Comparing Four 380's

T

tallball

New member
(Subtitle: If you like pina coladas...)

I have read a lot of articles and threads about 380's lately. I was going to the range this morning, and I decided to bring all four of my 380's. I figured I could shoot them all and then write up a short review.

I had just one 380 for ages: a Russian commercial Makarov that I bought brand-new in the late 80's or early 90's for $149 NIB. In the past 5-10 years it has seemed very old and clunky compared to more modern firearms.

About five years ago I started seeing all of the little polymer 380's no bigger than a cookie, so I decided to buy one for CC. I got a Kel-Tec P3AT for a little more than $200. It is super small and super light. It is not fun to shoot (with my giant hands), but I can put a magazine onto a paper plate at 7 yds no problem, and that's good enough for SD, as far as I'm concerned. I can conceal it with any clothing, and it has been 100% reliable.

My FiL is my shooting buddy, and he also reloads ammo for us (yeah, he is a great FiL). In the past year or two my wife and daughter and MiL have also got interested in shooting. That means that they plink with various 22's handguns and 32 revolvers, and we leave them alone while they talk about whatever it is that women talk about. Since they all flat-out refuse to even try to shoot a 38 special (lots of small hands and badly damaged wrists), I was wondering if maybe they could shoot a 380... if it was just the right one... and thus have a more realistic SD caliber at their disposal.

I had heard that the Beretta 84 has very low recoil. My budget isn't much, and it took forever, but I finally managed to purchase one with worn finish for $233 that functions perfectly. A bunch of us went shooting, and my very small (5'7") buddy tried it first. He didn't like it. He thought it was too snappy for his taste. So, of course, after hearing his mini-rant, the ladies had no interest in shooting it. Thanks Dan.

So I did some more research. It turns out that Star and Llama and Colt all made steel 380's at one time or another that actually fired from a locked breech and were heavy enough to absorb most of the recoil. I figured that parts would be unavailable for the Spanish pistols, and much more do-able for the Colt, so I set out to find one. Months later I finally found a very nice one... for $481. It arrived at my friend's LGS this week, so I was able to take it to the range this morning. I decided to take all of my 380's and have a "shoot out".

I began with the Kel-Tec. It was painful at first. After a magazine or so I remembered how to position my finger so it didn't get pinched (as badly). I put all 30 or so rounds into a paper plate sized area, but it wasn't fun at all and I was glad when it was over.

Next I shot the Beretta 84. Personally, I don't feel that the recoil is much. Something about the shape makes it move around in my hand a little more than I would like, but I can shoot it just fine. It feels good in my hand and points well. I could shoot it all day without any pain.

Then I shot my "new" Colt Government 380. They are bigger than the Mustang. It is good to shoot. The felt recoil was even less than the Beretta, and I had no problem shooting a fairly tight 30-or-so round group. The trigger pinched my finger a couple of times, but all in all I was quite pleased.

Then, what the heck, I went ahead and shot 30 or so rounds through my old clunky Makarov. I hadn't shot it for a while. I was in for a surprise. I expected more recoil, since it was blowback and everyone says they recoil more. It is probably due to the larger size and heavy steel frame, but it had no more felt recoil (to me) than the Colt Government Model. The trigger was the best of the four. It may not have started out that way, but after 25 or so years of shooting, it has probably mellowed out a lot. It isn't super light, but it is super smooth.

And so it turned out like that 70's song about the guy who was tired of his original girlfriend and decided to find a new one. Eventually he realized that his original girlfriend was a good fit for him after all. It's not very concealable, but for a 380 it seems like my best choice as a shooter is the Makarov that I bought 25+ years ago. Things have come full circle.


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Here is my old gal. She is a little large for CC, but she is wonderful to shoot and I shouldn't have neglected her for so long.


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I’ve got a Mustang II which utilizes the same frame as your Government model along with the Mustang slide. I purchased the gun new back in the 1990s and consider it one of my favorites. It has proven reliable and surprisingly accurate for its intended purpose. I also agree the all steel .380s are more fun to shoot than the polymer models. However, while my Ruger LCP is not a lot of fun to shoot it does disappear in my pocket.

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Yeah, the big steel ones are much better for shooting. But they would end up staying at home a lot, and my P3AT can easily go anywhere with me.
 
I agree the 3AT is an easy to carry bugger. The "go anywhere" gun. Not a great shooter. Almost no sights at all and a long trigger.

