After years of carrying all sorts of CCW, I've come down to a S&W 442/642.
I always liked high capacity for obvious reasons and there is no fault in that. I finally realized that I carry not to really dominate a gunfight, but to escape a gunfight.
I not only want to keep others from knowing that I carry, but also, I don't want to be aware of it myself.
I finally figured out that a 442/642 or similar arm will do what I need it to do and be almost unfelt by me.
If I need to use it, I have 5 rounds to get me and mine out of harms way and usually, one reload to remain that way.
I settled on a gun that is totally reliable and able to perform that job.
I'm not LE and I'm not tasked with saving everyone from danger. I will if I can, but my job is to get me and mine out of trouble. Just having 5 immediate shots focuses me on that priority. Call me selfish, but there it is after decades of carrying and considering this serious condition.
I don't know why I'm voicing this really, other than I'm really satisfied with carrying a J frame instead of others now.
5 years ago would have been a different story....funny

For many years I very happily carried a Colt DS. I never felt undergunned. I have recently found a small semi-auto that I REALLY like and now carry that, but if I didn't have it I would be content with the small revolver.

Gun owners generally change their habits as they get older. It's normal. I'm only 43, but I've moved away from Tactical to Practical. I sold my AR and bought 2 M1 Garands. I have more revolvers now that I have semi auto's. My carry gun is a Ruger LC9-S and it is slim and light. I like a safety and a mag disconnect.

Nothing wrong with a J frame for carry. 99.999 percent of us won't even need that. Those that do will be fine with it. Yeah, my house gun is a Ruger SR9 for the same reasons as the lC9, since no need to carry or conceal it, but for carry, a J frame is fine. I had a 642 once. Carried it in my pocket 99% of the time.

I have a DS also, and that fits. I guess it's my high cap now.

My home guns are a different story. There, high cap rules since someone is actually attacking me and concealment means nothing.

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I pick which revolver I pack where I am traveling and how.
Motorcycle .357 3 inch 686 or 27-2 3 1/2 "

Mostly just a J or two. Plus strip.
Sometimes a K frame.
My varying weight impacts things too. Long story.

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Have a blessed day ,
Bull

As much as I like J frames, it usually isn't my first choice for carry. But, it's a matter of opinion. I'm glad to see that you fully understand the somewhat limited tactical application of the J-frame and have adopted a level-headed approach to personal defense that matches the gun you plan to carry.

I have an LC9 and really like the size of it.
At the range it stopped igniting rounds due to shaved primer metal clogging the firing pin channel.
That's the kind of thing that has me back to "old school" again.

I agree with the opinion expressed by Jessie (the OP) as it runs parallel with my experiences also.

Sharon likes her 342PD just fine. She can put 4 1/2 holes in a business card at 7-10 yds. consistently.

Either of my two 642's with Crimson Trace laser sights work just fine for me. If I feel as though it is needed, a speed loader in another pocket balances out the gear.

The real trick is practice every 10-15 days with 50 rounds of my handloads. More than that and we have lost our "edge".

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Armed and Dangerous

My 442 goes with me everywhere I go in one of my own handcrafted leather holsters.

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Keep on Chooglin'

"I finally realized that I carry not to really dominate a gunfight, but to escape a gunfight."
+1 to that; that's why I've owned everything imaginable, but never carried anything but a J-frame.

It basically gets down to a confrontation at very close quarters. I like to think of it as not a gun fight but an assault from an attacker with a knife or maybe no weapon at all. Most criminals don't carry guns because they know that to do so would mean a felony conviction. If they are already felons they generally avoid firearms altogether because they know that just gets them more time.

I'm not shooting anyone who isn't within a few feet of me and hasn't already threatened me. If I can avoid a confrontation buy leaving the area I will. Sort of like a rattle snake, if you get too close no guarantees how you will fare.

A snub 38 is a good choice.

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That's just somebody talkin.

Since I retired in '06 I've carried a M642 almost daily. I take a Glock to the range occassionally but never carry it.

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Support your Police, & NRA

I guess you carry what you are comfortable with.

I'm pretty big...6'1" and 275 and have comfortably carried a G23 for a long time. I'm used to it and don't notice it.

My wife has recently gotten her GWL (Georgias version of a carry permit, concealed and open) and I needed to get her a weapon. As she had shot my G23 quite often and really liked it I went looking for another one. What I found was a Gen 3 G22 in like new condition for a good price. I had always shied away from the G22 as I thought it was too big, but I took the plunge anyway as I got it at a price that I could recoup if I didn't like it.

Surprise, surprise! Just like the G23 I don't even notice it in my Galco King Tuck hybrid.

