Very cool. Just bought the Wife a Kel Tec 32 and ....

[PcolaDawg]

..... she really likes it.

She is a complete stranger to handguns herself, but was VERY supportive of me getting some, and she's the one that told me to get my boys handguns for Christmas. But she didn't want to have anything to do with them.

Then my sister (who is her best friend) got a Makarov for Christmas. My sister loves the gun and my Wife got a little more interested.

Then my Dad got himself a Kel Tec 32 and my Wife really liked it 'cause it was so small.

Last week she surprised me by stating that she wouldn't mind getting a Kel-Tec 32 so I immediately went on the hunt for one. NOT easy as they were sold out almost everywhere I looked. Finally, a local gun shop got in a shipment of 10 (yesterday) and I got the 6th one.

This afternoon we went out in the backyard and my Wife fired the gun, really liked it, was surprisingly accurate with it (and it was the first gun of any kind she has EVER fired), and is now going to take a CCW class and get her permit.

YIPPEE!!!!!!! Nice to have another gun owner in the house, even though it means I'll never criticize her cooking again.

She also shot my 642 J Frame and hated it because of the hard trigger pull and the sharp recoil. She fired one of my kid's Ruger SR9 and didn't like the recoil of that gun either.

So the Kel Tec 32 is the perfect gun for her.

Life .... is good.

 

[geronimo509]

This afternoon we went out in the backyard and my Wife fired the gun

I don't like you! I have to drive all the way to a shooting range!

Congrats on your purchase for your wife. Glad to hear of another gun owner. I converted my g/f from being an anti, isn't it such a good feeling.

Life .... is good.

For you sir, YES it is.

Ps. remember to tell your wife after dinner that, "WOW that was a great meal!"

 

[BlackHand1917]

I recently had a similar "breakthrough" with my wife. In her case she had a friend who had five break-in's on her street in the course of a couple of weeks. Previously she hated firearms, but now she has a different view. Women tend not to respond to the kind of theoretical arguments I had been making with my wife for a few years about the need for firearms skills. They usually need something more concrete to change their minds. Can't wait to take the wife shooting!

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

Beware of the rimloc issue with the .32acp using hollow point ammo.

 

[PcolaDawg]

Beware of the rimloc issue with the .32acp using hollow point ammo.

Due to an ammo shortage in the area, the only .32 ammo I could find were hollow points.

We fired over 100 hollow point rounds through the gun, though, with absolutely no problems whatsoever.

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

It's ok to have 1 hp in the chamber and 1 only on top of the mag. Any more due to the shorter oal you will have a rimlock and no your gun will not shoot. You have to disassemble the magazine to clear it. You can get a mag. spacer from k/t which will eliminate rimlock.

 

[sm]

PcolaDawg,

You done good!

 

[Phydeaux642]

It's ok to have 1 hp in the chamber and 1 only on top of the mag. Any more due to the shorter oal you will have a rimlock and no your gun will not shoot. You have to disassemble the magazine to clear it. You can get a mag. spacer from k/t which will eliminate rimlock.

Or, you can do what I do and carry it with FMJ (I know you said you couldn't find any but eventually you will). I don't worry about over penetration with the .32acp. I am more worried about under penetration with JHP. YMMV.

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

sm, when you said to pcoladawg "You done good". You both done real good. Are you actually going to let your poor wife carry a pistol that is not relaible. If it rimlocks, and it will, she will have a single shot pistol. Can you live with that?

I can't make you believe the rimlock issue so I challenge you to do a little research on the subject.

 

[jonnyc]

Get her a .22 also, a Buckmark or Ruger. She will love it.

Oh, I have a P32, and I can assure you that rimlock does exist, and I have experienced it. My carry mags have ONLY FMJ, with a JHP at the top and one in the chamber.

 

[PcolaDawg]

m, when you said to pcoladawg "You done good". You both done real good. Are you actually going to let your poor wife carry a pistol that is not relaible. If it rimlocks, and it will, she will have a single shot pistol. Can you live with that?

Well, help me out here. Are you saying the gun is crap and shouldn't be bought, carried or used? Your post above seems to suggest that's your opinion.

