Your carry progression?

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ive been carrying for about 2 years now. i started out with the only hand gun i had. a Hi-Point C9. very reliable and i was extremely accurate with it. when i got some more money i picked up a S&W Sigma Allied Forces in 40 and thats been on my hip 99% of the time for the last 1.5years. but i also do trade it out for my Rossi M461 .357mag snubbie.
 
I can't say that my changing my CCW was part of any "progression" but more part of a random event sequence. I am now 72 years old and what I carry is a Commander size 1911. IMHO it just can't be beat.
 
KelTec P3AT only from day one. I have other options but can't imagine ever migrating away from that little .380. For me it's the perfect year round/all weather piece: 100% reliable, rugged, capable of being carried in different types of holsters depending on the scenario, and inexpensive enough so that if I lose it I won't be heartbroken.
 
for EVERY DAY:

CZ-75B in .40. Loved it, and could shoot it. Traded it though because it was too heavy. Literally pulled my pants down in my CrossBreed Supertuck.

XD.45 bi-tone service. Lighter and awesome gun. Shot well and had a huge capacity. Was starting to lose weight and started having a lot of trouble wearing clothes that concealed the gun but didn't look absolutely rediculous on me (had a bunch of clothes that were 3xxl on someone that was about XL at the time...)

S&W637 ultralight in 38. Hated shooting it, but it was a carry gun so whatever. I could shoot it well but didn't like too. Lost a lot of weight (now a size L) and because of that I started wearing tighter clothes (to show off the 'other' guns :) ) and started wanting something slimmer.

Currently carrying either my Steyr M40 or EAA Witness .45 polymer compact. Not slim guns but downright FUN to shoot. Smooth and slow recoil of the .45 is a pleasure, and the natural pointing and innovative sights plus integrated fingergrooves on the Steyr make for super ergonomic shooting I can do all day. I carry these (one at a time) while I save for a walther PPS in .40.

for HIKING

GP-100 SS 6" full lug. Went on a hike with it ONCE. Sold it immediately. Weighed more than all of my other gear COMBINED.

Just ordered a .44 Taurus Tracker 5-shot.... we'll see.
 
I have carried the following at one time - and in various chronology, including repeats, sells and rebuys:

S&W Model 36 .38 Special (given to me by my grandfather - still carry)
EG Makarov (sold this to my brother)
Beretta Tomcat .32 (liked the sights, but traded it for a keltec)
Keltec .32 (I've had 3 of these, currenly wife carries in purse)
Keltec .380 (stupidly sold this to my 2nd cousin)
Keltec 9mm (P11)
Keltec .40 (had this for about 1 week - hated it)
Beretta 96FS (Big hat, no cattle -- traded up for a 1911)
Springfield Armory 1911 Mil-Spec .45ACP (one of my favorites)
Taurus 85 Ultra Lite Blue .38 Spl (going to give this to my Mom this weekend)
Taurus 85 Ultra Lite (Stainless) .38 Spl-- [just bought this today, btw] :D
Kahr PM9
Taurus 7 shot .357 Magnum Stainless Revolver (wish I still had this one)
Glock 17 9mm (currently the most carried)

I think that's it.
 
I've only been carrying for about 3 years...Started off with a Beretta 92G and it was too big and heavy...Then started carrying a CZ 75 SP-01 Tactical..It was a little skinnier, but even HEAVIER...I then moved to a Glock 26...I still carry the Glock 26, but I recently changed my daily *offduty* carry to a Glock 20SF IWB @ 4 o'clock and the Glock 26 goes inside the left ankle. The Glock 20SF is still big and heavy, but still smaller than the Beretta and CZ. I usually don't carry any spare mags, but I may start carrying 2 spare mags with the G20SF and 1 spare mag with the G26.
 
I started my carrying days with an XD 45 compact, then moved to a PT145, then a Taurus 651 for a little while, then a P3AT, also a CA .44spl, then a Glock 19 and a P-11.

And now, a RIA 5" 1911 or a Detonics 3" 1911, whichever my hand hits first. I especially find the Detonics so easy to conceal that the p3at hasn't left the safe in months. I am currently trying to sell the Kel-Tecs to fund a new snubbie, probably an LCR, but believe me it will not replace my 1911's :D. I've traded and sold away everything but the 1911's and the Kel-Tecs for now, even the infalible Glock 19. It was always just a little too fat for me.
 
