A pocket pistol is not for everyone but in my opinion there is a place for one. In this article I will talk about the pros and cons of pocket pistols and which one I like to carry and some mistakes I made along the way. Some people move right to these pistols for their one and only concealed carry handgun and that may not be the best choice, lets look at this in more detail.
Pocket Pistols Available
There are many pocket pistols on the market these days to choose from and many things to think about. Lets look at what I did –
About 10 years ago I decided I wanted a pocket pistol to add to my gun collection, so I went down to Sportsman’s Warehouse and looked at what they had. I did not have a lot of cash at that time to invest in a new pistol so the driving force behind my decision was price! I found a “cute little gun” and bought it.
It was a Taurus TCP, .380 ACP, two-tone beauti and I thought I found a great deal (see the photo at the right). I made an impulse buy! Not a good idea when you are talking about a handgun! I was an experienced shooter, I had already purchased quite a few firearms and I never thought I would buy on emotion. I did not look into the facts, the reviews, etc. I just bought a cute little gun. So to make a long story short it was not the best gun for me. In the rest of this article we will talk about many things about pocket pistols and then wrap things up with my final choice on the pocket pistol that I finally went with.
Cost Of The Firearm
The cost of a firearm is definitely something you need to consider these days. Ever since COVID, the prices of firearms have gone through the roof. There are lots of handguns and rifles that I would really like to purchase but the price that they sell for do not make them worth it to me. So the price of a specific firearm is something to consider. We all need to set our own parameters as to what we are going to pay for a firearm. But if you buy a firearm strictly on price, it is not always the best one for you.
Taurus firearms are good but some models are better than others so you need to do your research and listen to reviews on the specific models so you know if they are worth buying. That little Taurus TCP had a few ammo feeding issues and if I would have found out about that at the beginning I may not have purchased it and it would have saved me some headaches later on.
Calibers Available
When we think of pocket pistols, they are usually in the following calibers: .22 LR, .22 mag, .25 ACP, .32 ACP, .380 ACP and 9 mm.
Using a handgun with these smaller calibers is better then having no handgun at all, but you need to look at each caliber from a self defense perspective before you place your life on the lines with one of these smaller calibers.
When I am considering which caliber to carry for self defense, the smallest caliber I would use is the .380 ACP, those other calibers would not stop a threat adequately in my opinion. Are there situations where they have stopped the threat, Absolutely! But I need a handgun that will do the job if necessary. The .380 ACP is also called the 9 mm short as it is the same diameter of bullet, just shorter in length
. If you look at the picture to the right you will see what I mean. With a shorter case, you have less powder in the bullet and therefore less power in that cartridge. While the 9mm has much more power behind it, these pistols are also larger and may be less concealable.
So one big advantage of a .380 ACP pocket pistol is that they are smaller and easier to conceal. You need to weigh out the advantages and disadvantages of each pocket pistol and make your own decision.
Ease Of Shooting
Many people think that a small gun is easier to shoot and that is not true. Pocket pistols are small and have less fingers around the grip and that makes the recoil harder to control. When shooting most pocket pistols you can only get two fingers on the grip so your pinky is tucked underneath the magazine. So that is not always a comfortable way to shoot.
In other words a pocket pistols may not really be fun to shoot, since you do not have a full grip on the gun, the recoil is much snappier in your hand and so you may not enjoy shooting 50 rounds of bullets to practice control of that little gun.
As we continue to analyze the ease of shooting we need to add the 9 mm to the list of pocket pistols. If a .380 ACP can be snappy to shoot as a pocket pistol then what do you think the 9mm pocket pistols would feel like? It could be brutal! So to wrap this up, the smaller the gun and the larger the caliber usually means they are harder to control and will usually have much more recoil felt in the hand. These are things to consider before you buy a pocket pistol. That is why many people use a .380 ACP instead of a 9mm in a pocket pistol and I am in that group of people.
When shooting the Taurus TCP is was not bad, the .380 ACP recoil was pretty mild and therefore easy to control, but there was one bigger issue. I could shoot a few rounds and then it would jam! There seemed to be an issue with feeding the bullets consistently, and that’s a problem for a self-defense handgun. After a lot of research and talking to people, I found out that this particular handgun had bullets hung up on a little tab inside the gun and it would make the bullets stop feeding. A video on YouTube showed how to fix that problem and with a little light filing on that tab, the problem was solved.
