9mm for Concealed Carry

Since you are in California, take a look at the Smith&Wesson M&P shield. You can get a CA compliant one. I also have a Springfield XD9, which is a bit large for conceal carry, but I like it.

 

I’m very happy with my S&W M&P Shield .40 performance center model, also available in 9mm.

 

Agreed, but I have to travel to Louisville on occasions.

 

Lousyville, I get it. Last time I was there was 2015 at the NRA show. The time before that was 2004 and the city sure went downhill in the 11 years between visits.

 

M&P shield

 

if you look at the hellcat, be sure to also look at the xd9 3"..... i thought the hellcat was a little wild, but was spot on with the xd9...

 

Yep, very true. For those that are interested, here's where to find if a model is allowed.

https://oag.ca.gov/firearms/certified-handguns/search

Also, I'm lucky enough to live in a county where the sheriff approves a lot of conceal carry permits. A lot of counties, like L.A., it's very difficult to get the permit.

 

I am ccw and the county I live in has a great sheriff who believes in an armed citizenry and issues most requests for ccw.
I know there’s a number of guns that are not on the California gun approval list but I’m just looking for suggestions and will check the list before I go and check out guns.
Just an fyi if a gun was on the approval list previously but is no longer , you can’t buy a new model but you can buy the gun if you can find one used.

 

Used off roster pistols are commanding ridiculous premiums in CA unless you personally know someone willing to sell you theirs for what they paid new. For example, many Sig P365 being sold second hand in CA are asking in the $1,500. Glock 43's are $1,000+. There will be very few off roster pistols that will fall under your $800 budget.

The small on roster options are Kahr and Shield. What you'll want is a single stack for the smallest footprint. Unfortunately, there are not many that are on the roster and most of the best ones are off roster. The good news is that you'll most likely be able to get a CCW where you live, the bad news is, you're still in CA and the single stack, micro handgun options suck. My preference is Glock 43 or 43x if you can get your hands on one.

 

I have an M&P 2.0 that fits my hand perfectly with the medium grip insert it comes with. I have a kydex inner waist band holster and while it is a full frame and not as easy to carry around as my smaller M&P shield, I am quicker drawing it and much more accurate in speed drills where I draw and point shoot quickly without aiming down the sights.

I highly recommend holding an M&P 2.0 if you have large hands. For me a full frame with 17 in the mag and one in the pipe is the way to go for every day concealed carry.

Edit: CA laws may prohibit the full 17 round mags. Check your local and state laws. I would leave that place in a hurry. Florida, Texas, or the center of the country my guy.

 

I carried a Rugar LC-9 for years. Light, compact and easily carried in the front pocket of jeans. Also made for a comfortable carry in the summer when I wore shorts alot of the time.. now its my wife's daily carry. My current concealed carry is a Glock compact 40 S&W with a +2 mag.

There are so many choices out there I recommend going to your local gun range or local gun shop and put several in your hand and get a sense of what feels good to you. Put them in your pocket and in a holster and walk around the store and get a true sense of what they feel like to carry.

 

I love my standard Sig P365.

I don't worry about fancy sites, if I need it in a defense situation I doubt there will be time to aim it.

 

Rocked .45 1911 to Glock 19 etc but these days all I keep IWB is the Sig P365 XL. Doesn’t get much better for CC minus a quibble or two.

 

I have a Kimber Micro 9 and a Sig 226. Now I vastly prefer the Sig over the Kimber. Why? The Kimber is 1911 based and if carried with one in the pipe should be carried with the hammer cocked and locked. Meanwhile, the Sig has a decocker on it. Check out those types of functions with whatever you choose.

 

Just keep in mind whatever you decide to get will need a holster. Since you are coming from a revolver, I am willing to bet there may be a fear of carrying one in the chamber. Regardless, holster needs to have a reinforced trigger guard. This is why Kydex is so universally loved and flooded the market. No soft holsters. Carrying without one in the chamber is the worst thing you are going to do as a CCWer. But main thing to remember is you are going to need a holster, and some makes/models are really difficult to find GOOD holsters for. So keep it simple here. Whatever you are about to chose, don't buy it until you find a good CCW holster. If a manual safety is needed, make sure the holster accommodates it.

Also, anything with a laser is going to either be grip activated, or require a button press. If it's grip activated, it's going to come on every time. There are a lot of situations where that might not be the greatest idea. Same with lights. If you have not done low light training, I'd recommend you look into that as well.

What works for someone else might not work for you. For example, the P365 variants that I love and carry daily, will not work for my step dad. He has arthritis and it was too hard for him with the manual safety and the size of the gun as well. I'd never recommend something specific to someone. But I do recommend the holster and since you specified the laser/light stuff, to do your research on those before you buy and use them as a daily carry. Sometimes, it takes a couple holsters to find the right one.

 

G43 was gonna be my recco. They're seriously $1k in cali? Wtf. It's a piece of plastic with a couple steel parts

 

Agree 99%. There are good quality custom leather holsters out there. You're right in that finding the right holster is certainly a process. I've never found an "off the shelf" leather holster that worked for me.