TAURUS PUBLIC DEFENDER ULTRALITE

I recently wrote here FIVE GUNS I LIKE: PART ONE that one gun I'd like to be buying soon is the latest lightweight (there are several models in the Public Defender and Judge lines that weigh different amounts and are billed as ultralite).

The one just introduced is also unfortunately labeled as the Public Defender as well. It is emblazed in some sort of laser engraving on the top frame of the gun.

Public defenders, at least the ones I've known, are not given as a rule to carrying guns for protection. Some, but not all, tend to lean toward being nice to and feeling sorry for the thugs. Prosecutors, at least in Texas, are somewhat given to carrying weapons with a special Prosecutor CHL. So I'd be happier if they'd rename this pistol THE PROSECUTOR.

Notwithstanding all of that name nonsense, I did get to handle the 20 ounce and some grams new version. Much smaller than I expected it to be. I have previsouly seen some large Judge pistols but I not seen the Public Defender line in person until the other day.

The trigger pull was nice. The gun was as thin as a Charter Arms Bulldog .44 Special,. Unfortunately, I owned two Charter Arms snubbies a long time ago that just were not good guns. I'm sure C.A. makes other great guns, and I've always liked the concept of the Bulldog but couldn't get past my experiences with them.

The point is that it wasn't an especially thick gun, owing to the five round capacity. It's within the realm of reason that a person in Texas could carry this gun in an IWB holster under a polo shirt during the summer.

Although it would greatly affect concealability, I would alter this gun with a set of the longer grips from one of the other pistols in the Judge line, a grip that would allow purchase of the little finger.

The abbreviated grip on the PD didn't allow my medium sized hands to get a purchase for my little finger. So I'd like to have just a bit longer of a grip. The folks I know who own these guns RAVE, I SAY RAVE about the ribbed stock grips these pistols come with, claiming that they reduce far more recoil than a rubber Crimson Trace, Houge or similar type grip.

With a Crimson Trace grip, one could be assured of great accuracy for those self defense buckshot loads that are being made in .410 now as well as the .45 Long Colt.

As I've mentioned before, I'm an old Thompson Contender (TC) shooter from way back in the early 1980's. My dad and I got into shooting them, and one of my good high school friends Mike The Mechanic was absolutely obsessed with metal silouette shooting with large caliber TC rifle rounds.

Briefly, The Thompson Center single shot pistol has a replaceable barrel that allows shooting many different calibers from one basic gun. My favorite barrel has always been the .410/.45 Long Colt barrel. I have a eight inch octagonal barrel with a 2" ported compensator on it. I think it's a first generation receiver and barrel. I've had it for almost 30 years.

It's always been my snake gun when fishing on various Texas sea shores and bays, rivers, creeks, ponds, tanks and lakes. I either carry it in a Bianchi shoulder holster or in a snap-on handmade Mexican Loop holster that my dad's law school buddy Big John made for him in the 80's. You can slip this holster backflap over your belt and snap it down. It's a nice field holster and has a leg tie.

My freinds who are Judge fanatics tell me that The Judge kicks way less than my T/C does with the .410, even when I'm shooting the 3" magnum .410 shells.

The Public Defender model I want is the new ultralite model. I'm actually going to contact Taurus and see if I can special order one and possibly either have NO laser engraving of the PUBLIC DEFENDER name on the top strap of the gun or see if in some far fetched situation they might etch THE PROSECUTOR in the top strap instead. If'n I could get some kind of custom PD, I'd like to have some gold plating on the hammer, trigger, cylinder release and ejector rod. A nice blue pistol frame with an allow silver finish cylinder and the above gold plated parts. Yee Haw. That would be a Texas De-Luxe self defense pistol.

As I've said before, I'd gladly carry a S&W Ladysmith model 65 (or any LS for that matter as there were some very cool LS revolvers and pistols made). And I can get past the Public Defender moniker for sure, mainly because it's such a cool and small and lightweight pistola that is a great dual self defense caliber.

But I wish I didn't half' ta.

CHIC GAYLORD AND THE COMBAT REVOLVER

I just finished reading and then re-reading the book I wrote about here CHIC GAYLORD PART THREE: THE HANDGUNNER'S GUIDE , and it was a very enjoyable read. Despite being written fifty years ago, I really found much of his opinions valid.

