There is a huge variety of concealable handguns available: some would call it a bewildering glut. The reason is that handguns are overwhelmingly the most popular firearms sold in the United States. In 2016, according to the ATF, 4,720,075 pistols were made in the United States. In 2019, a Trump slump year, still over three million pistols were made, compared to 1,957,667 rifles and 480,735 shotguns. Since 2020, due to the pandemic, rise in crime, and other factors handgun sales have soared.

It is hard to call the 9mm cartridge a new idea, as Austrian designer Georg Luger developed it in 1901. Most popular semi-auto pistols today are backed on the Glock design of 1979-1982, using polymer frames, Browning-inspired tilt barrels, striker firing, and integral trigger-face safeties. The Mossberg MC2sc is their best effort to date, adding a 14 round double stack magazine, an improved trigger, and an optics-ready slide. These are the published specifications.

The supplied MC2sc was supposed to have Tritium night sights, as that's what the model number and box indicated, but standard 3 dot sights were installed. Mossberg took care of it in a blazingly fast manner, installing the correct sights and returning the pistol in just a few days.

For a smallish 9mm pistol to be practical and enjoyable, it has to fit your hand well. Lightweight 9mm pistols can be nasty little palm-slappers if they do not. This Mossberg ships with two magazines, an 11 round flush and a 14 round extended. I don't care for the flush magazine one bit, as it requires a two-finger grip, but the 14 round extended magazine makes this pistol far more stable and secure.

There isn't much for me to carp about here with the Mc2sc, but I can usually find something. The warranty is a bit light at only one year. Certainly, if Mossberg can warranty their 940 autoloading shotguns for two years, they should be equally as generous with their pistols. I love this pistol, but I don't love the cardboard box it comes in. A locking plastic box would be a more appealing presentation.

The original 6 or 7 round Mossberg MC-1 I reviewed was a good first effort, but didn't leap away from many other similar 9mm offerings. This Mc2sc does, however, with a 4.1 pound super-crisp trigger, an outstandingly good 14+1 round capacity, and the bonus of being optics-ready if that is your inclination. Mossberg has a big winner here with the MC2sc, and it is good enough to permanently retire my Sig P365. I say buy this Mossberg and you'll be supremely well-satisfied.