Moonduck

Well, that said, good on ya! You sound liek you're going about it the right way.

SuperMidget is 100% correct here.

Personally, I would not mind carrying a .32ACP for self-defense. Then again I've been shooting for more than 20 years and trust in my ability to place my shots. Shot placement can make up for a lack of calibre.

I have a sort of flow-chart on concealed-carry weapons. It's a criteria that any potential CCW must pass before I'll actually consider it.

1) Is it a realistic possibility financially.

Sounds a bit obvious, but some people decide that they have to have that Seecamp, or they must carry a H&K P7M13 or whatever, and they can't really afford it. You have to buy the gun before you can carry it. (Personally, I prefer any gun I carry to not be too expensive. That way, the normal wear and tear of concealed carry won't bother me, and any possible damage can be inexpensively repaired.)

2) Is it safe/reliable?

This is usually the first question I ask as I will naturally avoid something I can't purchase. A concealed carry weapon must be, absolutely must be, 100% reliable. Accuracy can suffer, ballistic performance can suffer, size can suffer, but the gun MUST discharge every time the trigger is pulled and ONLY when the tirgger is pulled. No excuses, no alternatives.

3) Can I carry it concealed, and for long periods of time?

After safety and reliability, comfortable carry is the next question. That medium-framed .357 magnum may shoot well and be reliable, but it is pretty useless as a concealed piece if it cannot be comfortably carried for long periods, and concealed in such a way as to not print through your clothing.

4) How well does the gun fit me, my hand, my eye?

Fit is a very important issue. If the gun is painful to shoot, you won't practice it enough. Simple pain avoidance will kick in and you will find reasons to not shoot enough. You need to make sure that the weapon fits you in every way so that you will be as comfortable shooting it as possible. You want to minimize distractions visually as you cannot afford any more distraction in an already stressful situation such as would cause you to draw.

5) How much firepower does it have?

You will notice that this question is far down the list. There's a number of reasons for it. First is that most situations dangerous enough to necessaitate legally drawing your weapon will be defused by the simple act of you drawing your weapon. Stats show that the realization that the victim is armed is sufficient to stop most violent crimes immediately. Thus the very existence of the gun is sufficient enough threat to make firepower almost secondary to its' usefulness. Second reason is that any gun is better than no gun. Concealed carry is an avenue of last resort. If you have no better choices than a gun is better than the alternative, good firepower is merely a nice addition.

Also remember that firepower isn't just raw kinetic force. It is a combination of the round's power, magazine capacity, reload speed, accuracy (a missed shot is a useless, if not dangerous, shot), and bullet design. Hollowpoints tend to beat ball ammo in general, so a gun that reliably feeds commonly available hollowpoints is better. A quick magazine change time is better than a pepperbox or a gun that loads only from stripper clips.

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In the end, practice is still your best friend. You can overcome a fair amount of problems simply by practicing until you wear off your own rough edges. When you can hit the target whenever, wherever, and under whatever conditions, you still need to keep shooting to maintain that skill. It is expensive to shoot enough to gain proficiency, but it beats the alternative of not being to perform should your worst nightmare be realized.

Good luck, basmoq, and try to enjoy the shooting practice that you do. It makes you learn faster.