If so, I think you're wrong. One of the more respected gun shop owners in my town carries one as his BUG. While I was looking at the one I eventually bought, a police officer who was also looking at handguns said that he had one, and a lot of the officers on the force where he works carry the Kel-Tec P32 as their BUG while they are on the job. Every person I've talked to so far that actually carries and uses the gun (including my Dad, police officers, gun shop owners, and private investigators) have told me it is an extremely reliable gun.

Then I told you I just fired over 100 hollow points through the gun this afternoon without the slightest malfunction.

So please explain to me again what the problem is or provide a link, because I have to admit - at this point I am more than a bit skeptical of your claim that this is an unreliable handgun.

 

[chris in va]

I was about to say, he already put 100 rounds of HP through it with no issue. Shouldn't the rimlock show up at that point?

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

You are not getting the point. The gun is fine. The p32's generally work. The problem is when you carry h/p ammo in the mag without a spacer (h/p's are shorter oal). Sometimes just from carrying the gun the rim will slip over the round below it in the mag and will tie the magazine up requiring you to dump the mag and insert another one until you have time to disassemble the one that's rim locked.

I have 2 p32's that I carry and when I first heard of rimlock I too thought it was bull - until it happened to me.

Google .32 acp rimlock or visit kel tec's website. K/T sells a spacer for those who like to carry h/p's. It was designed to prevent rimlock. With the spacer installed fmj rounds will not fit as they are longer than h/p's.

 

[PcolaDawg]

Well, I thought I was getting the point, that hp's can cause rimlock on the p32. Then you posted:

sm, when you said to pcoladawg "You done good". You both done real good. Are you actually going to let your poor wife carry a pistol that is not relaible. If it rimlocks, and it will, she will have a single shot pistol. Can you live with that?

And, I admit, after that I must have lost the point. Because the above post suggests it's such a bad gun you were wondering how I could live with myself after giving it to my wife.

Which is kind of amusing to me given what I've been told about the gun from those that use it all the time.

So if your only point is that you shouldn't use hps in the gun, or that you should take steps to fix an hp problem that the gun has, then fine. But you had a mighty odd way of making that very simple point, imo.

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

Opinions are a dime a dozen. Facts are just what they are. I got the impression you and sm thought I was all wet and didn't know what I was talking about. I think rimlock is covered in your owner's manual. If not you can google it.

I was just trying to save you and your wife from any problems God forbid if she ever needed to use it.

Good night sir.

 

[22LRFan]

Rimlock involving JHPs was more of a problem for the aftermarket ten round magazine. I love P32 and have not had any trouble with mine! However, you may wanna read this thread:

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=1182

And maybe check out Goldenloki.com's gelatin tests of the .32 ACP. Apparently JHPs (for this caliber) have trouble expanding and you may be better off with consistency of FMJ. I think Buffalo Bore makes a neat flat nosed FMJ round that may be worth looking at.

 

[sm]

PcolaDawg.

Yeah, he done good.

-Why does everything have to break down to Hardware?

Mrs. PcolaDawg was not interested in guns; therefore she did not have a gun of her own, nor interest in CCW, nor being involved in RKBA.
The way I read it, she was lukewarm, sitting on the fence. She had no problems if her husband did all these things, just it was not her thing.

She then became interested when another lady got a Makarov.

Mr. PcolaDawg buys his wife a gun, and not only does she really like it, she can shoot it. She is now interested in CCW. Which means she will carry a gun she likes.

This leads to more involvement in RKBA matters, legislative matters, and voting.

This ain't rocket science.

Gals can fix more stuff around the house with a butter knife, a can of Singer Sewing Machine oil, roll of electrical tape and a safety pin , that guys with a full set of Snap on Tools can .

Some gals just don't give a flip about all this hardware stuff. If they like something that means they will use it.

They use Software to get stuff done.
Door squeaks, use the Singer Sewing Machine oil, they could give a rip about Lube wars.

They run over the vacuum cleaner cord, they slap some electrical tape on it and go on. They could give a rip about what gauge the little copper wires are inside the cord.

Granted I am in the camp where a lady should pick out her own, still this stuff is not etched in granite.
Good grief! For all I know this couple still holds hands in public and she thinks it is "sweet" he bought her a gun.

Positive steps toward another responsible firearm owner is what we have folks.
This is a win - period.


