Which gun to purchase which is light weight firm grip, small pocket size, but great accuracy? If anyone has a legitimate reason I shouldn't use this particular weapon for self defense, please respond. I own a .380 and I'm confident it will neutralize an attacker upon the first of 1 or 2 shots. has put a many people under in the world and was the sidearm of many law enforcement agencies in the U.S. for several decades. - It's shorter, lighter, cheaper and has much more capacity than the Bersa Thunder FMJ or Hollow Point Many .380 pistol shooters prefer to use full metal jacket bullets due to their superior penetration compared to hollow points. This is especially true if 147-grain 9 mm loads are compared to the higher-performance loadings in the .38 Special; it is uncanny how similar these are, especially given the differences in how barrel lengths are measured in pistols versus revolvers. Comfortable for pocket quick to aim and easy to hit your target. Significantly less felt recoil than the others, smaller, and lighter. Part of my problem though was my huge hands. It should be stated here that, while Ive not had many malfunctions shooting one, this is my least familiar gun on the list and plenty of others have had picky ammunition issues from this pocket .380. With practice and qualifications I have shot 1,000 rounds and had no issues. Very small, very conceable. It's not a lot of the fun at the range as it is small and powerful and beats up your hand but it's not supposed to be. Unhappy surprise I haven't found an extended safety, and I can't put the stock lever to "safe" without shifting my grip or using my off hand. I find it scary anyone encouraging someone to Cary a gun right or no right. I haven't looked back! you can see it on Ammoquest .380 youtube if you want to see how it performs..awesome round for the 380. I've not needed to use deadly force in my 1st 60yr, and I hope to make the peashooter suffice during my second. I chose the S&W MP EZ pistol. Thats because your hand acts as a pivot point to the recoil that comes back from the barrel. Amazing. I have a 1st edition LCP. All thats important is that youve got quality ammo that has been tested in your firearm. Super concealable with 10 rounds of .380 ACP although snappy. To the point of I wish these two models didnt even exist. I have nothing bad to say about it except it feels cheaper than the others. I have the Glock 42 and love it! When I wanted to downsize somewhat for summer carry I went with the P380. .just kidding 32,490 views Aug 21, 2021 1.1K Dislike Share nutnfancy 852K subscribers Another ranting review.oh man we do not like this gun! I agree. is superior in these pocket .380 pistols because they tend to penetrate further. I, and my brother both have a Kahr CW380. i bought a Bersa thunder plus with a 15 round mag for 350.00 bucks and it has never had a failure to feed or any other issues. 5 Same issue with the sticky magazine, rounds flying out of the opening in the slide. 380 makes more sense than 9mm or larger caliber is you cannot legally have HP ammo. Rent and shoot them all. It really likes to digest Remington 88 gr HTP and Remington 102 gr Golden Saber. Even though the P238 is much more expensive I find it the better pistol if you can afford it. used by Walther in the famous design and iconic Walther PP Series pistol. A slight correction. Good article but why did you leave out probably the best .380 out there, the SCCY CPX-3? Tucked into a J&J wallet holster, it's gone but easy enough to deploy. Winchester 209 primers in stock If buying today, I would buy Sig if money were no object and LCP2 if looking for a good price and good performance. My personal opinion, the Walther is vastly superior to the Smith Bodyguard. I have owned several in different calibers and have carried them on-duty and have the utmost confidence in them. People have a right to not be a VICTIM and carry a gun for protection and to neutralize a criminal gun. It is also fully automatic and is suprisingly loud. What this means, is that if you squeeze the trigger and all that happens is a click, pulling it again will allow the cartridges primer to be struck a second time, hopefully firing it this time. I have big hands and the pocket .380's don't work for me. Last but not least, and while this is entirely personal preference, many regard .380 autos as having poor ergonomics due to the fact that their extraordinarily small size means you cant get a full grip on them. The range officer called for a cold range and inspected her Glock in disbelief. I do like the Kimber Micro too. It's reliable, accurate enough and easily concealable no matter what you are wearing which is why I own one. I trust both. I also carry an extra mag. Barrel length is 3.675 inches, so you get accuracy and better performance from ammunition. Just bought a Sig P238 to replace a S&W Bodyguard that absolutely sucks. Everything about it is perfect for me. I appreciate your thorough discussion, BUT the Ruger you are comparing is the LCP while the #1 gun in the article is the LCP II. I strongly suggest checking out Kimber. Be safe. It's probably as small as any on this list, at only 4.7" X 3.6", Ive owned and fired every caliber from my little Colt target 22 to my 50 cal Desert Eagle. Because I have carpal tunnel and arthritis in my thumbs, I bought the S&W 380 EZ. I took a chance and bought a Remington RM380 and I'm not disappointed. I'm a 71 year old Marine Corps careerist and Vietnam combat vet whose