CCW/Home Defense 380 opinions

[PegLeg45]

I agree with TB (and others)....having the gun is key, so getting one she will always have is better than a more potent gun that she might leave behind.

That being said, I also agree with TW's very valid concern.....ammo is a big consideration with respects to the amount of practice that will be required to become familiar enough with the new gun to be proficient enough to CCW reliably with it and depend on it for SD. She'll need to shoot it a lot to learn the gun and be ultimately comfortable enough with it to defend herself.

She will need to put a good many shots downrange and right now and .380 ain't that available .... and what is available ain't cheap.

As others have pointed out, fondle as many as possible....and better yet, research into ranges in the area and see if they rent guns to practice with as many variations as possible.
After shooting a few, she might like a G26 or snubby .38 better.

But, ultimately, as others have rightly pointed out, it is her choice in the end. Get her what she will use and be happy with, and if it is the .380, there are a lot better ammo types being produced for it....you just have to search for it.....I haven't found any in a long while in my area.

Welcome to the forum and good luck and have fun shooting.

 

[bluesman001]

Guys,

Don't let my post count fool you.  I've been a member/lurker since 2007.  Back when my cable company provided Outdoor TV and others within the "standard" cable package I enjoyed the TV shows Michael and the guys do.

That said,  I have had to walk away from this thread and take a breath.  I am not/nor will I ever be the kinda guy that forces someone to do what I think is best.  I merely know that she is the type that questions "Can I pull the trigger to take a life, even to save my own?" kinda girl.  Her biggest hurdle presently is wanting/not wanting (a pistol) and trying to decideabout that.  But she was toying with the idea, and a PO friend showed her his P232, peaking her interest in it.  I am well aware of the disipline required to intimately know a weapon and the responsibility that comes with it.  She has had brief range time with various calibers and is nowhere near making up her mind.  I was merely getting feedback about the caliber (as I have read many pro/cons - mostly cons).  I agree that I want her to have one that she will actively carry and like.

So please, I apologize if this post seems uppity.  Just have my ass-hairs up and don't want you fine folks to get the wrong impression of me.  I welcome and appreciate all of the feedback guys, keep em coming!

[PegLeg45]

No apology needed, bluesman.

I don't think anyone would think you were being uppity.....and I can only speak for myself in saying that I hope you don't think I was talking to you like you were a total novice. I was only pointing out the ammo necessity for training versus the ammo availability issue for the .380.

 

[fightingquaker13]

Guys,

Don't let my post count fool you.  I've been a member/lurker since 2007.  Back when my cable company provided Outdoor TV and others within the "standard" cable package I enjoyed the TV shows Michael and the guys do.

That said,  I have had to walk away from this thread and take a breath.  I am not/nor will I ever be the kinda guy that forces someone to do what I think is best.  I merely know that she is the type that questions "Can I pull the trigger to take a life, even to save my own?" kinda girl.  Her biggest hurdle presently is wanting/not wanting (a pistol) and trying to decideabout that.  But she was toying with the idea, and a PO friend showed her his P232, peaking her interest in it.  I am well aware of the disipline required to intimately know a weapon and the responsibility that comes with it.  She has had brief range time with various calibers and is nowhere near making up her mind.  I was merely getting feedback about the caliber (as I have read many pro/cons - mostly cons).  I agree that I want her to have one that she will actively carry and like.

So please, I apologize if this post seems uppity.  Just have my ass-hairs up and don't want you fine folks to get the wrong impression of me.  I welcome and appreciate all of the feedback guys, keep em coming!

Hell, if you've been here for that long you know we can be a cantankerous bunch. Just let us know you aren't a newbie when asking a pretty basic question and you will get a lot more detailed answers. You  give the basics to the new guy, the mind numblingy detailed to  someone more experienced. There is,as you know, a lot of good advice to be found here.
FQ13

[PegLeg45]

Hell, if you've been here for that long you know we can be a cantankerous bunch. Just let us know you aren't a newbie when asking a pretty basic question and you will get a lot more detailed answers. You  give the basics to the new guy, the mind numblingy detailed to  someone more experienced. There is,as you know, a lot of good advice to be found here.
FQ13

Especially if you can get past the sarcasm, childishness, and general BS................sometimes it takes a good sifter.   