I started with a SA 1911-A1 loaded and then some. then I switched to a Glock G21 for the sake of improved capacity and reliability. Later I switched to a Glock G22 for no reason other than I could.
 
The question: What's your carry progression? What did you start with, and why? Why did you change, if at all?
Click to expand...

I started years ago with the only things I had. A Colt GM in .45 and a S&W M&P snubby, this was a pre-model 10 .38 Spl. This was all I had and when I had to carry I carried one of these.

Later I added a alloy framed Colt Commander in .38 Super which I still have and use. I added it because it was lighter and smaller than the GM with 2 more rounds and a powerful round.

I also added an M13 with a 3" barrel and an M640 .38 with a 2 5/8" barrel.

Still carry a GM in .45 in woodsy places or an M629.

tipoc
 
great thread

I started with a G-23. I shot it well but I always found it too fat to conceal well. Best holster I ever had for it was a High Noon Hidden Ally and even with that, it was not comfortably concealable.

I then went through a variety of j-frames in pocket carry. The steel 049 was too heavy. The 37 and the 360 had exposed hammers. The 340 felt like a hand grenade when shooting .357s....and I never shot any of them all that well (esp the Scandiums w/.357s).

Thoroughly hooked on S&W revolvers, I tried Scandium 396 and 325 in Smart Carry holster. Do-able, but not quite there yet.

I tried a several sub-compact 1911s including a Para C-6 (all-steel and a bit heavy).

I tried Kel-Tecs in .32, 380, and 9mm. I had no luck with (and as a result, no or faith in) the reliability of any of them.

I tried the Kahr PM9 in pocket carry and...nirvana. :) I carried it exclusively for almost three years, adding a Kahr P45 for winter carry IWB.

However, I'm a firm believer in "carry the largest caliber you can shoot well", so...

Last winter, I started carrying an L- or N-frame IWB (.357 or .45LC), and when Springtime came around, I "only" moved down to the Kahr P45 IWB instead of the PM9 in the pocket. This is an ongoing challenge as I am only 5'9" and 145.

This winter, I plan on carrying an N-frame or steel 5" 1911, and maybe next spring I'll "only" move down to a 3 or 4" 1911. :)
 
Dan Wesson PM2 in 45 , Kimber Eclipse Target II , Glock 22 , Glock 17 , Glock 21 , XD service 45, Glock 21 SF , XD Tactical in 45, STI Trojan 45, Browning Hi Power in 9mm, STI Lawman 45, and now a Sig P220.

Lets just say I was on a soul search. Now I carry the Sig 220 in 45acp, but it usually depends on what I am doing or where I am going . Some pistols fill different niches better than others.
 
I started with a 22mag mini during the mid 90s (when we were being told it was as powerful as a 38). Sometime after that I began to alternate between a 32, a 380, & a 9. Around 9/11 I switched and began to carry pistols that started with a 4. I stuck with that for several years. Since the 9mm ammo is so good now, I'll carry a 9, a 40, or a 45.
 
The first hand gun I bought for ccw was a glock 26,loved the gun didnt like carring it kinda fat.Next was a PF9 great for carry not so great to shoot,next was a Taurus 605 357 snubbie carried well shot well(should have kept it) nexted was a Smith 638 airweight snub and That has been on my person daily for 2 yrs now.Its just to easy to carry.When we get to cooler weather my colt officer will acompany the 638.But the 638 or verssion of it will alway be there.Ive put several thousnd rounds through it and have complete faith in it.
Bob.
 
Several, come & gone....

Hmmmm.......everyday CCW....I've traded some.

I Started with a Taurus model 85, .38 special.
Next was a Makarov, 9mm.
Then I got the Ruger KP90, in .45 acp.
After that I got Colt Commander 1991A1, .45 acp.
Then it was a Springfield G.I model .45 acp.
Finally I got a Kimber Pro-carry HD, .45acp.

