Classification Intro #1

About a year or so after I started working second shift, I became interested in getting a concealed firearms permit. In that first year I was nearly killed by a drunk driver on the way home. This guy was all over the road as I approached him, back and forth from shoulder to shoulder. I slowed down as I came closer and his truck started veering into my lane, he was headed right for me. The only way I avoided him was cutting into a long parking lot that ran parallel to the road. He also came into that same empty lot but kept rolling and drove his truck into the ditch behind me. I wasn’t sticking around to watch him fall out of the truck or get angry at his truck for driving into the ditch, instead I left in a hurry. As I continued driving home I got thinking about what if he had hit me? What if he thought it was my fault? What if he had a gun and wanted to shoot me for ‘Running him off the road’? And what about all the other nuts out here on the road at 1 A.M.? I decided then that I didn’t want to be a victim out here. I started looking into getting a concealed carry permit, and found it wasn’t that hard, or expensive to do if you had a clean record. Even if I got the permit though, I didn’t have a gun that could be easily hidden, especially on my 5’10” 145 pound body. My full size 45 ACP 1911 left quite a bulge wherever it was and the idea is to “conceal” it. I started shopping around for a small yet reliable carry sidearm and was rather overwhelmed at the choices out there. I was able to narrow it down into a few categories. The first are small “snub-nosed” revolvers, compact and rugged, and available in a wide range of calibers. Second are the small, all steel semi autos. Heavy but equally as rugged as some of the small framed revolvers out there, however only a small range of calibers to chose from. The third and final practical choice was a small, polymer framed semi auto. They prove to be the most popular among CC permit holders, offering light weight, a wide range of calibers, and potentially lifesaving options such as light rails or even built in laser sights if you’re willing to pay the price.