The Intimidation Factor Of a various hand guns...

[Wildalaska]

This is a subject that I feel bears some study if a methadology could be worked out (and I have some ideas that would be of interest only to social scientists)....

But the issue is this..

We all KNOW that certain calibers are more "potent" than others. This is based on, minimally, a size hierarchy. All things being equal, the bigger the bulet the more the damage.

But considering that most defensive handgun aplications result in the reholstering (or repocketing, or return to storage) of the handgun, is there an intimidation factor inherent in the firearm LOOKS or design we can quantify?

Thus for example: Does the "cowboy" image of the West skew the decision making in attack/not attack or escalate/deescalate modes when folks are confronted with an SAA vis a vis Keltec. What about the image of the Glock as against a K Frame? This analysis would entail not only the CULTURAL aspects of the handgun in question, but the APPEARANCE itself...is a large caliber more intimidating thatn a small one? When and with who?

You would need a cross section of subjects, lots of guns....

Am I on to something here? Or am I just bored with L&P and since I am lucky to have 40 minutes of eyesight left for the day, just killin time :)

WildanybodywanttodoexperimentsAlaska

[Manedwolf]

If they have a gun, and you have a gun, and you don't fire until they stop being a threat as soon as you draw, you're likely dead.

If they only have a knife and are a distance away or separated by barriers in the way, I would imagine that a .45 ACP train tunnel with the glitter of a hollowpoint in it might make them reconsider their next moves moreso than a nearly-obscured-in-hand tiny P3AT, yes. Just in an instinctive "Oh sh*t, that's gonna hurt" sense.

If they're not strung out on meth, of course.

[timothy75]

I think you are on to something but I wouldnt let it influence my choice in a fighting gun. The look on your face or tone of voice might be a more powerfull element.

[Tanzer]

I read your "time for a new thread" on the other post and wanted to weigh in, but I think manedwolf beat me to it. A lot depends on the attacker.
That being said, I think any advantage one can gain is a plus. I'd no sooner step in front of a Toyota than a dump truck, but the latter just seems more intimidating.

[MDman]

For me I would be more afraid of an attacker with a very cheap gun. If some guy was to pull out a hi point or a kel tec I would expect them to shoot me and just throw the gun away. where as a person with a les baer is going to be too attached to the gun to get a new one.

[Wildalaska]

You guys are letting your prejudices influence the experiment...think like a an agressor!

You think your average street criminla knows a Les baer? :)

WA

[mikejonestkd]

I am not a criminal and have never played on on tv but I'll play along.

If I was the aggressor and a victim pulled a gun on me, any gun big or small, chrome or black, revolver or semi...whatever, I would at least pause for an instant to decide as to whther or not to continue the aggressive action against the victim. ( drunks, meth heads and stone cold contract killers working for the mafia would be excluded from this sort of reasoning )

I do think that there could be a psychological advantage to a mid sized or fullsized handgun, over a ultracompact like a seecamp or NAA, but probably not much, if at all.

Now if we were doing a psychological comparision between a seecamp and a 12ga pump shotgun then the results would be significant, at least in my opinion.

take it for what's it worth.

Wild, what's that you got in that case picture you posted in the rifles section? Do you have a spare one I could have? I want one!!!

Mikeserioustacticalrifleenvyforwhatwildhasupinalaskajonestkd

[Glenn E. Meyer]

I've asked major criminologists who have studied the DGUs and the literature from criminal predator interviews. I know them pretty well.

They said that they've never seen gun type as being a factor. Criminals will report being deterred by the possibility of a crime period.

There are two kinds of crime - economic and crimes of passion. In the former, the criminal wants the crime to go down with minimal trouble. Any gun is trouble and will have a deterrent effect.

In the latter, if you are nuts - hole size probably doesn't matter.

Since I know this stuff pretty well - there hasn't been a large sample study of this specifically but the general studies don't report a trend.

[Wildalaska]

They said that they've never seen gun type as being a factor.

Has a controlled study ever been done?

WildhastherebeenAlaska

[The Tourist]

I don't know how or why 'intimidation' happens, but I know it exists.

For example, as a commercial sharpener, I put a mirror finish on my knife edges. As I wait on a client, we often discuss gun and knife related issues and sometimes they ask about defense.

