JReedEsq

That's the key. Personally, I'd carry the 9mm for the following reasons: 1) I don't have significant experience with revolvers. 2) Most of our black bears are small and not agressive 3) If I were actually knocked down by a bear or startled by a boar, I'm confident I could unload a magazine of 9mm one-handed or weak-handed. 3) 9mm is less likely to make you deaf. 4)Two legged threats are likely more common that 4-legged. Just my opinion. I usually hike with a Glock 22, casually concealed. My wife carries bear spray. If the bears in the Smokies were bigger or if I had a lot of revolver experience, I could easily change my opinion. My only concern with bears or boars is if the pepper spray doesn't work, I sometimes wonder if I'd be better off with fmj than jhp. I've been carrying 180 grain jhp but I could switch to 180 grain flat nose or even to my Glock 17 with NATO fmj.

I'd say the best practice is to pick your kid up and hold them on your weak side. I love dogs but they are unpredictible. I have a hyper-active boxer that is absolutely great with my kids, but I don't trust him around other kids. He's jumpy with strangers and usually good with other small dogs. He wants to be around us and doesn't run away but he always stays on a leash in public.

It depends.... The leather backing will spread the pressure out over a larger area which may make it for or less comfortable. I think holsters are so subjective that what might feel more comfortable to you could be less comfortable to me. Personally, the only thing that makes any iwb comfortable for more than an hour in the car is to slide it around closer to 3:00 rather than my usually 4-4:30 position. 3:00 is less concealable for my body type but it doesn't matter to me if I'm driving. My Galco summer comfort, can be a little more comfortable, is easier to take on and off, and is easier to move around between positions if I'm going to be in and out of the car. For me, the real advantage to the supertuck is that the way I've got mine setup it conceals really well. If I want to conceal with just an untucked t-shirt, I go with the supertuck. I've even carried a full-size with an untucked short-sleeve button-down. It justs keeps the grip of the gun pointed right at the small of the back, even if I'm moving around. It's the most concealable holster I've tried. I keep trying new holsters. I've hated a few and kept a few, but I'll keep the supertuck in my lineup.

I've seen prices going up but no real reduction in inventory anywhere. Then again, I've only been to Wal-mart and Academy. A month or so ago, I was able to buy 100 rd value packs of Federal 9mm for $19.99. I've not seen them since but I've only looked once and I didn't really expect that to last anyway.

I've had a supertuck for awhile now but it may become a backup to the new holster I just got a holster from Frontline: http://frontline-hol...r-iwb-holsters/ They are an established Israeli company that's new to the US market. I am very impressed so far. It's a leather iwb with an insert that makes the draw comperable to kydex and keeps it open when empty. I'm impressed with the craftsmanship and little details such as a clip that absolutely won't pull off the belt etc... I'll keep my supertuck for now but the Frontline is a little easier to take on and off and has a nice small footprint, without the negatives I've found with some other leather holsters. I'd definitely suggest Frontline as another consideration. I've not been impressed with Desantis, their pocket holster doesn't offer a draw as smooth as my aholster, and a leather belt holster I had didn't stay open that well or cover the trigger guard well enough for me to feel comfortable. That's one thing that's awesome about the Supertuck. It does provide a very secure feeling to have kydex around the trigger guard. I've had good luck with Galco, Crossbreed, Aholster and now Frontline. I've got to say I'll look at Frontline's line-up for future holster needs. They have a lot of cool offerings. They make a shoulder holster for an Uzi, in case anyone has an urgent need for one.

On the few occasions I've spotted someone open carrying, I've been surprised that other people don't seem to notice or care. That said, I still prefer to CC. Just less of a hassle. I would like to ad however, that people on gun forums always seem to make a huge deal about printing when my experience is that the general population doesn't notice it at all. I always look at people pretty closely when they've got a magpul IPhone cover, are wearing a paracord bracelet etc... and I've been able to spot the gun on more than one occasion. In the last few weeks at church I've spotted: (1) 1911 magazine carried weak side under a sweater when someone was getting up, and (2) different ankle holsters. I pointed out both of them to my wife who assured me no one but another person who carries regularly would notice.

