SHTF Handgun

[Rob Roy]

If you could have only one SHTF weapon - handgun, which one would you choose, which caliber and how many rounds would you have to carry on you? Also, explain the caliber choice.

[luckystrike]

id go with the G-lock. just becuse you might not bring a cleaning kit with you, it can shoot wet/dry sandy/muddy. my personal choice is .40 cal

[dchang0]

Boy, this is gonna be a long thread...

Glock 19C, 9mm. In SHTF, if all I have is this one handgun, I'd carry all the Glock mags I own--four on my belt and the rest in a bailout bag. But if I could carry a carbine with this Glock as a secondary, I'd carry exactly three pistol mags and load up on carbine mags instead.

9mm because of ammo availability, and most important, because it's affordable enough to get lots of practice and training on. Not much point in carrying a caliber I don't get a lot of trigger time with.

[professorhard]

AR-pistol in .50beowulf

[fuegoslow]

All hail 40 s&w

[Rob Roy]

AR-pistol in .50beowulf

That would be heavy ammo to carry.

[Rob Roy]

Please, state how many rounds you'd carry.

[PutTogether]

Ok. If I could only have ONE handgun, for an all out SHTF scenario, I would say a Smith and Wesson 617 10 shot .22 with the 4" barrel.

I would keep a couple thousand rounds in a backpack, (try that with any other caliber) and at any given moment would have at least a pack of 50 stingers in my pocket.

Reasons for the Gun:

Because it is a revolver, no magazines to lose, and as reliable as a gun can conceivably be. It has a good capacity, for defense situations. In single action mode, it is easily accurate enough to hunt small game. Being a revolver, everyone and their brother knows how to use it. If you needed to hand it to someone in your family or group, or whatever, they would instantly know how it worked. Also, it can shoot .22 short, long, or long rifle.

Reasons for the Caliber

.22LR, while not ideal, can CERTAINLY be used for self defense purposes. If one is proficient with their gun and marksmanship, it can be adequate for most means of self protections. The .22 can take small game without blowing the meat all to hell. The .22 can be quiet enough to not draw the attention that a .44mag would (and in a true end of the world type scenario, this may be important.)

You can also carry on your person literally THOUSANDS of rounds of .22 LR without too much effort. I imagine it would also be the easiest ammo to scrounge.

[den888]

S&W 459 9mm or Glock 26. 9mm is plentiful (relatively) now and will allow more practice. Lower recoil compared to 45 ACP and 40 S&W, plus higher magazine capacity.

[PutTogether]

Oh, I thought of another reason my 617 idea is good. You can carry and have enough ammo to practice with, so you could train friends and family, as well as stay proficient with your gun.

[Jonathan Doe]

H&K SP89 converted to full auto? I know where to get one.

[QuarterBoreGunner]

G-lock.

I'm not familiar with that brand.

S&W Model 620 7-shot .357MAG, 4" barrel.
Stainless steel for ease of maintenance, 4" for ease of carry and presentation, .357MAG allows the use of .38SPEC, common ammo easily available pretty much everywhere, and a 7 shot capacity.

[hoffman259]

My Sig226 in 40. Carry my 5 mags. It wouldn't be my primary SHTF gun but it is my backup. Its my caliber of choice because I shoot it the most train with it the most and I have an abundant of ammo for it.

[Rambo, John J.]

I'd say a .22LR. How about a Glock with one of those .22LR conversion kits. Get a box of 500 rounds with say 3 mags.

Of course, you'll want to bring a Rambo knife with you too.

[audiophil2]

G17 with 4 19 rnd mags and 6 G18 mags and speedloader.
.22LR conversion kit. 2 10rnd mags.
9mm because I can carry more ammo and have wide range of ammo choices.
.22LR kit in case I need to pick off small game for food.
Total ammo carried would be 500 rounds of 9mm and 500 of .22LR.