why pistol caliber carbines do make sense

High Tower's bullpup stock promises to render the PCC a great choice for the majority of us Lazyboy pro's.

I’m a big big fan of the TFB so after reading a lengthy argument thereon entitled “Frankly, Pistol Caliber Carbines Don’t Make a Lot of Sense – Here’s Why”, I feel compelled to pitch my two cents into the fray and stand between the author and the pitchfork-bearing PCC owners clamoring for a lynching.

As writers on any topic we have to be careful not to impact peoples choices or livelihoods and in penning about guns I think it crucial to be conscious of striking a balance when I have a strong opinion on a given matter. Now I don’t think Nathaniel F’s article (well written and founded on experience and research) is going to put anyone out of business but there are a number of companies heavily invested in the building (or accessorizing) of PCC format weapons. The AFD has a minuscule readership compared to the TFB so our opinions probably go largely unnoticed, but I still worry about the consequences of what I write. Even if a negative review deters 10 buyers, that’s a lot of money for a manufacturer. I used to work in the film industry and it wasn’t until I’d completed my first production that I realized EVERY film ever made, no matter how terrible, is deserving of credit for the effort alone. Film critics are often oblivious to this fact because they lack hands-on experience and only ever watch films from the comfort of a private screening room, reclining in luxurious armchairs, supping beverages and chowing down on buttered corn. But a scathing review can be devastating for a budding director and I’ve seen young filmmakers go to drink and drugs after the fact. Similar is true of the firearms (or any manufacturing) industry; the time, money, ingenuity, familial sacrifice et al entailed in setting up shop is beyond the imagination of most of us so with this in mind we at the AFD tend to look for praiseworthy products (or that component worthy of praise in a product) and let disparaging opinions go unwritten. 

So yes, I DO feel there’s a VERY strong argument for PCC’s, either of the dedicated weapon, rifle-down or pistol-up variety ESPECIALLY for the majority of gun owners who are simply that: owners. They have neither the time, resources nor fervor for shooting but simply like having a gun around the house for peace of mind. 

Allow me to bullet my personal ruminations on this matter (inclusive of PCC SBR’s):

• If PCC’s don’t make sense, why do so many elite forces and first responders around the world use them (MP5, CZ Scorpion, B&T etc). Because they’re easy to deploy and highly effective at short range. Note this definition of the new B&T USW: https://www.bt-ag.ch/shop/eng/bt-usw/bt-universal-service-weapon--usw-a1-kal-9-x-19-bt-430001
• I already have hearing damage from a lifetime of shooting sans hearing protection - the .223, 5.56 and .308 rounds are very harsh on the drums - for me it’s actually painful to use them and if I were in a home defense or doomsday scenario I know I wouldn’t be putting on ear protection before defending my family. A shotgun is also deafening indoors or out.
• AR’s (including AR’s adapted for pistol calibers) are not really beginner weapons nor good for people who are too busy to practice or lack the passion to learn. They are simply a bad choice for the huge contingent of non-expert unenthusiastic firearm owners looking for home security because they are easily fumbled and cumbersome UNLESS we acquire the requisite muscle memory. Stress makes us all thumbs anyway but add remembering how to actuate a weapon and meantime the perp will have shot homeowner and family. 
• 9mm is cheaper than any rifle round and in a doomsday situ possibly the most readily available. (Having said that, post apocalypse I’ll likely come across a cadaver or two with a Glock 9mm or an AR and the relevant ammo, so I can take my pick.)
• I feel the 45ACP is the optimum home defense round as it has great short range effectiveness, limited wall penetrating capability (neighbors and family are less likely to succumb as I spray the joint) and low recoil from a PCC. 
• Stress will make any pistol hard to shoot straight but a PCC has inherent pointability. I have to remember that lining up sights would fall second to staring-at-threat-and-squeezing-trigger.
• For range day fun and shooting targets out to 50 yards, pistols and PCC’s offer me maximum funnery. Which is more inherently accurate? With three points of contact, a carbine is exponentially more likely to make hits both at the range AND under stress.
• In a doomsday scenario in which I have taken the bugout option, long distance accuracy is moot. The word for the day will be evade, evade, evade and making long distance shots is only going to direct a missed target and everyone else toward my location. The way to survive will be to stay well hidden at all times and only resort to using my firearm when a potential threat literally stands on my foot as I hide unseen in the shrub. In which case, point blank range will be my distance and I’ll just keep firing ’til they’re down. 

Clearly Nathaniel is an expert but most of us genuinely aren’t. Despite all the firearm options, articles, expert advice, classes, training courses, youtube videos and the gamut of other things to enlighten us, most of us are not nor will ever be experts or marksmen because we don’t have the time or money to be anything more than armchair enthusiasts: for us Lazyboy pro’s, the simplest gun to operate is the one to reach for in the heat of a terrible moment (hence the success of the Glock by the way) where you’ll just be squeezing the trigger repeatedly until the threat is neutralized. In the end I totally agree with his last paragraph that there is a window of opportunity for someone wishing to make PCC’s and i think they will be one of the largest selling firearm formats once manufacturers figure that out. So, someone should take Nathaniel’s suggestion as a business cue: the market awaits. AW