Shooting Distance
Because these guns are smaller the distance between sights is closer together and that usually makes it more difficult to shoot long shots with these pocket pistols. Many of the pocket pistols have fixed sights that cannot be adjusted so longer shots become more difficult. These guns are usually used very quickly; they draw, point and shoot and may not use the sights very much. So 7 – 10 yards is usually the maximum distance. Can you shoot farther? That depends on the gun and how you handle it.
The Taurus TCP is one of those pocket pistols that has fixed sights only and therefore cannot be changed. So I had to make sure I was not shooting much past 7 feet and also realize that the Taurus shot low and to the right, even though I had the sights on the target.
Holsters Of Choice
So lets talk about how these pocket pistols can be carried. There are many different types of holsters that these little guns can be carried in. Inside the waist band (IWB), outside the waist band (OWB), shoulder holster, small of the back (SOB), appendix carry and pocket holster. My first choice for a pocket pistol is in your pocket. But to do that safely, you need a pocket holster
that covers most of the gun, including your trigger guard. When you carry a pistol in your pocket you need to make sure nothing else is in your pocket so to get in your way of the gun. This holster covers the shape of the gun so it will not “print”. This means other people cannot see that you have a gun in your pocket because they cannot see the shape of your gun. When you carry this way you need to make sure your pants are not too tight and that your pocket has enough room for your gun and holster. If you look at the holster it has a point on the top end and a hook on the bottom end of the holster. This aids in stripping the holster from your pocket as the weapon is drawn from your pocket.
My second favorite holster for this pocket pistol is an IWB holster
. It needs to fit your handgun and securely clip on to your belt. The holster must cover your trigger guard and keep the handgun in the holster until you are ready to draw it. There is a retention screw on the back end of the holster where you can tighten the holster so the weapon will not fall out. This is a holster that I found on Amazon but it is a pretty good holster for the money.
Final Comments
With all that said, I am in favor of carrying pocket pistols as a concealed carry firearms, as long as you get the right one for you. So lets get to the meat of the article, after much research on the Internet and talking to people at gun stores, I decided to go with the Ruger LCP Max
. This little handgun has great reviews and many people feel this is the best pocket pistol on the market. This is a .380 ACP caliber and it holds 10 rounds in the magazine. They also have a 12 round magazine but I do not like the base plate on that magazine. I added a Pearce grip extension and it gives me a better grip on the pistol. it fits my fingers better and gives me better control of the pistol. The Taurus TCP only held 6 bullets in the magazine so the Ruger almost doubles the capacity and that’s a good thing. More capacity in a similar size package. This pistol is about the same size and weight as the Taurus but it fits me better. It just feels better in my hand, meaning it is more comfortable and feels better to shoot.
One of the other things I like about this pistol is it has adjustable sights on the front and rear and a Hi-Vis Tritium night sight on the front instead of the fixed sights like the Taurus. As I mentioned earlier, sights may not always used with these little guns with fixed sights because they cannot be adjusted but since this pistol has adjustable sights, it makes it much more accurate to shoot.
The picture to the right shows the Ruger in the pocket holster
, what a nice little holster that can be slipped in your front pocket. As I said before, it almost disappears in your pocket. It is an excellent combination for this pocket pistol to be concealed. Once this is in your pocket you can have your hand on the grip and it cannot be observed until you pull the pistol out of your pocket and put it into action. Very slick and concealed. These pocket holster by Aholster work great and they will hook on the front of the holster when pulling it out of your pocket or catch on the bottom hook as pressure is applied on the bottom of the holster.
The other way I like to carry this pocket pistol now and then is in an IWB holster
. It is such a small package that it melts into your waistband and you hardly know that it is there. But keep in mind that even though it is small you still need to use a cover garment when carrying this pistol in a IWB holster. That’s why I like the pocket holster better for such a small gun. As a rule If I am going to carry a gun in my waste band I would rather have a larger caliber, with a longer barrel that I shoot better. That being said there are times in the hot summer time where this small Ruger works best in my waist band.
So as you can see I like the Ruger LCP Max better than the Taurus TCP. Are they both reliable – Yes, now that I fixed the feeding issues on the Taurus. They are both .380 ACP and about the same size, the Ruger holds more ammo, has adjustable sights and just plain feels better in my hand. So as I consider those guns the Ruger gets my vote all the way. This little gun just works better for me and I feel more confident with it. So what am I going to do with the Taurus? I have a friend that needs one and I will give it to him. I hope you can learn from my mistakes and think about your gun purchases and do the research necessary to make the right decision.
