In this article I want to share with you what I think are the five best guns for concealed carry. We’re going to do this list in reverse order, starting with number five, working my way up to what I think is the best gun for concealed carry. So here we go.
Number five: The Smith and Wesson J Frame. I like J Frames. They’re simple, they’re reliable. They’re generally great guns. The problem with J Frames is they sort of have a U-shaped utility curve. So, if you are never going to take a class never going to learn how to shoot. Never going to do anything with a gun other than buy it, load it and stick it in a sock drawer, I think the J frame is probably the best choice for you because it is the easiest you put it on target.
And that’s how you get five shots out of it. Easy peasy, lemon squeezy. And then kind of in the middle, where you’re trying to learn how to shoot well and become a good shooter, J frames sort of fall off in utility because J frames are really difficult to shoot well. And then up here at the top end where you’re good at shooting, you’re serious about becoming a good shooter and serious about employing the fundamentals of marksmanship in a self-defense rule. J frames once again find their utility because you’ve mastered that long double action trigger pole, you’ve mastered aiming these guns and you’re ready to apply them to their full potential.
Number 4: The Glock 42. Yes, the 380 Glock and not the 9 mil Glock. I actually prefer this gun to the 9 mil Glock and to most small single stack nine millimeters for one reason, it’s easier to get hits on target out of subcompact guns, the terminal ballistics of nine mil are somewhat compromised, they’re not compromised all the way down to the level of 380.
But I prefer this gun because it’s easier to shoot well and it’s extremely easy to conceal. You can make a Glock 42 disappear on anyone regardless of their size.
Number 3: The Smith and Wesson M&P 9MM. Now Smith and Wesson just came out with the new 2.0 M&P guns which all of the reports I’ve heard are they’re phenomenal and absolutely recommended. I think the original and again the new 2.04 and a quarter inch 9M M&P is absolutely one of the top three carry guns on the planet.
It is reliable, the new ones are accurate, it is easy to shoot well. It holds 17 rounds, it’s really not that big a gun, and almost anyone can carry it concealed. I think these are great guns. There’s nothing really bad about these guns. The only thing that I change really on them is I mess around with the trigger a little bit because I’m picky, and I replaced the sights.
Number 2: The Gen 4 Glock 19. You knew this had to be on the list somewhere in here it is 9-millimeter 15 rounds, small enough to be easily concealed by any normal sized human being or even a midget like me. The weapon of choice for the United States Special Operations community; well, the handgun of choice for them.
What’s not to like? Everything about it is great, except for the factory size. I mess around with the triggers a little bit because I don’t like the gen four trigger as much as I like the Gen 3 trigger but again, that’s all-personal preference.
But now you’re probably thinking, wait a minute, the Glock 19 wasn’t number one. What’s number one? What could it possibly be? Here we go we’ve reached number one on my list of the best five guns for concealed carry. And this is probably going to be a surprise to some people but
Number 1: It is the 6 Hour P229 in 9-millimeter. This gun is the same size as a Glock 19, meaning it is easy to conceal. It holds the same number of rounds as a Glock 19 meaning it has plenty of ammo on board. It is a little bit heavier because it has an aluminum frame which I kind of sort of prefer a little bit.
It comes from the factory with night sights which are better than the Glock 19 and it is inherently better for my preferred method of concealed carry, appendix carry because it has a hammer on it.
When you go to holster this gun at the appendix carry position, you can place your thumb over the hammer and put it into your holster safely. I love DASA guns and I think that they are great guns. The 6 hour P229 in 9mm is the best example of a compact concealable DASA gun on the planet and my number one choice for concealed carry.