best defensive caliber and why?

[Rapier]

I carry different guns depending on the season here in NW Florida. It gets so hot and wet that anything big in the summer is out, as far as I am concerned and that came after years of toting a 1911 in 45 ACP, then leaving it a while, then leaving it all the time. So I went to a KelTec 380 that I carry all the time. I simply recognized that a gun in the sock drawer was of no use in a "need to have" situation.

Now in the winter, under a jacket I carry a 4-inch M-66 with 162gr SWC GCs over a heavy load of H-110 as 357s. I like big

In the truck I carry a Sig P226 and a M-10. The 226 has two 20 round magazines with 147s so we can engage in a small firefight if things go south on the road.

On the tractor at the farm I have a rifle rack where the stainless Mini-14 resides. It has been accurized and shoots sub MOA. It is a bad motor scooter for dog-sized critters and things like coons, armo-dildoes, yotes, etc. I also carry a Buckmark Target gun in a holster on the tractor for lightweight stuff like turtles in my ponds or the no-shoulder bad guys.
Ed