I do figure 15+1 is plenty though. I don't carry spare mags.

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Bob | KM4DEO
Sport | Glock 22

You've pretty much nailed it, Jessie. A lot of guys sit in front of their computer and read "what if" scenarios to the point where, if they even leave the house, they figure they'll need an M-240 SAW with 6 extra belts. I carry either a Shield and a spare mag, or a Model 36 with a couple speed loaders. If that's not enough, sux to be me.

For quite awhile I carried nothing but my 642, other than occasionally carrying my 640 instead (the extra weight makes it feel more substantial than the 642, and if IWB or OWB seems to feel the same. For pocket carry the extra weight is more noticeable.). But most of the time now I find I carry my Ruger LC9s. I'm not blaming the gun, but I find that I can shoot the LC9s much more accurately than I can the 642, even at close distances of 3-5 yards. The 642, for me, is a gun for "bad breath distance" but with a CT laser, I can shoot my 640 out to about 7 yards relatively easily. But I go back and forth on this subject, in part because despite the technical data that says neither round is really superior to the other, when I look at a 38 Special round it does give me a bit more confidence that the much smaller 9mm round. So I'm glad for you that you are fully comfortable with your j-frame choice; I'm still flipping back and forth in my mind between the j-frame and this small 7 round semi-auto.

Glock 17 or 26 with a extra Glock 17 magazine. S&W Model 649 as B/U.

Getting you and yours out is the priority, preferably without a shot. Why get into a gun fight if you don't have to? Depending on the particular location you are in, if you don't try to retreat first, you're in a whole heap of trouble anyway, even if the shooting is justified. Personally, I'd rather not take the chance of obtaining extra holes if I don't need too. Unless I'm home, then all bets are off!

Just having a gun puts you way ahead of most people when it comes to being able to defend yourself. Presuming you can shoot the "J" frame well, you are armed well enough to prevail in the vast majority of armed citizen encounters.

3 Seconds -- 3 Yards -- 3 Shots


Thats the average. You are good to go.

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A real sucker for the J-frames

I made the same decision years ago. I've carried a dashless 640 for something like sixteen years--can't recall exactly when it began.

I pocket carry it, holstered, and don't mind the weight at all.

I have to respond to one of your points, though: I don't ever want to be unaware that I'm carrying it. Used to it, comfortable with it, yes. Unaware, no.

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Oh well, what the hell.

The 642 is almost as easy to carry as an American Express card. Don't leave home without it. Seriously though, as much as a full-size duty pistol or compact version of the same makes sense, I know that I would leave the house unarmed too often if I thought that only a real "fighting" pistol will do.

Is five enough? For me, five is plenty for the vast majority of my waking hours. I think it was the late Paul Gomez who said, "more bullets equals more time in the fight." True enough. But I don't want to hang around for the fight; I want to get the heck outta Dodge. That's not always possible, sure. But most of the time it is.

I've had the same epiphany...several tmes, with several guns. The world around us is constantly changing.

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Because of the metric system?

The odds of any one of us ever needing our concealed carry gun are really really infinitesimal ....but some claim that handguns are used for self defense (not necessarily shot) up to two million times a year.

But as I get older the world and the people in it seems to be changing.... and not for the better...................................

I use my single AAA flashlight 1-2 times a day; my pocket knife at least once a day......but my 3913 has never been drawn "in need" in the 24 years it's been my primary carry. I guess I just hang out in the "right kind" of neighborhoods......

I'm happy with my slab sided 7+1 and a extra 8......while I carry my 337PD on occasion........it doesn't give me the warm fuzzy feeling of my 3913....may be it's because I don't pocket carry and if I'm going to use an IWB holster I might a well stick with my old friend!

I think you are right, but I have taken to carrying a 357 LCR instead. I carry and have shot full house 158 gr sjhps in it, along with a speed strip. If they come out with a 357 3" LCRX with adjustable sights, that will become my woods gun and I may trade that 357 LCR in for a 38 LCR, there is a notable difference in weight (or, I could dig my mint, factory shrouded Cobra out and carry it, I suppose)

You are correct. It was a poor choice in wording on my part.

This was in response to shouldazagged's, "I have to respond to one of your points, though: I don't ever want to be unaware that I'm carrying it. Used to it, comfortable with it, yes. Unaware, no."

I think I made the same mistake in an earlier comment, so I'll clear it up:

If I'm awake I'm carrying unless I'm in the shower or on the can, and despite the familiarity I am always aware I'm carrying. I consider my pistol and holster to be a part of my clothing and am as aware of them just as I am aware I have on socks, shoes, underwear, pants, etc.