But, i can carry it when i cant carry a bigger gun. It has become my gym carry piece. When the 6'7" 270lb crazy dude starts swingin a weight bar at me.. Id rather have that 3AT and the 6 rounds of .380 to argue back with then just my good looks.

And Yes, he does show up from time to time and thinks im bugging his cell phone :eek:
 
Very cool review! It's pretty clear that you and your Mak have that special connection. All 30 in the "X" ring.
 
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Great review. Kel-tec style pistols are not much fun to shoot but are a joy to carry. My LCP fits in the pocket as comfortably as a phone or a wallet.

It's definitely not fun to shoot, but as they say "the gun you will carry is better than the gun you won't".

But your review made me want to shoot all of these beautiful steel pistols. I've long wanted to try shooting a Colt Mustang-style pistol. The Beretta 80 series pistols are also gorgeous. You're a lucky man to own all of these great mouse guns.
 
Thank you everyone for the kind words. I enjoyed shooting the 380's and also writing about them. (I am starting my third novel in June.)

The Colt Government 380 was a good deal, but still more than I prefer to pay for a handgun. The Mak and the P3AT are easy to find at reasonable costs. You can get a Beretta 84 or similar for a good price if you are willing to haunt Gunbroker for months. That didn't work as well for the Colt.

The good news is that Browning and RIA are both supposed to be releasing medium-sized locked breech 380's in platforms similar to the 1911 within the next few months. That will give us something similar to the Colt Government Model 380, but cheaper and easier to find.
 
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The group from your Makarov is impressive.

I'm thinking a shootable pocket pistol -- one that gives relatively good precision and is not uncomfortable to shoot, meaning that one will log valuable range time with it -- is one chambered in nothing larger than .32 Auto. That's a big tradeoff in firepower for concealability and shootability, but sometimes deep concealability is essential and a gun that isn't pleasant to shoot has limited utility.

Keep your eye peeled for a milsurp CZ 82 or polsurp CZ 83. They will perform similar to your Makarov.
 
I was just maintaining my LCP of three years tonight. The finish is worn from pocket carry and the innards are worn from about 2500 rounds of flawless performance.

This little fella is hard as hell to shoot. There are no sights to speak of. It recoils worse than a 9mm. The grip is short and the thing is a featherweight.

But I'll say this for the LCP/P3AT. At less than ten ounces (10 ounces!) the thing reliably puts 9mm Kurz accurately on target, or at least accurately enough for short range.

That, all by its lonesome, is laudable.
 
^I have to assume most LCPs see nowhere close to that volume of shooting. And, I assume with all that practice you are a darn good shot with the LCP.
 
Like they say, better the LCP/P3AT in your pocket than the 45acp you left at home.

There are some things I just don't see happening. One is someone shooting at me from 25 yards away. The times someone has obviously thoght about mugging or carjacking me (I drive a classic sports car most of the time), they were closer than than that. A lot closer, as in ten feet or so. When I was obviously aware of them, and/or was much larger than they were, and/or slid my hand into my coat or pants pocket in a meaningful way, they changed their minds.

I don't want to shoot anyone. I really don't. If I do have to, it's not going to be a sniper battle at 100 yards. It's going to be someone a few feet away who wants to slam my face into something and take my wallet/keys. That's why I am comfortable carrying a snub 38 or P3AT.

If I NEED a gun, it will be fast and furious: instantaneous at arm's length.
 
I've got a batch of guns laying around here and sometimes I just have to try something else....well...just to try one. There seem to be quite a lot of .380's anymore that are good for concealment, but a lot of them aren't necessarily fun to shoot. A couple weeks ago on a whim, I picked up a Glock 42 just to try one out. I have to say, it's sort of like shooting a large .22 for me. I have put a few boxes through it and it functions great, is very accurate, and as far as recoil...you could shoot it all day.
If you are looking for something for the recoil shy to shoot, that would be my recommendation. To say I was pleasantly surprised with the Glock is a major understatement.
 
I have heard lots of good things about the G42. I was going to buy one instead of the Colt Government. Unfortunately, that particular Glock doesn't fit in my hand well at all. :(

Thanks again for all of the kind words. This is a great forum and I enjoy posting here.

Oh, and here is the car. :)


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My results with the Makarov in .380 are the same as yours. It's even more fun now that I even reload for it.
 
I have the Colt Mustang plus 2 and the Beretta and love both. Congrats on finding the one that works for you.
 
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