which .380

I have an LCP, P3AT KelTec, and a G42. I can dress around the G42 and shoot it much better than any of the .380s. I also stick a spare mag in my left pocket. I wouldn't rule out a 42 until I had shot one.

Carried a P3AT for awhile, then saw a magnum research micro desert eagle at LGS. Bought it immediately and never looked back. Zero malfs and a nice shooter. Also carry a j-frame. Don't ignore that option either. Good luck.

I LOVE my cw380 ($300 on buds). Sights and trigger are surprisingly good...its also remarkably accurate.






(This is a p380, but same size vs a LCP)

Single best .380, hands down, is the Sig 232. Accurate, pleasant to shoot, and uber reliable! 7+1 capacity. I have owned one for almost 20 years, and it is my favorite small pistol ever.

I have 15 380s last I counted them Sold the P3aT last week, the P238 goes tomorrow. Right now I am carrying a 1942 Llama model 3, and will buy a Kahr soon

I narrowed my 380 ccw down to the Sig P238 and the Kahr P380. Of the two, the Sig is more accurate and softer shooting. I chose the Kahr because of the utterly simple manual of arms. KISS! Keep It Simple, Stupid! The only way Kahr could have made it simpler would have been to remove the slide lock. Not actually a bad idea, because if you need to reload rapidly, you really need to be carrying more gun.

My primary choices for CCW:

Kahr P380
S&W 340 PD
Kimber Solo DC

BTW the ultimate carry 380 is the Taurus 58HC, IMHO. It's a scaled down model 92, with a 19+1 capacity.

I like my Colt Mustang, SIG P238, and KelTec P3AT in the pocket carry role in a .380 auto.

Im waiting for Browning to release the 1911 in 380. The only 380 Ive shot is a Sig 232 and I love it.

Opinion only. I own a p238. It's been perfect. No issues. I've never had another .380, but, I've never found a reason to need another. I bought mine used two years ago. I paid $400. The spare mags are outrageously expensive.

Friend of mine has the Sig P238. He likes it thought it took a few months to get accurate with it. He shoots it two hands. I could not. I Can shoot a P64 single handled comfortably all day, but not the P238.

To the OP, try all of those things out. Each of them has its good and bad things, like some will like your hands more than others. Don't work around a gun; find one that that works around you.

IMO a carry gun, particularly a pocket gun, needs to be double action - point and click interface. I am not confidant that I can pull a P238, click the safety off, cock it, aim and fire with one hand, quickly, under high stress. And I'm not going to go cocked-and-locked in my pocket.
Accordingly, I do not carry my P238 or Mustang. I carry a LCP, although I am looking for something a bit better. Temporarily I'll carry a Llama III, which was made in the 1940s. It's a SA-only, but it is big enough to handle easily with one hand. In fact, the size is about perfect for me. But the ideal would be a DA/SA380 slightly larger than a P238.
I know the Bersa fits that description, but I have had 2, and the ergonomics don't work for me. Every shot is a double-tap, and the 2nd shot is not aimed. I don't know why, but it's the only pistol that has ever had that issue with me.
I am leaning toward the Kahr CW380. I was amazed to discover them selling for less than the LCP. I also want to look at the Kimber offerings, especially the Solo.
Kimber are making a Mustang clone too, and I like the styling better than Sigs. I never warmed up to the Sig blocky styling.

And then there is the Sig P290 RS.

I have shot them all accept for the Pico and these are my preferred in this order.
G42 - Best shooting, but a little large.

P238 - Just all around top notch if you don't mind carrying cocked and locked.

TCP - Reliable, comparatively soft recoil for size and weight.

Earlier in my handgun experiences I could not get into cocked and locked, though that was probably more out of concern with springs under tension than safety. Along the way, I have lost my concerns over springs and somewhere lost undue concerns about safety. I would rather have a cocked and locked weapon like a 238/938 in my pocket than a much lighter-triggered cocked or semi-cocked striker pistol with no safety at all except on the trigger, if at all. My 238s have an extremely secure safety detent and a greater than 8 lb trigger should the safety work off. (Unlikely). Maybe I'm off-base but I'd rather have a quality cocked and locked weapon in my pocket or in my waistband than a Glock, and I'm not anti-Glock.

I do agree that a longer-stroked DAO is probably the safest of all.

