I carry one or two of the five concealed carry guns I own. I've owned about two dozen concealed carry pistols over the last 16 years I've been carrying, and this ended up being the best for my personal needs. I basically have a small variety of guns for different carry needs based on what I am wearing and where I am going. I'm mentioning caliber because it will give clues as to why I chose to keep the guns I did (e.g. weight, caliber diversity, size, carry method, etc.):
Clockwise from the top left:
1.
SIG Sauer P229 Enhanced Elite in .357 SIG (34 oz. as configured). I carry this AIWB usually with an extended magazine to give me 14+1 of that caliber. This is my favorite carry gun.
2.
Beretta PX4 Storm Inox with upgrades from Langdon Tactical. This gun is almost 8 oz lighter and is thus chambered in 9mm. Sometimes I carry it like this, but I can often conceal the 19+1 magazine even under just a t-shirt (sometimes). I also carry this AIWB (alternating with the P229—one or the other is always by my bed). Thanks to Ernest Langdon, this a much faster gun than it would be otherwise now that it has a very short reset and relatively light trigger pull (6.5 lbs DA and 4.25 lbs SA). This is my next favorite carry gun. They offer a full grip and are thus faster to deploy. The rest I keep around for when I can't carry one of these or I want to carry more than one pistol (which is relatively rare).
3.
Smith & Wesson Performance Center M&P9 M2.0 Shield (when I've had too much to eat). I carry this either IWB or AIWB (the holster is made for both). This isn't a Shield Plus, but it does carry 11 rounds with the Hyve magazine extension which hides perfectly well when I am carry appendix. I like this gun because, for a small and relatively light 9mm, it is ported to shoot flatter/faster.
4.
Ruger LCP II in .380 ACP. I carry it in the pocket pretty much anytime I am just walking the dog or running a quick errand. The Active Self Protection YouTube channel has reviewed thousands of videos documenting gunfights, and he said that, generally speaking, the first person to shoot generally wins, so I try not to pocket carry when I am out and about unless I really NEED to ensure it's properly concealed (e.g. constitutional carry, if you know what I mean).
5.
Smith & Wesson M&P9 M2.0 Subcompact. This is my most flexible firearm. It's basically the S&W equivalent of the Glock 26 with a slightly longer barrel (3.6" v. 3.43") and two extra rounds, but the higher capacity magazines (15+1 and 17+1) mate more seamlessly than the Glock equivalents and I like the texture better (btw, I've owned six Glock pistols, two being G26's). I like both the S&W and Glock version. I wouldn't say one is better than the other if anyone is curious. It really is flexible as I don't feel the need to buy a full or compact-size M&P. I've included thumbnails with the different magazine options if anyone is again curious. It is the ability to use all these magazines that makes this a jack of all trades when it comes to concealed carry.
