Always buy the gun that a person will actually use and carry. Not one that they will think is pretty or great but one they are comfortable using. BTW, carrying a semi auto with an empty chamber can be a death wish if you need it quickly. Lots of dudes I know carry a 1911 cocked and locked. Not me though. That hammer back gives me the willies. I rotate between a revolver or something semi auto I'm fairly sure of like a 9 or 40 with a decocker or safety.