Carrying a Concealed Carry Weapon (CCW) is an intensely debated balance of size, power, affordability, and shootablity. Whether you’re looking to just keep your weapon handy on the farm or range in case of a predator or pest sighting, or you’re trying to stay ready to defend yourself in a rough part of town, having a concealed weapon is often the best way to cover your bases without making yourself appear like you’re looking for a fight.

Humankind is extremely diverse in terms of size, weight, skill, and shape, and thus, not every concealed weapon works for all people. That being said, there are a couple of trends I’ve noticed over the years as concealed carry pistols have continued to evolve and change based on the whims and demands of the market, and today we’ll take a look at a couple of key changes I’ve noticed over the years when it comes to packing heat.

Capacity Is Still King Early concealed carry pistols often sacrificed both power and magazine or shot capacity in order to become concealable weapons. Early examples of this were derringer-style pistols which typically only featured two barrels. More modern examples include firearms like the Smith & Wesson M&P Shield with a standard magazine capacity of 7-rounds of 9mm, or guns like the Colt Defender which features the same magazine capacity while stepping you up to the .45 ACP cartridge. For the longest time, people were fine with sacrificing their magazine capacity for ultimate concealability.

Fast forward to today and the growing trend still seems to be increasing the standard magazine capacity of the firearm while still attempting to keep it to a concealable size. Most of you reading this will probably be screaming “Glock 19!” at the screen and you’d probably be right as the Glock 19 in my mind is still the “go-to” concealed carry gun when asked, “what’s your recommended CCW?” The Glock 19 combines a middle ground of capacity, size, and power for a concealable firearm that is still very shootable across a broad variety of situations.

More recent introductions like the SIG Sauer P365, M&P Shield Plus, and Springfield Hellcat have given concealed carriers much smaller pistols that often rival the capacities seen in full-size or standard compact guns meaning that you have much more firepower in a smaller frame. What this doesn’t eliminate are the shooting characteristics. Generally speaking, micro-compact and compact handguns are far less forgiving when it comes to staying accurate while shooting a pistol quickly. This in turn has resulted in frame sizes once again slowly creeping back up to sizes that rival the Glock 19 - See the SIG Sauer P365 X-Macro with a larger magazine capacity, smaller width, and same overall size.

​ In closing, I’m not saying that we’re going to simply revert back to the Glock 19. I still carry and train with a “micro-compact” 9mm pistol on the regular and it's my go-to daily carry. However, when the situation dictates it I’ll often carry a much smaller pistol like a Ruger LCP 380 when my attire doesn’t allow for the carrying of a larger firearm. In some rare instances, I’ll still carry a Glock 19 when I have something like a thick heavy jacket to cover it.

What I do notice though is that we’re extremely fortunate now to have a size and class of pistol for nearly every situation, combine that with the absolute wealth of reliable and high-quality aftermarket parts we have available to us for all these guns, and there is quite literally something for everyone out there. So if you’re still looking for that CCW pistol that “just fits” right into your life? Don’t give up, there is probably something out there for you, you just have to find it!