pocket pistols

Nice collection.

P3at. I repeat, P3at. That is all!

Y'know, I briefly had one of those, and while it was very light and easy to carry and was trouble free (unlike a few that've been mentioned here and elsewhere) the reason I no longer have it is that it simply did not fit my hands worth a darn. I've got pretty big paws and it didn't give me enough to hang on to.

First off, I LOVE my airweight.
My next gun will be a Kahr PM9 though. The price put me off a bit at first so I was thinking of a glock g26. I went to the store and held the G26 and hated it because it didnt really fit my hand (only 2 fingers on the grips). Then the guy handed my a Springfield XD which I really liked and fit well in my hand. The problem with it was it was a bit to heavier than I wanted. Then I got my hands on the kahr and I knew right away that was the gun for me. My advise is just to wait a little longer, save up and get the gun you really want. My second choice is the j-frame. Thats just my 2 cents.

Several options . . .

I've had a little Raven .25 forever, a Rohrbaugh R9 for a couple of years (yes, it's one of the first ones), and a 642 for about three months.

The Raven is a joke. I mean, seriously.

The R9 is about the ideal little pocket pistol. Except it is so small it is hard for me to shoot well (big hands). Still, in a pocket holster, it disappears in even the slimmest slacks. 6+1, and I'm good with it to maybe 15 yards.

The 642 - ah, now we're talking. I can shoot it accurately at 25 yards. Life-trustworthy dependable. Almost as undetectable as the R9. My new fav pocket weapon. And at less than half the price of my R9, the way to go for 90% of situations.

Don't get me wrong - the R9 is an incredible bit of engineering. But for the average Joe, the 642 seems to really fit the bill. There's a reason they're so popular.

7

Another "j-frame" fan, here. Which ever one you prefer.

I've been through the j-frame phase (six counts, from steel to alloy to Scandium).

Then I bought a Kahr PM9, which has been my constant companion for about two years. It is in my pocket as I type this.

I bought and sold a P-11 recently. I like the mag capacity but the width is noticeably larger than the PM9 and the trigger was, well, let's just say I am spoiled by the PM9's trigger. The reliability of my P-11 was sub-optimal as well.

After all I've read about P3ATs, I was almost afraid to buy one. I figured I'd love it so much that I'd sell everything else and carry that .380 everywhere. Well, I've owned two P3ATs, and the bloom is off that rose. I've have had to work on both extensively. One is now fairly trustworthy, one is still a work in progress. (FWIW, Kel-Tec's CS is great, and I've called them often.) They are not pleasant to shoot and do not encourage practice. I have carried it, but only occasionally and with no great degree of enthusiasm or confidence.

I bought and sold my barely-used KT P-11 (stainless sllide) for $225.
I paid $500 for the PM9 (used, stainless slide, night sights). Kahr also makes a CW9 that I have seen new for ~$439, and I narrowly missed a slightly used one for $300. The CW9 holds one more round (7+1) and is just slighly larger, maybe 3/8" longer grip and 1/4" longer barrel. For the larger hand, that might be just about perfect.

This is a good size comparison resource:
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=171820

dbracin said:

Click to expand...

That's interesting that the Kahr and the Rohrbaugh are ABOUT the same size. I may need to re-visit them.

Well guys, there's a new option in town!! Go to Ruger's web site and check out their new LCP .380 pocket pistol! It's a dead ringer knock off of the P3AT from keltec although it's just a hair ( and I mean a hair) bigger. fit and finish looks like it'll be better than the keltec and if it's more reliable than keltec on the whole, then it'll be a great option for a bug or true pocket piece and the price point makes it very very attractive. Question is, when will it be in a store near you!
God Bless
Gideon

Thanks for that pointer, Gideon. I hadn't heard about the Kel-Ruger-Tec. I'll be watching for one so that I can check it out...

P3AT 90% for me
P11 or NAA Magnum the other 10%

The P3AT has a checkered past and a KNOWN history of having many problems. This is a list of common problems with them and I've had several of these problems myself. Go to KTOG.org and you'll find MULTIPLE examples (and more) of everything listed below.

Bulging grips which cause the assembly pin spring to come out of its slot, walking assembly pins that damage frames, smilies with cracked mags and chewed up followers, FTX/E issues resulting in multiple extractor (and ejector) redesigns, guide rod hole peening, trigger return spring popping out of its groove, mag catches wearing out and causing premature mag release, etc?

I want to see how the Ruger LCP .380 is going to be. Hopefully, it will be a winner out of the box, unlike the P3AT. And spare the the "copycat" stuff. As with many others, if it's a better product, I don't care where it came from and I will vote with my dollars accordingly. Competition only benefits we consumers and, hopefully, it will set KT on it's tail end and get them to ramp up quality and features! Even though it's not magazine operated, even Ruger figured out how to incorporate some sort of manual slide lock.

Look into the new Ruger copy of the Kel Tec 3AT.

I carry a Kel Tec 3AT. If you get one only get the second generation and test it out quite a bit.

The new Ruger I think might hold a lot of promise.

I also have pretty big hands and even though it is a small frame, I like my Taurus 605 .357mag. It might be small but I find it very comfortable. If you don't like automatics I suggest one. Hell even if you do. I usually carry it in a tuckable IWB holster my dad made me (often forgetting it's there), but I have been known to put it in my pocket on occasion.

I have wardrobe restrictions most everyday. I like the Kel Tec P-3AT. Like others have said, you almost forget you have it in your pocket. I have caught myself freaking out because I can hardly tell the thing is there until I pat myself down to make sure. Mine has been flawlessly reliable. Granted it's a .380 but a whole lot better than nothing.

Hello, I have a 642 and although nice and small and a great pocked gun......I hate shooting it and ...yes I've tried till I'm tired of trying to adjust my grip to make it more comfortable to shoot with no success. So....I stick with my 640 or my little Colt MKIV Gov Mustang 380 acp which is a fantastic pocket gun.
Got a question for you Kahr PM9 guys........Please try and be objective with your replies. How is the recoil on those little pistols and how reliable are they?

Thanks,
JimK

With a little patience you will be able to find a used like new Kahr for about 450.00.
They are great little guns. I carry the PM40 myself. It disappears in my waist holster and is so light I forget it is there.

I just bought a new P-3AT. Fired 150 rounds through. No problems whatsoever. Incredibly Tiny. It can go in a shirt pocket or any other pocket for that matter.

I also have a Jennings 22. It's old. Works flawlessly. I will NEVER carry it, lol.