New Sphinx AT 380M

Q

QB

New member
Saw a like new AT 380M at my range last night that just came in on consignment 4/11 (a Sphinx box always draws my attention immediately).

I'm not a fan of the .380 and don't currently have any although I previously had a Walther PPK and a Beretta Cheetah. But since this was a Sphinx and in like new condition I looked at it. Actually went home without it but woke up early this morning thinking that I should go buy the gun right away. Driving to the shop I was worried that a man that was also looking at it last night had actually purchased it.

The gun was there and although I thought it was marked $395 it was actually $375. It had the palladium finish that I am nuts about (my AT 2000 PS is palladium) which was one of the reasons I had to have it. Although Sphinx is going to import into the US soon, they are NOT using the palladium finish anymore.

Anyway, the shop won't take lower offers and pass them to the seller so even though I thought the price might be a little high I asked to see the box to check out all the other items. I couldn't believe my eyes when I opened the box and there sat not only an original mag with the palladium baseplate but also 3 more 13 round mags (maybe they're 15 round mags but I could only load 13 by hand & didn't have a mag loader at the time). Of course the box was original and also had the manual and warranty card. I'm just not too sure this pistol was ever fired but rather was just carried since the one and only little blemish was a little wear on the slide lock.

I couldn't say "I'll take it" fast enough.

The range guy tested the functionality of the gun and all mags and then I ran 35 rounds of ball ammo through it. Not one malfunction.

It's now cleaned, lubed, and sitting in my safe waiting for my range session Saturday.

I'm going to carry it as a backup (or primary when a small gun is necessary) since it is DAO. Any defensive ammo suggestions? Should I use ball/range ammo or do the hollow points work OK in this size gun?

Any recommendations would be appreciated.

I'll post a picture as soon as I get my digital camera back from a friend.
 
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Nice. Any chance we can see a picture? Someone who must have been down on his luck consigned 3 Sphinx pistols at the store I most frequent, and they were NICE. As for ammo suggestions, I carry a Sig 232, and I like the Speer GoldDot 90gr. Try a box or two to see if it agrees with your Sphinx.

Nevermind that picture request. After posting, I noticed your last sentence there...
 
Now I feel even worse!

I let one of these sit on the table at the last gun show and walked right out without it. Brand new, w/two 13 round mags to boot.
Why does a guy who buys everything associated with firearms, that he likes even a little bit, walk out without buying the best little .380 he's ever seen? Two-tone finish, too. Talk about a "brain fart"! (That's what my wife called it. She wanted that Sphinx!) If it, by some weird happenstance, is at the Louisville show in June--It's coming home with me. (Or her!)

KR
 
I understand that Cor-bon's 90gr JHP is the current king-of-the-hill where stopping power is concerned. It wouldn't hurt to pick out a few boxes of various defensive JHPs and find which your little pistol likes best. Though this will require an additional monetary investment, I strongly feel this process is worth the time and money.
 
Kentucky Rifle -- please say it ain't so.......a NEW one???? I now have a friend who has to have one like mine and I'm gonna pay @)#($*@ trying to find another palladium in as new condition.

Good luck in getting it in June (you don't remember which dealer had it so that you could call him?). Of course as I mentioned before, Sphinx will be importing around the June/July timeframe so you could just order a new one (less the hi cap mags of course). It's just that I LOVE palladium finishes and don't especially like the new titanium finish.

Anyway, here's a picture of mine. Sorry but I do NOT take good pictures due to my impatience in getting the lighting right.

fdcdd1f8.jpg


I do think this should have come with 2 mags that had the palladium baseplate like my AT 2000PS did but I am happy that I at least got one original + 3 more hi caps in the deal.
 
WOW

That's an awesome looking gun. I've always liked Sphinx... unfortunately their prices are a little high for me now (trying to convince my wife to let me spend big $$$ on guns = pulling teeth).
Although it's great to hear they'll be back in the US.
 
For a serious .380 defense round that is still affordable and the most awesome round I've seen... Check out Triton Ammo's QuikShok.

There are many good .380 rounds to check out of course.
 
