Kel-tec P32

[wmu12071]

I have seen this pistol mentioned here on and off be never in it's own thread. I would like to get some opinions and info in one thread.

I have never pocket carried but I get asked about it a lot. I have always said I know next to nothing but people who seem to be pretty squared away suggest the LCP or J-frame. What I have got in return is that the are both hard to shoot and the J-frame is too big. Is the P32 easier to shoot of less experienced shooters? Is 380 enough better to take the recoil and 1 round penalty? Does anyone carry one other than pocket carry?

Additionally I have read that the recoil spring and mag spring are recommended changes to heavier versions. As anyone had a pistol with heavier recoil spring and/or heavier mag springs that didn't work?

Also, what % of your normal drill times do you run with a pocket gun?

[Big L.E.E.]

It's been a while since I shot it, but my P32 was never unpleasant to shoot, and always reliable. My biggest complaint was it had a long trigger pull, and with my big hands, it was tough to pull the trigger all the way back.

Recently, I've switched to an LCP II, as a BUG, which is both pleasant to shoot, and for it's size, reasonably accurate.

[Horseman]

A long, long time ago, in a non-permissive environment far, far away, I carried a P32 with the pocket clip, tucked into the top of tall hiking shoes. It worked well in that role- it was never discovered or caused me any workplace drama.

However, when magazine springs weakened, it would encounter strange malfunctions where the No.2 round in the magazine would slip its rim in front of the top round rim, causing everything to STOP. Other than that, it was reliable.

As far as the comment about J-frames being too large for pocket carry, that would depend on your holster choice, pocket size and other factors. I carry an alloy-framed J in my weak-side pocket, with a DeSantis pocket holster, every day. My pants tend to have large pockets.

[camsdaddy]

I carried one for years. It was the first gun I carried everyday. Normally I carried it with a belt clip clipped just behind my belt. Sometimes tucked sometimes not. Other times I carried it in an uncle mikes pocket holster. Over the years I only had two people notice. One thought it was a knife and the other just asked what the clip was. I then bought another clip and cut it so it didn't ride below my belt. I eventually sold it. It was 100% reliable and more accurate than most believed it should be.

[jandbj]

I had one for a few years I regularly pocket carried. No issues or drama. Upgraded recoil spring made it super pleasant to shoot. Mine was a gen1 with some add on sights (don’t recall the brand) that aren’t compatible with the current generation guns. My current P3at has also been great with the XP recoil spring.

[Baldanders]

I have seen this pistol mentioned here on and off be never in it's own thread. I would like to get some opinions and info in one thread.

I have never pocket carried but I get asked about it a lot. I have always said I know next to nothing but people who seem to be pretty squared away suggest the LCP or J-frame. What I have got in return is that the are both hard to shoot and the J-frame is too big. Is the P32 easier to shoot of less experienced shooters? Is 380 enough better to take the recoil and 1 round penalty? Does anyone carry one other than pocket carry?

Additionally I have read that the recoil spring and mag spring are recommended changes to heavier versions. As anyone had a pistol with heavier recoil spring and/or heavier mag springs that didn't work?

Also, what % of your normal drill times do you run with a pocket gun?

Thanks for starting the thread I meant to start myself many a time. I have chatted about the p32 here more times than I can remember. Or the "secret shame gun" of P-F, as I like to call it. It has a surprising number of owners here.

Mine is my real EDC, as I can't carry at work and it is easy to stash. I find it more difficult to shoot than a j-frame, but the grip is maybe 1/3 the size of a j-frame compact grip, so no wonder. I have no LCP or p3at experience, so I can't compare it with .380. BBI here has attested that .380 is the minimum for breaking bones(and you should believe him) and I assume my .32 won't do much more than a .22lr. I am fine with that for the very comfortable recoil in a sub-7 oz gun.

It is not an easy weapon to shoot well, due to size and very minimal sights. It gets better with practice, and it is certainly easier than any snubby .357 with full-power loads. IMO, any gun that is in this size class is going to require some practice for a beginner to get good hits with any speed.

I use a DeSantis Nemesis pocket holster. It has been 100% in keeping the gun in my pocket, even in a 55 mph car crash. It is only 100% at keeping the gun vertically oriented in some of my pants. Belt clips for IWB are available, but I don't feel comfortable with a round in the chamber with this method, even with the DAO trigger.

I use it as a BUG, weak side, when I am packing my 640 pro.

As far as springs, reliablity-- mine has stock springs and a steel guide rod and runs like a top on Fiocchi .32 fmj. Another member has one than needed a heavier Wolf recoil spring and doesn't like the metal guide rod. I'm going to quote myself: "each p32 is its own critter."

