What is your concealed carry firearm of choice?

I would love to hear from some of the petite ladies regarding their concealed carry firearm.

I'm not a large woman (5'2 110+) and I know most guns tend to be a little large for me to carry concealed on my person. I always seem to have a gun sized lump!

I'm looking at the new Beretta Pico coming out later this year. Although I'm a Springfield Armory gal and the XD-S is calling me name, I'm not sure if it is the best for me.

Hi Candy,
I am not a petite woman, so I can't advise you in those regards, but I did buy a Springfield XDs and would really like to share my experience about that pistol since you mentioned it was calling your name...

I have been wanting the XDs since it was first announced at SHOT Show two years ago. I saw it and just fell in love with it. There is so much to love about it; it has a slim profile which the rest of the XD family is severely lacking, the grip fits a woman's hand nicely, it has the hi-viz front sight for rapid sight acquisition, and it is a .45 acp! What more could a girl want?

I finally broke down and bought an XDs, plus a new holster and horizontal mag holder that is really cool. In case I didn't make it clear, this little pistol is perfect in every respect UNTIL I GOT TO THE RANGE! I have put approximately 500 rounds thru it, so it should be broken in by now. Some will say that it is user error, but I am a very experienced shooter, and I don't think so. This gun is a JAM-O-MATIC!!! I have gone on to the XD-Talk forum and talked with a lot of other XDs owners, and although a lot of owners have had good luck with them, there are a LOT of people who are consistently having problems with it failing to return to full battery, causing light strikes and misfires. I tried many suggestions that other XDs owners had tried that seemed to help them, but I could not get the gun to shoot reliably. Like many others, I have sent my pistol back to Springfield, and am waiting to hear back from them, but most people got theirs back with nothing fixed and nothing resolved. This gun has a problem! If they do not find a problem and get a fix, I will be selling it. I know I will lose a lot of $$ that I have put into it, but I can not trust it to save my life as I had intended it to be used for.

Candy, I hope you won't make your decision on the XDs based solely on my review, but I couldn't in good conscience not tell you about what happened with mine.

@Candy Fondis and I have had a discussion on the XDs and I understand her concerns. I also own a XDs as well as my future wife. We both have had no issues with regards to the XDs. However there has been a recall on it and we both are covered under the recall. I believe that the issues Springfield is experiencing is due to a rush to get a new product on the market. S & W shield is also having their issues for the same reason IMHO, both companies have rushed their product to market trying to fill a gap in the market. I believe both firearms will be good choices in the long run. What is important is the willingness of the company to stand behind its product which I believe both are doing. As with any firearm we choose to own we have to determine if it fulfills the need we have for it, if it fits our hands properly, if it built well, and if it has good customer service reputation. As far as the reputation is concerned ask your local firearms dealer if he or she has had any issues with dealing with the parent company. I wish you the best with the choice you make.

@ Candy as for your original issue about conceal carry I am also not a petite female so I can offer you no assistance there. 

I am going to offer another suggestion - The Sig Sauer line make some great small pistols in 9mm and 380. Depending on which action you like. The 938/238 are mini 1911's, 290 DAO, 250 Subcompact interchanges grip and calibers sizes in DAO, P225 9mm, and the hard to find P239 9mm. I as partial to the Sigs since I own 7. My personal choice is my P239 Gen 2 SAS 9mm in an Athena leather appendix holster that was made for my 250. Never a jamming problem in the ones I own 225 250, & 239 off this list.