As I've mentioned, as a result of reading his book, I've had the hankering to do some kind of combat revolver customization to one of my stainless six-shooters, either a S&W M67 Combat Masterpiece or a Ruger Security Six in .357.

I'd prefer to modify the M67, as it has an excellent double and single action. Almost as if it had a trigger job, it's a lot closer to my 1981 Python action then it is to any of the J and N Frame Smiths I've owned that had pretty good actions themselves.

Since I've had trouble finding a 3" barrel for the M67, I've decided to do a couple of much lower cost mods to it first that would make it an effective carry pistol. It's one of the pistols Chic recommends for self-defense, and my Father would approve as well.

My Father gave me the M67, amongst other guns. One year for Christmas, around 1993 or so, somewhat unsettled over my recent fascination with a Glock 21 I had purchased and was shooting competitively, he got me a M67 because he thought that was a better gun.

Several decades before, when I became a Texas peace officer, a revolver was the only way to go. He was pleased with my choice of a Colt Python as a duty weapon. When my father had been a prosecutor who carried a commission as a peace officer, he always carried a revolver.

My dad had trained on both the 1911A1 and the S&W M15 in the Air Force, and did not like the .45 auto. But dearly loved the M15 for it's accuracy and good shooting. His love for revolvers remained unabated for the rest of his life, always preferring a "good revolver" to any automatic. Over the years, he was given presents by grateful clients, and on a few occasions these presents were guns. One of those guns, a gorgeous but pimpified Browning Hi-Power, featured hand made silver and gold stocks that were quite ostentatious. Over my loud protestations, he traded his good friend and old law school buddy John that pistol for some revolvers.

So I think my M67 needs some low profile sights and a set of Crimson Trace grips. A "drop in" nice low profile front sight with a rear low profile gutter sight would be ideal, even better if it had some sort of night sight or fiber optic illumination.

It's still a big gun to carry for a guy my size, and I'm not small. But I live in Texas, where often it is t-shirt or polo shirt weather. A big K frame is really gonna print on me, even in an IWB holster wearing a 3x t-shirt that looks like I'm wearing someone else's clothing.

But it would be a nice gun to carry on days where it is coat or jacket weather. It would also be a nice gun for home defense. For a guy my size, which I think I'm about average size (ok, well maybe a bit more girth than the average guy my age, but not much), the 1" reduction in barrel length and some nice compact Crimson Trace grips or Pachmayr Compact grips would aid concealability greatly.


I've been on a snubnose shooting kick again lately, and anyone with snubnose shooting experience knows that generally a heavier all metal snubnose is going to recoil less and thus be easier to control than any of the concealment snubbies that fall into the airweight catagory.



So yes, nowadays, revolvers are largely not "cool for carry" with many law enforcement officers or the hoi polloi of gun journalists. Yet, despite the popularity of semi-automatics and new calibers like the .357 Sig, the old standby snubnose Smith and Wesson is still one of the biggest selling handguns out there. Chic would be proud, I think, that some folks still recognize the revolver as a classic self defense weapon.

Although I've written recently about shooting several fine semi-automatics, particularly the Sig Sauer .239, the Kimber Ultra CDP and the Colt 1911A1 in .38 Super, one gun that could break my fascination with those three fine weapons would be a nice, pristine S&W Model 65 Ladysmith with a 3" barrel. I don't know why I didn't pay attention to this pistol when it was being sold new, but that's not a new phenomenon for me. Sometimes you don't know what is out there until it is out of production.

One blog I've been reading lately, and going back and reading his old posts about guns is the blog Xavier Thoughts. Xavier understands the cult of the revolver, and is often engaged in layaways and purchases of nice revolvers particularly suited to self-defense.

I recommend that if you are interested in revolvers that you spend some spare time over a few days reading some of the archives at X's site. In addition to lots of good information on 1911's and other great guns, he has good sense as to what makes a good combat revolver and tells some good stories about finding some of the gems in his collection.

Here's a nice article from X on his Model 65 Ladysmith find at a bargain price. http://xavierthoughts.blogspot.com/2006/12/pawn-shop-circuit-ladysmith.html

WHEW! TILA IS TWITTERING TWEETS TODAY!

I couldn't get that alliteration thing going here like I did here THE TILA TEQUILA TWITTER TIMEOUT but at least now I can rest easy and like millions of others across this nation and world, can get some sleep.

