Which gun?

BIG personal preference area here. A former cop might go for a small-frame semi-auto in 9mm or .40 cal., possibly a .45 depending on what he carried when he was still on the force.

Any of the modern, "brand name" autos would do in a large enough caliber. You could just make it a Glock since he's an ex-cop; the majority of police forces use Glocks these days (I think, don't quote me on that).

Here's the wiki page on Glocks: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glock

Other factors to consider are:

1. Local/State laws refrence handgun possesion - ala NY's anti-gun stance
2. Concealed carry laws for that area
3. How does the local PD feel about him and him being armed. Was he on the local PD? Did he get along with the others?
4. How much trouble is really expecting on average? He should have some idea if he was a local LEO to begin with.
5. Preferences. He may not have liked the department issue. They might have .40S&W or Glocks and he thinks they suck. He might want a little .380 he can carry in his coat pocket.
6. Local weather. If he's in Key West, he'd be real obvious packing a Desert Eagle or even a medium frame 9mm. Of course, if he's up in Yankee land with snow and cold, he can have a jacket covering the bulge. You'll have to consider where and how he's packing his pistol.
7. Revolver or automatic are your two choices. Unless he's packing for bear go with a .38 or .357. Or just go with a .357 and you can use .38 in it as well.

You may want to consider whether your guy is old fashion.
The .38 revolver is the old fashion way to go. It also only has six shots, so if he's getting into a big shoot out, it may notbe proper. But the Smith and Wesson revolver is a very reliable gun. in the souped up .357 magnum, your knockdown rate is something like 96%.

If he's a flat out tough guy, you could go with a .45 ACP. These guns can be souped up for speed and accuracy, and what not, but the frame is kind of big and not a great one for concealed carry. I believe the souped up .45 ammo has a 86% knockdown effectiveness.

Then you have .40 and 9mm. The standards are I don't know what's being used by the military now, the Glock, Beretta or Sig Sauer. The Glock is an ugly gun but it is bomb-proof reliable. The Beretta and and Sig are also considered reliable. The .40 and 9mm in souped up ammo (commonly referred to as +p. A company named Cor-Bon makes good ammo) has either a 93% or 96 % knock-down rate. Glocks, Berettas and Sigs would be used by guys with a more military background.

I don't think .380 isn't a great calliber. I've seen a guy take 5 shots in the belly and keep going. But then again, shot placement is everything. If he had been hit in the head as opposed to the gut, he would have been dead.

A lot of us macho guys see guns as a personal way to express ourselves.

I personally use a pea shooter.

Lock-shooting is good TV but factually weak. Depending on your work, your audience, and the level of realism you're shooting for (pun intended), you might want to rethink that.

One thing to note, callalily, we tend to get a little carried away with any question about guns. It's kind of like asking which dog breed is best, or which car is better; everyone has their own opinion. Don't let us confuse you. At some point, just take what you think will work and go with it.

So true

alleycat said:

One thing to note, callalily, we tend to get a little carried away with any question about guns. It's kind of like asking which dog breed is best, or which car is better; everyone has their own opinion. Don't let us confuse you. At some point, just take what you think will work and go with it.

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I know next to nothing about guns, but I'm arming all my characters with the Makarov 9.03mm. Accurate, reliable, quite small, 8 shot mag, AND the trigger guard is extra big so you can use it with thick gloves.

callalily61 said:

Okay, all you muscle types--can a guy who can bench-press, say, 200 pounds break in an older, semi-flimsy apartment door with his shoulder? The apartment building would've been built in the 70s and is starting to run to seed.

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This is one I can definitely answer. I've done it. I went right through a door with oak jambs and double locks. I splintered it all to hell. Took maybe two seconds. It would have only taken one, but I hit it once and when it didn't give . . . I hit it harder and with my full force. The poor door was barely on one hinge when I got through with it.

A good kick over the lock would do it. I've broken down a door with my shoulder once, and it's doable, but once you're in, you're not ready, you're open and you're vulnerable. Better to kick it in.

Parkinsonsd does have a good point. I think police usually kick a door in, or use that ram thingy of theirs.

Hey what? You're not drooling over my physique? I broke a door down too!

I do. I am that pathetic.

LloydBrown said:

Lock-shooting is good TV but factually weak. Depending on your work, your audience, and the level of realism you're shooting for (pun intended), you might want to rethink that.

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I 100% agree with this. First off he would be arrested for discharging a firearm in a residence for shooting the lock.

Cops don't shoot locks, they have sledges or shoulders for that because of stray rounds.

Alot of this would depend on the attitude of the character, as previous posters have said and what time period.

Opinions

alleycat said:

One thing to note, callalily, we tend to get a little carried away with any question about guns. It's kind of like asking which dog breed is best, or which car is better; everyone has their own opinion. Don't let us confuse you. At some point, just take what you think will work and go with it.

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Lot of opinions, but also lots of facts based on real shootings, one shot kills that come in, autopsy results, reliability trials, etc. There are better and worse handguns, just as there are far better dogs for doing a specific thing.

Handgun

Most carry more than one, depending on where they're going, what they're doing, etc.

Parkinsonsd said:

A good kick over the lock would do it. I've broken down a door with my shoulder once, and it's doable, but once you're in, you're not ready, you're open and you're vulnerable. Better to kick it in.

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I too have kicked in doors. Couldn't agree more--slamming into a door with your shoulder is not the way to go.