Mousegun or not?

We moved out of Maryland October 2015 and now have been in our new home in Georgetown Texas for a year and three months. It's been nice, living in a free American state, and one of the very first things both the wife and I did on arrival in Texas was, to sign up for the class to get qualified to get out carry license.

Now a year later I have some thoughts on carrying a gun all the time. Basicly, it's a pain in the butt. My Glock 26 is actually a bit too big for hot weather carry. And we get a lot of hot weather down here in the Lone Star state. July and August is about 10 degrees hotter than Germantown Maryland, and sometimes the humidity is lower, sometimes not. All depends if weather is coming from the arid west Texas area or up from the south and the gulf of Mexico. Summer time garb is shorts, T-shirts or very loose short sleeve sport shirts, and Keen sandals.

I hate inside the waistband carry. I've got the high ride kydex holster for the Glcok, but I'm looking to downsize to something that will literally fit in the side pocket of Wrangler jean shorts. Soooo, this brings us to the question of mouse guns.

I've looked at the Bond Arms derringer in 9mm or even .45acp. They have a model called the backup in both calibers and it's the shortest derringer Bond makes. I've also looked at the Ruger LCP, the Ruger LCR in 9mm with the moon clips.

Over the past year, I've actually found myself carrying one of the little North American Arms mini .22 revolvers. Drops in a pocket, easy to carry, and way better than harsh language. On the range, I've been aboe to keep the rounds inside the chest area of the half size silhouette at double arms length, which is about as far as I'd try to hit anything with it. Frankly, I don't know if the mini .22 would quality as a mouse gun, since I don't think it's accurate enough to hit a mouse at anything but contact range.

So, has anyone ever heard of a mini. 22 actually being used to stop an assault or have any real defensive use in real world conditions?

I'm a little leery of carrying something like a Ruger LCP with a round in the chamber in my right front pocket. A little too close to valuable property if you know what I mean. So I'm more inclined towards a Ruger LCR if it fits in there. The North American has a safety notch in between the cylinders the the hammer nose rest in, so at least I know that MY property is safe if nothing else. The Bond Arms backup derringer has a hammer blocking safety on it, and only 2 shots, but maybe .45 caliber on tap.

I'm not sure where I'm going to go. Right now I'm just dropping the little .22 in the pocket.

Alternative is experiment with different holsters for the Glock 26 and buy baggier shirts for summer in Texas.

I don't consider NAA mini revolvers to be anything more than a novelty. It *might* cause a perp to turn and run if he doesn't give it a second look. It *might* penetrate a perp as a true belly gun if held against the perp's gut, *if* you can manage to cock the hammer and fire it under stress. I'd rather carry the LCP in a quality pocket holster with a round chambered. It's no 9mm but way better than the NAA. It doesn't have a trigger that's easy to pull the entire length of travel by accident. I'm not a fan of pocket carry with no holster. At least get something to cover the trigger.

If you're pocket carrying that NAA without a holster and fully loaded, the "safety" notch is not a safe way to carry it. Plenty of people have tried that and had a ND/AD inside their pocket. I suggest researching it online. It's highly frowned upon.

Just say no to rimfire PD guns. Not reliable enough for me, thanks. Pocket carry of the LCP or LCR in a pocket holster is nice and easy. I'd wear cargo shorts instead of jorts, but that's me. Not a big fan of a derringer as primary carry gun.

Almost forgot to respond about the BA derringer. For what it is, it's big, too heavy, awkward to use, and only two shots. You're much better off with a Ruger LCR or S&W 442.

SIG P938 9mm, or a P238 .380 +P (just as nasty as a 9mm). Both fit in front pockets just fine. I've carried both cocked and locked like a 1911. Both have 7 round magazines plus one in the chamber. IF that ain't enough for you, the P238 takes ten round Colt 380 mags.

I pocket an LCR. You can also make a Shield (and I would guess a G43) fit in Wranglers, but it's uncomfortable. LCR is easy-peasy.

Also, I'd just go with a .38+p and forget the 9mm, but that's just me.

Beretta 21A Bobcat.
DA/SA, 7 rounds.
I wouldn't want to get in a shootout with it but putting 7 CCI stingers in someone's chest might encourage them to leave you alone.

If I was going to pocket carry, I'd try the S&W 442/642. If even that was too bulky, I'd resolve to carry IWB before downsizing the gun any further.

I throw my Glock 42 into the front pocket of my shorts or jeans when I am on my property. Feels like it weighs as much as my wallet and pocket knife which are my normal EDC.

cb51 said:

I'm a little leery of carrying something like a Ruger LCP with a round in the chamber in my right front pocket. A little too close to valuable property if you know what I mean. So I'm more inclined towards a Ruger LCR if it fits in there. The North American has a safety notch in between the cylinders the the hammer nose rest in, so at least I know that MY property is safe if nothing else. The Bond Arms backup derringer has a hammer blocking safety on it, and only 2 shots, but maybe .45 caliber on tap.

I'm not sure where I'm going to go. Right now I'm just dropping the little .22 in the pocket.

Alternative is experiment with different holsters for the Glock 26 and buy baggier shirts for summer in Texas.

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How is a LCR any safer than a LCP? The trigger pull on a LCP is not accidental, let me assure you. It's not going to fire unless you pull that l o n g and heavy trigger pull.

jaredm1 said:

If I was going to pocket carry, I'd try the S&W 442/642. If even that was too bulky, I'd resolve to carry IWB before downsizing the gun any further.

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Or buy baggier shorts and give the boys more room to breathe.

Schipperke said:

How is a LCR any safer than a LCP? The trigger pull on a LCP is not accidental, let me assure you. It's not going to fire unless you pull that l o n g and heavy trigger pull.

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Exactly. The new LCP trigger is shorter but not that much so. It's designed to emulate a revolver trigger.

Carry pepper spray too. I carry an ASP Palm Defender, sometimes a Pepper Blaster II. EDC SIG P938 and NNA 22lr (backup, or special circumstances).

I'd go with Boom Boom's suggestion of the S&W 442. I'd load it with one of the self defense loads designed for short barrels.

Glad you can have such "problems" in free America.

Given the very small sizes available in .380 pistols these days, I don't see any reason to depend upon a .22. Just my .02.

since you're already familiar with glocks, i'd recommend the glock 43 9mm.

I own several of the small handguns mentioned here and when I lived in VA, during the summer, the NAA Black Widow 22 Mag. frequently got the nod as my carry firearm. Sometimes even my LCP - in a proper pocket holster - is still too bulky. That Black Widow is easy enough to conceal in PT clothing and 5 rounds of 22 Mag is nothing to laugh at.

pbharvey said:

Beretta 21A Bobcat.
DA/SA, 7 rounds.
I wouldn't want to get in a shootout with it but putting 7 CCI stingers in someone's chest might encourage them to leave you alone.

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A Beretta Bobcat is the same size and only a couple of ounces more. But it is .32acp.

I carry an old Beretta .25 when it's hot and I'm dressed for comfort. I wouldn't want to get shot by it. Beats the hell out of nothing at all.

Single stack 9s or 380s are getting pretty tiny these days. Beretta Pico/Nano, Ruger LCP/LCR/LC9, S&W Bodyguard, etc.

I can't see a real reason to opt for a 22LR with the options available today.