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RUGER
RUGER
TRADE-OFFS
TRADE-OFFS
SPRINGFIELD ARMORY
SPRINGFIELD ARMORY
DAD’S DERRINGER
DAD’S DERRINGER
SMALL GUN, BIG MEMORIES
5.11+
5.11+
POCKET POWER
POCKET POWER
WLW
WLW
BLACKHAWK
BLACKHAWK
A QUESTION OF READINESS
A QUESTION OF READINESS
ALL OVER THE BOARD
ALL OVER THE BOARD
GALCO HOLSTERS
GALCO HOLSTERS
KA-BAR TDI
KA-BAR TDI
Sneaky Pete
Sneaky Pete
GAME OVER
GAME OVER
BUG bite
BUG bite
TAURUS
TAURUS
MINIMUM PRIMARY OR MAXIMUM BACKUP
MINIMUM PRIMARY OR MAXIMUM BACKUP
SMITH & WESSON M&P BODYGUARD .380
G-CODE
G-CODE
THE ‘3x5 CHALLENGE’
THE ‘3x5 CHALLENGE’
GEORGIA: CONSTITUTIONAL CARRY
GEORGIA: CONSTITUTIONAL CARRY
ELITE SURVIVAL SYSTEMS
ELITE SURVIVAL SYSTEMS
MOSSBERG
MOSSBERG
MAN-PACK OP SAC
MAN-PACK OP SAC
DISCREET DEFENSE
THE MINI REVOLVER
THE MINI REVOLVER
A QUESTION OF WHY
Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson
EXPERTS
EXPERTS
REAL KNOWLEDGE COMES AT A PRICE
URBAN CARRY
URBAN CARRY
GET HAMMERED
GET HAMMERED
STATE BY STATE
STATE BY STATE
MAKING THE CASE FOR RECIPROCITY
PRIVATE GUN SALES
PRIVATE GUN SALES
CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS
POCKET CARRY
POCKET CARRY
THE FUNDAMENTALS
BYRNA SHIELD
BYRNA SHIELD
OVER TWO DECADES OF EXCELLENCE
OVER TWO DECADES OF EXCELLENCE
THE SUREFIRE COMBATLIGHT
BEAR OPS
BEAR OPS
INSIDE THE WOLF’S HEAD
INSIDE THE WOLF’S HEAD
THE PSYCHOLOGY OF PREDATORS
VIKTOS
VIKTOS
POCKET PISTOLS
POCKET PISTOLS
THEN AND NOW
VAULTPRO USA
VAULTPRO USA
SL
SL
SCCY
SCCY
MODERN ART
MODERN ART
SMITH & WESSON CSX 9MM
PISTOL WEAR
PISTOL WEAR
COVER AND CONCEALMENT
COVER AND CONCEALMENT
Swap Rig Holsters
Swap Rig Holsters
FOUR WORTH, TEXAS
FOUR WORTH, TEXAS
‘WHY WOULD YOU CARRY THAT?’
‘WHY WOULD YOU CARRY THAT?’
THE ADVANTAGES OF SNUB-NOSED REVOLVERS
Spyderco
Spyderco
BEAR EDGE
BEAR EDGE
FALCO
FALCO
USCCA
USCCA
HOTEL SECURITY
HOTEL SECURITY
STAYING SAFE WHILE YOU’RE AWAY FROM HOME
UNDERTECH UNDERCOVER
UNDERTECH UNDERCOVER
Arachni GRIP
Arachni GRIP
nextbelt
nextbelt
USCCA
USCCA
PURPOSE-DESIGNED
PURPOSE-DESIGNED
TAURUS GX4 T.O.R.O.
