My requirements are simple:

1) must be able to access it easily when needed

2) I have trained with it and am comfortable shooting it.

3) I trust it.

I have carried everything from a Springfield 1911 A1 OWB in a pancake holster (1994 carry), a Glock 19 AIWB, Springfield XD IWB, Glock 26 AIWB / IWB, Ruger LCP pocket carry, to my current Glock 43X IWB. On duty were issued Ruger P89's and now Smith and Wesson M&P.  I have trained and qualified with each of these. I would have no trouble trusting any of these with my life and those around me.

This

For me, I put reliability and concealment first and foremost. I want it to go bang every single time and be easily concealed. Im still trying to figure out holsters and clothing for my thinner frame. Tall and thin doesnt really hide a pistol well when you move around a lot.

1. Reliability
2. Concealment
3. "Value" i.e., is it worth its size/weight? Sold my VP9SK because it failed this. Held 10 rds in the same size as a G19. Quickly bought one (then a second) G19 and a Sig P365.

Caliber is a non-issue although they are all currently 9mm's. I really dont think it much maters as long as that bullet is a good quality projectile with a proven design that is placed in the right spot. I for one wouldnt question whether i was shot with a 9mm 124 gr HST or a .40 S&W 180 gr HST. They both hurt.

I do take capacity into account but that ties into #3. Sometimes I dont have the room or ability to carry a spare mag so a Reliable gun with 16 rds is pretty comfortable for me. I dont feel like its futile like I would carrying a J Frame.

I test all my carry guns with the same test.... Defoor hat qual.

If I can’t pass (90 or better) it’s not a gun I should be trusting my life with.

Obviously concealability and other factors weigh in but that’s my baseline on speed and accuracy

G48 that I use frequently off duty.

Attached File

Does anyone else test themselves with their carry gear...?

@Mongo45  I'll dryfire with my carry setup & also shoot it matches.  My issue is that IDPA can't get with the times & allow aiwb so I can't actually shoot matches that mirror my carry setup.  I don't have a formal metric I use though; but I might just steal your idea & use the Defoor hat qual.

I try to use Hackathorn' s Wizard Drill as a base line
and mix in Aaron Cowen' s Elenor drill.
I've pretty much settled with my P10C / 507C as
primary, P365 XL / 407K when concealment is more
of a concern and a P365 for very rare pocket carry
when necessary, all 3 have run thousands of rounds
each without failure.
The pocket carry pretty much fucks me time wise but,
It's an adequate caliber, accurate and very rare.
Last but certainly not least, can you set it up so you
can carry it comfortably (mostly) all the time you have
pants on

I’ve been carrying a gun daily for work for 30 years and I’ve seen all sorts of trends.... good and bad.

My self evaluation of what works and what doesn’t for me may not be for everyone.

I’ve got a bone yard of dumb holsters and silly parts that live on my workbench or buried in a box.

There’s also a big difference between concealed... and hidden with lessons I’ve learned from my UC time.

If I had to assign a list of what’s most important to me it would obviously start with a 100% reliable gun in a viable caliber with proven ammo.

This was far more difficult in years past but technology has changed.

Now my focus is squarely on my ability to draw and fire accurate rounds quickly at 25y or more.

Anyone can look good at 5-10y accuracy wise. Speed is also a necessity since you will always be behind in a fight.

I see a lot of guys that can shoot well enough with a work gun then throw it in a bag and tuck a J frame or G43 for lunch.

My challenge to myself is to master what I actually carry. Follow that up with actually hiding your gun of choice not concealing it.

I’d add....

Make a concerted effort to always have a reload for your carry gun on your person.

It’s pretty common for small guns to get shot empty under stress and you’ll probably want to reload it until the good guys arrive

When they do... make yourself immediately apparent that you are not a threat to them.

I’d holster before they arrive and put my hands in the air then obey their commands.

I work for a large agency and I don’t know most of my Dept. We can get everything sorted out later.

.380, 7 rounds is my minimum, ie, LCP.

That's my basic, home and back, out for a bit,  gun.

A Sig 365 is my edc.  A M&P 2.0 is my "higher threat level" carry.  Both in 9mm.

Spare mags for all.

Sometimes I'll ankle the LCP and carry the bigger pistols.  Mostly for kicks but there's been a few days I'm glad I did that, based on neighborhood and time of day.

This mirrors my basic requirements.  There are other factors such as activity, location, dress-attire, season, etc. that will impact my choices (and level of concealability needed or risk-associated with carrying), but ultimately my take is the same:

I need to like it and enjoy carrying it.  I may not necessarily be "comfortable", but I want a handgun/holster system that matches the activity I'm involved in and provides a certain level of comfort because...

...every CCW should be reliable, trained on, and you should be proficient with it; not just shooting but drawing from your holster system for training,. FTF, FTE, and reload drills.  This equates to trust.  I won't carry anything I don't trust to work when I need it and pull the trigger.

I don't care much about capacity unless I'm going to really unknown areas or areas that are higher risk.  My only requirement is that I carry a spare magazine or speed strip (if a J-Frame); I guess that would equal to no-less than 10-rounds on tap (even if that requires a reload).  

I just think most criteria are simply screening criteria.  Every self-defensive gun should be reliable and combat-accurate.  Holster systems can be built around how you carry and what you do.  More capacity can be carried in a separate carrier or pocket.  Ergonomics are very individualistic...as long as you're comfortable handing, manipulating, and shooting the pistol, that's more important than focusing on brand-names.  Same goes with caliber.  If you are comfortable carrying a snub-nosed .44 MAG, you train on it, accurate with it, and competent with it...that's all that matters.  Same goes for .32ACP.  If that's the best option for your activity, location, dress attire, etc., and you're comfortable with it and you trust it...it's better than that double-stack 9mm or .45 in the truck.  All I care about is that my self-defensive ammo runs reliably in what I carry it in.  

A lot of other aspects are very personal and tangential to the primary carry piece and holster/belt system: night sights, optics, extended slide release, ambi-controls, flared mag-wells, slide cuts, compensators, trigger type/pull weight, etc.  

ROCK6  

^ This.

and +1 on the comment that "software" is more important than hardware.

Good judgement to know how to avoid trouble.
And then more good judgement to understand when you're facing a problem that can only be fixed with a gun.
After that, the thing (whatever it is) absolutely, positively must go, "BANG".

Years ago, I used to think that 5 rounds of .38 or 6 rounds of .380 (with a spare reload of either) would suffice for a self-defense situation...because who would want to get shot 5 or 6 time, right?

And then I was involved in an on-duty shooting with an armed and meth/heroin fueled subject. It took 7 rounds of 180gr. .40 HST from a G22 to stop his actions. My first 3 rounds were center chest...they were fatal, his body just didn't know it yet. When he continued his course of action (I thought I'd missed), I fired another 4 rounds...the first two missed, third was center chest again, and fourth was a head shot that immediately ceased his aggression.

Point being, if that had been a self-defense encounter with one of my previous CCW's...I'd have been screwed. 5 or 6 rounds of .38/.380 would have been ineffective against just that one subject...they may have eventually killed him, but a person can inflict a lot of misery unto you in the meantime. And what if he'd had a partner in crime?

My current CCW's are a P365 (12 rnds.) or a P10C (15 rnds.), with a spare magazine.

Not trying to preach or imply that I have the solution...merely presented as food-for-thought.

I would agree with several others in carrying a spare, proven ammo, at least 10 rds etc.

the only i want to add is to make sure to clean your EDC equipment and do battery checks every month