one handgun to do everything

[twyacht]

The .357 is the one I would keep rather than any of those wimpy 9mm's.

+1 or even a .44?? S&W, or Ruger Police Service Six?  The .357 is a viable option to cover the OP,

Based on the choices, my G21 .45, would cover the given parameters. Sure it's a rail road tie, but it is concealable, and not uncomfortable to carry.

[fightingquaker13]

Actually, given my choice between a 7-8 round 1911 or one of the new "hi-cap" .357s that also hold either 7-8 rounds (I really haven't looked at them) from Smith or Taurus, I'd give the revolvers a long hard look if I were going to the sand box.  It will always go bang, its the same capacity and speed to fire and the  more robust round would seem to offset the slower reload. Though watching guys who are good wth speed loaders, its pretty darn fast with the wheelguns, and deploying to face the ragheads is plenty on incentive to practice. FWIW.
FQ13

[tombogan03884]

The .357 is the one I would keep rather than any of those wimpy 9mm's.

When I posted earlier I was pressed for time (errands    ) so I did not explain my reasoning and perhaps sounded snottier than I intended.
The OP said One hand gun for all purpose, that would range from plinking to self defense and hunting. With the exception of the Glock's all the listed choices are primarily  9mm, which, until the introduction of newer bullet designs was considered minimal at best for self defense , and is still considered a joke for a hunting round. with the .357 you can shoot .38 specials which will do any thing a 9mm will do, plus, you have the option of switching to full power magnum rounds for self defense or hunting game of deer size or larger. It is worth remembering that in it's early days the .357 magnum was used by one hunter to take every variety of game in America. (I forget his name, but some one else will know who I'm talking about ).
Also, in an "only one gun" situation a semi auto is a poor choice, if your magazines become damaged, and they will, you no longer have any pistol, just an awkward, very short, club, this makes even a lower capacity 6 round revolver a far more practical choice than any of the massive capacity "wonder nines" that mall ninja's are so enamored of.
Unless you are a mall ninja, then I would suggest a Glock 20. 10mm, it's to much gun for the squirrels and rabbits you are more likely to be shooting in a survival situation, but it holds a lot of effective rounds, and mall ninja's are not noted for their ability, so that becomes important.
I do not consider the .44's revolver's because of the all purpose stipulation, while a .357 K frame revolver is about the upper limit of concealable pistol, that is still capable of taking larger game the .44 is just to heavy and bulky for concealed carry.
While I carry a 1911 for an every day CCW, the .45 ACP cartridge is a close range fighting caliber, while people have killed bears with it it is a poor choice as you have to be much closer than with the .357 since with the larger slower bullet you are trading effective range for hitting power, it's a bit large for smaller game and you are again dependent on fallible magazines.
As I say, I own both, if I'm going down town I grab the 1911, If I was fleeing with what I could carry, it would be abandoned in favor of the .357.

[Rob10ring]

+1 for .357! A 4 inch .357 is the best balanced all-around gun. Defense, Comp, Hunt, plink and easy for the less motivated family members to use. In an auto, the closest would be a 10mm. A 10mm revolver might fit the bill too, since they can also shoot 40, but then you have to move up to an N frame and that screws the CCW a little bit.

[Rastus]

An affordable list that I like.  I have a couple of M&P's and they are great however....one that you left off the list that is on the less expensive end of things is the Ruger SR-9.  I carry a full sized one...if I didn't carry that it would probably be one of the M&P's (which I voted for).  The P90 is a boat anchor...reliable, but a boat anchor.

[Sponsor]

[alfsauve]

The "target" shooting and survival sort of skews it in my book.   Got to be a .357 revolver, because of the versatility of the round.  Personally, I'd go with a 6" stainless, like the 686 or 66.

However, I'll take issue with the reliability of revolvers over semi-autos.   I've owned and shot enough revolvers to know they are subject to malfunctions.  Cylinder lock is easy to achieve with just a little foreign matter inside the frame.  One could argue that a closed breech semi-auto is more reliable on the first shot, since it's action is entirely enclosed and fairly impervious to contamination.

[Ulmus]

This is a tricky question to answer.

What are the percentages for the situations listed?

Will you leave it at home more than conceal carry it?  Will you carry it every day, but use it at the range once every three to six months?  How bad is the crime in your neighborhood?  Is it detroit level or are you in the white collar suburbs or do you live in a retirement community full of senior citizens?  Do you hunt?

Since you already have a G-17, have you thought about seeing if you can get the shorter barrel and slide from a G-19 to switch to for concealed carry duty.  (I hear that they are interchangable from Eric Shelton and Bob Mayne on the Handgun World Show Podcast.  Episode 90.  http://www.handgunworld.com/?p=558  )

I've been trying to dowsize my ammo differences too, and recently bought a 1895 Marlin .357 to go with my .357 revolver.  I figure these will do fine for home defense in my area.  For concealed, my wife has a 380 so I'm gonna get one for me as well.(Mixed collar neighboorhood in a retirement economic based area.)  If I was in Detroit or the border suburbs, I'd have a Glock 17 with the 30 round mags and a Kel Tec Sub 2000 carbine that accepts the glock mags and hang the concerns of overpenetration.  (it's gonna be house to street shooting anyway there.)

[Badgersmilk]

Couldn't bring myself to pick anything from that list...  

I will say, at least the Beretta 92SF is pretty!  

[jaybet]

Downsizing for ammo is a good idea but I don't think one gun will do it for SHTF scenario. Then you'll need to scrounge and you'll need 9mm, 45 acp, and 357 to use what you can find.

[WatchManUSA]

This is an impossible question.  Its like asking what is the best gun?  I get asked that question every day I work.  My answers are:  Guns are similar to tools.  The tool must fit the job.  The gun must fit the application.  This is the reason people buy different guns.  Welcome to the addiction!  My job is to feed your addiction!