I do know this. If they are ever is a 'stand off,' where the aggressor is drunk or a kid or maybe the guy is just trying to gather his courage, I tell my client to twist the knife a little bit in his hand.

By moving the knife, any ambient light will twinkle off of the polished edge.

For some reason, most people connect the 'twinkle' with 'very sharp.' I've seen clients actually jump backwards when I hand them their own knife back from sharpening or repair.

This little trick might get the aggressor to break off his attack and run. Maybe not 100% of the time, but it is another aspect for defense.

[David Armstrong]

Since I know this stuff pretty well - there hasn't been a large sample study of this specifically but the general studies don't report a trend.

I'll agree with Glenn here. I also know this stuff pretty well, and AFAIK there is nothing to indicate any real differences. FWIW, as a LEO everyone I interviewed that had been threatened with a gun described it as big, no matter if it was a 1911 or a .22 derringer.

[Wildalaska]

Same thing...has there ever been a controlled study
WildcuriousAlaska

[David Armstrong]

Same thing...has there ever been a controlled study
Not that I'm aware of, I doubt it, and I also question whether one can be done. Perception is based in large part on the situation, and thus the perception one gets in a controlled environment would probably be quite different than the perception in a surprise/stress environment.

[Wildalaska]

Easy to make a scientifictest you know....start with reactions meausred by sensors then followed up with a questionaire....

WildprecededbyexcersizetogetstresslevelupetcAlaska

[Glenn E. Meyer]

As far as a controlled study - there are ones that show that various types of weapons prime different levels of aggressive ideation.

However, to do a study on whether various weapons actually deter a crime would probably be impossible if you mean a classic experiment.

One certainly can get ratings of weapons appearance but so what? That may not transfer to actual usage under highly different stress levels and motivations as Dave said. As my friend Dave points out, people focus on the gun period.

The weapons focus studies indicate that people can describe the gun pretty well even when they don't know what else is going on. That's because it is a gun. And everyone is maxing out if the gun is pointed at them.

One might compare compliance rates in cities where police use different handguns but that wouldn't work. I doubt you could get reliable data.

Elmer Keith said a 22 is wimpy until it is pointed at you.

But we know that racking your shotgun makes someone poopy their pants!!

Ken, it's interesting but probably not much there for practical purposes with the range of normal carry guns.

"Well, punk - it's a 22 LR Smith and Wesson Model 63 and will drill a hole through your skull and the bullet will bounce around inside your brain and make you into a gork. Do you feel lucky!"

"Well, I do feel lucky as maybe the round will just slide around my skull bone and just zip open my scalp for a very messy head wound but survivable. Thus, Inspector Callahan - I'll reach for my shotgun and you just shoot me"

Pop, pop - ow, ow - what a mess - Pop in your eyeball, sucker! How about that? I'm blind, where's my shotgun? Pop in your ear, fool! Eat 22 LR brainstem.

Well, Harry - still carrying that Model 63 - Nope, trading it in for a SW 651 MAGNUM!

--- I didn't go to work today, as we can all see. GM

[mikejonestkd]

My god!!!! that is SO freaking funny. Thanks Glenn!!!!

[Wildalaska]

You owe me a keyboard dude.

And you are gonna buy this glock I just spewed on :)

WildchokinAlaska

[Playboypenguin]

First off, I think the biggest deterent to crime is avoiding it all together and not looking like a victim. All my experiences with criminal studies show that most criminals are very good at picking up on who is alert and who is not and who appears to be defenseless and who does not. They will allow several people, that seem to be aware of their surroundings and able to quickly respond to a threat, pass without trouble until they find someone that fits the bill of an easier target.

So, once they have chosen their victim they usually do not expect much resistance or they expect to be able to take the victim down before they can react.

The sight of a gun, any gun, changes the scenerio very quickly. I believe that most any gun that is immediatly recognized by the attacker as a firearm will elicit the same spontaneous and involuntary reaction from the attacker. A bigger gun would probably have a better chance of being more quickly and easily identified as a deadly threat by the attacker and therefore have an advantage over a smaller, harder to see or recognize firearm.

Suddenly the attacker's feeling of advantage and safety has been shattered by the induction of an element that they had not taken into account. The fact that the victim they chose has the potential to hard or kill them.