I have never even heard, let alone seen, one of these pistols. It reeks of quality. How is the accuracy; seeing that Sphinx is noted for accuracy in it's other pistols.
 
QB...

I could kick my own arse for not buying that one! (My wife reminded me what a dunce I'd been for a month.) The only difference in the one I stupidly let get away is that, that one was two-tone. The frame was dark and the slide was palladium. And yes, it WAS brand new! What was WRONG with me? :( You should have felt the way the slide moved! How positive the controls were! How light the trigger was! (AURGGGgggg, gun porn!)
I've been working on remembering the dealer's name for a long time...It's just not coming back to me. I think his name is lost in the windmills of my mind forever. DAMMIT!!

Jody- "Reeks of quality" is a apt way to put it. Like a Swiss watch, it was perfect!

Excuse me now. I have to go bang my head against the outside of my house...AGAIN!

KR
 
I've only had it to the range once and was just trying to get used to it so I wasn't doing anything but "blasting" away. Even at that the darn thing was accurate keeping all of the rounds in the 9-10 ring at 9 yards (well....maybe one in the 8 ring).

I'm going to order all of the ammo suggested here and see what defensive ammo works best. Thanks for all the suggestions.

You know, I've never seen one with the slide palladium and the frame dark....that's real strange. All the two tone Sphinx handguns I've seen (all models) have a black slide and stainless/palladium frame. Hmmm..........that's very interesting & You're sure it said SPHINX? Was it in a greyish plastic coated kind of cardboard box with the big blue Sphinx symbol on it? I'll have to ask Manuel Wipf (the Sphinx Chief Operating Officer in Switzerland that I email quite frequently) about that combination.

Well maybe it will still be there. If so I hope it works properly for you (or your wife).

Thanks again to everyone for all the ammo suggestions. I promise to post a picture of my NEW Sphinx that I hope to get this summer when the US distributor is finally approved by the ATF.
 
QB...

It's been since last June, so my memory could be a little "fuzzy" on the color combination. Still, I believe I'm right because I remember the "Made in Switzerland" in the dark part on the front of the frame.
Oh yes! I'm positive it was a Sphinx, however I don't remember looking at the box. Maybe I'll come across it again and I'll let you know for sure. (I can ALWAYS hope, can't I?)

KR
 
Well I ordered some Corbon and Gold Dot ammo from Natchez (they were out of Triton) to test.

Tonight I put about 100 rounds of S&B ball ammo and 40 rounds each of Corbon and Golt Dot defensive/hollow point ammo. Not one malfuction with any of the ammo.

This little gun just shoots and shoots and shoots. And it is extremely accurate. At seven yards it didn't matter if I was shooting the .380 Sphinx or my SVI Infinity .38 Super race gun....hits were all in the X ring (of course all the hits with my SVI SHOULD have been in the same hole but I'm not that good!!!!).

I'm very pleased with this gun. I will still try out some Triton and Hydrashok ammo whenever I can find some. Until then it looks like I'll keep her loaded with alternating Corbon and Gold Dots.

Thanks for all the ammo suggestions.

By the way, for anyone interested, Collectors Firearms in Houston (http://www.collectorsfirearms.com) has a used, like new Sphinx AT 2000 two tone 9mm for $750. I was tempted to get it but really do like to see the guns in person prior to buying a used gun. Also I'm waiting for Sphinx to start importing sometime this year. I do think that the $750 price is great if indeed this gun is like new as advertised. I spoke to a sales rep Friday and he indicated it came with 1 ten round mag and 1 fifteen round mag.
 
Thanks for the info. I saw those .380s on GunsAmerica last week. When I was thinking about buying the one at my gun shop I looked them up on GunsAmerica to check prices. That's when I decided I'd better go buy the one I found right away. For $375 including 4 hi caps I knew I had a good deal. Also the one I bought was the "Palladium" model rather than the two tone. While I like two tone, palladium is my first choice.

I'm getting a second one but have decided to wait and get a newly imported one unless I run across a good deal again.
 
I had one until my wife shot it, now it's disappeared but my Rossi M88 is back in its old spot in the safe. Funny how those things move about.
 
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