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When buying a good handgun for carrying, what features are most important to consider in making my choice? Are there any semi-automatics that would be recommended over others? And why?
any help is appreciated,
Walter

1. Reliability.
2. You must be able to shoot accurately with it.

[Later} What I mean by #2 is that the handgun fits your hand, you can reach the controls easily, the sights work for you, the trigger pull works for you, and you can handle the recoil and get back on target quickly.

Everyone has different needs and desires in these areas, thus we have hundreds of models and aftermarket accessories.

IMHO, everything else is like arguing Ford versus Chevy.

- Jim

You will most likely get a wide range of answers to your question.
Some like the Glock because it doesnt have manual a safety.
Some like the 1911 because it has atleast 2 safeties.
Some like fullsize.
Some like compact.

The glock is bulky....1911 is thin

Everyone will give there personal opinion.

The BEST thing you can do is find a gun range that rents pistols. Go there and rent several in different calibers and find out what YOU like best.

Walter,
With the few responses you have received you have the information to go forward and start you adventure.

Not knowing your expirence level I would like to make suggestion. I have a favorite that is a 1911, but also have a Glock 36 because it is easier to conceal at times. I like many others disliked the looks of the plastic gun, however they are great reliable weapons, but not one I would recommend for beginners.

My suggestion is this. When and if you go to a range to fire rentals be very honest with your level of handgun knowledge, or ask if someone there could provide you with some one on one training. I am not trying to judge you, but based on the question I feel you may be knew to handguns. My first handguns were all single action when I was younger and I still shoot them today for sport and hunting. LEO years were mostly with revolvers, I worked at a department that did not allow auto loaders, my last year there is when the change took place and things got interesting. When I started getting aquianted with the auto loaders I sure had some learnings to get under my belt.

Other than that it is fit, feel, and function. Have a great time shopping and don't get in a hurry there are allot to chose from. Did I mention my favorite is a 1911, I just love those things.

I went through quite a few different guns, Kahr, Kel tec, 1911, .38, .44, Ruger, Glock and more before settling on a Hipower.

You need to look for reliability; accuracy for you; your purpose for a gun, carry, home defense, target shooting; concealability for you; feel in your hand, your comfort with a safety, no safety,cocked and locked, DAO or DAS; your comfort with the caliber; your comfort with the number of rounds carried; your comfort with the controls; and your budget. There are a lot of excellent guns at price ranges from under $300 to over $2000. Some people only carry pocket guns and some only full sized 1911s. Some people want a point and shoot gun without bothering with safeties. Some, like me, feel more comfortable with a gun with a thumb safety even though carried cocked and locked. Some feel comfortable with a revolver with five shots; Some want as many rounds as possible in the magazine.

You need to look for what fits you. So look at a lot of guns on the net, in gun stores and in gun shows. Narrow your choices and try them out by renting them. Then if you find that after carrying for a while, you aren't comfortable with the gun you bought, try others. If you are limited on funds, you will find people to buy that gun from you. I bought and carried three guns before finding the Hipowers.

Having just bought my first gun (and completed CHL) in the last few months, I can give you what I did and maybe it will help (but like anything here is my slant on the issue):

1) Didn't really have anybody (friend, father, etc) who was into handguns. If you have a buddy or someone you really trust, this is a big + (or this forum) - but somtimes forums are just TOO much information for a n00b like me (was or still am)
2) Been a life-long shotgun hunter, so felt safe around shotgun rifles, but somewhat apprehensive around handguns; have fired a few limited handguns because someone had brought it hunting and let me shoot it for fun.
3) I tried to buy a gun that I MIGHT want to conceal, but probably just wanted something for target, and general home defense.
4) I wasn't willing to pay over XX amount of dollars (All during my research it was easy to get opinions on the best type of gun, but rarely what was the best value - for a good "starter" gun.). I hate that term, maybe "first" gun would be better.
5) I wanted to be comfortable with built-in safety.

