NAA Guardian 32 ACP Range Report

R

RetiredMajor

New member
I received my new Guardian 32 ACP 2 days ago and got to the range with it today for the first time. I fired 120 rounds, a mixture of Remington FMJ, Aguila FMJ and Hornady Critical Defense. The gun fed and fired everything with no issues. As reported elsewhere, I did have a problem with stovepipes on the last round ejected. I had 3 stovepipes out of the 120 rounds fired. As you may know, the gun does not hold open when the magazine is empty so the stovepipes are not interfering with that function. But I do hope that clears up as I continue to break the gun in. I kept my targets within 20 feet and shot at various distances within that range. Accuracy was fine for a gun that tiny with no real sights. I did some slow fire and some rapid fire just to get a feel for it.

120 rounds was enough for today, this little gun punishes the hand a bit and I was ready to be done. Of course, this is not designed to be a pleasant range gun. I bought it so I have something very small to dump in my pocket when I walk or walk the dog. I feel like it will fit the bill nicely.

Major
 
Now here's a firearm which I haven't seen nor heard much of over the past few years. For a time they were getting a bit of buzz the to the fact that they were essentially inexpensive clones of the Seecamp LWS, but before too long they were eclipsed by more modern polymer framed pocket pistols such as the Kel-Tech P32/P3AT and the Ruger LCP.

I'm honestly surprised that these aren't more popular among those with strong aversion towards polymer framed pocket pistols, as they're definitely an alternative to something like the LCP.

Furthermore, I'm surprised by how many folks consider .32 ACP inadequate for Self-Defense, yet carry NAA Mini Revolvers chambered in .22WMR, which I doubt has much more oomph than .32 ACP out of such short barrels. No disrespect towards those who carry .22WMR Mini Revolvers, I just don't understand how .32 ACP is inadequate but .22WMR out of a Mini Revolver isn't.

Come to think of it, whatever happened to those bottlenecked cartridges NAA developed, .25 NAA and .32 NAA?
 
NAA makes quality guns. I owned a NAA Guardian .32acp long ago before I could afford a Seecamp. the after market add-on available way back yon were quite nice for the NAA .32acp.
 
Bill and others, to further elaborate, my interest in this gun was two-fold. First, I like a steel gun. I enjoy the feel and heft of it as well as the quality construction. Second, the NAA Guardian is double action which appeals to me. While there is no external safety, the trigger pull is very long and takes some effort unlike many striker fired guns which have a shorter, crisper trigger pull.
I like that.

I own a Ruger LCP and the NAA 32 is smaller in every dimension, but certainly weighs more.

Major
 
I had one and liked it very much. They are high quality little pistols.
Traded mine towards a Ruger Super Blackhawk several years ago.
 
I've had one for years. The last round stovepipe feature is indeed a feature. Mine has never failed to hold open on the last round. It's the same way for the 380. I got rid of that one because recoil from a 380 straight blow-back on a tiny gun like that is pretty stiff.
 
Forte S+W said:
Now here's a firearm which I haven't seen nor heard much of over the past few years. For a time they were getting a bit of buzz the to the fact that they were essentially inexpensive clones of the Seecamp LWS, but before too long they were eclipsed by more modern polymer framed pocket pistols such as the Kel-Tech P32/P3AT and the Ruger LCP.

I'm honestly surprised that these aren't more popular among those with strong aversion towards polymer framed pocket pistols, as they're definitely an alternative to something like the LCP.

Furthermore, I'm surprised by how many folks consider .32 ACP inadequate for Self-Defense, yet carry NAA Mini Revolvers chambered in .22WMR, which I doubt has much more oomph than .32 ACP out of such short barrels. No disrespect towards those who carry .22WMR Mini Revolvers, I just don't understand how .32 ACP is inadequate but .22WMR out of a Mini Revolver isn't.

Come to think of it, whatever happened to those bottlenecked cartridges NAA developed, .25 NAA and .32 NAA?
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The .25 NAA was pretty much dead on arrival. Such a small caliber, no one else ever made a gun or even a conversion barrel for .32 ACP pistols in the chambering, reloading dies would have been a $200 custom order because there's no way you would ever find enough people for a group buy, plus .32 ACP brass isn't exactly common at ranges.

The .32 NAA however has caught my attention recently given the sheer numbers of poor performing .380 hollow points. There are some companies that have offered the .32 NAA in recent years (none no longer do), there is one company I know that makes a conversion barrel for the LCP ($250 tho), reloading it is not as daunting or expensive as .25 NAA is given you can form the brass from .380 cases, which are easy to find at the range.

