OK, here's the deal. I'll be turning 21 in January, which will mean I can start filing paperwork to obtain a concealed carry permit. I'm lucky enough to live ina shall-issue state, and since my record is clean and anyone you ask can tell you that I take firearm safety seriously, there should be no problem with the in-person stuff.
What I'm not sure about is what sort of gun I want to get. I stand at a full 6'8" tall (203cm for the metrc-minded) with a large frame, and weigh in at nearly 300 pounds (136kg.) I can comfortably conceal just about anything (Just for illustration, while airsofting with friends, I have completely hidden an
airsoft shotgun with dimensions identical to those of a sawed-off 870 in my pants and maintained a full range of motion.)
What I want to hear from the wise people of TFP is reccomendations for something that meets a few criteria.
1: Reliable.
2: Good stopping power
3: Reasonably easy to clean and service for someone who has not owned a handgun in the past.
4: Not unreasonably expensive to practice with (I will need to do this for a while before carrying it) on a college student's budget.
Basically, once I get recommendations, I'll start looking at renting a few at the local range and trying them out for a while.