Recommendations for Pocket Gun

R

raindog

New member
I'm looking to get a true pocket gun. I normally carry a Glock 19 or 26, but sometimes I find the Glock 26 is still a little big.

OK, and I'm a gun nut, too, and think it would be fun to have a pocket gun ;-) I do have a limited budget for this enterprise.

I'm considering either a .380 auto, or a .38 snub. I carried a Taurus 650 snub for a while (out of which I shot .38 +P, .357 magnum really hurt), but it was heavy (23.9 oz) and bigger dimensionally than my Glock 26.

Candidates (feel free to suggest others!):

  • Ruger LCP: I've seen disturbing things about reliability on forums, and .380 ammo is still hard to find. Whatever I buy, I'll put several hundreds rounds through it on the range before I carry it...right now, I'd need a second mortgage to do that with .380. I am attracted to the price and have excellent experience with other Rugers I own. It's also the lightest and thinnest of the possible choices. 5.16"x3.6"x.82", 9.4 oz. Honestly, I'd seriously consider this if it wasn't for the ammo shortage and the posts I've seen in forums. The gun reputedly kicks hard. $300
  • Ruger LCR: All around good reports. I do have tons of .38+P and think that's a fine cartridge for very small carry. 6.5"x4.5", 13.5 oz. $475ish
  • Charter Arms Ultralite. Oddly, their 12oz revolver has a hammer and weighs 12 oz, while their DAO shrouded weigh 16 oz. ~$350ish. I couldn't find the sizes online. I've never owned a Charter gun. I like the price and weight.
  • Walther PPK. A big jump in weight (20.8oz) and price ($600ish). 6.1"x3.8". I'm not sure about reliability, and we're back to .380 cost.
  • Taurus 851 Protector Titanium. Or other Taurus...they seem a bit more expensive than the LCR. 6.5"x4.28", 15.5 oz. $600ish.
  • S&W snub offerings (642, 438, 442, etc.). These are all 6.3" and the height isn't listed on the site. 15oz. $600ish. A 340PD would be ideal, but I don't have that kind of spare money.
  • Sig P238. Sig quality, though this is a cocked-and-locked SAO, so I'd be concerned about lint buildup between hammer and frame, though a pocket holster should fix that. .380 cost problem again, but good Sig reliability. 5.5"x3.9"x1.1", 16.4 oz. $515

I didn't consider the Beretta Tomcat, as it's .32ACP. I would rather not carry a Kel-Tec. There are offerings from Kahr and Seecamp I glanced at, but I'd prefer to stick with a "major name" for CCW guns. Bersa makes the Thunder 380, but it it is heavier (20oz) and taller (4.92") than other options for the same money.

Opinions, please! Thank you all.
 
I know it is not on your list but, my .380 recommendation is this...:D


img0004uev.jpg


Basically because..

1. A true pocket gun
2. Very very controllable for its size
3. Very good craftmanship

All the best
 
pocket gun info

I carry a Smith 642 with Crimson Trace laser grips. Loaded with Federal Hydra-shock plus p. Flat out love it. Use a pocket holster.
Mickey
 
If you're considering a PPK (which probably isn't a pocket gun, by most people's definition), but are worried about the cost of the gun and the cost and availability of ammo, go for the P-64 or Pa-63. These are both about the same size and weight of the PPK, in fact, both are very, very similar designs to the PPK, but are available for under $200. They're chambered for 9mm Makarov, which is a bit more powerful than the .380, and both guns offer quality construction and great reliability.
 
Taurus PT-709. A little bigger than the PM-9 and PK-9. 9mm, 7+1, SA/DA with a manual safety and a Glock-like trigger. A skosh too big for a 'real' pocket gun, but it works for me in loose jeans.