Hmm.... 9mm magazines, guide rod, lighter springs, extractor, conversion barrel... My case grows stronger for just keeping your 26. Maybe I'm regretting selling my 26???

If you already have a 26, why not just keep it, and practice with it? I think you just need 9mm magazines and the barrel to shoot 9mm at the range. You'll have to change the extractor if you want to make sure the gun is reliable enough for carry. I've seen mixed reviews on shooting 9mm with the .40 or .357 Sig extractor. It seems to work fine for some people, but cause some issues for others. Obviously, the .40 to .357 or .357 to .40 conversion is just the barrel swap since the .357 uses a .40 casing. The magazines and extractor are the same. Personally, I'd keep your 26. The sight picture/trigger/controls etc... are all the same so your practice shooting one should carry over to the other.

Sorry I missed it. Looks like you guys had fun.

Quick on the draw to make everything a caliber war eh? I had a G26 and replaced it with a G27. While I certainly believe 9mm is sufficient, I'm just not as bothered by .40 recoil as I used to be. That and I was able to find a reasonable price on a 4th Gen 27 before I found a 4th Gen 26. Honestly, I could be totally comfortable with 9 or .40.

Maybe you just need the right pocket holster and pants with slightly deeper pockets. Kydex holsters are way thinner than leather and can be designed to stay very stable in your pocket while hiding the contour of the pistol. I've got a Glock 27 in an aholster kydex pocket holster right now. I carried full-size all winter, but now it's too warm for me to keep a sport coat on all the time. All over the interweb, you'll mostly read that baby Glocks are too big for pocket carry. I guess I just don't agree with most people on this. I'm about 1/4" under 6 feet and 160lbs and wear pleated dress slacks. To answer the obvious questions: 1. Yes, you can tell something is in my pocket. 2. No, no one has ever asked if it's a gun, it looks square and I have a hard metal business-card holder and an android phone in my other front pocket most of the time. 3. Yes, the gun is a little heavy, I find a well-constructed belt helps with this even though the best doesn't touch the holster. I'm self-employed so I might be a little less concerned about printing that some folks but I'm convinced that many people don't think twice about a square shape in your pocket, maybe because so many people carry large smart-phones these days. The baby Glock may not be quite as light, or dissappear as easily as my Kel-tec P3AT; but it sure is a lot more comforting to me... http://www.lefthandholster.com/Pocket_Holster.php http://www.lefthandholster.com/Pocket_Holster.php Also, I also have a Supertuck, but I prefer pocket carry when tucking my shirt in and I don't have a jacket or sport coat.

When most people say "accuracy" what they really mean is what I'll call "shootability" which is how easy a certain gun is for them to shoot. This can be determined by a number of things other than the mechanical accuracy of the gun and might be different from one person to another. I also think Will Carry's comment is hilarous. When I shoot at the range and look at other people's targets I usually feel like I'm way better than the average person with an HCP. When I read online forums where people claim to shoot a 3" group at 20 yards with their carry gun, I'm reminded I suck.

This makes a lot of sense. Then again, you might consider a 23. That way you could have another caliber option in a package you know you like.

Anyone can get the SOR updates for free from the TBI.

4th Generation Glock 21 or 3rd Generation 21SF. It's and odd pick for me since I don't even own one or have plans to purchase on in the immediate future. What I do have is a 22(.40) and a 17(9mm). However, with the 10 round magazine thing would push me toward the .45. I'd like to pick up a 20(10mm) when the 4th Generation model is released, but I wouldn't pick a niche caliber for my only handgun and I consider the 10mm to be a niche caliber or I'd already own one. An extremely close second choice (maybe even a tie) would be an Smith & Wesson M&P .45.

I agree that bear spray is the best option for bears. When we hike my wife carries the bear spray and I carry a Glock. The point of my post is that if you spend enough time in the woods your chances of crossing paths with a bear are probably higher than they have been in the last 100 years. We like to spend a lot of time outdoors so I thought the bear spray was a good idea. The first line of defense is always sealing up all food containers in airtight plastic, making lots of noise and common sense. The most nervous I've been around a bear was an incident on July 4th a few years ago... The trail to Abram's Falls was very crowded and there were two bears in a tree very close to us. I had my son in a backpack and I told my wife something to the effect of "keep moving as quickly as possible before somebody does something stupid."