The sole commenter, Sandi, guessed correctly as did I, that Tila wouldn't be gone for long.

I guessed one day, and even though her apparent tweet timeout was since Tuesday, or two days ago, I didn't find out about it until yesterday. Radar Online once again brings important news to us all this morning, announcing that Tila has a new Twitter account and is indeed tweeting again and that 2012 is indeed not upon us.

From http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2010/02/tila-tequila-twitter-was-fing-boring-without-me-huh:

"She seemed to have a change of heart by Thursday, Tweeting: "Damn Twitter was f***ing BORING without me huh? I would be bored as hell if I were U and I wasn't on twitter anymore! hahhaha jk xox."
EXCLUSIVE: Tila Tequila Blasts Former Bodyguard's Paternity Claim
She then Tweeted: "Did ya;ll miss me?? I see all the OG's here! YAY! No more filthy haters and Media peeps following! Secret page! xox
"So many famew****s on my tail & would do ANYTHING to get fame by name dropping me!" she Tweeted. "LOSERS!"

Yeah. It's a secret page. Nobody tell anybody she's back.

I'm guessing that when this baby thing is over, that she'll be abducted by aliens. It's about the only thing that hasn't been done yet. Either that or become a Scientologist.

THE TILA TEQUILA TWITTER TIMEOUT

Do you like how all of that rhymes? I thought I did very nicely with that blog post title.

Now my regular readers, all three of you, are saying to self, "Self, why is El Fisho talking about something as topical and silly as Tila Tequila?".

And I am prepared to answer that. You see, I like to blog to relax a bit and do something different than my other myriad of responsibilies. Job. Wife. Kids. Parents. Sisters and sisters-in-law. Friends.

Mostly I blog about music, guns, guitars and drums and other musical instruments, fishing, Texas, Texas history just every now and then, about current events. Usually when I get into current events, I'm REALLY trying to relax and so I blog about something I ordinarily wouldn't write on.

Tila is from my hometown, Houston, Texas. I don't know her, nor do I know anyone who knows her. I'm not likely to ever know anyone who does know her. So why do I care?

Escapism, accomplished by finding humor in the acts and words of the various celebrities that thrust themselves into the media via their ravings on Facebook and Twitter.

I don't Facebook.

I don't Twitter.

I set up an account on each, but never used it. Because of that mistake, I have something like 40 friends wanting me to friend them on Facebook. I've emailed them and told them I don't think I have what it takes to be a Facebooker or a Tweeter. Other members of my family do Facebook and Tweet, so they're getting the scoop and relaying ti me the old fashioned way: by email.

But I digress.

I was sent a posting that Tila made that was itself posted onto a gossip blog called Radar Online. I've seen it a few times going back to the Dr. Conrad Murray - Michael Jackson debacle.

Having read all too many Tila articles in legitimate newspapers, news magazines and online sites, I'm oversaturated with Tila. I can honestly say I've never seen her on TV during her brief and mostly over reality show career. Here today, gone tomorrow.

Except for Tila. She won't go away. Now she says that she is going away, hence the title to this post.

Reference this http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2010/02/exclusive-tila-tequila-blasts-former-bodyguards-paternity-claim from Radar Online:

On Wednesday, a former bodyguard of Tila Tequila told RadarOnline.com that the reality star had revealed that the father of her unborn child was a former high school flame. Tequila quickly fired back with her version of the story.

EXCLUSIVE: Tila Tequila's Former Bodyguard Claims Her Baby Daddy Is High School Sweetheart

“Tila told us the father of her baby is her high school sweetheart,” Kris, owner of The Bodyguard Group, told RadarOnline.com. “He’s a U.S. Army combat veteran who served in Afghanistan and now lives in Texas.”

Tila Tequila Deletes Twitter Page

Hours later, Tequila released the following statement to RadarOnline.com exclusively to discredit her former employee’s comments:

“He is NOT my baby daddy!!! Why is everyone all up in my business? Why are all these random people coming out of the woodworks saying that they are my baby Daddy??? All I have to say to that is that these guys just want publicity and that's not ok! Not only are they causing me stress, they are using this situation and trying to exploit a baby! People are so fame hungry that they will do anything to get their 15 seconds of fame!!! That's also why I decided to delete my twitter account! Everything I tweet the media follows and will make up their own stories that are not true! Plus people still think I'm lying about being pregnant even after they saw my sonogram!! If I was really that much of an attention whore like people claim, I would NOT have deleted my profile. I did it cuz I need to protect my baby from all the BS and also to prove to people that I don't need twitter to make headlines nor am I attention whore.”