Always wondered why I fit in so well here.

[Sponsor]

[david86440]

The October Gunsite Newsletter has a discussion about the new line of small .380's. It would be interesting to see the full report.

http://www.gunsite.com/news.html


In a follow-up to our discussion last month on small, easily concealable “pocket pistols”, we had gun writer Wiley Clapp out here testing eight different .380 pistols. He made a noble attempt at trying to satisfy the NRA testing protocol of 5, 5 shot groups at 25 yards but the effort was a failure.  These little guns, with their terrible triggers and generally useless sights (if they have any at all) do not lend themselves to group shooting at 25 yards.  At more realistic ranges good hits can be made with most of them but there are a couple of precautions you should take before betting your life on one of these little pistols, as either a primary or back-up weapon.  In our experience, they are very ammunition sensitive, so you must be certain that your pistol is going to work reliably with the ammunition you intend to carry in it.  If one brand of ammunition does not work well, try another.  Then again, we found that a couple of the representative pistols hardly worked at all, with several brands of ammunition being tried.  Make sure the gun works.
Another issue with these little pistols is that some of them are just plain uncomfortable to shoot.  As a matter of fact, a couple of them really hurt.  Due to the small size, light weight and, in some cases, poor design, even the little .380 can cause some real pain to the hand when you fire a couple of these.  Finally, in my opinion, if you want a little .380 pocket pistol, get either the Ruger or the Kahr and shoot Hornady Critical Defense ammunition in it. Oh, and the Rohrbaugh works well, but do you really want to spend $900 for a pocket pistol?

[ericire12]

The bottom line here is that at personal defense ranges .380 will do the job if the shooter does his hers. It will give you about half the performance a 9mm will.

I carry a Kel-Tec .32 for deep concealment.... its great to have when you cant carry a gun..... It will give you almost as much performance as a .380, but there is hardly any recoil.... so you might want to give that a look if you want something uber small and recoil is an issue.

[tombogan03884]

Especially if you can get past the sarcasm, childishness, and general BS................sometimes it takes a good sifter.  



Always wondered why I fit in so well here.

Because you are siftless ?  

I even checked your sign up date before I replied, and I STILL went off in the wrong direction  
In short, .380 is and always has been a "Belly gun", effective at bad breath and across the table distances. The market is currently flooded with products from just about every pistol maker in the modern market but as has been pointed out AMMO is darn hard to find and expensive when it is found, for that reason pretty much ANY other modern caliber would be a better choice.

[ericire12]

The October Gunsite Newsletter has a discussion about the new line of small .380's. It would be interesting to see the full report.

http://www.gunsite.com/news.html


In a follow-up to our discussion last month on small, easily concealable “pocket pistols”, we had gun writer Wiley Clapp out here testing eight different .380 pistols. He made a noble attempt at trying to satisfy the NRA testing protocol of 5, 5 shot groups at 25 yards but the effort was a failure.  These little guns, with their terrible triggers and generally useless sights (if they have any at all) do not lend themselves to group shooting at 25 yards.  At more realistic ranges good hits can be made with most of them but there are a couple of precautions you should take before betting your life on one of these little pistols, as either a primary or back-up weapon.  In our experience, they are very ammunition sensitive, so you must be certain that your pistol is going to work reliably with the ammunition you intend to carry in it.  If one brand of ammunition does not work well, try another.  Then again, we found that a couple of the representative pistols hardly worked at all, with several brands of ammunition being tried.  Make sure the gun works.
Another issue with these little pistols is that some of them are just plain uncomfortable to shoot.  As a matter of fact, a couple of them really hurt.  Due to the small size, light weight and, in some cases, poor design, even the little .380 can cause some real pain to the hand when you fire a couple of these.  Finally, in my opinion, if you want a little .380 pocket pistol, get either the Ruger or the Kahr and shoot Hornady Critical Defense ammunition in it. Oh, and the Rohrbaugh works well, but do you really want to spend $900 for a pocket pistol?

Rohrbaugh is now $1200-$1500

...but a 9x19 pocket pistol is the holy grail!

[PegLeg45]

Because you are siftless ?  

Most certainly.