Small Conceal Carry vs Duty Pistols?

Generally speaking, no. They are mostly designed to be carried a lot and fired occasionally for familiarity.

Dave

* Disclaimer: I pretty sure most shooters will never shoot enough rounds to wear out a pistol anyway.

It depends on the manufacturer and their quality control policies.

I'd trust a Glock, I wouldn't trust a Taurus under any circumstances.

Having said all that, the majority of the "abuse" my duty gun took had to do with beating it up getting in and out of my car 60+ times a night. Going through doors and banging it on the frame. Slipping on the ice/snow/mud and landing on it. I only shot it during annual qualifications.

I think my LCP is a significant step down from my Shied in terms of build quality and how robust it's built. I don't think the Shield gives up much in those areas compared to my M&P 2.0 Compact, though. The Compact is a better pistol because it has the 2.0 enhancements while my Shield is an original version, but it doesn't necessarily seem better built - with the exception is the steel frame insert which may give it a little more rigidity and maybe a bit more longevity over the long (really long) haul.

I want to be clear that I'm not putting little pistols like the LCP down at all. They can't be as small and light as they are without some compromises, and they still serve a very meaningful purpose for me.

Will they take the same abuse? Maybe. Will they likely have parts failures at earlier levels of use? Probably.

Smaller slide assembly mass means higher recoil velocity banging on things. It often means a stiffer recoil spring, too. Which means harder banging around on slide closure. Shorter barrels and slide stroke also sometimes mean a more abrupt unlocking action.

But very few people are going to truly wear these out with use. Nobody wants to put 20k rounds through a Shield.

If youre actually shooting them in practice on a regular basis, as you should be, especially if you're counting on it, Im betting the full size guns last longer.

How many actually practice with the little back up guns like that though? If anything, they should be practiced with more, as they normally take more work to be proficient with them than the full size guns.

I trust my 26 as much as my 17.

If you need to break up come concrete and you have a sledge hammer and a ball peen hammer, which is likely to show signs of failing first if required to do the same amount of work?

But it takes a lot of rounds to wear out most guns.

It’s the type of materials, manufacturing processes and tolerances that matter. Size of gun is not a factor.

There's no correct answer and lots of correct answers. It really depends on what "abuse" means and also what is expected. I cannot imagine using most of my smaller concealed carry handgun shooting competitions. They were not designed for that and with almost no sights and a sight radius of just over 3½" I don't expect accuracy out beyond 15 feet or so. But almost all of them have made it through a half century or more and still function consistently and reliably they meet my expectations.

sequins said:

I trust my 26 as much as my 17.

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I do too, but I also dont consider my 26 to be in the same class as something like a Ruger LCP, or one of the other pocket specials, etc. And I really wouldnt consider any of the "small" Glocks to be that same class of gun either.

The 26 I practice with on an every other week basis, had over 25K through it when I quit counting a few years back. The 17 I shoot on a weekly basis, finally broke something serious at right around 150K this past summer, after 10 years of constant use. Glock fixed it, and rebuilt it, and its still being shot every week, even if the only original parts, are now the slide and barrel.

It would be interesting to see if anyone has any longevity stats or round counts on something like the LCP's or similar. Then again, what are the odds someone actually shoots them that much?

The one thing I really dont get, is people carrying one of the pocket guns as a primary, but you rarely, if ever, see them practicing with them, especially in a manner they will be used. I would think that if it were your only gun, it would be the one you practiced with the most, and from how you carry it, and not just occasional plinking at close distances. If its all you got, you might as well be the best you can be with it, dont you think?

Glock 43 and 43x are the same material and quality of the full size Glocks so the only differences are what ATLDave said. So the little guns probably won’t last quite as long.

ATLDave said:

Will they take the same abuse? Maybe. Will they likely have parts failures at earlier levels of use? Probably.

Smaller slide assembly mass means higher recoil velocity banging on things. It often means a stiffer recoil spring, too. Which means harder banging around on slide closure. Shorter barrels and slide stroke also sometimes mean a more abrupt unlocking action.

But very few people are going to truly wear these out with use. Nobody wants to put 20k rounds through a Shield.

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needmorecowbell said:

It’s the type of materials, manufacturing processes and tolerances that matter. Size of gun is not a factor.

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I'm not sure that is correct. Mass of the gun and mass of the reciprocating/recoiling parts matters. If you bang a slide back and forth with twice the velocity, that's going to be harder on small parts that are taking the jolt.

Many duty guns are designed to grab government contracts, so they have been specifically built to hold up the round counts and abuse each government specifies in it's testing. So that's the "gold standard" for standing up to abuse and high round counts. And just like ATLDave said, when you start making those guns smaller and removing weight and material, the velocities and impacts grow, which will absolutely shorten the life of the gun. How much will vary. A Glock 19 or M&P9c might last 90% as long as a Glock 17 or M&P9 (I'm completely making up numbers here). But put the power of a 9mm into a gun the size of a Shield or Glock 43, and maybe they last 50% as long as their full size counterparts. But who among us REALLY shoots any gun we own enough to even shorten it's life by half?