That sudden realization can cause many different reactions in an attacker. It is mostly dependent on the idividual. That sudden realization causes them to shift from predator mode to survival mode. Fight or flight will kick in and how they then react is dependent on their own experiences, their own personality, and their own physical and mental fitness. They may run away, they may begin to bargain, they may grab the weapon and fight back, they may pull a weapon of their own.

That is when the duty of realizing how to now respond falls upon the gun holder. You do not shoot the fleeing man in the back but you have to be ready to fire if they go for your gun or pull their own.

So it all comes down to the fact that the bad guys ability the percieve the gun as a threat is more important that the actual caliber, design, or size of the firearm. All it takes is for them to realize that the balance of power has suddenly shifted for the victim to gain the necessary advantage. So the real advantage size and design gives you is the ability of the attacker to immediatly recognize the firearm as a deadly weapon. A dark colored or funky degined gun may be mistaken for something else where as a stainless revolver would be pretty easy to recognize.

[Jim March]

I did my own take on this concept:

http://www.equalccw.com/vaqhawk.jpg

[BikerRN]

OK, here's my $0.02 on the matter.

The BG doesn't care what gun you use. He is concerned with basically one thing, are you able and willing to use said firearm? I talk to convicted felons all the time and they KNOW if you are bluffing or not.

I don't bluff and I'm willing, I guess that's why I don't have too many problems. This all goes to the "Victim Selection Process". Anybody that carries a gun to scare away a BG or to intimidate one is asking for trouble. When I am placed in the situation of having to point a loaded gun at someone again you can be sure of one thing, I am willing and able to use it to STOP the threat that has forced me to clear leather.

That's my $0.02 on the matter.

Biker

[Playboypenguin]

I talk to convicted felons all the time and they KNOW if you are bluffing or no
I have heard the same thing. I think a great deal of that is just bravado on the part of the convict. These statements give the illusion that they are calm and cool under pressure and that they are not afraid. It is all part of the tough guys act and it helps them seem like a badass. I do not think immediate reaction has much to do with the person holding the gun. It is just the fact that a gun is being pointed at you. Even the most timid or peace loving person can fire a weapon when they or their loved ones are threatened. To think otherwise is a very risky gamble. I think most criminals are oh-so-well aware of that fact too.

Potentially deadly situations can really alter a person perceptions, convictions, and actions.

Being on either side of a firearm can be a life changing experience. As a wise man once said...
"You might find the meaning of life in te barrel of a rifle. Whether it's pointed at a bird or if it is pointed at your head."

Oh...wait...I think that was the Ditty Bops. Still, that doesn't make it less true. :p

[Tanzer]

O.K. I've been paying attention, and this thread started from something I stated on another thread (humble of me, huh?).
David and Glen, you guys know your stuff, no doubt. Jim - too funny! Playboy and Biker - you open up another side of the issue; The mindset of the armed victim. If I'm an agressor and someone nervously fumbles through their clothing then produces ANY gun, and shakes while pointing it at me, I'm going to look at it a lot differently than someone taking a military stance as I look down the barrel and see a glinting eye peering through the rear sights.
So... If your weapon makes you feel confident, If you think it looks mean, and of course, if you're capable of taking a hard stance, does the design of said weapon help you to look like someone the BG may want to reconsider as a target? If so, then the type of gun could indirectly have an effect.
Dave, Glen, LEO's - Do YOU (if allowed or for personal use) choose a gun for such reasons?

[MacGille]

It aint the gun man. It's the guy holding it. You are the intimidating factor, if the BG thinks you will shoot he is intimidated. If he thinks you will not shoot, he will push you. I've only been in two gunfights (ex cop) neither time did I try to intimidate my opponent, I tried to kill him. I'm still here, they are not. It didn't matter what gun he had or what gun I had. the only thing that mattered was speed and accuracy.

I am not any more intimidated by a Desert Eagle than I am by a .22 automatic. What intimidates me is the look in the guy's eyes and his attitude.;)

[Wildalaska]

As much as I despise Mel Gibson, I have always tried to use that look he used in the first Lethal Weapon movie.

I can do it well, I look like a lunatic :)

WildbugeyedAlaska

[Rmstn1580]

Looking down the barrel of a .22 or a .45, I see no difference, either one would make me dirty my boxers

[USMCGrunt]

I guess for me, I never looked at the "intimidation factor" in selecting a carry piece. I figure if I'm pulling it, it's not to show it off but to fire the damn thing at the bad guy. Weather he laughs or pees his pants isn't really a concern as long as the round is going to have the power and accuracy to do the job of putting him down.