career mainly relied on the 1911 platform. Best sights in class. What I didn't like about it is the double-action trigger; by the time you get it pulled, you've probably pulled way off target in a crisis situation. I am sure the S&W EZ .380 is a good gun (I have the 9mm version.). I cant win. It's a joke. Just like the crazies that are carrying guns illegally and using them criminally. Glad I found this site. Another BIG vote for the Rem 380. A little pricey, but very accurate, no malfunctions, has tritium night sights, and a real pleasure to shoot. The Kimber also has many "factory custom" options such as a lowered ejection port and a flat wound recoil spring to aid in the pistol's reliability factor. This little gun is so easy to hide in my front pants pocket, or jacket. The order I acquired these guns is also my preference for carrying them. Learn all the important stuff about handgunswith none of the attitude. Model D serial numbers started with the characters "CPA". I wouldnt trust the preservation of my life to anything less than a CQB pistol caliber of either 9 x 19mm or 45 ACP; and I use the term caliber very loosely OK. While I do find it accurate it is NOT fun to shoot. )its features and..how it looked. I have not shot one, but think the new Smith & Wesson Shield EZ is going to eventually grow into a popular CCW firearm. As a new shooter (didnt shoot until age 45, didnt shoot again for another 5 years, bought my first gun two years later last March) I find your website very helpful. Great little pistol that I think is worth a mention, thanks. I've seen police videos when 4 shots from a .45 acp failed to stop an attacker. A review of .380s and no mention at all of Springfield's excellent 911? The 380 is in between the 22/25 pocket pistols and the 38spc/9mm sub compacts. Never felt undergunned and to this day it remains the most accurate gun on my modest collection (<1" groups at 25'). Check Price. My favorite are .45s by Kimber, Taurus, Remington, Metro Arms --- 9mm by CZ, CANIK, SARZILMAS (SAR), Remington, Taurus Millennium G-2 --- .380 by BERSA (Thunder .380 and .380 PLUS), Browning, Beretta and the well built GIRSAN MC-14 Think of center mass as the torso of your attacker. I recently bought my wife a 380 Thunder and its the only gun Ive found the equals my 383DA. See ya at the range. At the very least you should be able to place all of your rounds at center mass. It's small size is great in my front pocket and performs great with my colleagues pressure drills. It may be slightly larger than the pocket models, but I prefer my 7+1 Bersa Thunder 380 for concealment, great hand fit, trigger, & DA/SA with decocker. I prefer the 7 round extended magazine, plus 1 in the chamber. Hornady Critical Defense and Sig V-Crown is what I carry - there is a ton of info and recommendations in our Best 9mm Ammo article! I own many pocket 380's, Colt Mustang XSP (now called Lite), Glock 42 (two of them), Kahr CW-380, Remington RM-380, Ruger LCP, LCP Custom, LCP II, LC-380, Springfield 911 380, S&W Sigma 380, Taurus Spectrum. With the added magazine flair, my hand (including pinky finger) fits great. I have lasers on the Kahr and Beretta. It is considerably lighter and smoother than the original LCP and other comparable .380 pistols, and it also features the Glock-style bladed safety that must first be depressed in order for the trigger to be pulled. There's just less to correct for shot to shot. I don't care for the whole 1911 thing, I'd rather have a single or double action striker but this P238 is amazing. Then again, those guns which are deeply concealed tend to be harder to access in a stressful situation. It does what it's supposed to do, with a really good factory trigger, pretty decent little sights, it's withstood the test of time, and it's a pretty sexy little gun (mine is the matte black with brushed nickel highlights).#1 380, hands down Bersa Thunder 380's, oh ya, and at a very affordable price. I like the feel and dependability of the Glock 42. If you take it apart the wrong way or forget to move the ejector upon reassembly, you could damage the gun. I gotta say I agree with your sentiments about the slug. This is a person-specific thing. But for now, youll have to settle for a high grip. They won't save your ass in a jam. Time is not on your side in a crisis. Happy with my choice. I'm a 65 yr old novice and it only required 30 seconds to select LCP 2. Glock 42 5. The Remora works great! While there are other, more powerful rounds out there, this is likely the smallest one youd ever want to trust your life to. I had to go with the .380 for health reasons. Get new friends. Nonetheless, it still suffers from many of the issues that we just talked about in the previous section: the trigger pull is awful, they are difficult to shoot, it can be difficult to get a good grip on the pistol for some shooters, and the slide wont even lock back on the last round fired. The final answer: Sig P238 with Precision One Hollow Point or Underwood Load Lehigh Defense Extreme Penetrator or Extreme Defender. It also fits my hand perfectly and I can shoot it better. It has never misfired..not once! Ive been a lawman for over 40 years and Ive carried many handguns both in uniform and plain clothes. So Bodygard is "BETTER". in 50 rounds with the ammo selected by the range, presumably because they think its quality ammo. I picked up five loads for function testing from those showing good terminal ballistics at Lucky Gunner 1st round of