New NAA .380 Guardian

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Drakejake

New member
I am anticipating a thread that hasn't yet appeared on this particular newsreader.

I love small pistols, but what do you get with the new Guardian .380 that we don't have already with the Kel-Tec 9 MM (14 oz empty) or the Republic Arms Patriot .45 (20 oz empty)? If we are looking for the ultimate small but powerful gun, shouldn't we look forward to the long-promised Taurus Millenium .45 in titanium, ten round mag, 17 oz empty?

Drakejake
 
The Guardian, Autaugahwhatever, Seecamp, etc. are all designed to put the .32 into the smallest possible package. he NAA guardian in .380 follows the same philosophy. The other guns you mentioned are not based on that same philosophy. The Patriot... while small, is not as small as some of the other 45 snubbies on the market. the KelTec is not in the same class. It leaned a little more toward capacity. The Taurus Millinium isn't in the same category either. You are listing guns that are twice the bulk. Of course you wouldn't necessarily want a Millinium sized .380 but you aren't going to find a Guardian sized 45.

Personally, I would like KelTec to design a .380 based on the same philosophy they put into the P32. They could also do the same thing with the 45 but would end up with a substantially larger gun nearly the size of the Patriot... BTW, I own and love the Patriot, Guardian, and KT P11. I've also recently ordered a P32 which should be here next week.

Those of you out there that say, "Why would you want a .32 when you could have a 475 Linebaugh" often overlook the size factor. I can carry the .32 lots easier and am therefore many times more likely to have it on me than the other guns you mentioned.
 
I have a Guardian 32 but won't buy the 380. I'm waiting for the Kahr MP-9 which will weight less and be thinner than the NAA 380. I'm buying a Kahr P-9 soon and would rather have it than the NAA 380. But IMHO when the Kahr MP-9 comes out it will be the finest CCW weapon on the market. I'm already saving my money :D
 
Guardian .380

I saw one of these today at a nearby gun shop. They are very nice looking and very small, but heavy for their size. I can understand people buying one for their compactness. But still, the Kel-Tec P32 is as small and much lighter, and the Kel-Tec P11 is larger but lighter and has more firepower (more rounds in a more powerful calibre). If they were as cheap as the Kel-Tecs, the .380 Guardians would be more attractive, but I don't think they are. I await firing reports and price information.

Drakejake
 
Just in case you were wondering, I think that it's a real nice package and weight isn't necessarily a bad thing. I guess that it depends how you carry (that is, if you carry).
 
Watch-Six,

How is the recoil on that little thing when you touch off a round? I'd think that a blowback in .380 that small would be a handful.
 
I got to handle one yesterday at the gun show. WOW! This is a nice gun. VERY small considering it's a 380. If I didn't already have a 32 Guardian I'd SERIOUSLY be looking at this pistol. It's got to be the smallest 380 ever made by a decent manufacturer.

It is definitely not a super lightweight, but it would work VERY well in a belly band. If I carried at work in a place I could get fired for carrying, I'd have this little beastie in a belly band.

I was impressed. Once a few people buy it and work out the bugs, I can easily see buying one.
 
I personally know...

..that RJ Hedley Is making a back pocker holster for the new NAA Guardian. I have one of his back pocket models for my Seecamp and my .32ACP Guardian. Maybe everybody isn't built like me (my doc says to loose 15 pounds or he'll shoot me. :)) and it would be different, but I find that back pocket carry in a Hedley holster makes the pistol seem lighter. Maybe it has something to do wth the "anti-print" panel "spreadng" the weight around. I think the old far..er, gentleman "designed" this feature into his holsters for us other old far..ah, gentlemen who want to carry in the back pocket without the pistol being a genuine pain in the as.. er, lower region. :) That's the only thing I've come up with, and I think I'm right. I'll buy one of these small NAA .380ACP's, but I'll also buy another Hedley back pocket holster for it. My .32 Guardian feels no heavier than a wallet in my back pocket and is easy to forget about.

Kentucky Rifle
 
Though I have a KT P-32, I bought the .380 Guardian the other day. To me these are pistols I carry only when nothing else is possible. In that case, I (personally) want the smallest package that punches the largest hole. Thus the .380 vs the .32.

As to recoil, I expected a blast. I was pleasantly surprised. I put 100 rounds through it with no problem, and was doing very accurate, fast double taps by the end of the session. Reliability was perfect except for the first few mags. In the first few mags the last round would be nose down in the chamber with the head of the cartridge tipped up. Again, though, that went away with continued use and no further problems were noted.
 
johnwill, The recoil of the Guardian 380 is not bad. Nothing like shooting plus P 158gr 38s out of a S&W 342 Titanium J frame. Now that one can hurt.
 
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