[pumpkinheaver]

I had a scumbag pull a .22 on me one time. Guess what, I didn't say "hey there fine sir I think you are undergunned." It looked like I was staring down the end of a 105mm cannon. Now I was sober during this confrontation so I guess someone drunk or high may be more intimidated by a bigbore but rest assured it didn't matter one iota to me.

[obxned]

The "intimidation factor" would work well IF the BG was a sane, logical, sober individual.

[Wildalaska]

The "intimidation factor" would work well IF the BG was a sane, logical, sober individual.

What about those instances when they are:)

WildquiteoftenibetAlaska

[nate45]

The only legitimate reason a sane,sober,logical person would need to be intimidated by a firearm is if they are committing some type of crime.

If thats the scenario +1 for USMCGrunt.

[Tim Burke]

Having been in a number of FoF exercises, I've never noted any difference in my response to the actual guns pointed at me. I do recall being very impressed the first time a J-frame was pointed at my face. There was one scenario where 3 armed robbers entered a store and I could tell by their gunhandling that they were very well trained. That was very intimidating.

[chadwimc]

"The "intimidation factor" would work well IF the BG was a sane, logical, sober individual."

I"m more concerned with the 15 year old urban mutant with a gun. He doesn't care about the consequences of his actions if he wins the confrontation. He doesn't understand the consequences if I win the confrontation...

[thepreacher]

Attitude has a lot to do with it, intimidation happens with stance and the way you carry yourself. It helps to be a big guy, but a small woman can show herself confident and avoid many a confrontation. Predators are the same in human nature as they are in the wilds of Africa. Looking for the slower gazelles.

I do know that a gun of any kind seems to have a huge hole when it is pointed at you.





.....I see you now.

[Manedwolf]

I guess for me, I never looked at the "intimidation factor" in selecting a carry piece. I figure if I'm pulling it, it's not to show it off but to fire the damn thing at the bad guy. Weather he laughs or pees his pants isn't really a concern as long as the round is going to have the power and accuracy to do the job of putting him down.

I can think of some instances where one might want to draw, but not fire.

Suppose they only have a knife, they're in a convenience store yelling that they're going to cut people if they don't get money...but they're separated from you by several of those low aisle shelves of food. Would you fire immediately, or give them a chance to flee out the door, thus ending the threat without having to shoot?

In that kind of situation, unless they're about to kill someone, A), they can't approach you quickly, definitely not in a straight line, and B) since they can't, is it really worth the LEO and legal hassle and lawsuits (they were a good boy!) that will ensue if you shoot them?

In that sort of instance, yeah, they're a lethal threat, but one that can't make it to you quickly...and if they decide to flee after seeing a muzzle staring at them and hearing an authoritative command to "DROP IT! RIGHT NOW!", I think that's a good thing. Threat still over.

[Playboypenguin]

I can think of some instances where one might want to draw, but not fire.
I can think of many instances where this wouldbe true.

The thing to remember is that pulling your gun is the "next" to last thing you want to have to do...shooting it is the last thing.

[Magnum Wheel Man]

... I for one, ( yes after the initial shock of having the gun pulled ), am going to look at caliber, action & make if I can... )... & being a big physical guy, a cheap ( reads unreliable ) mini auto might not deter me from "taking someone on" in self defense, even if I'm not carrying...

that said, I have no interest in being shot by any gun... however I think of my self as being rational...

now if I were a crack head jonesen for a fix... I'm betting rational decisions are few & far between... couple that with most confrontations are going to occure in low light situations, it's going to take a flourecent Rodger Rabbit / Mask cartoon type gun to deter a truely desperate & strung out drug addict...

...to get to my point, a shiney gun is going to be more visible, & ( here it comes... for real this time )... a big bore revolver with 5-6 visible big holes as seen in the cylinder from the business end, is likely going to motivate someone easier than a barely visible single hole in a black auto, even if the tube is a 45, the contrast of dark cavernous bore to a black gun, is going to be way less noticable than the 5 big 44 cal holes in my silver 44 special snubbie...

that said... I just try to avoid trouble in the 1st place, but if you truely want to see how intimidating you look, find a full length mirror, turn the lights down low, back up 20 ft from the mirror, & draw... I'm betting you won't even see the barrel hole on most CCW guns, might not even see a gun if you are carrying a NAA mini revolver, or a mouse auto

maybe the best carry gun for defense against a desperate crack head would be a chromed plastic gun that shoots ping pong balls ???