Me thinks she protests...oh never mind.

So the million dollar question is, how long will the tweeting hiatus last for Tila? She's more or less out of the public eye again, now that a few weeks have passed since her beloved, Ms. Johnson's, untimely and sad death.

I'm taking all guesses on how long Tila can keep her twittering digits from throwing down some tasteless tweeting.

I'm thinking like a day.

She's a homegirl, and although she's living in the Sunny Southern "It Never Rains in" California, she's still a Houston girl. And I suspect, when her brief flame of fame flickers out, she'll return to Houston.

And like Slampo would say, we can name a part of town THE TILA TEQUILA DISTRICT. Some Guy Called "Mahatma" Gets His Own "District," But Lightnin' Hopkins Only Rates a Historical Plaque? (Which Is Better Than Nothin')

It would solve a lot of problems with the different racial groups parrying over what ethnic group gets to name a part of Houston as a certain district, such as Slampo discusses at the above link.

THE FENDER SQUIER BRONCO TRANSFORMATION PART ONE

Over the next few months, I'll be covering my efforts to change the above bass guitar, the Fender Squier Bronco, into a more hot rodded bass guitar styled after it's near twin, the venerable and long out of production Fender MusicMaster bass guitar.

I can't find a good pic that will fit here on this blog, but here's a link to a vintage MusicMaster to give you an idea of the similarity. http://guitargarage.blogspot.com/2008/04/1975-musicmaster-bass-in-dakota-red.html

I'm not the first to attempt this project, as the Fender MusicMaster was a popular bass in the 1970's for beginning bass students like me. Although drums have always been my primary instrument, the 1974 Dakota Red Fender MusicMaster bass was an instrument I always regretted selling.

Silly mistakes of youth, for sure, because now they sell for premium prices.

The Bronco overseas version shares the body shape with the venerable MusicMaster, but near everything else is different. The two saddle bridge is another feature they share, and it is just as bad on the Bronco as on the original. It's near impossible to get good intonation with a two saddle bridge, so that will be the first thing to go.

I've accumulated some parts to begin working on the Bronco. First off, I do still have to buy a single coil bass pickup, although the MusicMaster used a single coil guitar instead of a bass pickup. I want a j-bass sound coming from the pickup, and several of the Seymour Duncan pickups will drop right in. Now it's just up to finding a deal on one on ebay, as well as some better tuning heads.

I've got a four saddle bridge that will require drilling two holes. I have the wiring, the sheilding tape for the control cavity, two new pots for the volume and tone and some quality wiring. I've got some genuine black Fender knobs and finger rest. I have a 3 layer pickguard and a higher quality nut.

I'll do everything but the nut, and I'll take the bass to my Houston friend Woody Oakes, noted bassist and very good at shimming and adjusting bass necks and adjusting bridge saddles to obtain as perfect of intonation as can be had. And he'll do it for a few beers.

So the plan is to get a short scale bass guitar that sounds better than the original, but still does tribute to the look and the comfort of a Fender short scale. I lucked out and got a Bronco that sounds good when unplugged, a key feature according to Woody. The neck is very nice and the frets have only needed minor deburring. It actually intones better than either of the Dakota Red MusicMasters I have owned in my life, but that does not mean that I have come to accept the two saddle bridge.

Squire has been producing some fairly excellent guitars the past few years, with big upgrades in QC and higher end parts. They would be well served to consider doing something with the Bronco other than the Hello Kitty model, which is just artwork on the pickguard of a standard Bronco.

If Squire was smart, they'd make an upgraded Bronco for all the guitar players who like playing bass on a short scale, and for all the bass players who occasionally like strapping on a good sounding short scale bass for less weight and more comfort. Call it a Custom Shop Bronco and they could sell tons of them for $400.

MARKBASS MICROMARK AMP

This is the AMAZING Markbass Micromark bass amp. It is a teeny tiny amp that is perfect for many practice and home recording endeavors. I got this amp in a screaming deal for far less than it retails for, and I've been amazed at the great sound and incredible volume that comes out of this 8.86" x 8.86" x 8.62" cube with a 6" speaker that weighs just under 10 lbs.