Now I carry a Ruger SP101, .357 Magnum
or a Ruger GP100, .357 Magnum.
I came back to revolvers, after almost 25 years.:)
 
I'll play:
First and only at the time was Ruger P-85>Para P-14 kit gun>Detonics Mk VII>Combat Commander>S&W4506>LWCommander/SW4516-2/SW457
went to.45 and never looked back; shoot better somehow withCommander length gun than 5"; My 457 is really accurate and dead reliable.
Cheers, TF
 
Started carrying in 86 and my progression went from:
86 to early 90's - Colt Detective Special .38 or Colt Combat Commander .45
around 92 to 97 - Sig P220 .45
97 to Present - Sig P226 9mm primary when dress will allow
early 2000's to present - Sig P239 9mm everyday either primary or BUG to P226
about 2 months in 2007 (till I got rid of it) - S&W MP9c
2007 till last week - Ruger Alaskan .44 - winter and field carry
last week forward - Ruger Alaskan .454 for winter and field carry
 
adequate progress

I started with a Super Blackhawk -4 5/8", went to a GP100 -4", then S&W
629 -4". I still carry those three; one at a time of course. Use a SP101 -3"
for discretion requirements.

What was the deciding factor for me was "after acton" analysis.

You may progress full circle too, if you face the eye of the elephant,
and live to later rethink your progression.
"From now -on, I'm going to carry something bigger."

What you read here in some of the replies has been the progression of many;
who have gradually went lighter and smaller because they began to believe in statistical probabilities instead of random chance happening.

"It wont happen to me" is perhaps the worst assumption you can make in your life.
 
Taurus 66 4" .357mag - too big, too loud! > Bersa Thunder .380 - too snappy, shot low > Glock 19 - didn't like the grooves and I got 1911-itis > Springfield GI - too heavy > Sig P239 - not enough capacity for the size > Glock 26 - nice! > Glock 17 - even nicer and not much harder to conceal... 17 rounds on tap, baby!
 
Started in 1982 RUGER SECURITY SIX IN PA. Moved to FL.1985 .GLOCK ,COLT COMBAT COMANDER .KEL-TEC'S P11,P32,P3AT,PF9, S&W MP40C.LAST AND NOT LEAST MY SEECAMP 32.MY E.D.C..GETTING OLDER MAKES LIFE SIMPLER :D
 
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Started with Glock 23 IWB, due to size switched to
Glock 27 IWB. Couldn't shoot that well enough to be comfortable with so switched to
Ruger SR9 IWB when dress permitted, usally with SW642 ankle/pocket BUG, then
Got lazy and just started carrying 642 IWB/Ankle/Pocket
Incident occurred where I wished I had night sights...

Bought a G26 (put night sights on) and fell in love, and carried that and SW642, switching them both between Ankle and waist, but generally carried at the same time (I just couldn't choose which I liked better). Missed having a rail and light, so bought a Sig P229 and started to cheat on the G26 with her.

Winter=P229 IWB with extra mag w/on occasion G26 on ankle

Summer= G26 IWB (no extra mag) w/LCP in the pocket (sometimes)
 
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I bought my first gun while a starving college student. Gun show revolver was what I could afford, though I would have loved a SA. Bought a Ruger .357, stainless, w. 2.75" barrel. Carried that in a fanny pack for a couple of years in Houston in the 80s - that was when a lot of muggers started killing their *cooperating* victims. Scary.

When I had the money, I traded up to a Glock 23. It didn't fit as well in the fanny pack, and the IWB holster I found couldn't really made that wide lump disappear or be comfortable. Wound up letting my CHL expire because I just flat wasn't carrying that firearm. I had one of the initial 2 year term CHLs when they first came out.

Then in January of this year I went to my first gun show in years. Was thinking about getting a big magnum as a range toy. Stumbled across the Walther PPS in 9mm. Eureka! This was the thin SA I'd been looking for 15 years earlier when I settled on the G23. Bought it on the spot, and applied for my CHL the next week. Been carrying the PPS 16-18 hours/day (after my 4 month wait for the Texas DPS) ever since. LOVE this gun.

I have an XDm .40 for the range, the nightstand, and if I were to be feeling particularly insecure about a destination or trip. I'll scare up an IWB for it eventually & give it a try concealed for fun, but don't expect it to wind up as EDC.
 
I still vary what I carry.

I have carried;Glock 22, PT145Pro, Beretta 92,S&W 642, and various others,

I still carry; XD45Tac, Glock 19, Sig P229R 9mm, KelTec P11, depending on circumstances.

I also have a few on my wish list that could be carried once proven reliable.
 
Kel Tec P3AT - I lost confidence in it after light primer strikes.

Kahr MK9 - 'Almost' perfect, but too heavy for pocket carry.

Kahr PM9 - My favorite gun!
 
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