In gel, the .32 NAA expands very reliably and penetrates consistently to 11-12", pretty damn good for a .32 semi auto that's got power similar to that of .32 H&R Mag. In fact, .32 NAA can shoot 85 grain .32 bullets normally used for .32 revolvers.

Recently tho someone did a test of a .380 Federal HST that penetrated extremely well, so it's possible that better .380 projectiles are coming. Bottlenecked pistol calibers have never been popular here in the US, .357 Sig is possibly the most successful, yet few people shoot it and LEO agencies are dropping it in favor for 9mm faster than they are dropping .40 for 9mm.
 
I’ve always wanted one of those, but never bought one. Still find it tempting. As stated above the last round stovepipe is a known and common occurrence with these guns. As you said, it only happens on the last round, so it doesn’t inhibit function.


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@TruthTellers
Yeah, I pretty much stick to XTP bullets for .380 ACP since it seems to be the only bullet design that will both reliably expand and penetrate 12" in Gel.

Supposedly .357 SIG is getting dropped because 124gr 9mm +P+ loads are capable of duplicating the performance of .357 SIG and most duty guns chambered in 9mm hold up well to +P+ anyway.
Personally, I'm not into overpressure ammo, ergo if I want better performance I opt for a more powerful cartridge rather than trying to turbocharge less powerful ammo, but that's just me. The last thing I want is a logistics nightmare in which I have overpressure loads which are only safe to fire from specific guns lying around and having to worry about keeping them sorted so that I don't accidentally load them into a gun that can't handle them.
 
Forte S+W said:
@TruthTellers
Yeah, I pretty much stick to XTP bullets for .380 ACP since it seems to be the only bullet design that will both reliably expand and penetrate 12" in Gel.

Supposedly .357 SIG is getting dropped because 124gr 9mm +P+ loads are capable of duplicating the performance of .357 SIG and most duty guns chambered in 9mm hold up well to +P+ anyway.
Personally, I'm not into overpressure ammo, ergo if I want better performance I opt for a more powerful cartridge rather than trying to turbocharge less powerful ammo, but that's just me. The last thing I want is a logistics nightmare in which I have overpressure loads which are only safe to fire from specific guns lying around and having to worry about keeping them sorted so that I don't accidentally load them into a gun that can't handle them.
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It's more to do with ammo price and commonality between other LEO agencies in the event of a national emergency. Say we have a nuclear war with China or that coronovirus spreads to the US and it looks like World War Z outside, a department that runs low on .357 Sig is going to have a hard time getting more ammo vs departments that use 9 or .40 because that stuff is stocked very deep in warehouses.

As to the performance, .357 Sig is usually 1500 fps with a 125gr bullet while the +P+ 9mm stuff I see is rated for 1300 fps with a 124gr bullet. Needless to say, 200 fps faster with the same weight bullet is a lot faster.
 
NAA vs Seecamp vs P32

I've had all three of those in the title. The NAA .32 was my first carry gun. It pocket carried OK, but was a bit heavy. The last round stovepipe may very well be a feature if you so desire to call it that. I switched to a Seecamp .32, was fairly disappointed. It's hollow point only unless you remove the spacer from the magazine (I don't recommend this, just note it in passing), and has no real sights at all. A bit better build quality than the NAA, but not by much.

I finally got around to the KelTec P32. It is a mostly double action pistol; the hammer sits at a half cock nesting inside the sides of the slide but is actuated by the trigger rather than by thumbing it to full cock on the first round. The sights are primitive, but they can be improved by applying some paint or nail polish. It's flat, light, easy to pocket carry, reasonably accurate out to about 5 - 7 yards. This has been my main carry gun when discrete carry is needed - which is most of the time for me.
 
It's more to do with ammo price and commonality between other LEO agencies in the event of a national emergency. Say we have a nuclear war with China or that coronovirus spreads to the US and it looks like World War Z outside, a department that runs low on .357 Sig is going to have a hard time getting more ammo vs departments that use 9 or .40 because that stuff is stocked very deep in warehouses.

As to the performance, .357 Sig is usually 1500 fps with a 125gr bullet while the +P+ 9mm stuff I see is rated for 1300 fps with a 124gr bullet. Needless to say, 200 fps faster with the same weight bullet is a lot faster.
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I've never understood the rationality of preparation for a full scale invasion of the United States, especially not when doing so is detrimental towards your everyday life.
Seriously, when you put it this way; "Let's carry weaker cartridges with less stopping power on the off chance that the country is invaded by a foreign power." does that sound like a logical decision to you?

