Which 380 acp would you buy?

[BillSWPA]

To make a an analogy of guns to lawn equipment-
One can get super cheap $100 mowers from Wal-mart- which will have a thin sheetmetal body, potmetal engine, unsharpenable blade, no bearings in the wheels, and will be dead after 3 months of regular daily use. This is your Highpoint, MPA, Kel-tec, and other super cheap guns.

The thing about handguns is you need to practice on a regular basis. One nice thing about the J Framed Smith is that it is easy to dry fire with. You can put in a whole lot of practicing without spending a dime on ammo. Just be safe- be doubly sure the gun is unloaded, have a safe backdrop to fire at, be sure to load/unload in a different room, and be doubly sure the gun is unloaded. There's a lot of good dryfire stuff on this very forum.

As the owner of two Kel-Tecs - one of which has hundreds of rounds through it and the other has closer to 2,000 rounds through it, and having seen students bring Hi-Point to classes, the two cannot be put in the same class. Kel-Tec guns might not be perfect but in my experience work as well as anything else with some very easy spring changes.

[Caballoflaco]

I've been doing landscaping for about 8 years and have a couple of questions for you.

Do you ever get off work and go to grab your car keys or wallet out of your pocket and end up with a handful of twigs and leaves from pruning? Do you dump your pockets before laundering and find a half a bottle cap of dirt was down there? I do.

I wouldn't trust any pistol or revolver that had been in my pocket for more than a couple of hours. Any pocket big enough to draw a pistol from is also big enough to let in way too much foreign debris.

FWIW I carry a glock 26 appendix in the waste band all day every day. It's not comfortable, but it's more protected than in the pocket. Even though it's a glock I still have to fight corrosion. You'll sweat through pockets and soft holsters or down into kydex holsters so corrosion resistance is very important. You'll need to wipe down the outside of the pistol daily and take down the slide/bbl at least weekly sometimes more, with detail stripping once a month.

In my experience this is not the best environment for cheaper pistols, or pistols with limited support as sweat and dirt eats small parts like springs.

I know you want a pistol (right)now, but you're not unarmed. Think of all the wonderful tools you use daily; you could kill a man pretty easily with most of them, and eventually with all of them.

[BillSWPA]

This is just a suggestion; forego the Custom model LCP for pocket carry because the enhanced sights are a HUGE snag factor for both the holster and the pocket itself.

As previously mentioned, ALWAYS use a pocket holster and a Desantis Nemesis is less than $20 … you can upgrade to something else later if you decide pocket carry is going to work for you. Carry nothing else in the pocket holding the gun.

Vet the thing with quality ammo and only use factory magazines. Load it with a bonded bullet like the Hornady XTP, Speer Gold Dot or just plain hardball if you’re so inclined. As a matter of routine, take 10 seconds every evening to “dust” the gun off with a soft bristled brush.

I’ve experienced 100% reliability with half a dozen LCP’s so long as you keep them reasonably clean, you feed them good ammo and only use factory magazines. The only reservation I have about the little gun is its durability over the long-term if you shoot them often – which you should.

For me personally, I have addressed that concern by using one exclusively for training/practice and the others are reserved just for carrying. If the training gun ever wears out, I suspect Ruger will fix or replace it without any drama. The sale price these days at places like Palmetto State Armory is $200 for the standard model LCP, so it’s no great expenditure to have more than one.

Having pocket carried multiple guns with multiple sight configurations that stick out as much or more as the LCP custom sights, in the pockets of both jeans and dress slacks, I do not see snagging the sights as a likely problem.

The myth of sights snagging during a draw really needs to disappear so we can get more compact and subcompact pistols with good sights.

[Shoresy]

Whatever you wind up with, I'll add my vote to using a pocket holster (IMO/IME a requirement for carry). I personally use a Desantis Nemesis - it's <$20, it's light weight/minimal bulk, and has all the advantages that have been outlined above. It's like having a second lightweight wallet on you.

I honestly can't think of a good reason NOT to use one - it's a game changer at minimal cost.

[41magfan]

Having pocket carried multiple guns with multiple sight configurations that stick out as much or more as the LCP custom sights, in the pockets of both jeans and dress slacks, I do not see snagging the sights as a likely problem.

The myth of sights snagging during a draw really needs to disappear so we can get more compact and subcompact pistols with good sights.

I guess we just have a different set of life experiences on the matter. Here are three very common pocket holsters that the Custom model LCP will not work in:

L to R: Galco Horsehide, DeSantis Nemesis & RKBA.