The abuse only gets worse as we get smaller and smaller but keep similar size cartridges. My LCP failed on me at the 1,000 round mark, bad enough that Ruger replaced it. I know that's only one instance but I'd never expect an LCP to last as long as a larger handgun, especially at the price point they sell at.

I guess it depends. I see the Shield as sort of the brute of the single stack/pocket pistols. It's a really solid gun compared to some of its competition. Do I think it will hold up to the same level as a duty M&P? nah. However, guns are rarely shot to death. Look at all the guns that are purchased by departments, issued, turned in, reissued, refurbished, reissued, then sold on the private markets where they spend another couple decades plinking. I don't think I will wear out my Shield if it even has 1/2 the lifespan of duty pistol. Truthfully I doubt I wear anything out more than a recoil assembly. It takes lot of money to wear out a gun, especially if you don't reload.

I see guns that are more likely to wear out in the micro category. The LCP, while a good and faithful companion to have when you need it, tends to have at least anecdotal evidence of failure between 1000 and 3000 rounds. I'll never put that much ammo through mine. I would say that I think the BG380 seems to be better built. I would anticipate it outlasting the LCP, at a guess. Even still, .380 over and over out a 14oz gun will take a toll.

My Hellcat is very well made, but it's never going to see the round count of my CZ guns. I think both will last a lifetime if cared for. Same with my LCPII. I have fired maybe 100 plus rounds of .380 initially, and then only 20 or so a month after. I don't know anyone who shoots 100 rounds a month through their BUG. An exception to this is the C&R Makarov's and CZ 82's. Heavy for a BUG, they both will probably do double duty. Built like a T34 tank.

Terry G said:

An exception to this is the C&R Makarov's and CZ 82's. Heavy for a BUG, they both will probably do double duty. Built like a T34 tank.

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That is absolutely true. Although we consider them compact, those two were designed to be duty pistols by their respective governments.

Terry G said:

My Hellcat is very well made, but it's never going to see the round count of my CZ guns. I think both will last a lifetime if cared for. Same with my LCPII. I have fired maybe 100 plus rounds of .380 initially, and then only 20 or so a month after. I don't know anyone who shoots 100 rounds a month through their BUG. An exception to this is the C&R Makarov's and CZ 82's. Heavy for a BUG, they both will probably do double duty. Built like a T34 tank.

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I put a couple of hundred rounds a month through what would be my BUG (Glock 26), if I carried it. I have duplicates of what I carry for range/practice use and put the wear on them, not the guns I carry.

The carry guns get shot and cleaned once or twice a month too, they just dont get the abuse and high round counts that the practice guns do.

I don't know for sure, styx, but probably not. Trunk Monkey has given me a complex about my Taurus PT 22. I am going to throw it in the trash when I get home.

Thibaut said:

I don't know for sure, styx, but probably not. Trunk Monkey has given me a complex about my Taurus PT 22. I am going to throw it in the trash when I get home.

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Probably not a bad idea.

I mean I'm sorry but Taurus has a bad reputation for a reason.

Trunk Monkey said:

Probably not a bad idea.

I mean I'm sorry but Taurus has a bad reputation for a reason.

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I.'m not a Brand Fan of anything in particular. I do tend to favor CZ's, but Ruger, Glock, Springfield, Taurus and Commie guns are on my "keeper list. On the last check the TX22 is beating the Glock G44 hands down in owner popularity. I was going to buy a G44 because I love .22 handguns, but $400.00 plus tax and bottle deposit for a 10 shot Plinker? Even I have limit's. I didn't expect the owner backlash of malfunctions and faulty magazines. I know a lot of Glock owner's who are Brand loyal are shouting "Mine work's Great". Uh Huh. Maybe they do. I haven't even seen one myself, but i'm going to be a little more cautious than usual. Just because a gun has a famous or infamous name on it doesn't make it bad or good. Everyone in my "Keeper" List" has had a Dud.

Ahhh, no. Duty guns get beat to s**t and are subjected to all types of inclimate weather. CCW guns are hidden from the weather and will hopefully never be used as bludgeons, etc.

Not owning any of the smaller, lighter cc guns my choices are restricted to a couple of "older" guys I've owned for many years. This doesn't count the .25acp. Kimber Ultra Carry .45 or a couple of Walthers, PPK 7.65 or a .380.

Small pistols are not designed for high-volume competitive shooting; if that is what you want to do, get a gun designed for that purpose; these guns will run a long time with periodic maintenance and parts replacements but they are not designed for the competition shooter.