[PJW001]

a big bore revolver with 5-6 visible big holes as seen in the cylinder from the business end, is likely going to motivate someone easier than a barely visible single hole in a black auto

In reference to the comments above by MWM (and to those that might not have seen this great pic by PBP) these are underscored by the pic at the bottom of this page (Scroll down to the bottom of the page to see this pic).

http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=254807

[Magnum Wheel Man]

but that guy is definatly good...:cool:

[revjen45]

The first shot is the best intimidator, followed repidly by several more. Even if he's too high to know he's been shot he will be disabled with good shot placement.

[Manedwolf]

The first shot is the best intimidator, followed repidly by several more. Even if he's too high to know he's been shot he will be disabled with good shot placement.

As I said, only if they're an immediate armed threat that can reach you. If they are far away, armed only with a melee weapon and flee instead...that's good.

Remember, as many people say, even a good shoot will cost you at least $10,000 in legal costs and make your life hell. It's preferable that they flee instead. If they have a gun, yes, first indication that you're armed should be your first shot at them. If they don't, and aren't on top of you...getting them to leave is a good thing.

[JunyTuck]

ANY gun pointed in my direction would intimidate the crap out of me! I suggest most of us would feel the same way. Now if I was confronted by a drunk, or drug crazed lunatic that was not impressed with my Seecamp 32, then I guess he could just laugh himself to the ICU or morgue!

[Alex45ACP]

I don't know about you guys, but if someone pointed a gun at me I think I'd be too busy soiling myself/running away to even notice whether it's a .22 or a .50 cal.

[vox rationis]

gee, I think I'm gonna develop a barrel/muzzle attachment that is like a flared out bell bottom style so that when the gun is pointed at the bad guy he sees a .50 caliber barrel opening despite the gun being only a .22...and I'll call it the "intimidator barrel attachment" :D

[p230]

Here is a link to a local story.

http://lubbockonline.com/stories/061007/loc_061007074.shtml

Tragicaly the young man was too drunk/high to pay any attention. Even a warning shot was not enough to make him leave. The home owner was no-billed by the grand jury this week. Possibly a good example of dim light and an impaired person not thinking rationally.

[revjen45]

Re: The appearance from the front of a revolver vs. an auto- Polish the muzzle on a 1911, and against the black bushing it looks like a 12 ga. Personally, I don't carry a gun to scare people and I wouldn't draw expecting him to be seized with terror and flee. If I have to draw it will be because I perceive an immediate threat and I'm pulling it out to shoot, not wave it around and hope the BG has enough sense to hit the road. If that's what he does, fine- but he will have to be quick because I will be shooting as soon as the sights are on target. I wouldn't even pull it out unless the threat were immediate and dire.

[Playboypenguin]

I'm pulling it out to shoot, not wave it around and hope the BG has enough sense to hit the road...I wouldn't even pull it out unless the threat were immediate and dire.
This has been covered before but I feel it cannot be stressed enough so here goes. :)

So if someone is 30ft away and has a bat and says "I am going to bash your head in" would you wait until he is within striking distance to pull and shoot or would you draw your weapon premptively and dter the threat?

[workinwifdakids]

these are underscored by the pic at the bottom of this page

Neither gun bothered me. The deciding factor on fleeing like a coward with **** running down my leg was that the man with a gun had on a Superman ring.

+10 -- PlayboyPenguin scares me.

Oh, and by the way - during my dad's time in the infantry, he wore a Superman belt buckle with his BDUs. Great stuff.

[AirAssaultTHIS]

So here's an add-on question for you all... caliber/bore size might not make much of a difference, but what about accessories. Does the addition of a taclight or laser make any difference? Its not why I have 'em, but it might be a consideration.

That light at the end of the tunnel? It's my TRL-2.