If you have any questions about this post or anything related to Everyday Carry (EDC)/Concealed Carry, feel free to leave a comment below and I will be happy to get back to you.
All the best,
Larry
Founder of Everyday Carry Essentials
But everyone knows that we should all carry a folding knife, or should we?
out there. It is safe, easy to conceal, and can be in a small package and placed in your pocket. For many years they have been known as pocket knives. It is easy to get in and out of your pocket for daily tasks and does not usually get in the way. Some of the folding knives have a locking mechanism which keeps it open until you wish to close it.
is much stronger and ridged since it is made out of a solid piece of steel, they can be used rougher and work stronger than a folder. They are more durable and hold up to the elements well because they do not have a folding mechanism as with a folding knife. A fixed-blade knife is easier to clean and maintain and can be deployed faster in a self defense situation.
. I have used it for many years and it is the handgun I am most comfortable with. Since it is considered a sub compact handgun, it has a 10-round, doubled stacked magazine that feeds the .45 ACP bullets very reliably. Compared to other concealed handguns it is a bit thick and heavier but I still like it.
, it is a smaller package and prints less with hot-weather clothing. So let me describe my warm-weather clothing, it is a pair of jeans and a tucked-in tee shirt with an untucked short-sleeved shirt as a cover garment. While the Glock 26 is small it still needs something to cover my IWB holster. It too has a 10-round, double stacked magazine for the 9mm bullets and that helps its concealability. But ever since I picked up the Glock 15 I am beginning the reconsider if it is the best handgun to use.
and while it is smaller than the Glock 30 it has a 15-round magazines which works out great is an adequate amount of firepower for a concealed carry firearm.. As I am getting older, smaller handguns feel better in my IWB holsters so this Glock 19 is beginning to seem like a better option for me these days. I replaced the stock plastic sights with XS Sights F8 night sights and they are really nice. They installed very easy and are very accurate. The Glock 19 holds 5 more rounds then the G26 and has a slightly longer barrel, that being said this makes the G19 a bit more accurate and has more firepower. This handgun still conceals very well so that is making me reconsider my gun of choice.
and is new to me, I do not carry it very much right now. I am still breaking it in and until I have fired 400-500 rounds through it without a reliability problem I will not use it for self defense. But so far I love the gun and it carries very well in my IWB holster. Now because these handguns are single action, they need to be carried “cocked and locked” and that brings up a whole bunch of other safety concerns. Will I address them in this article, probably not! Will I address them in another article, possibly! But if I cut to the chase right now and say when I have this pistol broke-in and I feel it is reliable, I will carry it “cocked and locked”!
and is a pocket pistol, this is also my warm weather concealed carry handgun. So the question comes up, if I have a Glock 26 that I just said was for warm weather then why would I want another one? Well in Colorado we have some fairly hot weather in the Summer and those days I cannot tolerate a cover garment as I sweat very badly. Therefore, thats why I have the MAX. With the right kinds of pants this little gun can be placed in a pocket holster and slipped in your pocket completely un-noticed. Some people might just not carry a pistol on those days when it is uncomfortable. But I would rather have a smaller handgun that can be carried during uncomfortable times and therefore be armed all the time. If you are interested in Pocket Pistols, look for my next article, “My Little Pocket Pistol”, It will have more details about these small guns.
I can only put on a 4-shot side saddle on my receiver and that limits my extra shotgun shells capacity.
until it is free from the end of the magazine and pull the barrel off, and set it aside.
just above the trigger and place it in a dish or safe container so it does not get lost. 
down and forward from the receiver and set it aside.
, two rails will become loose and they need to be set aside too.
so they will not get lost.
you can pull the forend grip out of the receiver and off of the magazine tube.
, as seen in the picture. My first choice would have been a bandsaw, but mine is out of commission right now.
I had a metal cutting blade in it so the cut would be very smooth. As I cut the synthetic forend grip I cut very slowly so I could keep control of the saw so it would not over-cut the grip.
, it really turned out great and if you did not know I changed it you would not know anything was different. 
to fit your receiver so it will be easy to put on, making sure that the serial number is visible and not covered up by the Velcro.
with alcohol to remove the dirt, oils, etc. that might cause the Velcro not to stick.
