What would you experts say is the most rugged pistol or "best" pistol for a survival situation. In reality I know that my AR-15 would stay in the safe during any likely SHTF scenario so a pistol is something that I really want to focus on.

I am sure it will be a over whelming response for Glocks. But what caliber is the best? 9mm? .40? What would be more readily available in the states during a SHTF scenario?

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ar-jedi

The "best" pistol in a SHTF situation is the one in your hand. If you are picking up ammo along the way, it's likely that the weapons which use said ammo will be sitting right there with the ammo... Caliber doesn't mean shit realistically, shot placement is key.

To add, the best caliber is the one you've stocked up on beforehand.  Counting on finding ANY common caliber while the shit is flying is fail waiting to happen.
 

9mm is the best "survival" caliber for me since i own 10k rounds and my wife is very comfortable shooting it.  

Between 9 and 40 go 9. But for shtf and just general use be sure you own a 22lr rifle or long barrel pistol. That 22lr will drop rabbits, squriels and larger 2 legged game just as easy. Put 500rds of 22 in your bob, now try that with 9 or 40. You would need a whole other bob. If your gonna have a 9 and your woried about shtf, reload! Get a simple lee tuuret system. For a total investment of less than 200 you now can save 50% on ammo. It pays for itself very fast, then its all pure gravy!

I like 44sp. in my 3" S&W 696.

Define please. What do you envision needing a handgun for in a survival situation.

My go to is a glock 17 and i'd bring along my Advantage Arms 22lr conversion kit as well.  Both with threaded barrels for my suppressors.

Ruger MK II .22

Runner up: Glock 19

Glock would be a good choice as would any of the more LE/Military designs such as HK, CZ, Sig, Beretta, etc.  As for caliber, I would think 9mm and .40S&W would be the most prevalent; however availability wouldn't be any guarantee as there are so many variables.  It would be better to stock up now than think about savaging after the SHTF.

A conversion kit is a good option as well.  You could get a .40S&W Glock and add a 9mm barrel and even a .22LR conversion kit to expand your capabilities…

ROCK6

Glock 23 with a drop in 9mm barrel and different types of mags.

A .22 LR pistol would be the most useful but it just doesn't have the cool factor.

I really like the Gen 4 Glock 17 but I have to say that I've not been nearly impressed with the Kel-tec SU2000 as has been espoused across the internet (crude trigger, plastic sights and when a left-handed shooter holds the rifle they can accidentally depress the mag release while shooting).

Haven't we been through this about a bazillion times and pretty much concluded that the Glock 19 or Glock 17 were the ideals here, with a 22lr Ruger MKII or MKIII to accompany?  Why bring this all back up again and remind those that went with XDs, Sig or others that they screwed up?

Admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery...

As for myself its my Colt Trooper Mk III in .357 Magnum. .357 Magnum is an awesome deer gun and coyotes if they are in range. The nice thing is having the .38 Special if need be.

Dont have a Glock....Whooops

I always wonder why so few people find the .357/.38 combination acceptable for SHTF.  A double action wheel gun can be fired as fast as you can pull the trigger, and reloaded fairly quickly as well.  Revolvers will stand up to anything a semi-auto will stand up to as far as harsh conditions go.  

As far as a TEOTWAWKI/SHTF gun fight goes it seems that Cormac McCarthy had it right when he wrote "I'd rather make a good run than a poor stand."  If it comes down to having to stand my ground, I'd just as soon have something that will pass through a 1970's steel car door and still have some umph.  The .357 was HUGE with law enforcement when it came out because it would pass through the rudimentary body armor that the outlaws of the day had taken to wearing.  

To top it all off you can get a very reliable lever action to pair with it and eat the same ammo.  Can I reload it as fast as my AR? No. Can I shoot it as far with accuracy? No. Can I shoot it as fast? No. Will it quit me in hot, dry, sandy/dusty conditions? Probably not.  

Not saying semi-auto firearms don't have their place, or that I'll sell off my AR for another .357 revo/rifle set.  Just seems that they have more a place in the prepper inventory than most people think.

I simply look at simplicity. Less mechanical parts less likely to fail. Only problem with larger revolvers is finding a holster but having a custom one isnt out of the question. I am glad someone see eye-to-eye on the choice of caliber selection

The one that you own and are proficient with.  For us, it's Glock 9mm's.

There is no best SHTF handgun like has been said its what you have you cand go worng with sig, glock, hk, berreta, most 1911`s, xd/xdm, cz,s&w, walther just get the one that fits your hand and you can shoot best and as for 9mm or .40s&w 9mm you get 2 or 3 mor shots and .40 hits a little harder but if you get go HP ammo it really doesnt matter

"Proper shot placement" is just an excuse for recoil shy pussies that use too small of a gun.