CLINGER HOLSTERS
CLINGER HOLSTERS
THE NAPKIN VERSION
THE NAPKIN VERSION
THE QUICK-AND-DIRTY GUIDE TO EFFECTIVE TRAINING
BEYOND THE ISOSCELES
BEYOND THE ISOSCELES
ADOPTING A HOLISTIC FIGHTING STANCE
FAITHFUL TO THE HI POWER
FAITHFUL TO THE HI POWER
SPRINGFIELD ARMORY SA-35
POCKET ROCKETS
POCKET ROCKETS
‘LIVE-HAND PASSING’ STRATEGY
‘LIVE-HAND PASSING’ STRATEGY
KNIFE TACTICS FOR AND AGAINST LEFTIES
USCCA
USCCA
DOWN BUT NOT OUT
DOWN BUT NOT OUT
ESCAPING AN ATTACK WHILE ON YOUR BACK
FEEL THE HEAT
FEEL THE HEAT
DIAGNOSING AND PREVENTING HEAT-RELATED INJURIES
MEMBER PROFILE
MEMBER PROFILE
USCCA
USCCA
START ’EM YOUNG
START ’EM YOUNG
CHILDREN AND GUN SAFETY
USCCA
USCCA
SHADOW SYSTEMS
SHADOW SYSTEMS
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EDITOR’S SHOT KEVIN MICHALOWSKIDAD’S DERRINGERSMALL GUN, BIG MEMORIESWhen it comes to “pocket guns,” the conversation really must start with the derringer. The history of the original pocket pistol goes back to about 1852, when Henry Deringer introduced his tiny muzzleloading caplock. About 15,000 of these little single-shot pistols were manufactured, most of them in .41 caliber and with barrels from 1.5 inches to 6 inches — perfect for concealed carry. We apparently arrived at the generic term “derringer” because of a misspelling in the press following the murder of Abraham Lincoln. John Wilkes Booth used one of Henry Deringer’s pistols to assassinate the president. The design almost universally identified as a derringer nowadays first appeared in 1866, when Remington manufactured the Model 95. The company made about 150,000 of these double-barrel pistols featuring an exposed hammer and a tip-up barrel. The most common chambering was the .41 Rimfire, which produced a muzzle velocity of only about 425 feet per second. (For reference, that is about half the speed of a .45 ACP round.) Thank goodness the .41 Rimfire fell by the wayside, but the design of the pistol has remained largely unchanged. That’s the style of gun my father first carried — illegally, I might add — during the riotous era of the mid-1960s in Milwaukee. He toted the gun in a crappy little suede IWB holster. He bought the gun mail-order from Herter’s in Minnesota. It’s a little chrome pistol marked on the sides of the barrels: “Western Derringer cal .357” on the left and “Made in Germany” on the right. The top of the barrels says, “Herter’s Inc. WASECA/ Minnesota” and carries a four-digit serial number. I’m pretty sure he paid less than $20 for the gun.Recently, I have fired the gun a few times to get a feel for it, but I have never launched full-house .357 Magnum rounds. Maybe I should ... just to see the fireball and feel the recoil once or twice. I bring out the little pistol every now and then, wipe it down and reminisce. My father bought the gun before I was born. He would sometimes load it with .357 shotshells and dispatch gophers and chipmunks and then complain about the recoil. Even as a kid, I began to understand that guns that were easy and comfortable to carry could be uncomfortable to shoot. But there is a reality that comes with this dichotomy: If you need a gun, nothing else will do. The best gun to have in a gunfight is the gun you have with you when the gunfight starts. So even though that little derringer is not perfect, it is better than nothing. And it was all he could afford at the time. Years later, as a young gun writer, I asked him why he chose that gun and how he intended to use it should the need ever arise. His plan was to use the gun to keep people off his car if he got caught up in violence as he drove to or from work. He said he figured attackers would likely back off if he fired his two shots at the guy closest to the driver’s door. Then he could keep driving to get away from trouble. (Maybe it wasn’t a perfect plan, but at least he had some idea of what he wanted to do.) He said the gun was cheap and easy to hide. This was important, as there were no concealed carry permits issued in Wisconsin in the 1960s, and it would be nearly 40 years before the courts would declare open carry legal. So keeping the gun out of sight was critical.I may never carry this little derringer as a defensive tool, but I’ll keep it forever. My kids will likely sell it off after my passing, but until then, I have some great memories and cool stories surrounding this little Western Derringer. And maybe that’s all I need.