Finally got a chance to hit my tame FFL. No Shield (not even an ETA) but a Beretta Nano, M&Pc, SIG 238, 290 and 938 were all in the case and of the most interest to me.
Looked at the Nano again, still wasn't impressed. The M&Pc is actually wider than the G19. The 290 was DAO which I can handle in a revolver, but I can't stand in a semi-auto and the grip felt too long front to back. The 238 wasn't bad feeling and they had .380 on the shelf for a not-quite-outrageous-price ($30 for what I think was Speer Lawman). At least it wasn't outrageous to me since I remember when it was going (actually selling) for $75+/box at the shows during the last panic.
Then I tried the 938.
Now I'm not going to say a light shone 'round me and a Heavenly Chorus started singing in the background but it was certainly the best fit of any of the small semis I've tried. And having the same manual of arms as a 1911 is a plus for me. 6+1 capacity with the flush fit mag is 2 more than I have with the 442 and once they're back in stock I'll check out the 7rd extended mag.
In the end I swapped my G19 for store credit which I then applied as the down payment for the layawake program. If I hadn't committed to another project recently, there would have been enough in the fun fund for the difference but that's OK. She Who Puts Up With Me will want to know what I want for Father's Day anyway...
So once I get it in my grubby mitts, I'll pick up a few boxes (OK, maybe a couple) of ball and head to the range for a break in session then see how it fares with my preferred load of Gold Dots.
Guys, thanks for talking me through this. There's some compromises in this choice but as the saying goes: it's the one you have on you, not the "prefect" one you left at home for whatever reason. Ok, maybe I butchered the phrase, but you get the idea....
BTW, there may be some G19 mags in the Classifieds in the next few days.
![Laughing :lol:](./images/smilies/icon_lol.gif)