Well,

As stated before...The caliber you have pistols for and stocked up on will be the best...

I've got all my primary pistols in .50SW...This was to allow more interchangeability of rounds...

Exceptions at a few .22lr

Now I know the .40 isn't everyone's choice....But it has been my carry/duty pistol since 1992...

Now as other have said...don't count on finding ammo in a SHTF

But I'd stress trying to have as much interchangeability between weapon platforms...

My standard firearm are...
AR-15...Rifle and Pistols...All 5.56 Nato

Shotguns...All 12Ga

Pistols (primary) .40SW

Few .22lr for the kids.

Now this has me down to stockpiling only 3 different rounds
5.56 NATO 855's and older 193's (193's were before the 855's...Still have about 10K  left) Total 20K
.40SW Have about 10K
12GA Have right around 4K but haven't counted it...

and a few cases of 22lr

I used to have close to 20 different calibers and a couple of k each..,.

Going to standard rounds has allowed me to stock much more ammo for all the guns than before..

Yes I have a few hunting only guns as well...(They are sentimental so I'm not selling them)...But these are not counted on in a SHTF scenario...And not setup for it.

So bottom line...
I know the best round is one you can afford to stock up on...

A .22lr with lost of ammo is way better than a desert eagle with only 2 loaded mags...They will run out SOON and then your gun doesn't go bang anymore.

I used to have a really nice .44mag Eagle...Sold it and bought 1 AR-15 Rifle and 2 12G Riot Guns and Still had money left for ammo...

Now I'm not a paycheck to paycheck living type of person...But One .44Mag tied up 3 guns and ammo...It's what is more important...

So for budget minded you may want to go with 9mm it's cheaper...Works about the same...But it was not available in all the guns I wanted here...So take that into account.

Glock and Other MFG's don't make 9mm in some of their sizes...And I wanted them...

Enough of my ramblings...

If you have unlimited money...Buy every caliber and stock 2-3K each...Should be fine...
If you have decent money...I say pick a few calibers and types and then stock them...
If you on the lighter end of the scale...Then pick a caliber and weapon platform that you have the funds to support...
Like I stated earlier ammo make the weapon work...So if you can't afford to stock rounds in say .40SW HST...maybe pick a cheaper platform.

One last note...
Pick a reliable weapon...
If you have lots of funds...Wilson 1911's are great...
If you have less funds...Then maybe Glock is for you...

But whatever you pick make sure it's reliable...
The price point might be great on a weapon...But if it doesn't feel right or it's prone to issues then it's useless to me at least...

I build all my own AR-15's now...Have had too many issues with "Gun Experts" not doing something correct and causing a malfunction....And run them quite a bit before they are deemed reliable and placed in my racks

As for Pistols (Ar's excluded)...I buy Glocks quite often...And Sig's...Even Kimber and Wilson...Even looked at the SW Glock knock off's
But my pistol racks are 95% Glock...I stock Parts for Glocks and have the ability to work on them here right in my gun room...

So depending on your budget pick a weapon platform that is reliable and affordable to you...And also feels right as well...

Rounds on target are the key...If your weapon doesn't feel good...You won't shoot it good...

Last ramble...

i don't believe in "Training" ammo...

Shoot what you are going to use...It may cost a bit more...But I've seen instances where your "Duty" ammo will cause issues not seen with the training ammo...Especially on shotguns.

B

Glock 19 9mm for the win!!  

Why in the world would your AR stay in the safe during a SHTF situation???

A pistol is a personal self-defense weapon to be carried for small scale, isolated, surprise attacks = armed robberies, rapes, aggravated assaults, car jackings, etc.  AR's are for larger scale SHTF situations = gang attacks, race riots, WWIII, etc.

That being the case (IMO) a small pocket pistol that is always with you is the "best" type of handgun to carry for small scale surprise attacks because it IS always with you. Caliber?  9mm, 38, 357.   Make?  KAHR, Ruger, S&W, etc.

Before I went to the 1911 platform, I had a Glock 23C with a 9mm conversion barrel, and a .357sig barrel. I wanted to add a .22LR conversion, and I figured I had a great survival setup; basically 4 guns in one with only needing a few components to carry along to convert. I miss that pistol, but love my 1911 way more. I might pick up another one at some point.

Easy answer.

For many reasons...

.223
.308
.30-06
.30-30

9mm
40sw
45acp
357mag

.22lr
12ga

Everything else is fluff.  These are the most commonly available throughout the US.  I chose 9mm for pistol as all service cartridges are about even, so why not get the cheapest.  For rifle, .223 as it will cleanly kill game up to deer even at 300yds.  Whatever you do choose, you had better stock for yourself.  If a real SHTF happens, you will not be running down to wally world or the LGS to pick up a few more boxes to set you mind at ease.  The best is what you have on hand.  Plan now, buy now, BE PREPARED.

