry my 1911 for CCW but I just have issues with the size. nothing like having a .45 for self defense. I still don't carry regularly. I really should tho. Can't everyday because work bans firearms on co. premises.

I need to convince my dad he needs to carry regularly especially after what happened to the 80 yr old gentleman last week when he was jumped at his home after a crook followed him home from the grocery store near here. The news says he was being watched in line at the grocery store and followed to his house. Knocked down and had his wallet stolen right in his own driveway.