Looking through here and KTOG, I would say most issues with p32s can be fixed with hotter ammo and/or a heavier recoil spring. The 10 round mag makes it much easier to shoot(and more fun), but then it is no longer a pocket gun for me.

I would check the p32 subforum on KTOG for more info. Yes, it's full of people who "drank the Kool-Aid" but the information has been useful for me.

ETA: mine has only has only experienced rimlock with Winchester fmj. It seems to do great with anything else (PPU, Geco, PMC, Aguila, Fiocchi). When it has 50+rounds through it, it starts to have problems with the very anemic PPU fmj and jhp. However, even at the point where it fails to feed PPU on every shot, it feeds the hot Fiocchi just fine. The power difference is noticeable in recoil and muzzle blast, but it's still light recoiling with Fiocchi.

ETA#2: Talon grips have made mine easier to shoot. Paint the sights.

[Bergeron]

I have experience with the P32 and the P3AT. It is, as was mentioned, even easier to carry than a j-frame. As little as I trust .380, I trust .32 even less. I am aware of an incident where a single, near-contact shot from a P32 to the upper A zone concluded matters.

I would look for a LCP ahead of a Kel-Tec, but I would be wary of the cocked, single action LCP II.

[jandbj]

I do have one odd (possibly harebrained) idea about a WECSOG sighting option for these little guns that sights forgot...
Feel free to tell me I’m off my rocker.

https://www.strikeindustries.com/shop/cat-sight.html this plus tritium. Could obviously color over the translucent polymer so you can only see the tritium from the user perspective, as opposed to how it is in their video.

[BillSWPA]

I have both, and have carried both. The P3AT is currently my backup gun, and until I bought my Sig P365, was my primary NPE gun. The P-32 is the only gun I have managed to get my wife to carry.

The LCP is essentially a clone of the P3AT.

Both of my guns required recoil springs that are 2 lb. heavier than factory standard for 100% reliability. In the case of the P-32, since the cartridge is semi-rimmed, the rim of the top cartridge in the magazine might be in the groove of the cartridge below it. The factory 9 lb. springs will not overcome this condition when the gun is loaded with 7+1, but 11 lb. springs will do it every time. I regard heavier recoil springs as mandatory in this gun.

Care must be taken when loading cartridges into the P-32 magazine to avoid getting the rim of one cartridge behind the rim of the cartridge below it, which will not be overcome by any spring.

If absolute discretion is required, these guns are the smallest, lightest option available.

Not everyone can comfortably handle the recoil of a lightweight .38 or 9mm. I have worked with enough shooters with hand issues or recoil sensitivity that I focus less on minimum caliber requirements and more on something that will actually be carried and practiced with.

Crimson Trace LaserGuards are the easiest solution to the terrible sights. Pocket holsters are widely available to accommodate these lasers on these guns.

On my P3AT, I find that +0 extensions really help keep the gun from squirming in my hand. I tried +1, but found these to be noisy, which is undesirable if discretion is required.



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[BillSWPA]

A few other Kel-Tec pointers:

DO NOT do the “fluff and buff” advocated on some other forums. Kel-Tec has seen a lot of in-spec guns taken out of spec by this procedure. The last statement I saw from them indicated that they are no longer covering guns so modified under warranty.

+10% extra power magazine springs help to a small degree, but I would not regard them as mandatory.

The P-32 comes with a polymer guide rod. Do not replace it with steel. The flexibility of the polymer is necessary to avoid binding the slide during movement. I tried this replacement, and experienced malfunctions that disappeared when the polymer guide rod was reinstalled.

My 2nd generation P3AT was well-regulated for point of aim corresponding to point of impact from the factory. My first generation P-32 shot several inches to the right at 20-30 feet. David Clay of DRC Custom Guns was able to remedy the problem by removing a small amount of metal from the left side of the hole in the slide that supports the barrel, and welding a small amount of metal to the right side. He also installed his tritium sight channel. This is a channel milled from the back end of the slide to a bit behind the ejection port. A tritium insert is installed at the front end of the channel, and two more tritium inserts are installed on either side of the channel at the back end of the slide. The gun was refinished with a parkerized base and a spray and bake polymer top coat. The parkerizing significantly increases the adhesion of the polymer. Despite a sight radius of 1/3 of the original sight radius, this was a serious improvement in sight usability, and well worth doing before LaserGuards were available.

These guns sometimes require a small amount of understanding on the user’s part to make them 100%, but they are well worth having. Anyone who is truly serious about being armed at all times needs at least one of these tiny guns.



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