Win White Box failed to chamber a couple times off the top of the 1st magazine; I hit the magazine release by accident on the 2nd magazine; no other function problems yet with a variety of useful loads FMJ-RN, JHP-RN, and JHP-truncated cone. I found a Desantis pocket carry for it to ride in. Examples of popular small pocket .380 autos include the original Ruger LCP, Taurus TCP, Smith & Wesson Bodyguard .380, and the Kel-Tec P3-AT to name a few. I own a spanish Gamo rifle 4.5 mm caps and a Turkey made ,38 rubber bullets revolver brand Ekol I agree with you that the sights on the 911 are great for a pocket size pistol and I have no issue with them but I do like the sights on my P238 more. The first one says that if your bullet size of choice doesnt start with a 4 its insufficient for self-defense. I am a little surprised that the Walther PK380 was not mentioned. Smh I recently bought a Taurus tcp 738 (on sale for $149, shoulda bought two) and really like it. Lol, the Glock 25 was made for countries with strict gun control. I shot a few hundred rounds of the various shelf ammo available so now I can say I'm used to it. I am a 76yr. The only problem with it is those old school guns weigh a lot. It is just fun to shoot, unlike most mouseguns.. Got one for the Mrs and liked it so much I got a second for myself. My brother, on the other hand, has sent his Kahr back to the factory for the 4th time! Too bad Taurus discontinued them in favor of the Spectrum. I am missing 3 tendons in each shoulder and need a shoulder replacement in my left. why is the .25 cal never up,i have a 1994 950bs that I shoot without using the sights [which are useless]at about 10 yards and have no problem hitting the target. These were offered decades ago for the Thompson-Center Contender. The trigger pull on the LCP II most closely resembles the trigger on larger striker fired polymer pistols such as the Glock. It is slightly heavier, but packs a wallop with Corbon flying ashtrays. I love this gun for my pocket pistol. I just recently purchased the SW M&P .380 EZ which is also sweet. It's about 30% heavier as a result, but it shoots awesome. Considering that just showing a gun is going to stop most altercations, a shot, hit or not, is going to stop most of the rest and a hit will stop pretty much all the rest, stopping power is overrated. But both only had a max capacity of 6+1 rounds. I came to this article specifically to learn about the LCPIIs reliability after my experience with one at the range this afternoon. Many people place a little too much emphasis on caliber and many are not proficient with their "Big Guns". The CPX3 has 10+1 capacity which trumps every single gun done in this review. No Beretta 84????? Take the incidents this past week as examples.. Its a personal choice whether to carry a firearm of any type. I am 6'2" and was shot in the gut in a drive by shooting and I doubled over in pain. It has a slide stop (not too useful as a slide release but it holds the slide back when you're empty), and second-strike capability which I've had to use. Of course one must practice with any firearm to learn the particularities of that gun. While I'd agree that we've never had a better selection of ammunition for the .380 ACP, and that it is a viable alternative to a .38 Special snub gun, the .38 Special really deserves to compared to the 9 mm Parabellum. After 100 rounds of CCI FMJ at the rangenot one misfire! Went back for service twice. Copyright 2023 Center for the National Interest All Rights Reserved. So for folks just getting into the 380s. We carry a variety of popular models from leading manufacturers including Smith and Wesson, SIG Sauer, and Glock. However, in the .380 you are missing the very best of them. I know snobs won't like it, be I do. I have the kimber mucro 380 that i replaced with the new micro 9 with the laser grip and the extended mag and in a pocket holster when i wear shorts and it shoots great vwry easy to hit your target and it has a great trigger i have iver 30 hand guns but thats my favorite Pocket Gun next to that is my Glock 19 when I have regular clothes and i am a member and have the insurance and you guys are great very informative. Looking for the FBI specs 12 inch to 18 inch in ballistic gelBut here's what I found after all the Self Defense 380 ammo testing. Smith & Wesson M&P Shield 380 EZ 3. The reason is simple - it's extremely small and versatile. Our favorite is always that P238 HD. And when you want the BEST .380 possible, carry a Walther PPK/S. Seatbelts have saved my life, but I drive without a helmet and 5point restraints. My original idea was to buy the S&W Bodyguard but after looking at both decided to go with the Ruger. The Bodyguard .380 is a small, polymer-framed handgun weighing in at 12.8 ounces with integrated Crimson Trace laser. Far superior in almost every way (great sights, for example (lifelong soldier and combat vet; got to have useable sights, no matter what Im shooting)). A design that has been manufactured for 91 years! - It's shorter, cheaper and has much more capacity than the Glock 42 Its always a good idea to shoot a gun to get a sense of how much recoil is present when the trigger is squeezed. The SIg will fire Plus P with no issues (although, the added pressure will wear out the inner parts much faster). Ruger LCP Max 2. Comes with a Hogue rubber grip as well. However, the LCP is her pistol and she still wants to carry it.
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