I'm a new subscriber and I've enjoyed reading your thoughts as these topics interest me as well. I have some firearms experience and I agree with your advice for new gun owners. As with all skills, training is the most important factor. One pistol selection filter you may have overlooked is magazine capacity and compatibility. A standard G19 mag holds 15 vs 10 rounds in the G48. Plus, those mags will also be compatible with the IDF's G19 or G17 mags, and those will be the mags that your pistol caliber carbine will use as well. That should tip the scales in favor of the G19.
Valid points. In my case, my long-suffering wife is a ballerina with tiny hands, so she does much better with a slimline sidearm and she's more apt to both train and to keep it with her. So this gets her from 0 rounds to 10 with an extra magazine and proficiency at a combat reload. Then an edged weapon. Then BJJ. But for anyone with larger hands, the G19 is completely valid. I love the topic so through the years have collected virtually every one (G18 my fav of course!). Great for reliability and the best for field stripping/cleaning. They are my favorite first sidearm. Also, I have a beloved gunsmith who completely rebuilds my Glocks to a sniper-like weight on the trigger. I trust myself to no touch the trigger 'till I'm ready to fire but with the weight reduced to almost nothing I'm almost as fast emptying the G19 as I am with the G18. The recoil can be enough to follow up if I keep moderate pressure on the trigger (this would not be the greatest fact pattern with a hostile DA however).
For myself, I carry the Sig 220. For myself, I have a mild preference for .45 (shock unevenly effective especially on drug addicts but everyone bleeds out so I like big calibers that make big holes) and can tolerate the noise/kick/expense. Also, I have a mild aesthetic aversion to plastic components so like the feel of steel. And I carry chambered so like the decocking mechanism. But I don't widely advocate this as I worry that the added expense of the larger caliber is self-defeating as it will lead to people training less and the noise/kick can annoy smaller people and most women. Shooting should be fun. I also carry a clinch pick next to my sidearm for weapon retention. It is a tiny little blade but very comfy in a reverse grip and transitions easily to grappling skills.
For carry, I rely on an extra magazine and tons of practice doing combat reloads. For my truck and home I rely on 60-round Surefire double stack mags of .556 with a last ditch 100-round mag (not ideal for prone however). It is grandfathered, but when I go shooting with cops in my bluest of blue states, they often joke "that's the biggest 10-round magazine (must be the current limit) I've ever seen!". In short: as big as possible (caliber) and as many as possible (rounds). You can never have too much firepower.
I like your attitude! The G18 is really cool. You’d fit in well here in FL. My club has matches every weekend and those 60 and 100 round surefire mags are a very commonly seen accessory. Also agree that firearms aren’t one size fits all especially for new or small stature shooters. A S&W 15-22 is a great way to get new shooters hooked and to learn the AR manual of arms. I like to have guns that take the same mags and ammo if possible. It makes long term planning much easier. So I have primary calibers (9mm, 12 gauge, 556mm) and secondary calibers (380, 10mm, 7.62x51, 7.62x39, 300 BO). I use the primary calibers for training and competing so I keep a large supply on hand always. The secondary calibers are for niche guns so usually only a few thousand rounds of each.
Chris, I can relate to a knee injury and wish you if possible, a speedy recovery. One thing you might consider is Katssu BFR cuffs for recovery and training with less load.
Thought you might find this interesting- https://open.substack.com/pub/bariweiss/p/3100-miles-to-nowhere?utm_source=direct&r=65jbr&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web
Thanks for the link! I love the FP, an invaluable place for great journalism. The NYT keeps declining while Bari, Nellie et al soar.
For sure! 👍🏻
I'm a new subscriber and I've enjoyed reading your thoughts as these topics interest me as well. I have some firearms experience and I agree with your advice for new gun owners. As with all skills, training is the most important factor. One pistol selection filter you may have overlooked is magazine capacity and compatibility. A standard G19 mag holds 15 vs 10 rounds in the G48. Plus, those mags will also be compatible with the IDF's G19 or G17 mags, and those will be the mags that your pistol caliber carbine will use as well. That should tip the scales in favor of the G19.
Valid points. In my case, my long-suffering wife is a ballerina with tiny hands, so she does much better with a slimline sidearm and she's more apt to both train and to keep it with her. So this gets her from 0 rounds to 10 with an extra magazine and proficiency at a combat reload. Then an edged weapon. Then BJJ. But for anyone with larger hands, the G19 is completely valid. I love the topic so through the years have collected virtually every one (G18 my fav of course!). Great for reliability and the best for field stripping/cleaning. They are my favorite first sidearm. Also, I have a beloved gunsmith who completely rebuilds my Glocks to a sniper-like weight on the trigger. I trust myself to no touch the trigger 'till I'm ready to fire but with the weight reduced to almost nothing I'm almost as fast emptying the G19 as I am with the G18. The recoil can be enough to follow up if I keep moderate pressure on the trigger (this would not be the greatest fact pattern with a hostile DA however).
For myself, I carry the Sig 220. For myself, I have a mild preference for .45 (shock unevenly effective especially on drug addicts but everyone bleeds out so I like big calibers that make big holes) and can tolerate the noise/kick/expense. Also, I have a mild aesthetic aversion to plastic components so like the feel of steel. And I carry chambered so like the decocking mechanism. But I don't widely advocate this as I worry that the added expense of the larger caliber is self-defeating as it will lead to people training less and the noise/kick can annoy smaller people and most women. Shooting should be fun. I also carry a clinch pick next to my sidearm for weapon retention. It is a tiny little blade but very comfy in a reverse grip and transitions easily to grappling skills.
For carry, I rely on an extra magazine and tons of practice doing combat reloads. For my truck and home I rely on 60-round Surefire double stack mags of .556 with a last ditch 100-round mag (not ideal for prone however). It is grandfathered, but when I go shooting with cops in my bluest of blue states, they often joke "that's the biggest 10-round magazine (must be the current limit) I've ever seen!". In short: as big as possible (caliber) and as many as possible (rounds). You can never have too much firepower.
I like your attitude! The G18 is really cool. You’d fit in well here in FL. My club has matches every weekend and those 60 and 100 round surefire mags are a very commonly seen accessory. Also agree that firearms aren’t one size fits all especially for new or small stature shooters. A S&W 15-22 is a great way to get new shooters hooked and to learn the AR manual of arms. I like to have guns that take the same mags and ammo if possible. It makes long term planning much easier. So I have primary calibers (9mm, 12 gauge, 556mm) and secondary calibers (380, 10mm, 7.62x51, 7.62x39, 300 BO). I use the primary calibers for training and competing so I keep a large supply on hand always. The secondary calibers are for niche guns so usually only a few thousand rounds of each.
Man I should move to FL! That sounds like a great club. I don't have a S&W 15-22 but think that would be a great addition for the whole family.
Chris, I can relate to a knee injury and wish you if possible, a speedy recovery. One thing you might consider is Katssu BFR cuffs for recovery and training with less load.
Thanks; I'll try that.