Having said that:

If I were to force you to buy a 9MM, you probably would be very satisfied. This caliber of gun is EXTREMELY popular. This is almost your go-to caliber of weapon - I'm talking "first" gun purchase here with no help (like I had). They are affordable (as well as ammo), reliable (most modern handguns are), and have limited recoil so it is a good gun to start to practice shooting with (you don't get intimidated with the recoil). These guns are usually smaller in size and can be conceal-carry quite easily. Ask any old shooter if they own a 9MM and they most assuredly will say yes. The only drawback here is that if, like myself, you have large hands, I couldn't find one that really fit me.

Next, I went to the biggest store with the biggest selection of handguns I could find. This actually took me to two stores and probably some 50 some odd guns. Now, I know it's a bit tough to go into gun store with everyone in camo and say "I know nothing.", but that is essentially what I did and found the salespeople to be very friendly and helpful (why is it that everyone in a gun store is so polite?). I came away from this experience with a few handguns that I was interested in.

Next, I went to the range, I wanted to shoot a 9MM, .40, and .45. I asked the guy at the counter for some some quick training on the operations of each gun, and he was more than happy to oblige. In my humble opinion, caliber is really the first question. I actually liked shooting the .45 but it does have some power and if are a really newbie shooter (like me), you feel somewhat like the gun is taming you, instead of you taming the gun. The 9MM was an excellent gun, and thought I had my choice, but after shooting the .40 it really started to click that this was a large enough gun for me (size-wise) and whose recoil was not overly-aggressive. I had my caliber.

The decision-tree from there is really make and model: We are talking first guns here but SIG and GLOCK are like (I hate saying this) Ford and Chevy (sheesh) - again, these are my cliff-notes with no help. SIG makes some good .40 caliber weapons. I eventually found a gun dealer locally that had a CPO (certified pre-owned) SIG P229 (which looked new to me) and which I bought for what I knew was a good value (compared to in store new).

I probably shot 2-3 hundred rounds before the CHL class and qualified 249/250 (considering the distance and target size not much of an accomplishment), but, again, for a complete n00b like myself I think I muddled through the selection process.

Now, last thing: are you completely stuck with the gun for the rest of your life? No, this is just your first gun, but are your guaranteed to find the love of your life on the first purchase? Probably not, but I think if you find a gun you can control and are comfortable with (both physically and emotionally and economically) then you are well on your way to finding the right gun for you.

Hope this helps and let us know what you get.

Baylor, welcome to the forum and thanks for your contribution.

You can't go wrong with a SIG P229.SIG has an excellent reputation for reliability. That's probably why police forces and militaries all over the world use them.

Another advantage of 9 mm is the cost of ammo. It's the cheapest handgun round. If you figure you're going to shoot 1,000 rounds a year to remain proficient, the cost difference between 9 mm and .45 ACP is hundreds of dollars.

baylor wrote:... found the salespeople to be very friendly and helpful (why is it that everyone in a gun store is so polite?).

Where is that store?

- Jim

Walter,

All these replies have provided you with the information needed. One thing I might add is try not to eliminate any particular gun based upon aesthetics or something equally superficial. Hold it first, if possible shoot it, but you really can't judge a book by its cover. You will discover that aesthetics hold very little value when trying to stop a bad guy.

p.s. I'm with Baylor and Jim on this one, try the P229 .40 and see if you like it as much as we do (but don't worry if you don't!)

dukesean wrote:One thing I might add is try not to eliminate any particular gun based upon asthetics or something equally superficial.

I agree with that. Concealed means concealed. Someone who sees the business end will not care about esthetics.

If you want to show off, you can buy a BBQ gun and not get it beat up carrying.

dukesean wrote:I'm with Baylor and Jim on this one, try the P229 .40 and see if you like it as much as we do ...

Just for the record, I don't own a P229. I have shot one, and I own a P226.

- Jim