Lots of folks have been ventilated by a .32, shot placement is much more important than kinetic energy at less than 20'. S&W made some nice hammerless .32 revolvers back in the day, very small and easy to carry. My next pistol (if I ever stop spending all my money on quads and boats) will be a Taurus Ti revolver in .357, the 7 shot model with the ported 2" barrel feels awesome in my hand.

If you want a cheap semi-auto that ALWAYS goes bang, check out the Bulgarian Makarov pistols. They are as reliable as a chopping block, small, and with JHP bullets, have enough oomph to stop any troublemaker.

 

If you qualify with a semi here in Oklahoma, you can carry revolver, derringer or semi.
I have a Glock 36(their version of a concealed) and also a Taurus Titanium 38 special. I love the Taurus....great gun and a great "hot" caliber.

 

In Oregon - NHRA certified course, background search, two local references, no qualifying, carry what you want. Though I started out on them and have some as shooters, I've never carried a concealed wheelgun. Size, weight, stopping power and convenience of concealability have always been my criteria. At close range, IMHO, six of anything over .22 at 600FPS will stop almost any human. I draw the line below .32 based on the inability to buy a modern, quality, concealable autoloader below that caliber.

I have German Walther PP and PPKs (not the S&W crap), and a Sig 232 all in .32 I used as carry pieces, but to repeat my testimony for those concerned with size, weight and concealability, the Kel-Tec is now my favorite. The cost was a very pleasant surprise.

 

I recently purchased a Smith and Wesson M&P. This gun is excellent! I have no complaints whatsoever. This is not the smallest gun in the world, but within the next month they are bringing out a compact version of the M&P. It will be available in 9mm first, and then in .40. I highly reccomend looking at this gun. It will be about the same size as a Glock 26.

 

Personally I'm carrying the Sig Sauer P-239 in .40S&W. I carried smaller .32s and .380 like the seecamp and the Sig 232 but the more I study the actual ballistics research done by physicians and the people who have dedicated their lives to the study of wounding mechanisms (yes the actual scientific research is there if you look beyond gun mags and gunstore BS) I just don't have faith the terminal performance of the little .32 and .380 rounds in all situations. They can pack enough firepower into a small enough package now that I can can conceal it easily even in the summertime. I don't have to compromise.

 

thanks for your opinions guys... but still looking for a wheel gun... I do have a compact CZ-75 that it's bigger brother is one of my favorite little ( non magnum ) autos to shoot...

I wish I could find someone that has tried shooting one of the ultra lite 44's... I'm much more of a fan of throwing big rocks at a slower speed, than trying to blast a tiny bullet to twice the speed of sound, out of a 2" barrel...

... speaking of which... I've seen a slug of these new 17's have now found their way into concealed carry guns... aside from the fact that the rim fires have a much higher incedence of missfire, which isn't quite as critical in the revolvers... what do you guy's think of the lil 17's in a defense gun ??? anyone heard of the balistics of one of the 17 rim fires out of a 4" barrel ???

 

The 17s will be nice, if you're trying to scare them with noise.

Living in a very large metropolitan area, I get to deal with some real interesting people. Even more so being involved in the security industry. That being said, a smaller round may have the capabilities of making a fatal shot, the odds are not in your favor of doing so consistently. We get to see people under the influence of many different substances, and I prefer to be able to knock them down. Sometimes that won't stop them. But if they have a knife or any other weapon, I still prefer to keep them away from me with each shot. If you ever come accross a wacked out meth freak, a small round is only going to make them angrier, and may not stop any forward progress they are making.

 

SCOOT... I pretty much agree with ya there ( hence my statement about throwing big rocks, & my original desire for the 5 shot 44 special )... maybe the explosive little round would / could inflict a more "painfull" wound??? I was just suprised to see so many different models available in 17... I'd think that since most confrontations are at close range, having a huge hole in the end of the barrel, might have equal effect at discouraging some, as the gun did in it's self... a 17, would look too much like a bb gun, & may not have the deterant effect that a 44 would have...

kinda suprised I haven't seen a 40 or 10mm revolvers around, with a similar set up as the 45's are using... the lite weight 6 round 45 revolver I just looked at was still too large for what I'm looking for...

 

The only way I could conceal my Sig 232 wearing Levis and t-shirt was in an inside the belt suede holster (uncomfortable) and a t-shirt two sizes larger than my normal size.

 

As hot as it's been here lately, it's hard to wear a shirt at all.