hi dogger,
given some of today's mini-9 gun designs, i don't think there is any advantage to carrying a .380 over a 9mm. the most common .380 designs are straight blowback, and as you've covered, the recoil-to-performance ratio leaves alot to be desired.
more importantly, i think there needs to be a clear distinction between "killing" and "stopping". for a private citizen concerned with surviving a grave threat, the main objective of carrying a firearm should be to be able to stop the threat as soon as possible- while death is very often a result of a "stop", it is by no means a stated goal. the fact that the leo/salesrep used "more officers killed with..." as the main criteria for carrying a .380 seems to betray a general lack of understanding in this subject.
i think a good rule to follow would be to carry as much gun as you can carry comfortably, and shoot proficiently with. since you choose to carry in your pocket (not what i'd recommend), the p232 may be the gun that meets that criteria for you. if that's the case, god bless and keep packing! while i feel personally that .380 is a bad choice in light of the many mini-9s that compete in size and weight, if you can carry, draw and fire that .380 better than you can a more powerful gun, i'm not about to say you're wrong about anything.
have a safe and happy new year!!
joe
------------------
www.skdtac.com
tactical accessories for self-defense and le
[This message has been edited by skdtac (edited December 31, 1999).]
given some of today's mini-9 gun designs, i don't think there is any advantage to carrying a .380 over a 9mm. the most common .380 designs are straight blowback, and as you've covered, the recoil-to-performance ratio leaves alot to be desired.
more importantly, i think there needs to be a clear distinction between "killing" and "stopping". for a private citizen concerned with surviving a grave threat, the main objective of carrying a firearm should be to be able to stop the threat as soon as possible- while death is very often a result of a "stop", it is by no means a stated goal. the fact that the leo/salesrep used "more officers killed with..." as the main criteria for carrying a .380 seems to betray a general lack of understanding in this subject.
i think a good rule to follow would be to carry as much gun as you can carry comfortably, and shoot proficiently with. since you choose to carry in your pocket (not what i'd recommend), the p232 may be the gun that meets that criteria for you. if that's the case, god bless and keep packing! while i feel personally that .380 is a bad choice in light of the many mini-9s that compete in size and weight, if you can carry, draw and fire that .380 better than you can a more powerful gun, i'm not about to say you're wrong about anything.
have a safe and happy new year!!
joe
------------------
www.skdtac.com
tactical accessories for self-defense and le
[This message has been edited by skdtac (edited December 31, 1999).]