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It took me quite a while before I became persuaded to get a "mousegun" but, over time I began to understand its merits as, at least in my case, a "niche" gun. I doggedly argued that my light-weight Colt Cobra snubby would serve perfectly as my pocket piece 100% of the time. But the gamet of social circumstances and climate variances occurring in my life ultimately made me concede that there was a place in my carry concealed wardrobe for a really light-weight and really small and flat auto pistol. I wanted it as small and light-weight as practical-otherwise, the little snubby would be redundant. And no reliability compromises.

As luck would have it, three people I know well (a brother, a retired sheriff friend and my next-door neighbor friend) all purchased little .380s and I got to shoot them as well as be privy to the owners' experiences with them before deciding on a pistol. Two of the aforementioned people have Ruger LCPs and one has the Kel-Tec 3AT (my brother also has a Seecamp .32). All the pistols under discussion, after hundreds of rounds fired (including shots that I fired) , experienced zero malfunctions, no "break-ins" required thank you very much.

Long story short, a couple of weeks ago I located a new LCP for $279.99 and, after putting a box of fifty hardball and twenty Federal Hydra-Shoks thru it, so far, so good. Though it will never be a "range" pistol in terms of accuracy, number of shots fired or comfortable shooting, my wife and I hit about everything we shot at up to twenty yards or so and experienced no discomfort shooting it. The only pain we are feeling is the cost and lack of availability of .380 ammunition. :(
 
I have three in my pocket carry rotation:

S&W 642
Kel-Tec PF-9
Kel-Tec P3AT

All three work very well and the one I carry at any given time depends on how I'm dressed. Since you mentioned a dislike for Kel-Tec, I'd imagine the Ruger LCP would serve well. I wanted one myself, but they weren't available and I substituted the P3AT. No regrets.
 
raindog:...There are offerings from Kahr and Seecamp I glanced at, but I'd prefer to stick with a "major name" for CCW guns...
Click to expand...

Seecamp and Kahr ARE the major names in CCW guns. In .380 you won't beat these two.

For 9mm: Kahr, Walther and Rohrbaugh make mighty nice little guns as well.
 
+1 Kahr PM9

I hadn't heard/considered Kahr, until I started seriously looking/reading/test firing @ range. Great CCW, love it.
 
A snub will work, especially an aluminum-frame snubnose. The LCR would presumably work. The LCP/P-3/other-tiny-380 will work, but they'll look dinky if you whip them out and yell, "Freeze!"


The PPK and other normal-size 380s are too big to be true pocket guns.


I define pocket gun not just as a gun you can wedge in your pocket--heck, I've pocket carried a Mil-Pro--but as a gun you can hold in a shooting grip in you pocket and draw.
 
I traded off my secamp, and a Tomcat before that, for a Kel-tec P-32, it's been way more comfortable/ reliable, in my hands, and I hit better with it.

(If I have to "whip it out"... it goes BANG, BANG. I don't care what it looks like... I want to see 2 holes, close together, center of mass.

Shouting "freeze" just means I took too long to engage) Paul
 
I have three of the handguns you're looking at -- the Ruger LCP, the Sig 238, and the SW J-frame snubbies.

The Sig is an excellent firearm which is fairly pleasant to shoot because it weighs more than the LCP. It is also pretty accurate. It has good, three dot sights (some come with night sights) which are quick to put on target. I am used to carrying a Colt Mustang and 1911s cocked and locked so doing this with the Sig doesn't bother me. If it bothers you, go with something else. You will definitely need a pocket holster.

The LCP will fit in just about any pocket and it's light weight makes it comfortable to carry in very light clothes. On the downside, it's got a pretty good little kick to it but this isn't a range gun. The trigger is long and pretty heavy. The sights are almost non-existent. I find this pistol difficult to shoot accurately. It's strictly for up close and personal work (at least for me).

The SW snubbies, especially the Airweights, fit most pockets pretty well. They bulge with snug jeans but a pocket holster will hide the gun's outline and very few will think it's a gun. The sights are better than the LCP's and I can shoot it better. As I mentioned, not quite as concealable as the other two.

BTW, if you research them, both the Taurus and Charter Arms have hit and miss quality.
 
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