Honestly, in this day and age, I would consider the most likely scenario in which the United States could be successfully invaded in a manner which could not be quickly repelled/snuffed out by the National Guard would be by extraterrestrials armed with advanced weaponry which renders our weapons largely ineffective, and obviously in which case, we're screwed anyway.
So yeah, I'd rather be better armed against everyday threats by carrying more powerful weapons than downgrading on the off chance a country on the other side of the planet decides to attempt a full-scale invasion of a country which not only has a very formidable military, but lots of legally armed citizens who could easily join in the fight.
Besides, isn't it actually typically easier to find less commonly used cartridges during a state of emergency when everyone is scrambling to stock up?

The fact that 9mm +P+ connot actually come close to .357 SIG in terms of velocity/energy only makes the foolishness of the concept of downgrading to 9mm Luger out of concern of a state of emergency that much more apparent.
 
I've owned a NAA .32acp, Seecamp .32acp and Kel Tec .32acp. all three were/are good guns. the NAA is a slightly beefed up version of the Seecamp. slide is 1 oz. heavier to handle heavier fmj rounds, sights (if you can call them that), and American style mag catch. the KT P32 felt like a toy to me and I got rid of my first one because it just didn't inspire confidence, thought I got it again in p3at which went by the way side.

I still have the Seecamp, in fact I have two .32s. I just got another KT P32 because well, it has proven itself over time in the market. the NAA is fine as well but with the Seecamp it simply doesn't fill a role for me anymore. in my opinion, if used as intended and with that kept in mind, you can't go wrong with any of the three.
 
Forte S+W said:
I've never understood the rationality of preparation for a full scale invasion of the United States, especially not when doing so is detrimental towards your everyday life.
Seriously, when you put it this way; "Let's carry weaker cartridges with less stopping power on the off chance that the country is invaded by a foreign power." does that sound like a logical decision to you?

Honestly, in this day and age, I would consider the most likely scenario in which the United States could be successfully invaded in a manner which could not be quickly repelled/snuffed out by the National Guard would be by extraterrestrials armed with advanced weaponry which renders our weapons largely ineffective, and obviously in which case, we're screwed anyway.
So yeah, I'd rather be better armed against everyday threats by carrying more powerful weapons than downgrading on the off chance a country on the other side of the planet decides to attempt a full-scale invasion of a country which not only has a very formidable military, but lots of legally armed citizens who could easily join in the fight.
Besides, isn't it actually typically easier to find less commonly used cartridges during a state of emergency when everyone is scrambling to stock up?

The fact that 9mm +P+ connot actually come close to .357 SIG in terms of velocity/energy only makes the foolishness of the concept of downgrading to 9mm Luger out of concern of a state of emergency that much more apparent.
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Like I said, it's more to do with ammo price, but the ammo commonality is likely a factor, but it's not the only factor. I brought up invasion as one possibility, but the much more likely possibilities of a national emergency are pandemics, food shortages causing civil unrest, civil war, simultaneous natural disasters.

There are likely billions of rounds of 9mm ammo in storage in warehouses and bunkers in the US as well as .40 caliber. I doubt there are any for .357 Sig and the various agencies across the US do not care to switch to another caliber that costs significantly more.
 
Seriously, when you put it this way; "Let's carry weaker cartridges with less stopping power on the off chance that the country is invaded by a foreign power." does that sound like a logical decision to you?
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WAY off topic but NO country is going to invade and then occupy the US..The 'big boys' don't have the means to 'get here', plus the the US is a BIG place. More likely, another country will make the US 'irrelevant'..by doing things like shutting down our electrical grid..

Most likely is something like 'How It Ends', the movie..where civilization, being very fragile, goes down the pooper quickly because of some unexplained 'event'..and 'most' 'should' keep a fairly good supply of ANY ammunition...I know I do..
 
the last spent round stove pipe is because there is no slide stop and the fast action of the slide catches the spent brass in the ejection port because mag follower is not pushing it out as fast as another round would. the difference in these two actions (follower vs. next round is so slight that the stove pipe occurs most of the time but not always, at least on my guns. look at a loaded magazine from the side and you will see part of the brass above the feed lips-not so with the follower.
 
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