As stated on this forum somewhere before:
If you couldn't find ammo after the election in 2008,why would you take the risk of anything being "readily available" when things have gotten FUBAR?

The best pistol is whatever you have practiced till you are proficient with it,and have stocked up the proper things to use it,LONG TERM.

I feel it will be a tragic mistake not to go with this idea: what you have in your possession at the time of SHTF is what you can count on having for the indeterminate future.

Maybe you will be able to scrounge/trade for a few 9mm/45 ACP rounds, but do you want to bet your life on it?

Edit:spelling

Nice choice altho I lean more toward Rugers

I also have a Ruger Secuirty Six and a Ruger Blackhawk as well

Why not a 23 with 9mm conversion AND .22 conversion?  Same pistol, same size (more or less), more optiony goodness.





 

I'm opting for the Glock 17/22 combo. I have purchased a complete Glock 22 slide assembly to put on the 17 frame in the instance where .40SW ammo is easier to obtain than 9mm. I have both types of mags (G17 and G22 mags) and ammo already, but I like the flexibility of being able to use either type of ammo.

Up next and Advantage Arms .22lr kit for the G17, then maybe a .357 sig conversion barrel.

I also have a glock 19 and a glock 26 if needed.

I really don't like Glocks as much as it seems.

I think if just trying to get home, a compact 9mm is hard to beat. As others have said... the best handgun is the one you have with you, not the one locked up in a safe. A compact 9mm is probably about the best balance of power vs. conceilment.

For true SHTF, a 22lr pistol would probably be the most useful to me. Ammo is easy to carry and I have a crapload of it stockpiled so I would not have to worry about ammo. PLus since I have a suppressor for 22lr, it could be useful for all kinds of SHTF duties.

+1

Want

I dunno, I'm pretty happy with my Bulldog Pug





 

Nailed it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've got a Dan Wesson .357mag with 4, 6, and 8 inch barrels. That's my go to survival gun, seeing as I have lots of .38 and .357 rounds.

basically all you did was cut your ammo in half...you should have got to your room, dropped your 15rd mag and stuck in a 33rd mag

.357/.38 Ruger or SW

I don't know about y'all, but my Sig cost a whopping $25.  Leaving me about $600 to blow on a .357sig barrel, a ton of ammo, and soon a 9mm conversion barrel too.

That's why it's my survival/daily/bump-in-the-nigh/only pistol  

I've been carrying a .40 for over twenty years.  Never had much use for 9mm.  Lately, I've been having dreams about going back to .45 as a carry caliber, mostly because I'm like you.  When the shit is right there at the impeller, I want to upgrade.  What that means to me is that I'm carrying the wrong piece.



My needs/wants might be different than the average joe, as I typically CCW a full sized service pistol anyway, so size and weight isn't the deal it is with some of you guys.  I went down to the .40 way back when because a particular pistol seduced me and came in what I considered to be the absolute minimum plausible caliber.



Lately, a sweet little G30 with a nice ass has been calling to me from a local LGS display case.  My steady girl still has it all over her, but the larger caliber is tempting.





 

Look at likely shtf scenarios that we could face...in fact, look at history.
Argentina, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mexico, etc...
Things need to go completely, ZOMGWTFEOFTWAWKI before you start slinging a rifle over your shoulder for a run into town.
Bring out the rifle or shotgun and you will get taken down by the law or some punk kid that sneaks up on you. If you are thinking SHTF as in stuck in the Alaskan wilderness, then that's different. LA Riots, that's different.
Everyday social and economic collapse - focus on pistol...to get to your rifle.
With that in mind, this is how I have them tiered.
Always on me, no matter what: LCP and 1 reload.
Most of the time on me (90%): Glock19 and 1 G17 mag for reload.

In short, it ties in with the "Grey man" concept. It's a fine balance between preparing for everything and making yourself a target.

My hunting/SHTF gun:





Shot placement is still key...

yep. This is a critical part of the decision making process. defining the need.

Yes! I am running the same except i have a smattering of .45LC and .38spl along with the .45acp.

Ask  yourself " what  is  THE  most  common  ammunition  found  in  homes  in  the  U.S.? " The  ability  to  carry  many  reloads  for  a  " readily  concealable "  tool  is  far  more  valuable  than
that  easily  identified ( not  so  easily  fed )  large  caliber  handgun . Four  quick  rounds  to  the  chest  cavity  from  a  weapon  that  was  never  seen . . . The  ability  to  quietly  take
edible  game . . .