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Bob | KM4DEO
Sport | Glock 22

WOW Jessie! This is exactly what and why I recently purchased a S&W 642CT. EXACTLY! As a matter of fact, I JUST completed my CHL course this past Saturday and completed the CHL application (fingerprints +etc.) yesterday!

Here is WHY I think the 642 is such a great choice to carry:

• Out of +40 students in my CHL class, only TWO of us were qualifying with revolvers. All the rest had semi-auto magazine'd pistols.
• My CHL instructor's personal choice of carry weapon is the 642CT revolver, NOT a pistol.
• The DA-only 642 has a much stronger trigger pull than all those semi-automatic pistols. That means that it is a more difficult gun to fire accurately without the training to do so. That ALSO means that if you have your weapon(642) taken from you, you will stand a better chance of escaping the assailant by running. The assailant, by my observations/opinion may only be familiar with semi-automatic pistols and that harder trigger pull will affect the assailant's accuracy. Not necessarily a big advantage, but an advantage nevertheless.

And yes, I'm a boomer at 62.
Oh, and my home defense weapon is a 4" 686 flame thrower.

Please explain how either of these points makes the 642 (or any revolver) the better choice over a semi-auto.

The 642 is an EXCELLENT pistol...but so are many others.

I know several instructors who use revolvers for their class, but the reason is that there is less to teach the student about the gun (no safeties, mag releases, ftf/fte issues etc...). It has nothing to do with its "superiority" for carry.

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Stay protected my friends.

Please DO NOT misread my post(s), nor try to put words into my mouth thank you very much.

• I NEVER even used the word "superiority".
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• The ONLY time I used the word "better" was in reference to escaping from an untrained DA shooter of this DA-only revolver. Again, NOT talking about either weapon, ONLY talking about an untrained DA shooter.
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• NOT all handguns are pistols... A pistol has a chamber that is integral with its barrel. Semi-automatic handguns have a barrel with the chamber built in, which means they are pistols.
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• Revolvers are NOT pistols, because a revolver contains a cylinder that's separate from the barrel and contains multiple chambers. Often called "wheel guns" (slang)
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• The popularity of "pistols", as evidenced by 38 of +40 students in my CHL class, speaks to the very probable possibility that that same percentage of shooters were/are lacking in DA skills... Thus escaping from a DA untrained shooter, who gets a hold of your gun, is more likely than from a shooter with a semi-automatic pistol.
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• The CHL instructor's choice, most likely the most experienced concealed carry individual in the class, was a 642CT revolver and not a pistol. IMO, factors that may have influenced that instructor's decision could include that a 642 DA-only does not need to be cocked and locked while carrying. I call that an increased safety feature. The much stronger trigger pull of this DA-only revolver also minimizes chance of an accidental discharge. The internal trigger prevents an assailant from reaching and blocking an exposed trigger like on on a pistol (and some revolvers with exposed triggers).

J frame Airweight every day.

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Sure you did

Back in the 80's I think it was when a night fisherman was stabbed to death near Boston with me being a night fisherman also I ccw a 1911 with 8 mags plus a 50rd box of extra rounds in the car. I was figuring a copycat with fishermen being an easy target. It's the boy scout in me to be prepared.

What made me get my ccw license in the beginning was when the 10 people were shot and killed in a local bakery in the 70's.

Times have changed. I'm older and wiser now. The young punk kid inside of me is long gone. I think we all go through that firepower stage were more rounds carried the better.

I figure 6 rounds of any 357, 41, & 44 Magnum with two speed loaders is plenty. One Magnum round should end most conflicts if your life is in danger.

I'm good to 100yds with a pistol or revolver. I prefer a Magnum revolver.

Bill, I'm sure glad you didn't fall in when you were loaded down with that 1911 and 8 Mags!
We sure would have missed you around here.
You sure were pushing the envelope by leaving that 50rd box in the car, too.

And Mike, I'm in the camp who think ALL triggers should be exposed.
( did you really mean to say hammers?)

I did not know there was a reason for the separate terms. I always thought they were synonymous. Learn something new every day...

YUP... ... LOL!

Yeah, I am sure you are NOT the only one who has recognized that misperception. It is always prudent to know what you are handling, especially since it is capable of taking a life. At least you now know and understand the differences.

I'M WITH YOU JESSIE. I CARRIED A FULL SIZE COLT 1911 WITH A 10 ROUND MAG AND ONE ROUND IN THE WEAPON, AND TWO 10 ROUND MAGS ON MY BELT FOR 3 DECADES. DUE TO DETERIORATING HEALTH, I NOW RELY ON MY 2 1/2" 686" OR MY 642 IN THE SUMMER MONTHS…..

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'Nam 1968-69.DAV,VFW,NRA Inst.