THIN 9mm

[tex45acp]

Well thnx for the info on the PT111 9mm from TAURUS gvaldeg1.
This is all good info for some of us who want to know which gun is small/thin.
Some are saying that the guns mentioned on here because they are small have more of a recoil while others are saying they do not? I'm kind of lost here....

Sambo,

Recoil is subjective, like so many other things in our lives, is precieved differently from one person to another. Example:
I was recently helping a friend during the Texas Concealed Handgun Course and he asked me to be his range officer for the handgun qualification portion of the training. There were several women, one who was probably 75lbs soaking wet, in size and about 35years old. She had bought all she could afford to qualify with, a Hi Point semi auto pistol, in 9mm. During the qualification she had numerous problems with the gun feeding and was about to give up when I offered her my Kel-Tec PF-9. She finished the qualifications without any other problems and thanked me for letting her use the "great little gun". She asked me where she could get one and I told her where I had bought mine. There were quite a few folks looking at the gun and one guy asked to shoot it. I handed it to him and he emptied the mag and handed it back to me. He said that he liked the gun but that if kicked too much for him and he would stay with his Beretta .380. This guy was about 6' 2" and must have weighed afound 225- 250. Another guy shot the gun next and he liked it but wanted a larger capacity gun. I did not bring my P-11 but I told him about it.
If you can find a range that rents guns, I would suggest you try them on for size, that being said I highly recommend the Kel-Tecs.

tex45acp

[Badman400]

I have the Kel-Tec PF-9 also, and though it is a handful, you'd hardly notice the recoil at the point of a SHTF situation. But for a thin and easy to carry 9mm, it certainly qualifies. And it is less than $300.

There is another alternative for a thin 9mm. The HK P7 line. They are expensive, but high quality, safe, and reliable. The P-cocker design is the safest way to carry locked and loaded, bar none. The price is from around $600 for a PSP, to as high as $2300 or more for some of the P7M8s and P7M13s.

I just bought one of the PSP models. They are a marvel of engineering, but a little on the heavy side when compared to the KT PF-9.

[farglov]

+1 nds

[MI_Packer]

The Kahr PM9 is one of the guns I regret selling. Take a look at these.

[rrc1962]

Generally speaking, given the same caliber and same round, a smaller lighter gun will have more recoil. The weight of the gun helps to absorb recoil. As someone else mentioned, recoil is subjective. If the gun doesn't fit well in you hand, it won't be easy to control, but you may be willing to compromise on that for a gun that is more concealable. See if you can find a range that has rentals and try a few guns ranging from sub-compact 9mm up to 45ACP. That should give you an idea of how the different sizes and calibers compare.

The right gun may depend more on your carry situation than what shoots the best. If you absolutely must carry completely concealed all the time then size is an important criteria. Concealability is not a huge thing here in TN so I'll carry what feels good and not worry so much if someone notices I'm carrying.

[sambo42xa]

Thnx for MORE of the feedback! My entire thing would be a 9mm to CONCEAL during the Hot months when I'll be wearing less clothing, say...maybe just shorts and shirt or no shirt, something that will fit right in my pants pocket. Seems the KelTech fits the picture, along with MY budget. I do not belong or go to any ranges. My shooting is done out back. BUT, with that being said, I am going to FL in a couple of weeks and I'll be at one or two ranges one of those days I'm out there and will have to look to try their rentals.
* the HiPoint 9mm mentioned, I have one and have no problem with it other than it is big and bulky and uuuugggglllyyy! I use it as My Other carry gun when not using the PT25 (TAURUS).

[rrc1962]

I'll probably buy a small Kel-Tec 380 for summer time concealed carry. It's about the only thing I've seen that totally disappears under summer cloths. If you use an IWB holster you can make a larger gun disappear, but I find them uncomfortable and harder to draw from. The 380 disappears in just about any pocket. My wifes Kahr CW9 comes close but still a little to big to hide wearing shorts and a light T-shirt.

[SweetPain]

Glock 26 (9mm) - enough said.

Although I will say just a few more things. I mainly carry a Glock 30SF (.45 ACP) but occasionally my Glock 19 (9mm). If I were going to carry a small/thin 9mm I would go with the Glock 26. It's very nicely sized and designed specifically for CC. It also carries 10+1, which is nice.

[gvaldeg1]

Well thnx for the info on the PT111 9mm from TAURUS gvaldeg1.
This is all good info for some of us who want to know which gun is small/thin.
Some are saying that the guns mentioned on here because they are small have more of a recoil while others are saying they do not? I'm kind of lost here....

You're welcome for the info. If you are a little lost on the issue of recoil, I wrote a ballistics calculator program which Luke has incorporated in the resources section of this site. Just mouse over the "RESOURCES" tab and click on "Ballistics Calculator". You can enter the data for your cartridge and gun (Bullet weight, Bullet velocity, Powder weight, and Gun weight) and click on the calculate button. The program will calculate Muzzle energy, Recoil velocity, and Recoil energy. I'm sure that you know about Muzzle energy. Generally speaking you need values above 200 foot pounds for self defense. (Bullet design and a myriad of other factors come in to play but generally, about 200 foot pounds is considered the realistic minimum.) As for recoil, which you were concerned about, recoil velocities of about 20 feet per second and above start feeling a little unpleasant for sustained shooting and recoil energies of about 8 to 10 foot pounds start to feel a little brisk.

[sambo42xa]

No, I think I'm all set on the recoil thing. With it being mentioned a few times on here (different views) I thought I was going to be in for a surprise! The three handguns I'm firing give different recoils, so I can get the feeling of the different size, caliber, etc. I'll check the chart out though since I have't seen it.