Http://news.TN.gov/node/3752 It doesn't take much of a google search to verify my impression that the bear population is really flourishing.

Check this out: http://m.npr.org/story/147060406?url=/2012/02/20/147060406/as-bear-population-grows-more-states-look-at-hunts Or this: http://www.wbir.com/news/article/205778/2/Growing-bear-population-upsets-neighbors

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Hey Analog, Have you been out a lot in the last few years? I've lived in East Tennessee nearly my entire life and I never saw bears in the wild until the last few years. My understanding is that the population is really increased. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I think the TWRA even extended the hunting season last year. My wife and I do a lot of hiking and in the last few years we've seen fresh scat and tracks several times, and have seen bears. We saw two bears about ten yards from us in a tree on July 4th 2010 and last summer we were doing a bike ride at Cades Cove and had a bear about 5 yards from us on the side of the road. Finally, we were hiking up to Gregory Bald from Parson's Branch last August when we ran into a Ranger politely mentioned a lot of bear activity in the area. I talk loudly so any bears probably moved off the trail if they heard us coming up the hill Of note, is that he is the only Ranger I've ever seen with a shotgun. I probably wouldn't have believed it if someone told me, but he had what I think was a Remington 870 with some kind of red dot on it. We bought some "Guard Alaska" bear spray from the Sportsman's Guide. It has great reviews online. The Gregory Bald hike was the first time my wife carried it and she was glad to have it. Incidentally, a friend of hers was recently riding a bike alone on Rich Mountain road (gravel park service road near Cades Cove) and was "chased" by a wild boar. Personally, I have never seen a wild boar and have no idea how aggressive they are, but I can tell you she was pretty freaked out. Personally, I can't believe that a female would be out in a remote area alone for other reasons, but that's her decision I guess. Realizing how off-topic this post is, my suggestion to the OP is just to get a HCP. It's a one-day class. I'm not sure why anyone who owns a handgun wouldn't go ahead and get the permit. As a lawyer, I've had lots of people ask me about the legalities of transporting a weapon or having a handgun in their vehicle. My response is always that if you are concerned about it you'll have a far better relationship with your friendly neighborhood Police Officer if you just get the HCP.

My wife had a Cocker Spaniel before we were married. We had to give it away because she (the dog) was too jealous of our son. She was undoubtedly the best small game hunter I've ever seen though. Our first house was in a very wooded area near the Knox County/Blount County line. The dog was constantly killing squirrels, moles and any other small animals she could find. They aren't my favorite dogs, but I'm not a cat person so I'd definitely recommend a Spaniel for a rodent problem.

PJ, Thanks alot for posting with the local companies info. My garage is really similar in size/style to the ones in the pics so it is possible that it might be accesible with a car in the garage if the the car is pulled all the way forward and the door is at the end. This is appealing to me since it wouldn't take up any room. My house is near the top of a hill so flooding shouldn't be an issue. This model is appealing because it wouldn't take up any room, but I am still concerned about cutting into the slab possibliy de-stabilizing things. One thing this website mentions is bolting a safe room to a patio. I think this would end up being expensive b/c my wife would insist on building a patio room around it to preserve the appearance of our back yard. You can also just roll the unit into a garage, but I'm absolutely not giving up any garage space. The biggest mistake we made when we had our home built was not to go bigger in the garage. I guess we've got a lot to think about.

You need a .22lr LCR to match your .38 special.

Check out sgammo.com. 50 rounds for a little more than 20 bucks cannot be beat. I also stocked up on 135 grain HST which was previously available at Wal-Mart in plain white boxes. I think it was $21.95... also 50 round boxes. People talk about having what the military and police have for some crazy SHTF scenarios. I'm not much of a tin-foil hat guy but I do appreciate a bargain.

I love the Federal Government contact overrun .40 ammo that can be bought cheap. The Federal HST is good stuff really cheap. This alone is a good reason to own a .40, although I also think the round has a reputation for harsh recoil which sends some folks back to 9mm.