Picking my off duty gun

[.357sigger]

I can carry any pistol I want in any caliber that I want. All I have to do is qualify with it. What gun would you carry and in what caliber...then tell me why. I have some ideas but I want to hear yours

[ICANHITHIMMAN]

I have a 1911 in 45ACP I carry all the time beacuse it what I have.

I had a Glock19 but when my wife got her badge she sook it as her off duty gun. Her issue pistol is a Beretta PX2 storm which is big and hard for a small woman to hide off duty.

If she would let me spend the money I would get another Glock19 its a 9mm her department issues Federal HYDROSHOK in the 45ACP but gave her something else for her off duty gun. In my 45 I have the HYDROSHOCKS and when I used to carry the 9mm it was with the DPX round.

I would go with the Glock19 I know a lot of guys like the bigger rounds but I think if you pair the 9mm with the right bullet you will be ok.

[bpd315]

I alternate between a S&W 640 .38 and a Grendel .380 that has had ALOT of work done to it so I trust it. Most guys at the pd carry Keltec in .380. This is a question that has to take into account your body size, method of carry and what you are comfortable with. While i enjoy larger cal. I find they are cumbersome to carry. I almost always use an ankle holster.

Good luck, Red.

[NoBody]

Deleted.

[padwan]

The Glock 19 is easy to carry and conceal (for me at least) that I never felt the need to look for something smaller, unless the dress code was so restrictive that I had to go for a pocket revolver.

In such cases, I wore a pair of Airweights. One in an Uncle Mike's pocket holster in my left trouser pocket. The other in an ankle rig from Renegade.

Good luck on your search.

[madisonsfinest]

What is your duty gun?

+1.........

[.357sigger]

What is your duty gun?

Sig P229R in .40 s&w....

[Marcus L.]

Sig P229R in .40 s&w....

It's important for you to maintain the muscle memory you have in your duty pistol with your off duty pistol. Sig controls are unique, and the characteristics of the pistol are different as well. If you pick a non-Sig for your off duty pistol and you do a lot of training with it, it WILL screw up your muscle memory when you use your duty pistol under stress. Been there.....done that.

I also carry a Sig P229 .40S&W on duty. For off duty, I prefer to carry my Sig P239 9mm which is compact, maintains the same control locations as the P229, and the charactistics of the pistol are very similar and cross training is easy. If I was using a duty Glock, my off duty pistol would be a small Glock. Same applies to the M&P or other brand of your choice. Cross training between two dissimilar pistols is counter productive in my opinion.


If you want to stick with .40S&W, the P239 comes in .40S&W as well. I picked the 9mm because I thought that the little P239 had a little too much jump to it in .40S&W. If you go with the P239, I strongly suggest that you get the Hogue rubber wrap around grips like I have in this picture. It makes a world of control difference in the P239's handling and grip security. However, I'm not a fan of the Hogue wrap arounds in the larger P226, P228, and P229 series as it makes the grip too fat.

[GLOCKMASTER]

I carry a SIG P229 DAK at work and I carry a G19 off duty. No issues running either pistol under stress.

The key is knowing your weapons and what you are carrying.

[Ray T]

On duty, I carry a GLock 21SF loaded with my departments issue ammo - Federal .45 ACP 230gr HST+P. My back up is a Glock 27 loaded with COr-Bon 140 gr DPX.

My off duty gun is a GLock 20SF loaded with 175 gr Wincherster 10mm Silvertips or DoubleTap 165 gr Gold dots. My back up is the same Glock 27 loaded with COr-Bon 140 gr DPX.