Depends on what you can afford. My personal preference:
http://www.kimberamerica.com/pistols/compactprocarry/
The Pro Carry II is a good gun, but if you can find it, buy an older Pro Carry which is even better. The original Pro Carry doesn't have all the extra crap on it that some lawyer made Kimber add to it to prevent it from firing if it were dropped (It was already an impossibility, and the lawyer just made up the case for gun manufacturers so he could make a buck I think - he had no case where this actually happened).
For defense, you probably don't need 17 rounds - your SKS is a better alternative if you need more, and you are in serious trouble (multiple baddies) if more than 9 rds are needed anyway.
I'm a strong advocate of .45 / 230gr ammo. 9mm should be your minimum caliber (with a minimum of 147 gr bullets, since 115 gr have been shown to not work at all!) but I personally wouldn't buy anything less than a .40. I don't trust 9mm unless I'm gonna spray it such as with an MP5.
Short answer - buy a .45. Makes a dramatically bigger hole (especially with something like hydrashock ammo) resulting in a greater chance that your encounter will be over with quickly and you going on living another day.
-S
PS. Here is a shop selling it:
Kimber Pro Carry II Stainless 45 ACP
$941.00
$799.00 On Sale!
3200052
Powerful. Dependable. Safe. The best pistols for carry.
The Tacoma, Washington Police Department recently completed a testing program to determine what pistol their officers would carry. The test involved nine brands, 39 models and three calibers of semi-automatic pistols. Kimber won, and officers now have the option of selecting a Kimber Pro Carry II or Pro Carry HD II for duty.
The test results are staggering. Other than Kimber, pistols had a failure rate as high as 22%. Kimber had the lowest failure rate Tacoma PD has recorded in over 20 years of testing for any type of firearm – less than one half of one percent! They also determined that the Kimber was safer than other test pistols when the safety was in the “on” position.
Compact and Pro Carry pistols are similar to Custom models. Their 4-inch bushingless bull barrel makes them easier to conceal and reduces weight. Keeping barrel weight forward also reduces recoil, allowing faster recovery from shot to shot. Each one has dovetail-mounted low profile fixed sights with rounded edges to prevent snagging, and some models have Meprolight Tritium three dot (green) night sights.
The Compact Stainless II features a stainless steel slide and frame. The frame itself is .400 inch shorter than the full length Pro Carry but still holds 7 rounds. Pro Carry models are available with either stainless steel or aluminum frames. Kimber aluminum frames are machined from solid blocks of 7075-T7, the hardest and strongest available. Moreover, these frames are run on the same machines and hold the same tight tolerances as steel frames. Tested to 20,000 rounds with no meaningful wear, the weight savings they offer does not come at a compromise.
http://www.the-armory.com/shopsite_s...product47.html
PPS. I use 8 rd mags in mine, with another in the chamber for 9.