I found a couple that would work with the Custom model, but I'm not going to choose a holster design just because it accommodates sights that really don't offer all that much of an advantage in any realistic context.

As always, YMMV.

[Lost River]

Guys,

Broaden your perspective a bit. The OP is essentially looking for a stop-gap handgun until he can afford a high quality modern piece. He is not likely going to be putting 5K a year through it, or shooting USPSA matches with it.

A $200 Makarov that goes bang every time (and they normally do, no matter how dirty they are) makes sense.

I have worked on a good number of foreign service pistols while OCONUS:



and can attest to the fact that while you are not going to win a bullseye championship with a combloc surplus pistol, they are very reliable, even when dirty. Plus there are numerous manufacturers who produce JHP ammo for 9x18.

Most Americans are not familiar with these handguns, so they instantly discount them. Much like CZ pistols, and Tikka rifles years back. On a side note, I distinctly remember going to an LE sniper school years back with a Tikka .308, and listened to snide comments about not shooting a real sniper rifle (a "Remington 700, with a Luuuupold"). This included comments from what passed as an instructor. Suffice to say the crow eating as the week progressed was fantastic.

While I would prefer a Smith 442 in the pocket, I would not feel the least bit unarmed with a nice compact P64 Mak loaded with some Hornady 95 grain JHPs or Buffalo Bore 95 grain JHPs that clock out at 1125 FPS.

[Totem Polar]

Others have covered much territory with great aplomb; I'll only add that I just got back in from a quick pass though my friendly LGS, and they had one of the "real sights, and drilled red aluminum trigger" LCPs for $219 new. I briefly considered setting my custom 1911 savings plan back two Benjamins on the spot–and I have enough .380s already. I would so do that, and then let someone like the RKBA guy (who lives close to me) know about the larger sights when ordering up, if I had roughly 3 bills to spend on pocket carry. FWIW.

[Hauptmann]

Guys,

Broaden your perspective a bit. The OP is essentially looking for a stop-gap handgun until he can afford a high quality modern piece. He is not likely going to be putting 5K a year through it, or shooting USPSA matches with it.

A $200 Makarov that goes bang every time (and they normally do, no matter how dirty they are) makes sense.

I have worked on a good number of foreign service pistols while OCONUS:



and can attest to the fact that while you are not going to win a bullseye championship with a combloc surplus pistol, they are very reliable, even when dirty. Plus there are numerous manufacturers who produce JHP ammo for 9x18.

Most Americans are not familiar with these handguns, so they instantly discount them. Much like CZ pistols, and Tikka rifles years back. On a side note, I distinctly remember going to an LE sniper school years back with a Tikka .308, and listened to snide comments about not shooting a real sniper rifle (a "Remington 700, with a Luuuupold"). This included comments from what passed as an instructor. Suffice to say the crow eating as the week progressed was fantastic.

While I would prefer a Smith 442 in the pocket, I would not feel the least bit unarmed with a nice compact P64 Mak loaded with some Hornady 95 grain JHPs or Buffalo Bore 95 grain JHPs that clock out at 1125 FPS.

I am going to disagree with the concept of getting something subpar until he can get something better. Why?....because it will take him even longer to get that optimal pistol because he wasted time and resources getting the subpar firearm to "hold him over". If he is expecting a nasty person to attack him before his next paycheck, then it might be a better strategy to stay out of trouble and have the police on speed dial. He survived 4 decades by making good decisions......keep making those decisions until he can get the right gun, and then carry on.

[41magfan]

Guys,

Broaden your perspective a bit. The OP is essentially looking for a stop-gap handgun until he can afford a high quality modern piece. He is not likely going to be putting 5K a year through it, or shooting USPSA matches with it.

A $200 Makarov that goes bang every time (and they normally do, no matter how dirty they are)...

While I would prefer a Smith 442 in the pocket, I would not feel the least bit unarmed with a nice compact P64 Mak loaded with some Hornady 95 grain JHPs or Buffalo Bore 95 grain JHPs that clock out at 1125 FPS.

If I'm going to carry a pistol that weighs 24-28 oz in my pocket - which I'm not - it ain't going to be a Commie pistol of any persuasion unless that's the ONLY alternative. There are just too many other options ..... but, that's just me.

[Ed L]

You can have a tailor deepen your pants pockets to make pocket carry work better.

A J frame in a pocket holster is okay for around town, but for a work environment where you are wearing more professional clothing and have the same people see you day after day and may be subject to closer scrutiny, most people do better with a firearm that is smaller and flatter.

BillSWPA made an excellent post on the rational and necessity of a pocket holster.