Essay # 2 Classification

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.
“Mister Saturday night special”, is what Lynyrd Sknyrd calls it, a small compact revolver commonly chambered in .38 “special”. Truth be told, there are a lot more revolvers out there ideal for concealed carry than you might think. This category statistically proves that most female CC permit holders carry a revolver. They are easy to use, easy to conceal, and one of the most common guns found in your local gun shop. Double action models offer the most versatility with the ability to cock the hammer and aim for better accuracy, or just pull the trigger repeatedly to get a few rounds off. Hammerless models are available and for the most part are snag free but can only be shot double action. Unless you’re a target shooting pro this will throw your accuracy all over the place, in a close range self defense situation though, who cares about accuracy. You just want to hit the guy trying to kill you. If you’re a John Wayne or Clint Eastwood type you could tote around an old Colt Single Action Army, but I’m no cowboy so that’s just not practical to me. I have only heard one complaint about revolvers for concealed carry. If you’re pushed to the ground and have to fire back at an upward angle, the shells can slip backwards out of the chamber and prevent the cylinder from rotating to the next unfired round. That is a rare occurrence but it can happen. If I where to buy a revolver, I would get it in .357 Magnum, mostly because you can shoot .38 specials through it which is much more controllable and it’s a little less intimidating for the shooter.
Next up are the small, all metal semi autos, tried and true, capable of rapid fire and quick reloading. Strong enough so if it were to get stepped on by some big ugly biker guy, it would most likely still work fine. Denting or bending hardened steel in rather tough, after all, a framing hammer isn’t made of polymer. The best examples of a time proven semi auto hand guns are the old .25 & .32 caliber Colt model 1903’s. These firearms average to be one hundred years in age but, with proper maintenance still function beautifully today. I’m not saying the average Glock won’t do this in a hundred years, but they just haven’t been around long enough to know. In 1911, a miracle of sorts happened with John Browning’s famous design which he sold to Colt. A design that would become a staple in American society, the Colt 1911. It had served our troops as a standard issue sidearm in WWII and all other confrontations until its replacement in the early 90’s. It has been the most copied firearm in history, with hundreds of different manufacturers and variations to its original design. One of the newest versions is a compact .45 with a three inch barrel, this gun has been totally redesigned on the inside and is constructed with as fewest moving parts as possible. It is called the Springfield EMP. This one was a key player in my selection process, but the price kept me away.
And last but, certainly not least, are the polymer framed “Tactical” Handguns. These haven’t been around long enough to be truly compared to either of the two listed above. However, they are low priced, and commonly found in most gun shops. They are available with all kinds of goodies like laser sights, high capacity magazines, and tactical rails for flashlights. Not to mention nifty package deals with extra mags and speed loaders, plus a free double clip holster. Goodies and package deals aside, all I see in a nut shell is a bent up piece of sheet metal wrapped in plastic with an old design actually sending the bullet down the barrel. Sure a laser sight would be helpful if you’re dangerous with a firearm and have trouble hitting the target… fire away. A flash light on my handgun? No thanks, I’d rather wave a flag if I wanted to give my position away that easy. Although, I must confess, I did like a nice little Taurus PT145 pro millennium, it was small but it had substantial firepower. It also had simple and easy disassembly for cleaning and was easy to conceal. If I were going to go with a polymer framed gun, this Taurus would have been it.
So what did I go with? After reviewing all the information and hassling some gun dealers to death I picked a nice, nearly new, stainless steel SIG P232. I found it in a small local gun shop for the unbelievably low price of $439 dollars, this firearm new is listed at $840. It had barely ever been fired and had no signs of abuse. It is chambered in380. ACP, which is a fairly cheap and readily available cartridge, it is also available in +P rounds which give it the same ballistics of a nine millimeter Lugar. Being stainless steel it requires minimal cleaning unless it’s fired and even then it doesn’t get that dirty. I can carry it in a leather, high ride holster virtually undetected under a sweatshirt but I still have easy access to it if I need it. And best of all its light, weighing in at just under two pounds with a loaded clip. Now I just hope I never get in a situation where I have to use it, I’d rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it.