[Playboypenguin]

+10 -- PlayboyPenguin scares me.
How can you be scared by sweet lil' old me?
Oh, and by the way - during my dad's time in the infantry, he wore a Superman belt buckle with his BDUs. Great stuff.
I am a huge Superman fan. I am even thinking of getting my first tatoo. The Superman emblem from "Kingdom Come" surrounded by a flame or barbed wire band.

[JohnKSa]

It's not so much that there are guns that intimidate me more as it is that there are guns that intimidate me less.

For example: A small, cheap-looking, SA revolver in a tiny caliber just screams: "I'm probably not going to work and the person holding me almost certainly knows absolutely nothing about firearms."

I think more than anything what would intimidate me would be how the person handled the gun. You can tell when a person knows what they're doing with a gun...

[parrothead2581]

What would intimade you more, staring down a S&W 686 with a dirty cylinder face or staring down a S&W 629 with a clean cylinder face?

[nate45]

I thought of this thread when I was looking at the best looking sixgun of all time thread.

If someone suddenly produces a 3.5 inch model 27 and points it at you.

And you are not intimidated then you are most likely insane.

http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/Corbon%20357%20Magnum%20125%20gr%20DPX%20Ammo_files/image002.jpg

It has to be a large frame revolver WA.

Where you can see the loaded chambers and the large ominous muzzle.

Wait whats that you see in the blackness of the barrel?

It looks like graveyards and tombstones.

[Sigma 40 Blaster]

My opinion is that any criminal is a predator, they choose a target they think will be weak and defenseless. I suppose a meth'ed up freak would be excluded from that group as well as murderous psychopaths...those guys aren't scared of resistance anyways.

If you have a "normal" crook any form of resistance will likely startle them, especially a firearm. A Desert Eagle .50 would probably scare them more than a .22 derringer but either would prompt them into action (aggressive or defensive).

I think as CCW'ers we put too much thought into "the best defensive round" and "the scariest looking gun". I believe WE would be more scared of a particular handgun (1991 5" commander, Glock in .357 mag) than they would be. Look at the threads like "why would anyone buy a .40" and other comparing the ballistics of a .380, 9mm, .40, and .45. There are no BG forums like that...

I think any concealed weapon being drawn will have an equal effect on the predator, regardless of caliber, finish, or model. It's us who would be more traumatized by having a .45 pointed at us vs. a 9mm...

[Tokamak]

It was a Kel-Tec .380. I was not expecting trouble and my .357 was in my glove compartment.

I was afraid that the dufus who was threatening me would not understand that his life was on the line. He did and backed down. (after I called 911, the police who responded said I was justified in pulling my weapon)

I still think like a previous poster said, voice and attitude helped.

I have come to the conclusion that ANY gun has an intimidation factor. But, I am not relying on that. I am relying on placing a round COM if I have to.

[Scorch]

I read a few of the responses to the original question. My answer is always the same: it's the man, not the gun. I would be more intimidated by someone who draws on me while looking steadily in my direction, rather than someone who tries waving a gun around tring to intimidate me. If you make some folks draw on you, it won't make a bit of difference what the gun is because they won't try to hold you for the police.

[nate45]

I have come to the conclusion that ANY gun has an intimidation factor.

I agree and that was all discussed in the earlier part of the thread.

The only point I was making was, that if indeed one particular style of handgun has a more intimidating apperance than others.

The large frame revolver gets my vote.

[SpookBoy]

I agree it is on the attacker,if he is on drugs or whatever it prob might not matter, But i'd be alot more scared looking down the bbl. of some big revolver or a 1911 than a derringer.Before i get flamed I know either will kill you,I'm just answering the question originally asked.Just my .02

[Yankee Doodle]

I don't think the "average" skell is going to be looking to get into a shootout with his intended victim. I think, and this is just my opinion, it works out something like this.

GUN = Gone

Long GUN = Long gone

SHOTGUN = ****! Gone.

Again, Just my opinion.

[gyp_c2]

...same rule applies to a bat as a knife...21ft...If you haven't already started shooting, he'll just walk up and pop ya' upside da' ear wit' his Louisville Slugger...again and again and again...kinda' like the rythym you shoulda' been hearing from whatever popgun you're carrying...http://emoticons4u.com/smoking/rauch06.gif
...and I vote for the big revolver in the eyesocket...

[MyXD40]

Now I've never been in that situation before, to where I'd come face to face against another person with a gun.