. Make sure you press all over the piece of Velcro so that the glue bonds to the receiver. (Leave it alone for a few hours so the glue sets well. It might be helpful to place a heavy book on top of the Velcro during those few hours).
, I like to have the loop facing forward so I can pull it off in one clean motion after racking the slide, then replace it with a full one.
on the market today and here are a few that work very well:
savers, 
If you decided to build your gun cleaning kit from scratch, you would first need a container to hold everything. My favorite is a fishing tackle box with three shelves, they have plenty of dividers to keep all your items separate and organized. Once you have your container picked out then you need to customize your kit how you would like it. I have collected a lot of cleaning supplies through the years so making my own was very easy. I added brass cleaning rods, brass jags, cleaning patches, cleaning brushes (nylon and brass), Q-tips, pipe cleaners, cotton swabs, Hoppes #9 solvent squeeze bottle, Hoppes elite gun cleaner, Break Free CLP, and some wash clothes. 
I have recently added a Otis Tactical Gun Cleaning System and it works great. I also added a bore scope, a 1911 front lug wrench, some small screwdrivers, needle nose pliers, a pick set (plastic), and some silicone rags. This is very mobile kit but I usually just use it at home for good gun cleaning. The newest addition to my cleaning kit is a Otis Tactical Gun Cleaning System, it has everything necessary to clean rifles, shotguns and pistols. It gives me the tools to always clean from the breech to the muzzle and that is the best way to clean. I just purchased a one piece cleaning rod to be used on very stubborn gun cleaning situations, these will not scratch your bore or crown when cleaning. I also added a smaller version of the Otis Cleaning System to my MB Sxowbmu Handgun Tactical Range Backpack (See the review on March 24,2022) for quick cleaning at the range.
I take it a step further because I make my own knife sheaths, I use a Kydex press, some blue painter’s tape, two clamps to hold the press together, and the heat gun of course. Now some people say you can use a hairdryer but I do not feel it gets quite hot enough and therefore it can get frustrating. It is not in my picture but I like to also wear a pair of leather gloves to insulate your hands from the hot Kydex and decrease a chance of a burn.
, it is an awesome OWB holster that I love to wear but it is just a little tight around the slide. I find if I do this to the holster, the finish on my handgun lasts much longer. Some people just use the heat gun to soften the Kydex, put your gun in the holster, and then systematically press on the holster in the areas that you want to change. I like to use blue painter’s tape in the areas that are tight, maybe two layers of tape to give just a little bit of clearance in those areas. Then you just can either put the holster in the Kydex press or just use hand pressure to conform the holster to the new desired contour of the holster. The Kydex Press works great when making a holster from scratch but once it is made and has belt loops, etc. already there. Hand pressure works best and does not disturb the entire holster.
your handgun in those areas, as seen in the picture to your right. Place your leather gloves on your hands.
surface. Place the handgun in the softened holster and begin to push down with your thumbs.
when loaded correctly it has a lot of knockdown power that will give you what you need in a trail gun. There are quite a few good handgun manufacturers out there that make the 10 mm, and the decision was a bit difficult. I have chosen the Glock 20, it is the full-size version with a 4.61-inch barrel that holds 15 rounds plus one in the chamber. They have a Glock 29 which is one of their subcompacts with a 3.78″ barrel and it holds 10 bullets in the magazine and one in the chamber. While it is also a great handgun, I like the full-size handgun with more rounds in the magazine. Some people insist on carrying a 44-magnum revolver with 5 or 6 bullets in the cylinder. They are more powerful then than a 10mm but I like having 15 bullets instead of 6 in my trail gun. Plus I can shoot a 10 mm better than I can a 44 mag and that is more important to me. A well-placed 10 mm round means more to me than a shot from a 44 mag that is not where I wanted it to go.