I can carry this in a shoulder bag or even in a larger carry-on sized bag. When I take business or family trips, it's easy to throw this into a shoulder bag I have containing just what I need for entertainment just about anywhere.

I have used this with my Mac laptop and Garageband software, via a usb interface, with great ease. It has a great tone, and I guess that's why I like it so much. Many jazz guitar players actually use solid state bass amps for their clarity and tone, and I've had much fun playing both a Strat and a P-90 Tele through a pocket pod on the Micromark.

Markbass is an Italian outfit making great bass amps, and I believe has now entered the guitar amp marker. The larger gigging sized amps began appearing several years ago, being famous for being ultralight, high power and great sounding. Although most are solid state (they do make tube and tube preamp models as well), it sounds a lot to me like an old Ampeg Tube Amp, sorta crossed with a vintage SWR. Sorta. Hard to describe but a great sounding amp for rock and blues.

The volume is amazingly loud for an amp of only 50 watts that is sporting a 6" speaker. As a low ability bassist, I've always liked great practice amps. In the past, I've owned a Peavey Microbass, a Roland MicroCube bass Rx and several Fender Musicmaster bass amps.

I got a deal on this amp while I was saving for the Genz-Benz Shuttle 3.0 with the 8" speaker. The GB head and cab combo weight out at about 14 lbs or so but has much more useable volume than the Micromark. And the GB has great tone. But I got the deal on the Micromark and I have to say I'm quite pleased with it.

When the family went to Rockport last year for spring break, I took it along and it was perfect for doing some bass playing in the condo without waking the sleeping family. Likewise, I took it to the Llano River fishing cabin trip Billy Ray and I took and it held it's own with Billy Ray's Roland MicroCube guitar amp.

For my drum room, where I try to play a little music every now and then on instruments other than my drums, it's perfect. Loud enough to have good tone but not so loud as to disturb the family. I'm actually thinking about taking it and a fretless Rogue bass I have to the office for a lunchtime practice rig and de-stressing device, since I've begun to eat in lunch at the office. I often can't find the time to do more than a few riffs or scales a day at the house, but at lunchtime the office is a ghost town with only one or two folks around. Close the door and no one hears this baby.

The thing that separates this amp from other small practice amps, other than the excellent tone, is the xlr out jack for running into a usb interface. You get a quality sound signal going into Garageband from a dedicated jack instead of running an out from a headphone jack.

Here's the product info from a seller:

The Markbass Micromark bass combo is an amplifier that is less than 9" in any direction. Despite only a 6" speaker, the Micromark is a practice amp with deceptively loud volume and the kind of sound quality you'd expect from a B&C speaker with Markbass electronics. Pumping out 50W of power, the Micromark amp boasts a mini-plug for attaching your CD or MP3 players, to help you master your favorite licks. The Markbass Micromark amp has a Variable Pre-shape filter for boosting lows around 35Hz and highs around 10kHz, and cutting mids at 380H-which is perfect for rockers and slap bassists alike. There's a volume control knob, headphone jack, XlR output for recording and live situations, a ground lift to eliminate hum, and a 1/4" jack tweeter out for the optional Markbass satellite tweeter.

Markbass Micromark 50W 1x6 Bass Combo Features:

-6" B&C speaker
-Mini-plug aux in (for CD or MP3 player)
-Mini-plug headphone jack
-Volume level control
-Variable Pre-shape filter
-XLR line out
-Ground lift
-Speaker off switch
-Tweeter jack for optional "sattelite" tweeter
-Grill for protecting speaker
-Handle on top for transportation
-Dual-sided fiberglass PC boards with lined perforations for high- quality solder connections
-Surface-mount components are silicon-sealed to isolate vibrations
-Computer-grade pre-assembled ribbon connector cable harnesses and ribbons for noise-free operation
-Integrated threaded posts for easy assembly/disassembly and added durability
-Rigid 2mm thick aluminium chassis for a long-lasting finish

Markbass Micromark 50W 1x6 Bass Combo Specifications:

Speaker: 1 x 6"
Tweeter: optional "sattelite tweeter, not included
Impedance: 8 ohms
Speaker power handling: 50W RMS (AES Standard)
Sensitivity: 100 db SPL
Frequency response: 70Hz to 8kHz
Crossover Frequency: 3.5kHz
Dimensions: 8.86"W x 8.86"H x 8.62"D
Weight: 9.26 lbs.

