Best CCW 45 ACP?

[hunter won]

What also works good is the 9mm 124 grain +P Speer Gold Dot.Plenty of LE shootings with this round and has an excellent street record.I know a 45 ACP may be better in some situations but remember it is slow moving and won't have the punch at barriers.It must be close for effective results,10mm is very effective when you have ammo loaded to it's full potential.A +P+ 230grain 45 ACP going over 1100 fps would be very nice out of a 3 inch barrell.

[torontogunguy]

What also works good is the 9mm 124 grain +P Speer Gold Dot.Plenty of LE shootings with this round and has an excellent street record.I know a 45 ACP may be better in some situations but remember it is slow moving and won't have the punch at barriers.It must be close for effective results,10mm is very effective when you have ammo loaded to it's full potential.A +P+ 230grain 45 ACP going over 1100 fps would be very nice out of a 3 inch barrell.

Lots of good information and commentary on this thread and again, I do not feel at all at a disadvantage carrying a 9mm concealed. Especially in view of the 'engineered' rounds out there and I carry Hydra Shocks and Speer Gold Dots in +P+ 9mm (and +P in .45) for the velocity. The engineered rounds will most likely spread and shred on impact with flesh, reducing the 'through and through' risks... but then again, hitting drywall and plugging up that hollowpoint you are shooting 'hardball' rounds and need to consider what's behind the curtains. Am looking at some new rounds that will not clog up and act like hardball rounds but there is still that risk. I suppose what I am trying to say is that no round is perfect and that the more important factor is that you are carrying something that you are comfortable with, both from the aspect of it being something that you are not going to leave behind because it is not comfy and from the aspect that you are able to handle it and get off multiple rounds until the threat is stopped.

Having had a big honkin' revolver stuck directly in my nose in broad daylight in the middle of a busy intersection by a druggie I can assure you that my policy is that I fire and continue to fire until the threat is stopped. At that point I stop firing. Not quite that simple of course as one needs to consider the possibility of multiple threats and ammunition conservation, etc. (I carry two full sized magazines with my mini Glocks to give me no less that 31 rounds to play with and if I am knowingly entering an area that I am unfamiliar with and that gives me the creeps I have a second paddle type magazine holder and stick another two magazines on my belt for a total of no less than 51 rounds. And if it ain't over by 51 rounds you have a lot bigger problems than a handgun is going to resolve.)

I just found that the report that suggested that a large portion of handgun fatalities were 9mm and under was interesting but have not had a chance to go to the source of that information yet.... although I have no reason to doubt the writer's accuracy. The one thing that I know for sure is that being able to carry a concealed firearm gives me a level of comfort that I otherwise would not have, knowing that I at least have a chance to defend myself and my family. And having had two armed encounters in the past 5 years (both of which turned out to be 'non-events') has certainly put the radar on full power all the time now. The object of the game is being prepared to NOT use lethal force; like having the best fire extinguisher you can possibly get sitting in the kitchen or hallway - you hope that you never have to use it, but you have done your research and are never without it.

To be clear, I am no expert, but as a result of two armed encounters where I was unprepared to defend myself NOR my family, I have done much research, taken much training and am much prepared to defend myself and my loved ones now. And it is just unfortunate that I spend most of my time right now in a place where I cannot carry concealed or otherwise... but it is a matter of only a short while before we return stateside and our list of retirement states has been shortened a wee bit by 'shall issue'.

In closing, what bothers me the most I think is that despite carrying a U.S. Passport, born in the U.S.A., etc. I am not considered one of "We the People" in many states that are "shall issue" simply because I have chosen to work offshore for a time. Ludicrous. While at the same time I carry CWP's/CFP's from several states that are able to do backround checks galore and feel comfortable in issuing me non-resident permits.

Anyway, off topic with apologies. I like my Glock 30 for .45 carry... simple (few moving parts) and ultra reliable (I have owned two of them and neither has EVER failed to feed nor failed to fire when the trigger was pulled). I also own a Glock 26. Same deal. And a Sig P239 = same. And an HK P7M8 squeeze cocker which is a GREAT handgun albeit a bit heavy... but for short hauls it slips into a pocket and is titally safe except on your clothing.

[hunter won]

If you carry a gun concealed be prepared to carry an extra magazine of ammo.An off duty Ogden Utah cop carried a 1911 type 45ACP and was with his wife in a mall when a guy started shooting at innocent people.The off duty cop never fired a shot because he was only carrying one mag.This is very sad because this off duty cop stayed out of the fight due to his lack of firepower.I know when you're off duty you have no radio or backup.Training is key,I believe this off duty cop may have been steered the wrong way.The gun was the wrong choice,a Glock 30 would be a very good carry gun that is ultra reliable.

