What a difference an inch makes....Or does it?

[Timothy]

I' m having trouble making up my mind between a Kimber Compact 4" barrel and an Ultra Carry 3" . We're talking one inch and 3 oz. here. In your opinion, what effect does this have on recoil and accuracy? Is a shorter barrel necessarily more uncomfortable to shoot? One more thing.........the Pro Carry has a grip frame .4" longer than the Compact and the Ultra. Other than the "hand size" issue, how does this fit into the equation?

 

[M16]

One inch won't make a big difference are far as recoil and accuracy go. I really like three inch barrels in revolvers. I personally wouldn't go with the three in an auto though. The four inch just points better for me. Each gun is an individual but some of the three inch autos have been know to have functioning problems. For inside the waistband carry the extra inch doesn't make a difference.

 

[Mike Irwin]

I've always felt that for CCW use it's not the barrel length that is normally the problem, is the grip length.

I wouldn't mind a full-size slide with a compact-sized grip.

 

[DAKODAKID]

I have very big hands and the P7 works perfect
for me.
It is a bit heavy,
but on most compact guns I can barely get
2 fingers around them.
I would use my PPK .22lr if I had to go smaller.
You could bascially carry anything you are comfy
with and it all boils down to training and
shot placement.......

 

[DCloudy777]

I secong what Mike and M16 said. For concealment, especially IWB, but OTB as well, I've found that grip size is more critcal than barrel length. That's why the Kahr K40 Covert is such a sweet carry gun, they should have never quit making them!! [sorry, got a little emotional there]. In fact, for IWB, the extra barrel can help the gun stay anchored and keep it from flopping away from the body. I had the Kahr MK9, and had this problem... I traded it for the aforemetioned K40 Covert, and bingo, problem solved... with better ballistics, accuracy, and reliabilty to boot. The little .45s are pretty cool, but I don't really think they would put you in a different "size envelope" than a 4" gun. That is to say, I think anywhere you could hide the 3", you could probably hide the 4". Whatever you hear, just make sure you choose whatever has the better feel for you, all of we busybodies mean well, but don't have to worry about fighting with whatever you choose. Just my $1/50, hope it helps.

DanO

 

[johnwill]

My concern with the shorter barrel would be the loss in velocity. If you're shooting HP ammo, you may lose enough velocity to affect expansion in the shorter barrel.

 

[JimFox]

I have both and really seem to shoot the Ultra better. From a bench and when my elderly eyes are haveing a good day, they seem about equal. With ball ammo they both will go close to two inches if I'm working right. But for offhand shooting I do better with the smaller gun.

I'm 6' and have average sized hands and don't have any problem with the shorter grip.

For IWB carry the barrel length makes little difference in concealability. I'm scrawny and the extra .4 inches off the grip does make a difference.

Barrel length does have an effect on velocity. I've read differing accounts that rate the loss going to shorter barrels at 30 to 50 fps. However, as M16 says, every gun is an individual and some shorter barreled guns will match the velocity attained in another gun with a slightly longer barrel with a given lot of ammo.

Interestingly enough I recently read an article in one of the gun rags where the author took a number of modern high performance defense rounds and did penatration/expansion test with different barrel lengths. His conclusion was that for close range the barrel length made little difference in the performance of the bullet.

I'd say go with the one you like the best.

 

[Runner]

My feeling is that the further you move from the original 5" barrel length the more likely you are to experience functioning problems. For this primary reason I am sticking to a minimum 4" barrel in the .45 ACP. Kimber Compact suits me fine.