In guns, that is! I used to carry a Sig P229 in .40 as my CCW; but lately I've really come to love my 4506! It's thinner than my 229, the grip doesn't show, and the barrel is only an inch longer. Does that extra inch make any difference as to concealment? I'm a rather stout guy and a fullsize 1911 wasn't a problem.

Nope.... the grip is what you hide...

Using your 1911 for an example, would a 4 inch hide easier than the 5? Not as far as I am concerned.

The thinner grip on the 4506 is what matters most...

^^^

x2

The barrel is mainly in your jeans. The grip is what is the pain to hide. Of course this is if you are talking about using a IWB holster. For OWB that inch may matter depending on how you are dress and what holster you have.

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Don't look, reload and shoot!

I would say "It Depends"

I carry revolvers mainly. I also mostly carry in Lobo Pancake holsters OWB @ 4 O'Clock. With 2" and 2-1/2" barrels the end of the barrel is high enough that you can still access your billfold in your right rear pocket. When you go to a 3" getting your billfold is doable, but can be a hastle. Go to a 4" and you better carry your billfold in your front pocket.

IWB you will need to see if the longer barrel is a problem for you to carry. In your case the barrel length should not be a problem. My only IWB holster is for my 5" 1911 Colt. I have no problem carrying it.

Bob

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ICORE MO2908

A person can hide almost any gun if they work at it. I carry a concealed full frame 1911 without a problem.

Carry that .4506 and enjoy it. They are really nice guns.

The extra inch doesn't matter for concealment but the shorter barrel is MUCH easier to get out of the holster when you need the gun NOW. Putting the 2" barrel on my 625 is one of the best things I ever did for a carry gun.

Dave Sinko

The shorter the barrel the better, for me.

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Sure you did

The extra inch on a CCW really depends on how you intend to carry it. If you are using an OWB belt holster I would say there is not much difference. If you carry IWB there is a small difference. If you are going to pocket carry there would be a huge difference. So there is obviously no quick answer for ALL carry methods.

Chief38

Should anyone mention that with shorter barrels, accuracy drops along with other things like more recoil.

In an ideal situation, a person should have the longest barrel possible. Back in the old days when officers were walking their beat, they carried nothing less than four inches and many carried barrels with six inches. Of course the guns were not concealed.

Hopefully and statistically, most here will never need to use their gun in self defense. If they do, they need the best gun they can have. Then we get to a trade off in concealed carry. People want comfort and carry what feels best for them instead of what might be best for them. Serious shooters carry what is best for shooting.

Just saying.

I concur about getting at the wallet. You can go longer with a pistol, because the chamber is counted in the barrel length. A 4" barrel just clears the pocket opening, but a 5" is long enough to "lock" the wallet in place (not a bad thing when window shopping in a gun store).

I carry a full size 1911, only problem I've had it the barrel protruding just a little. I wear it at 3:00 or 4:00 owb covered by a leather jacket. If anyone has noticed that half an inch, they've never mentioned it. People are actually pretty unobservant. Once, after returning home to find an old family friend was visiting. I had taken off my jacket, but hadn't proceeded to my room to lock up my weapon, so I was, in essence, open carrying at the time. We talked for a solid half an hour before I went to lock up my gun. As I took the weapon off, holster and all to make it less threatening as I handled it, the family friend freaked out about what I had assumed they had seen the entire time

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Just the opinion of a kid

For short folks (Warrior Size as some call us) that inch can, in fact, make a difference. I comfortably carry a Colt Commander or OM (auto) but my GMs are just too long for inside the waistband CCW for me. OWB not so much but summer clothes don't lend themselves to that down here.

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Run Fast, Bite Hard!

I'm not a big guy by any stretch at about 5'-9" and 160 but if I put on a 4506 I may as well have a brick in the holster(VMII) Commander showing? Get one of these. The bob tail makes a difference as for printing...plus it just plum looks good.

With revolvers, big difference in concealment and performance.
They are inversely proportional.
3" is easily covered by even a short jacket if the ride is high enough.
4" you get another 100 fps but now you are down to the rear
pocket. A high enough ride would have the grip right up in my
arm pit.




...Nemo...

Hey Nemo288 - what gun is that in the first picture, the short barrel?

They are both 624's. The shorter one is the 3" Lew Horton in the
holster that came with some of them. Spegel ebony on the 3"
Herrett walnut on the 4".

...Nemo...

Foe me, that extra inch is a big deal. Short in the crotch to waist length. Anything more then a 3" barrel does not work when sitting down.

Warrior size, I like that.

Everything in life involves a compromise. When we are talking about guns we weigh the odds on haveing to use them along with the comfort of haveing to tote them, else we would be carrying a BAR or a shotgun. When I had to open carry I found it more comfortable to use a large uniform belt than just a pancake on my trouser belt. I am both tall and obease. For awhile I used to carry a crossdraw and that was okay but I felt like the lone ranger on my department so quit that. I always carryied the lightest and least bulky gun and rig I could get away with. My job wasnt dangerous, had it been I would have went for the most I could carry.