About a dozen years ago, the weapon I used for duty was a Sig P220. I carried a S& W Model 49 off duty and as a back up gun. Then, I got to thinking...what if I actually NEEDED to fight for my life with my off-duty gun? What if I actually NEEDED to go to my back up gun? That would mean the P220 had, somehow, been insufficient. Would I really want to be reaching for a five shot .38 Special with a 1.8 inch barrel?
I love the little J frames, as a gun enthusiast...but this question caused me to make a change. I began carrying a 9mm Sig P225 off duty and as a back up gun. Eventually, I wound up carrying a Glock 21 as a duty gun, with a Glock 27 as an off-duty/backup gun.
The point I'm getting to is this: many who CCW make convenience too much of a priority. If you're going to the trouble of going armed at all, it's because you think there's the potential you might actually need it for self defense. If so, why limit yourself to a J frame OR a super sub compact semi auto (particularly something less then even a 9mm)? A weapon such as a Glock 26 or 27 is more capable and yet still quite handy.
Handguns are, of course, chosen for self defense due to their convenience, but when we put too much emphasis on convenience, we perhaps give up too much in terms of potential weapon performance.
Many years ago, I was in a confrontation with several large, aggressive young males. At that time, in my pre-LE days, I had a .380 Walther PPK/S on my ankle. Fortunately, the confrontation did not escalate to the point where I needed to resort to my pistol. The presence of the PPK/S had been reassuring right up until the time I suddenly found myself on the brink of a real fight. At that point, I realized how feeble a caliber it was...and how difficult it would be to access from that ankle holster if things suddenly turned ugly.
We're gun buffs, and tend to like guns and have feelings about this model or that model...and those positive feelings may cloud our more analytical judgment when it comes to selecting a tool for self defense. I don't choose the Glock 27 because it's my favorite pistol. It offers, though, an accurate, shootable, reliable platform, in a decent caliber, with adequate capacity (reinforced by a spare magazine), and is still small and light enough to have with me at all times. Even the 27 is a compromise between potential effectiveness and everyday convenience: If I wasn't so lazy, I'd carry my Glock 23 off duty instead!
There are a number of weapons in the same class as the Glock 27. They may not be as ultra convenient or unobtrusive as an LCP class pistol, but, if the day comes when you have to actually fight for your life with your self defense handgun, you'd be better off with the less convenient but more capable weapon.
Not to open a can of worms about what to carry, just thinking out loud since I know there are a hundred what if's with this kind of situation.
