S&W Bodyguard 380

[Doc_Glock]

So one of these followed me home today.


I am back on a pocket pistol kick and while I have tried many in the genre, I have never tried the S&W.

I saw a very lightly used one on consignment for a decent price and asked to look at it some quick observations:

Safety: Boo.

Hmmm feels very solidly built. Certainly a step up from the LCPs I am used to.

What the....DAO trigger! Very nice 8-9lb smooth trigger. I like that a lot.

Striker block in the slide. (very tiny).

Nice magazines.

So I had to take it home. My very good experience with the LCP MAX has restored my faith in little pistols enough to try another one.

Hopefully it will run, which is not at all a given in my experience with pocket pistols. And hopefully I can delete the safety. If both those things happen I could see this as my go to pocket gun.

[JCN]

Hopefully it will run, which is not at all a given in my experience with pocket pistols. And hopefully I can delete the safety. If both those things happen I could see this as my go to pocket gun.

The safety is small and positive enough that it’ll never inadvertently activate.

I suppose you could grind off the lever though.

I have the Magguts +1 in mine and it has been reliable.

It’s a back pocket golf course gun for me.

[Wonder9]

A hidden gem of a pocket rocket. The early BG 380s (sans M&P line incorporation) ruined it's reputation and the DAO puts off the striker crowd. Real sights, firing pin block, great finish, low recoil, and surprisingly accurate.

Hope S&W make a 2.0 version like a LCP MAX.

[BobM]

I bought a slightly used one a couple months ago. I had shot a CCW student’s Bodyguard last year. She struggled a lot with the trigger pull but I liked it and had been looking for one since. So far it’s been reliable. I shot the Ohio police qualification course with it last month and have been carrying it as a backup in dress pants in a part time bailiff job. I painted the front sight with “traffic cone orange “ nail polish.
It also fits well in an old Eagle Industries fanny pack mane to hold a J frame. I ran a 5k “pump and run” with it concealed under a loose shirt.

[Doc_Glock]

The safety is small and positive enough that it’ll never inadvertently activate.

I suppose you could grind off the lever though.

Ho Ho Ho. Now I have a DAO semi auto Pocket pistol:



Safety removal is trivial.

I took it all apart tonight and was able to reassemble it without YouTube assistance, which to me is a high compliment to the design.

The only misstep to the design is it appears the firing pin blocker and firing pin are somehow held in place by the rear sight. I had heard of this of full size M&Ps and it seems silly but I am sure they had a reason.

I took some video of my Bubba disassembly and reassembly along with my own missteps and will try to compile it into one long video for those interested in such antics.

[wmu12071]

Chris Baker at lucky gunner has always talked positively about this gun. I Tried one in a range and didn't hate it but didn't love it either. It does have really good sights for a gun in its size class.

[MattyD380]

I've thought about trying one of these. I handled one, once. DAO trigger seemed okay. And it felt fairly solid and well made.

I had a Seecamp to fill the pocket pistol role. It seemed to be reliable. But the parameters in which it would/could be reliable were so narrow and specific... it was a bit tiresome. Not that I shot it a lot. In any case... when I decide I need another pocket pistol, this is one I'd consider.

Also...

I think I read somewhere these things have MIM barrels. I didn't even know that was a thing. I mean, I'm not sure I'd want my Sig P220 to have a MIM barrel, but for a pocket pistol... why not?

[GJM]

DocGlock, there is probably a joke in here about your affinity for the gun equivalent of PBR and wine with screw tops?

[jh9]

low recoil,

Can you compare it to a Glock 42, recoil-wise?

[Doc_Glock]

DocGlock, there is probably a joke in here about your affinity for the gun equivalent of PBR and wine with screw tops?

I am not sure which pocket pistol would be more high brow? Seecamp which only uses one sort of ammo, sometimes?

Rohrbaugh which is hard as heck to hold and needs a recoil spring replacement every few thousand rounds?

Or is it just pocket pistols in general that puts me in the mouth breather category?