, while it is a great self-defense caliber and greater diameter bullet, it is fairly slow-moving and does not have enough energy to cause great damage to a predator if you need to use it. With the correct ammunition, a 10mm having a 180 gr bullet would go 1350 fps and have 728 ft. lbs. compared to a 230 gr 45 ACP bullet would have 830 fps with 455 ft. lbs of energy. If you were in a situation where you needed protection from a predator the 10mm would give you better odds.
being very active or wearing a backpack there is only one type of holster, in my opinion, that I see working in these situations, it’s the chest holster. The chest holster is a holster that is mounted on your chest, held there by a harness system that secures your handgun very well. There are many different manufacturers of a chest holster but there are two that I would stand by, Gunfighters, INC, and Diamond D Leather. Gunfighters.INC makes a Kydex chest holster named Kenai Chest Holster (upper picture) and Diamond D Leather
makes a leather chest holster named the Guides Choice Holster (bottom picture). They both are fantastic! I was told once that if you had a polymer handgun go with Kydex and if you had a stainless steel handgun, go with leather. I am partial to Kydex and therefore the Kenai Chest Holster gets my vote. They are a bit pricy but well worth it. They fit your handgun perfectly and are extremely secure. They are an all-weather holster that works over the top of your jacket or just under an outer shell. They have an extra magazine holder on the harness strap which is easy to get to. These holsters are ideal if you wear a backpack while in the outdoors. Just put on the holster and then put on your backpack and off you go. When it is time to rest you can remove your backpack and keep your handgun on your body. If you need your firearm they a very fast to get to and so very comfortable as your shoulders take all the weight of your handgun.
makes it very difficult to hold down that lever so you can remove the slide. Trying to dig your fingernails into that little bar can be very frustrating. Installing a new extended slide stop is a very easy and simple modification that you can do yourself instead of going to a gunsmith. Installing this extended slide stop makes removing the slide so much easier. As you can see by the picture
, the original slide stop on top and the new extended slide stop on the bottom is not a lot different in size, only about 4mm different in length. But just that much longer makes the takedown process much easier.
about the possibility that they can break and a broken sight renders the handgun almost useless. 
It is nice to be able to have an adjustable rear sight so you can easily zero in your handgun.
Sights. The reviews on them are really good and I have always wanted to try them out. These are a little different in the fact that it is not a three-dot system. There is only one dot in the front and one dot in the rear and you just line the dots up and shoot, they call it a figure eight. They too are made especially for Glocks and should be easy to install. So at least I have another option.
these grip extensions. But if you have a compact or subcompact, they will really work out nice for you.
you add a pierce grip extension to your magazines, like the Glock 30 in the middle picture or the bottom picture in the Glock 26, you can add another finger to your grip, thus making your grip more stable.
rest your pinky finger. The Glock 30 (middle picture) holds one extra bullet, while the bottom picture shows my Glock 26 with the grip extension that only rests your pinky finger, with no extra bullets. Whether you choose extra bullets or not, having a place for your pinky finger makes a big difference in control of your handgun and it looks pretty cool too.
For about $20.00 and some personal labor, my handgun had better grip texture and is really pretty sweet. The package that you see comes with some great instructions, a pad with alcohol, and the pre-cut grips for your specific handgun. If you order these, make certain that you order the correct one for your handgun, as there are many different shapes available.
the alcohol pad to remove any dirt or oils on the grip. Then place the grip in the desired starting place and press down on the decal, pushing the air out as you go. Once complete, use a heat gun or hairdryer to heat up the decal which makes it tighter and finishes the job.
for a pretty good price. It was a basic model but it worked fine for me. I went to a gunsmith and had him install an ambidextrous safety, a beavertail grip safety, and polish the feed ramp for reliability. Then I sent my slide to Novak’s and had him install a set of night sights, so it was just as I wanted it for shooting. It shot really well and gave me something I could enjoy for many years.
in a pawn shop, it was also very basic but brand new and was something I could enjoy turning into a gun that I really wanted. I took it to a gunsmith and had him polish the feed ramp and a few other things to make it very reliable. Then I sent it to Novak’s to put on a set of night sights so it would shoot better. I traded the black plastic grips for some better black rubber ones and that made things much better when I shot the handgun.
. I was extremely surprised, I never thought I would see one of those new designs this soon after production. Besides being a beautiful handgun it has all the things I put on my old 1911 and a few more except the ambidextrous safety at a very reasonable price. They had two variations of this gun, one with a 5″ barrel and the other with a 4.25″ barrel. Since I would like to carry it concealed, I thought the 4.25″ barrel would be the best choice. Now the tug-of-war began between buy it now or buy it later. I knew that the way the gun market was at that point, it may not be there if I waited. So I decided to buy it at that time and I did! How exciting!