FEDERAL AIR MARSHALS

There is controversy today from the ranks of the Federal Air Marshal Service. Having once served as a Texas peace officer in several organizations, I can attest to the inate propensity for heirachy to get too heavy and heavy-handed. When you got too many chiefs and not enough indians, and the indians are getting the smallest pieces of the pie and doing all the cooking, well, that's cause for trouble.

I wrote about some excellent Sky Marshal stories on this fella's website here at this post on the former Sky Marshal website

and today there was this article http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/02/01/cbsnews_investigates/main6163909.shtml

talking about a movie trailer released today by some current and former Air Marshals making some pretty serious allegations about the alleged Good Old Boys that run the show there.

Likewise, over at Debbie Schlussel's anti-terrorist website, you've got this post on the subject
http://www.debbieschlussel.com/16396/updated-video-of-pls-remove-your-shoes-air-marshal-film/

We should be hiring the kids coming out of the military for these jobs. We've got tons of well trained law enforcement and intelligence personnel coming out of all branches of the military. Kids who have been valiently serving this country for little money, kids who now have families of their own and probably little prospects for any decent employment in this economy.

We know these folks track records. We can meaningfully evaluate their ability to be an armed operative in the most delicate of crisis situations. Chances are, they've already been under fire, and again, can be evaluated on their abilities. They've been trained as soldiers true, but they've also been tempered a bit more than combat soldiers in interactions with folks and perhaps had a go at some kind of undercover or plainclothes work.

To me, we've got a crop of perfect career type federal employees ready to work the next 30 years until retirement riding planes and protecting Americans. Because of the support infastructure an agency like the Air Marshal's needs, it's the perfect place for vets who got injured and cannot physically serve as actual Air Marshal agents but can do the myriad of office, intelligence, gear, monitoring and basic support duties any law enforcement agency has.

They say the feds are sending out help requests to other branches to get temporary loan employees to beef up the Air Marshal core. I think the wake up call was about 8 and a half years ago, folks in D.C., that the Air Marshal was pretty much going to be the beat cop of the next hundred years of air travel. Instead, apparently the Air Marshal's service has deteriorated into a morass of typical government dysfunctionality, and we don't have the number of Air Marshals flying that we need.

Again, the solution seems simple, as well as the right thing to do. Let's staff our Air Marshal corps with vets with some experience in law enforcement matters. The diabled vets get first shot at land positions and support positions. Both groups get a hiring preference.

I suspect many of these vets already have security clearances as well. So there goes months and months of vetting their histories to obtain clearance. Just a short training course to get going, and then more training as soon as possible.

I also don't understand why the Air Marshal's are armed with Sig Sauer P229R in .357 Sig caliber. Now, this caliber has received acclaim in law enforcement circles for it's ability to shoot through car doors and other types of barricades to reach suspects. Is this really what we want in a airplane shooting caliber?

I'm thinking something heavy and slow, like a .44 Special, a .45 caliber Long Colt or the .45 Auto would be the ideal caliber. Heavy bullets, great knockdown power, not bad on overpenetration because it is BIG and moving slowly and again, proven manstopping ability.

I actually want a pistol chambered in .357 Sig for my own. But I'm not going to be shooting on airplanes. BUT if I was working as an Air Marshal and could arm myself with a weapon of choice, it'd be a Sig 220 Compact or HK USP compact in .45 caliber. With a Smith and Wesson Airlite backup in .38 Special in an ankle rig or jacket pocket holster.

It was rumored many years ago that the Charter Arms Bulldog was used by the Sky Marshals in the 1970's, but research shows that if it was used it was as an unofficial backup to their issue Smith and Wesson revolvers. I'm not a big fan of the Charter Arms brand, due to some personal experiences about 30 years ago with two of their pistols, but I fail to see why Smith or Colt can't make a great combat concealment pistol in .44 special caliber for our Air Marshals to use.

Colt and Smith...make a .44 Special revolver. Put some laser grips on it. Five rounds of ultra concealable .44 Special.

If you gotta have an auto, then the Sig 220 is the way to go, with .45 auto stopping power. Again, go with the laser grips.