Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Smallest reliable 9mm

This ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Also agree with the guys that say to try them out first.

Have a ported Shield that is about as small as I would want to go. If a plus had been on the shelf at the time, I would have snagged that instead. Has been dead nuts reliable. More than I can say for my 5" M&P

FWIW: I'd recommend a holster for whatever gun you choose. Keeps some gunk out it and disguises it a little; but mainly keeps it pointed in the right direction.

I can add this since the thread came back up I've got a Springfield hellcat Pro have only shot it like 200 rounds but it's been absolutely flawless. but I'm sure there's smaller pistols that have worked just as good.
they may not be as use your friendly but they probably work as good..

Had one. NOT reliable. NOT accurate. Do NOT have it anymore.

(One thing I found .. +P ammo was less unreliable than standard pressure .. though still a long ways short of good.)

Hey, just want to thank you and JOG. Ordered and installed the front sight. No real special tools, but it helps if you're built for microsurgery. Did it in a tray to reduce the possibility of losing those tiny machine screws.

I am a big fan of my XDs 9mm and carry it often.

A bit of a tangent here since the original topic has been fairly well hashed out. Carrying on a bicycle is a conversation that comes up fairly often. There isn't a great solution. Anything body worn will get drenched with salty sweat. A holster that mounts to the head tube/top tube/down tube junction would allow for a quick draw. For dogs, a revolver with a few rounds of rat shot up front would probably be ideal.

As a dog lover, I DO NOT want to shoot someone's family member. In my experience, the overwhelming number of dogs that chase are doing it for the chase and will quit when I stop. In most cases, I can sprint away from dogs, and that is normally my first course of action. The downside to that is that if they cause a crash, that crash occurs at a higher speed. If I am on an uphill, I'll stop and dismount on the opposite side of the bike.

I have gotten off my bike and chased dogs off the road. Interestingly after doing so, those dogs have never been an issue again. Some of these interactions rely on instinct. So far my instincts have served me well.

One thing is for sure, after an armed encounter with a dog, a bicyclist better be ready for an encounter with the dog owner. Whether that encounter be a weaponized motor vehicle or an armed and angry pet owner. Because of the latter a low capacity small gun that would be fine for dog encounters may no longer be suitable.

Paul, I do agree. I'm not particularly afraid of dogs. Just like you, I have been chased probably hundreds of times. Only once have I been attacked by a dog intent on tasting blood. I usually carry pepper spray, and since a bad crash caused by an attacking dog, I usually dismount to confront any of the possibly serious encounters. I have had one large Pit looking dog only get more aggressive when pepper sprayed though. I won't shoot anybody's dog unless it's absolutely necessary to avoid getting seriously bitten, just like I wouldn't shoot a person unless absolutely necessary.

Sig Sauer P225.

If you need more...add the one round extension OR have someone retrain you on how to shoot...accurately.

I don’t carry a micro but in my small town of 7000, I do carry a compact. Mine is the Taurus G3c. It’s a 12+1 mag and comes with 2 extra mags. That’s because I also believe I’m my only protector. If I was concerned about a dog attack, and I know people who have been attacked I’d probably carry a small revolver. But I do know and believe that evil exists out there and never gives you a heads up. Evil plans on surprising us when we are least expecting it. I trust that gun and it’s very reliable.
There are no malls in this town but I do occasionally have to run to the grocery store.
380’s aren’t in this guy’s world!

my concern with a dog is that if they are chasing you or attacking you you have to move pretty fast to keep from being harmed, then hitting a moving animal is tough, expended bullets have a lawyer attached to each one. A dog attack is a tough one to deal with, then if you carry your CCW in a fanny pack or something, it might be a moment to get it out. How does pepper spray work on dogs? I have never tried it but have wondered if it was effective.

The Honest Outlaw (YouTube) recommends the G3 for those on a tight budget who don't already have a concealed carry pistol, but also suggests that, in his experience, they are not 100% reliable. He calls them 99% reliable, but recommends them above the High Point.

Glock 43X is the smallest 9 that I own, and it's reliable.

From a tactical situation, a dog or dogs chasing a cyclist is a tough one to manage. In a split second, I'll have to make the decision as to whether or not the dog is a threat and then decide whether to flee, not worry about it or engage. In most cases, a couple of pedal stokes will have me outrunning the dog if fleeing is the best option. With small dogs and dogs that don't seem threatening, I continue to pedal, or maybe coast, and talk to them. If it appears to be a bad dog that I can't run from, I immediately dismount.

I have only pepper sprayed one dog in my life and it hardly reacted. It rubbed its nose on the ground. I am very sensitive to pepper spray, so I have decided that it's not a good choice for me.

I have only had one dog that ever truly worried me. I was able to sprint away from it, but barely. It was a big Rott mix of some sort. I got the vibe that it meant business. I chased a pack of Pits back under their doublewide one time and yelled at their owners. I have chased other dogs back into their yards too. I have dismounted a few times to find that the dogs wanted to have their heads rubbed. Having been a dog person all my life, I guess I am good at understanding them. On occasion, I have put a shoe into them. Maybe I am just lucky that my interactions have never turned bad.

I can say the same for my original Glock 43. I've fired it extensively, and have never had a failure of any kind. That said, if I'm looking for a compact 9mm, what I carry is my Glock 26, since it's just as easy to carry and conceal as my Glock 43, and when I need something smaller, I generally go with my Glock 42 (.380 ACP). That usually leaves out the Glock 43.

I had an earlier model S&W Shield that I probably put around 1500 rounds of all kinds of ammo through and can't recall a malfunction. Wish I'd kept it.

I don’t carry the G3, Honest Outlaw tested the G3c and G2c and both went 1000 rounds without a single problem. I’m not on a tight budget I run what works for me. If I had a need to carry a full size gun it would be one of my M&P’s. But I don’t. I get rid of any gun that doesn’t work. Honest Outlaw has recommended both of the Taurus compacts multiple times. Carry what you are comfortable with, and fit your hand. Many of the guns recommend on this thread don’t fit my hand.

No, dude. Just No

In his most recent video, he did indeed suggest that in his experience it's 99% reliable.