[G50AE]

Certain failure to feed malfunctions can be caused by a weak magazine spring or bend magazine feedlips. If you only have one magazine with you, and you experience this type of malfunction, you do not have a remedy.

[sandhills writer]

Might consider a Wilson Professional. I have carried one for years. 100% reliable, super accurate. Easy to carry, use a Sparks IWB. A little pricey, but you get what you pay for.

[Mibountyhuntress]

I am new to the forum but I wanted to add my 2 cents on the 45, I carry the Ruger P90 .45, when I was in the Colorado State Patrol we started out with the 9MM but after a fellow trooper took 3 rounds at less than 10 feet, 2 to the heart and 1 to the head of the assailant to bring him down, we changed over to the S&W 40 Tactical, in the years since I have been in the private sector I carry my 45 because I am not going to leave my life to chance, in my opinion the 9MM is too fast has to little knock down power vs the 40 or 45 caliber. My ammo of choice is the Winchester Bonded PDX 1 45 Auto 230 grain JHP, if a perp comes into my home or attempts to harm me that person is going to have a really bad day!

[hunter won]

I am new to the forum but I wanted to add my 2 cents on the 45, I carry the Ruger P90 .45, when I was in the Colorado State Patrol we started out with the 9MM but after a fellow trooper took 3 rounds at less than 10 feet, 2 to the heart and 1 to the head of the assailant to bring him down, we changed over to the S&W 40 Tactical, in the years since I have been in the private sector I carry my 45 because I am not going to leave my life to chance, in my opinion the 9MM is too fast has to little knock down power vs the 40 or 45 caliber. My ammo of choice is the Winchester Bonded PDX 1 45 Auto 230 grain JHP, if a perp comes into my home or attempts to harm me that person is going to have a really bad day!

Sorry but the fact is the 45 ACP caliber has no knock down power.The Texas DPS had many failures with the 45 ACP, one encounter caught on film that was used in the academy shows a DPS trooper fire a single round to the abdomin at point blank.The trooper reholstered his Sig 220 and informed the elderly man he just shot him.The trooper said that he just hit him with a 230 grain hollow point bullet and reholstered his gun.A civilian stopped to assist the trooper about 5 minutes later after the shot was made.My agency at the time was issued 9mm Federal 124 grain+P+ HydraShok.It worked fine in a DPF situation, two bullets recovered from the bad guy expanded perfect the other was a complete pass through.The NYSP used the Glock17 which they used for 15 years.A trooper was killed when his Glock 17 9mm failed to kill a bank robber.They switched to the Glock 37 45 GAP.A trooper fired one shot point blank to the chest.The bad guy took off running and was chased by a couple of civilians who tackled him to the ground.He died at the scene,it was revealed that if it were not for the civilians the trooper was going to die because the bad guy knocked him out with his baton after he was shot.Hand guns in general lack knock down power.Proper shot placement and training wins.

[torontogunguy]

Sorry but the fact is the 45 ACP caliber has no knock down power.The Texas DPS had many failures with the 45 ACP, one encounter caught on film that was used in the academy shows a DPS trooper fire a single round to the abdomin at point blank.The trooper reholstered his Sig 220 and informed the elderly man he just shot him.The trooper said that he just hit him with a 230 grain hollow point bullet and reholstered his gun.A civilian stopped to assist the trooper about 5 minutes later after the shot was made.My agency at the time was issued 9mm Federal 124 grain+P+ HydraShok.It worked fine in a DPF situation, two bullets recovered from the bad guy expanded perfect the other was a complete pass through.The NYSP used the Glock17 which they used for 15 years.A trooper was killed when his Glock 17 9mm failed to kill a bank robber.They switched to the Glock 37 45 GAP.A trooper fired one shot point blank to the chest.The bad guy took off running and was chased by a couple of civilians who tackled him to the ground.He died at the scene,it was revealed that if it were not for the civilians the trooper was going to die because the bad guy knocked him out with his baton after he was shot.Hand guns in general lack knock down power.Proper shot placement and training wins.

