When it Comes to Choosing a Carry Gun, Size Matters
Major Pandemic 11.12.14
Nuances and Design Requirements of Tiny Semi-Autos
Tiny little semi-autos still have to manage at least some of the recoil to reliably cycle the round. Too little recoil or too much and the gun just will not cycle properly. So that generally means that the recoil/slide spring needs to be extra stiff in a tiny little gun.
A very stiff recoil/slide spring makes charging these dinky guns somewhat challenging for those with less hand strength, and if you can’t get rounds in your gun, that does tend to be a problem.
For new or less muscled shooters, this is the one reason I tend to recommend revolvers in the small sized category such as the new Ruger LCR 9mm. You will suffer more recoil, but you will more importantly be able to operate the gun. That same new or less muscled shooter would likely be able to operate a Glock 19 just fine, but once you go small, the shooter has to start dealing with a very stiff recoil spring, which can make manipulation less than forgiving and more problematic even for bigger, stronger, and trained shooters.
If you decide to carry a dinky little semi-auto, I recommend without reservations carrying the gun always with a round in the chamber. I have never felt comfortable with my own reliability of performing the Mossad “Draw, Charge, Shoot” method with a tiny little semi-auto pistol.
Bigger is Better
Bigger Semi-Auto Gun = Less Spring Tension, More Weight, More Shooter Leverage
Bigger Revolver = More Weight, More Shooter Leverage, and Less Recoil
In the case of recoil reduction, bigger is better, but due to concealment, size, and weight limitations we obviously are not going to all carry around Desert Eagles and Ruger GP100s with 6″ barrels. Handguns like the Glock 19, Glock 26, Walther PPS, and H&K P30 are more typical as concealed carry handguns. That is what I carry, at least.
Reasonably sized handguns end up being the choice and sacrifice that we all make to absorb a bit more recoil, instead of requiring a chiropractor once a week from lugging around a backbreaker of a gun. There is a place for teeny weeny little guns, but that should be left to situations only where concealment or extreme convenience dictate a diminutive sized gun. My advice for a first time gun buyer is to choose a firearm with a comfortable full sized/four finger grip, semi-auto action, and a size in the mid range size such as the H&K VP90, Walther PPQ M2, or Glock 19.
Newton was right, but convenience sometimes overrides even Newton’s laws of physics.