I can see why people like the Sig P238. It is the same size as my Kel Tec P11, a double stack 10 shot 9mm. According to Sig the P238 has a 7.5 to 8lb trigger pull. The Sig might have a shorter trigger than the P11 but it is not noticeably lighter. With just a minor adjustment I can lower the trigger pull on any DA pistol by a pound or so.

http://www.sigsauer.com/CatalogProductDetails/p238-two-tone.aspx

Johnny, comparing a P11 to a P238 is truly comparing apples to oranges.
Comparing trigger pulls, that's just a joke.

I'm considering getting this kit to increase the mag capacity from 7 to 8 in my new Kahr CT380 magazines:

http://magguts.com/shop/kahr-380

Anybody have experience with those? They make them for Ruger LCP mags too, 6 rounds to 7 without adding an extension.

Glock 42. My family has three and all have been reliable in the extreme and very pleasant to shoot. Accuracy is perfectly acceptable ... quite good actually.

Gary A said:

Earlier in my handgun experiences I could not get into cocked and locked, though that was probably more out of concern with springs under tension than safety. Along the way, I have lost my concerns over springs and somewhere lost undue concerns about safety. I would rather have a cocked and locked weapon like a 238/938 in my pocket than a much lighter-triggered cocked or semi-cocked striker pistol with no safety at all except on the trigger, if at all. My 238s have an extremely secure safety detent and a greater than 8 lb trigger should the safety work off. (Unlikely). Maybe I'm off-base but I'd rather have a quality cocked and locked weapon in my pocket or in my waistband than a Glock, and I'm not anti-Glock.

I do agree that a longer-stroked DAO is probably the safest of all.

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No question Sig makes great firearms but ^^^ this guy nailed it. I can in no way use a P238, or any external hammer fired gun for that matter, as a pocket pistol.

My Kahr PM9 in a high quality pocket holster will not print in summer wt. dress slacks, is light wt. loaded, carry's a descent amount of ammo, and is totally reliable. I would look at a Glock 42 if I were to choose a 380 for that same purpose.

Tallball said:

My P3AT has been absolutely flawless. Apparently that means I am a dang liar.

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I owned a p3at for about 4 years. I probably averaged about 30 rounds a month, not a ton but over 1000 over the years. Other than a few jams the first time out, which I think was probably limp writing, mine was flawless

Thank you TJ.

I am not saying they are all great or all terrible. I'm just sharing my experiences. Maybe we've just been lucky, or maybe they've improved their quality over time.

I've had several good Ford's, too. ;-)

I just got a Ford Mustang, and I swore I would never buy one, "it's an incredible car", same with guns, things change. Company's fix problems when they see people complaining about them. You can't compare a Kahr from 1997 to a new one. I had the P9 when it came out and it was the worse gun I had at that time period. I swore off them for 17 or so years, but my PM9 is flawless. You need to check back every once in a while to see if they paid attention to the shooters.

Rex B said:

IMO a carry gun, particularly a pocket gun, needs to be double action - point and click interface..... I carry a LCP, although I am looking for something a bit better.

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Try a Beretta Pico - the gun is DAO and stiff as can be out of the box but after 250 - 500 rounds it polishes up inside and mine runs like a top.





A little smaller than an LCP, DAO, and seriously reduced recoil from an LCP as well as real sights and slide locks open on last shot. Don't handle it and judge it - try and shoot one. For a super thin front pocket .380 my Pico sits only behind the G42 and that's not really a fair comparison given the size difference.

VooDoo

My two cents.

I've got a Ruger Lcp, a Walther PPK and a Glock 42. The Ruger wins hands down when it comes to pocket carry. However, it's not a lot of fun at the range. The Glock is my Goldilocks gun. Not to big, not to small, just right. Recoil is manageable, and it rides nicely in a IWB. It's roughly the size of my Shield .40, but it's much more enjoyable at the range. It's also a snap to clean, which means that I'll actually clean it.

The PPK is cool to look at, easy to clean and carry, but recoils more than the Glock when I'm at the range. It's turned into a safe queen.

My vote is for the Keltec 3AT. I briefly had a LCP but is was slick, I couldn't hold onto it. Even though the fit and finish was excellent I sold it and got the Keltec.

It's been flawless though 800+ rounds with everything I put through it including my plinking reloads.