Re: 32ACP.
Aw hell, just load the damn thing with Fiochhi Hardball and call it good to go.
Same load for target, lessons, and carry.
Simple is good, as she will know that load, in her gun, that she is gonna carry with a CCW.

How to carry, conceal, draw and fire, and getting quick effective is what keeps you safe, not how a milk jug blows up or how the jello man fell down.

Heck, the Scientific Dirt Test has been used since I was born in the 50s and is still used...even by noted firearms persons.
Go look at Rangemaster Newsletter here not long ago where Givens shares this.

What is really amazing is how bullets retrieved from the dirt, and then compared to critters shot, match up.
All folks wanted to do was find out how a bullet held up, be this factory ctg, the bullets bought, or the bullets cast up.

Investigate & Verify.
I know one small ammo maker that shoots dirt, to test bullets as well.

Just a box of dirt, something elastic to replicate skin, since skin is elastic, over the front, like a old rain slicker, or heavy duty trash bags.
Naturally one can get an idea of penetration, still the main deal is shot placement on the target, [POA /POI] , quick effective hits, and then seeing what the bullets look like after wards.

I would have just as tickled had she gotten a Beretta Jetfire in 25ACP, or S&W 2213 in .22 lr, or...
It ain't so much the "hardware" instead the Software of all of this.


So...what did everyone else do today to get a new shooter, and someone interested in CCW?





Focus on the target, not the equipment - Will Fennell

 

[Marlin 45 carbine]

interesting read, I carry a Beretta .32acp when lightly dressed (shorts and T) and carry a hot handload HP in the chamber and all slightly warmed-up FMJ handloads in the mag.
did have to shoot a very large male pit bull that had broken his tie-out and attacked my GF's Aussie Shepherd. the HP in the shoulder/neck juncture stopped him, the carefully aimed FMJ in head at 12' DRT'ed him.
the LEO that came didn't say a word negative. 'glad it wasn't someone's kid' was all.

 

[searcher451]

So long as the wife likes it and it works, everything else is moot. Still, the trick with the Tomcat is getting it to the reliable stage. Lots of threads and lots of posts on this very forum within the past couple of months alone attest to the finicky nature of the Tomcat. I'd run a search, just to get a feel for some of the issues involved. Then I'd make sure that a whole lot of range work went on with the gun before putting your trust into it to any degree at all.

 

[skoro]

Very cool. Just bought the Wife a Kel Tec 32

I got a P-32 for my daughter who lives in a large city up north known for its crime problems. At SD ranges, that little pistol is quite effective, quickly spraying out eight 32 caliber bullets. Enough to deter 99.9% of bad guys, I'd wager.

It's so compact and light that it's perfect for a pocket or purse. And the minimal recoil doesn't hamper aiming.

 

[PcolaDawg]

Yeah, I was very surprised at it's accuracy and the minimal recoil. I thought, because it was so light, that the recoil would be significant.

It isn't.

All in all, a very nice little handgun. I may have to get one for myself. While my wife waits to take her class and get her CCW license, I'm going to carry that little gun for a while and see if I like it.

I probably will.

 

[KBintheSLC]

Yes... the P32 is the perfect gun for the wife IMO. I bought one last year to carry to work, and my wife almost immediately confiscated it. She got tired of lugging around the Sig 9mm on her 5'2" 105lb person, so the P32 was lost to her. I had to buy another one for myself later on.

I would rather have my wife carry a P32 on her body than carry a Sig 9mm in her purse.

Both of our P32's have been flawlessly reliable so far. I love them.


...

 

[KBintheSLC]

Rimlock involving JHPs was more of a problem for the aftermarket ten round magazine.

The "aftermarket" ten rounder is not really "aftermarket" at all... it is the same factory mag with an extended baseplate and longer spring. I don't see how it would make any difference with creating more rim lock as it has identical dimensions.

The term "aftermarket" typically means that the item was not the OEM stock part. In this case, the P32 stock mag is made by MecGar... as is the 10 rounder.

 

[Ed4032]

The P32 is what I got my wife. You made a great choice. One thing that I added for my wife was a Trigger Shoe. It made it much easier to shoot.

 

[gimlet1/21]

Also might want to invest in a crimson trace laser, it was very effective for my wife. In fact I feel it deterred a criminal, she didn,t put it on him just let it play around on the ground and back of cars. He got the idea.