(I open carry everywhere I go, unless wearing a jacket, then concealed)
BUT I do notice, which one of my firearms gets more attention. My XD service model all black, doesn't get too much attention. People notice it, and I know they can see it. Black gun against white shirt. Not hard to miss.
I've only been asked questions by only a few people. Just flat out, no one cares.

Now I wear my XD service duo-tone it gets more attention than I want. Everyone who seems to see it says "oh no he has a gun!" ..tho I never had the police called on me, or kicked out of the store, but people do feel that my duo-tone is a much higher threat than my all black. Unknown to why.

But asking a lot of my friends, and co workers, and other officers, they all agree with a duo-tone firearm, it does draw more serious attention than an all black firearm.

[oldbillthundercheif]

I've had a pile of guns pointed at me, but the scariest one was a single-action .22 revolver with an 8"-10" barrel and all the finish rusted off.

Why?

Because it was being held by some shakey unhealthy-looking kid with the hammer cocked back and it was pressed into my midsection at the time. The way the kid looked, I probably would have been more intimidated if he was holding a used needle, but that .22 was no joke.

I didn't soil myself or scream for jesus, but I gave him my wallet very quickly and with zero conversation.

The older guys who have robbed me have been more professional about the situation and, as a result, were much less scary, even though their guns were bigger. That kid was a wild card, anything could have happened. Not fun.

[Mister_Dinky]

The Intimidation Factor Of a various hand guns...

Any gun pointed at your face looks as big as a sewer pipe. There are other opinions. They are wrong. If you disagree you are wrong. Done. BTDT on both ends of the gun.

[PT111]

OldBill - I used to work with some fellows that had been in more fights, had been cut more times and been shot more times than you average hollywood hero. There were very few week ends that my father didn't have to go get one of them out of jail. I gre up on a farm and this was the good old days when the sherrif would put them in jail at night and then call their boss man the next morning to come bail them out. Sounds like the old time South and it was. But talking to these fellows they always said don't worry about the brave man. You can run from him. The scared man is dangerous and you never know when he is going to shoot. If he is shaking get out of the way or do you best to do what ever he says. I could tell lots of stories about them but most on here wouldn't believe them but I learned a lot about self protection from them. The biggest was that there is no shame in running when someone pulls a knife or gun. You can die a brave man's death but you are still dead.

[rampage841512]

If it's pointed at me, I'm intimidated.

[The Tourist]

I had another response all typed here, and I jumped out before I printed it.

I believe that all of us have a darker aspect of our personalities, and as such, the idea and use of 'intimidation' should not be one of the the tools we use as defense.

As I have said, we're the good guys. We protect life and the people in our care. In all cases, the best battles are those not fought at all.

But as I wrote my response, I put myself into the situation where I would use actual intimidation to anchor my point to an aggressor. And as I typed, I saw the exact implement I would use, already there, already prepared, already within my grasp.

And I felt embarrassed. I knew that under some situations, perhaps a bit too much asthma medication and during a very bad day, the idea of intimidation had a very nice ring.

If a shot has to be fired, then we much present ourselves as quick, clear of ego and bravado.

I do not think intimidation should be part of our lexicon.

[teejhot.40cal]

I think the most intimidating gun is the one pointed at me. I don't care if it is a .22 or .500 S&W

[MyXD40]

At the end of the day, if gun to gun, or hell even knife to gun, you're main focus is on comming out alive.

I don't really feel it's too much as the kind of gun being used..but the person behind the gun..

Take grandma for example. She's packin around her oxygen tank. She pulls a gun on you..now in my mind, I'm going to think ok this old hag has gone nuts, and has nothing to live for..then honestly I'd probably start laughing and find it soooo attractive that this old chick is packin a gun.. ..ok so a better example,

so a gang banger, decked in RED, clearly marked a gang member, holding a gun sideways in my face, or has that Trick-Daddy look on his face like "man you best back up and stop talkin about my momma" look..as apposed to a business man who clearly has let his stress take control of him, and he's confused and unknown on what to do..judgmental, yes, but I think the whole thing about it is, who are you going to be more scared of, and know your risk of getting shot by whichever person, is going to be much higher, so whats your quick, plan of action?

A gun is a gun. Bullets come out of it..it's the one who's pulling the trigger which gets you thinking..