cruserbob if your in the market for a small 40, try to find a s&w cs40 they are rare but if you find one you will love it. the cs line was made from 99-06 the 40 however was only made from 99-01. half were converted to 10mm making it rare. it took me 3 months to find one in az. they are an alloy frame with a stainless upper, they are the size os a g26, single stack 7 round mag, novak sights ,da/sa action ad are based on the 3 gen s&w autos.the chamber is fully supported so it will handle the buffalo bore hot loads that the glock line can not. and come with hogue rubber grips. they also were made in 9 cs9 and 45 cs45 both are more common.

http://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=115

Thanks for the thoughts. I just want something with punch that is easy to carry here where it is shorts and t-shirts 12 months of the year.

This for jeckes. Click on handguns then go to the particular model you are interested in and pull up the manual.

http://www.hi-pointfirearms.com/
The manufacturer recommends that it not be carried at full battery due to the possibility of unintentional discharge. If you go to the Hi-Point web site you can down load the manual and read it for yourself. They suggest carrying it on an empty chamber and chamber the round when you need the weapon for defense. The only problem with that time and vulnerability. While you are taking the time to chamber a round you might have been shot three or four times. The Smith and Wesson I bought only cost a little over $300.00. Yeah I know double the cost of the Hi-Point, but I'm ready to point and click and click and click as needed. I will post the link to Hi-Point for you. It is an easy pistol to shoot and I actually prefer it to my Smith&Wesson. I'm carrying for protection and the full battery is the only way to go.

I have a S&W MP .45cal, Glock 22 and Ruger LCP. I carry the Ruger at about 4 O'Clock, just behind my right hip. I prefer the LCP because I hardly know it is there. Another good option is the Ruger LC9. It is slightly larger than the LCP and come in 9mm.

Man, I'm really finding this thread very interesting. Living in the great state of california (also known as the granola state-filled with nuts and flakes) or the "can't" state - can't carry a personal firearm, can't ride my motorcycle without a helmet, etc etc.
I know very little about firearms and carry permits, so i have a couple questions. I've been following this thread with much interest and had to look up these different sidearms you all have and the different holsters etc. For those of you living in the "good states" where you can carry, are there some states that allow only concealed and some only open carry? Or can you choose? If you had a choice, which is better?
I guess us law abiding citizens here in CA are too lame to make personal choices for ourselves, so we have to walk around completely vulnerable against a segment of the not so law abiding citizens (also known as criminals and thugs).
Any input and shedding of light on this would be very appreciated.

in az it is your choice and you no longer need a permit you just carry when i lived in dutchess county n.y. i had to have a permit and carry concealed only got my first handgun when i lived in ca. and it had to be unloaded with the ammo in a different part of the car. only good thing about ca. is you can split traffic

Im gettin my permit soon here in Neb .. got a .38 Snub Rossi fer carry a Glock 19 Gen 4 a Sigma 40 I wanna build a AK

In Illinois (Where I Live) Only Outlaws Carry Guns, Regular people like me are not allowed to do this, Outlaws Only, ILLINOIS,What a Freaking Joke...

Texas does not have permits. We have licensing. The difference is, of course, a permit system allows any slack-jawed ass with influence to pack heat.
A license system requires the candidate to be schooled on the subject and show some degree of technical competence with the firearm. Funny, that's the same way our Military does it.........
Regardless, I had to stop carrying a gun after I found myself too intolerant of jackasses to make good decisions.

jd750ace wrote:
Texas does not have permits. We have licensing. The difference is, of course, a permit system allows any slack-jawed ass with influence to pack heat.
A license system requires the candidate to be schooled on the subject and show some degree of technical competence with the firearm. Funny, that's the same way our Military does it.........
Regardless, I had to stop carrying a gun after I found myself too intolerant of jackasses to make good decisions.

The same is (was?) true in Arizona when I got mine there...it was 3 days of classroom situation analysis and actual range shooting. If you failed either, you didn't get the license. Here in Washington, I got fingerprinted and paid $42 and that's it. I prefer the AZ way, personally...

RK