Four 380's

(Subtitle: If you like pina coladas...)

I have read a lot of articles and threads about 380's lately. I was going to the range the other morning, and I decided to bring all four of my 380's. I figured I could shoot them all and then write up a short review.

I had just one 380 for ages: a Russian commercial Makarov that I bought brand-new in the late 80's or early 90's for $149 NIB. In the past 5-10 years it has seemed very old and clunky compared to more modern firearms.

About five years ago I started seeing all of the little polymer 380's no bigger than a cookie, so I decided to buy one for CC. I got a Kel-Tec P3AT for a little more than $200. It is super small and super light. It is not fun to shoot (with my giant hands), but I can put a magazine onto a paper plate at 7 yds no problem, and that's good enough for SD, as far as I'm concerned. I can conceal it with any clothing, and it has been 100% reliable.

My FiL is my shooting buddy, and he also reloads ammo for us (yeah, he is a great FiL). In the past year or two my wife and daughter and MiL have also got interested in shooting. That means that they plink with various 22's handguns and 32 revolvers, and we leave them alone while they talk about whatever it is that women talk about. Since they all flat-out refuse to even try to shoot a 38 special (lots of small hands and badly damaged wrists), I was wondering if maybe they could shoot a 380... if it was just the right one... and thus have a more realistic SD caliber at their disposal.

I had heard that the Beretta 84 has very low recoil. My budget isn't much, and it took forever, but I finally managed to purchase one with worn finish for $233 that functions perfectly. A bunch of us went shooting, and my very small (5'7") buddy tried it first. He didn't like it. He thought it was too snappy for his taste. So, of course, after hearing his mini-rant, the ladies had no interest in shooting it. Thanks, friend.

So I did some more research. It turns out that Star and Llama and Colt all made steel 380's at one time or another that actually fired from a locked breech and were heavy enough to absorb most of the recoil. I figured that parts would be unavailable for the Spanish pistols, and much more do-able for the Colt, so I set out to find one. Months later I finally found a very nice one for $481. It arrived at my friend's LGS this recently, so I was able to take it to the range. I decided to take all of my 380's and have a "shoot out".

I began with the Kel-Tec. It was painful at first. After a magazine or so I remembered how to position my finger so it didn't get pinched (as badly). I put all 30 or so rounds into a paper plate sized area, but it wasn't fun at all and I was glad when it was over.

Next I shot the Beretta 84. Personally, I don't feel that the recoil is much. Something about the shape makes it move around in my hand a little more than I would like, but I can shoot it just fine. It feels good in my hand and points well. I could shoot it all day without any pain.

Then I shot my "new" Colt Government 380. They are bigger than the Mustang. It is good to shoot. The felt recoil was even less than the Beretta, and I had no problem shooting a fairly tight 30-or-so round group. The trigger pinched my finger a couple of times, but all in all I was quite pleased.

Then, what the heck, I went ahead and shot 30 or so rounds through my old clunky Makarov. I hadn't shot it for a while. I was in for a surprise. I expected more recoil, since it was blowback and theoretically they recoil more. It is probably due to the larger size and heavy steel frame, but it had no more felt recoil (to me) than the Colt Government Model. The trigger was the best of the four. It may not have started out that way, but after 25 or so years of shooting, it has probably mellowed out a lot. It isn't super light, but it is super smooth.

And so it turned out like that 70's song about the guy who was tired of his original girlfriend and decided to find a new one. Eventually he realized that his original girlfriend was a good fit for him after all. It's not very concealable, but for a 380 it seems like my best choice as a shooter is the Makarov that I bought 25+ years ago. Things have come full circle.

Here is how I shot the Kel-Tec. It's not great, but good enough if necessary.

Here is the Beretta. I get the feeling it is a much better shooter than I am.

Here is the Colt Government Model 380. It is nice to shoot. I enjoyed it.

Here is my old gal. She is a little large for CC, but she is wonderful to shoot and I shouldn't have neglected her for so long.

Thank you everyone for the nice comments!

9Fingers - I agree about the CZ83. My FiL got one recently and it is excellent. I will have to try them head to head (maybe even today) to see if I prefer it or my Makarov. It's pretty much a win/win situation.

Skyshot - I also considered the LC380. Doesn't it fire from a locked breech as well? It is on the list in case I decide to get another 380. The ones I have looked at and held were great.

Ignition - If I am not at home with sturdy doors and big loud dogs and so forth, the most important thing (IMHO) is to be situationally aware and keep my head on a swivel. A few months ago some scruffy-looking character started approaching me in a parking lot from behind. I saw him, turned towards him unexpectedly, and he skedaddled. There is no 100% way to be safe when you're out and about, but keeping my eyes wide open seems to me more important than the exact weapon I happen to be armed with.

Lord Teapot - I don't remember 100% for sure which order I shot them in. Sorry, my memory isn't what it used to be.

My FiL went shooting with me again today. We brought the Mak and the CZ83 to shoot and compare, but it turns out both of my Mak magazines had been left at home. Doh!

We set six handguns down on the shooting bench to start out with, and got a chuckle when we realized that four of the six were military or law enforcement surplus. We each have some nice commercial weapons (such as his awesome GP100), but in general we both seem to prefer service weapons. It got funnier the more we thought about it. For instance, between us we own eight 9mm pistols. One is a Ruger LC9. The seven others are all service weapons: two Star Super B's, two Berretta 92's, a Browning High Power, a Tokarev, and a CZ75.

That being said, it's not surprising that we like the Makarov and CZ83 so much.

I agree, Jim. I wouldn't consider one of my SA autos for carry either. Some people feel comfortable with them, but DA seems simpler and safer for me.

I really wanted to like the Glock 42, but it just doesn't fit my hands very well.

I shot my P3AT today. It is not fun to shoot. My hand is still red in places. But I can easily and effectively conceal it with any clothing I might be wearing, so it has a place in my rotation.

Another agreement, Colt 1903's are awesome!