You hit the nail right on the head methinks. I carry a G30 and Gold Dots in +P 230g. I carry either two or FOUR extra magazines and bought a top quality leather-kydex-leather dress gunbelt so my pants don't fall down but I am more concerned about shot placement and training than anything else. My handgun is ultra reliable and sufficiently accurate. I am just now looking at the new rounds coming out in 'ultra engineered' hollow point that promise not to clog up, etc. You need to be able to shoot on the move (both YOU and the target) and you need to train in order to be able to hold back on spraying your rounds and place them well. There is NO magic bullet out there and the majority of deaths from gunfire in the USA seem to be from small rounds, cheap guns and untrained shooters. YOUR advantage is a well engineered round well placed while YOU are moving towards cover. I absolutely refuse to carry a 1911 these days and own or have owned many top quality 1911's. Some were very reliable and some were jamomatics despite being top of the line weapons. The one thing I have to say about my striker fired handguns is that they have been pretty much 100% reliable - especially my Glocks and my Sig P239 (not a single failure in perhaps 10,000 rounds amongst them all). I take very good care of them and maintain them regularly. I have magazines that I use for IPSC/IDPA AND which get abused and I have magazines that I keep pristine, use at the range and never allow to touch the ground... clean regularly and replace springs regularly on them. I just can't bring myself to trust my life to a 1911 any longer. Best .45ACP for CCW? I would have to say the Glock 30 with 11 rounds onboard and 20 extra rounds on my belt (or 40). If I am able to get away with it... I would have to say almost any of my other striker fired handguns in a 5" barrel size... especially my Glocks. I want a big gun, a big round moving fast and plenty of training and accuracy in motion. Someone once said that his only use for his pistol was to fight his way to his rifle.. this is true but the question was "best CCW 45 ACP". My answer is essentially the biggest, fastest, most accurate, most reliable handgun I can wear without pulling my pants down filled with loads of the best engineered self defense rounds available (and the technology is being bettered every year; those Gold Dots are 'old stuff' already as are my HydraShocks.... the new stuff is much more effective).

And just before I go....
"Center of Mass" shooting is a huge misnomer. What you want is "Center of Cardiovascular Triangle"... the area where you are likely to cause maximum damage and bleeding. It runs roughly between then nipples at the base with its apex at the bottom of the throat. It will NOT generally cause an instant stop but will sure give your assailant good cause for taking up another line of work in the next county... be be aware that even a totally penetrating destructive round through the HEART (!) is not guaranteed to stop your assailant 'dead stop'. It is likely a bleedout situation and your bad guy is going to be running with a leak in his tank for a while yet. Perhaps enough time to get a few rounds into YOU. The only dead stop shot that I am aware of, asides from massive massive trauma (no need for details as you know what I mean) is a round to the "dead stop triangle" which has its base along the bottom lip and its apex at roughly the bridge of the nose. This generally results in trauma to the cerebellum and is the shot the LEO's and snipers are trained to take in hostage situations especially as it generally results in "dead stop and drop" without so much as a reflexive finger twitch that can let off a round from the bad guy into a hostage. If you are well trained you are taking this shot from a distance with a rifle and a tripod and optics. Great. But if you are CCW you are taking this shot from closer in and ON THE MOVE more than likely.... if you are not moving you are a bullseye target my friends. And that is NOT a good thing.

The only exception to the above that I am aware of is the incredibly difficult scrotum shot which generally gets your target to bend over and to the side while hollering "ooooooooooooooh" at which point he will be still and you may use his ear as your bullseye for the 'dead stop' shot. This technique is not generally recommended as it takes much training and skill, but if you can pull it off and survive the encounter there is not a DA on the planet that would dare harass you. Heh. Heh.

[torontogunguy]

If you carry a gun concealed be prepared to carry an extra magazine of ammo.An off duty Ogden Utah cop carried a 1911 type 45ACP and was with his wife in a mall when a guy started shooting at innocent people.The off duty cop never fired a shot because he was only carrying one mag.This is very sad because this off duty cop stayed out of the fight due to his lack of firepower.I know when you're off duty you have no radio or backup.Training is key,I believe this off duty cop may have been steered the wrong way.The gun was the wrong choice,a Glock 30 would be a very good carry gun that is ultra reliable.

The G30 ten round magazines are also nice and small and great for carrying concealed on a good belt. I always carry two spare magazines for a total of 31 rounds although the G30 will take higher capacity magazines (I like the wee 10 rounders as they don't holler "GUN!" if exposed). Sometimes I carry 4 extra magazines just because I can. If the fight isn't over with 51 rounds you have bigger problems than you realize. I also treat my magazines like gold...and carry pristine magazines for defense and have 'playtime' magazines for IPSC/IDPA that I don't mind letting fall on the ground, etc.

I know the question was "Best CCW 45 ACP" but just for the heck of it... I also own a Glock 26 with compensated barrel that is a tack driver and I have never felt undergunned while carrying it as what it may lack in firepower it more than makes up for in speed and accuracy - and it allows me to carry when I am not inclined to carry the bigger and heavier G30 (albeit marginally so). I can draw and place rounds to a moving target much quicker than with the Glock 30. There is no second place winner in a gunfight.

[trophyhunter]

Deadontarget, welcome to the site. Its hard to say what is the best .45 but I can tell you that I love my Ed Brown Kobra I Treat it well and in return it treats me well.