Budget Pocket Guns

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jahwarrior

jahwarrior

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i was in my local shop the other, doing a transfer, and as always, the counters were full of odd, unusual guns, some of which i knew well, many of which i'd never heard of. a lot of them were small pocket guns. they included Ravens, of course, along with Davis/Cobras, Jennings, and R&G. then there were a couple i'd never heard of, and they actually seemed to be put together really well. one was a Sterling, and there were a few that were European, like Mauser, Salaberrin, and Bernardelli. most of them were under $100, and one or two were in odd calibers, like .22 Long.

i'm REALLY tempted to pick one of these up. does anyone have any knowledge of these types of guns? i did some digging, and i know that .22 Long is a hard round to come by, around here, anyway. so i'm leaning towards a .25 or .32ACP. my pocket's been feeling light since i sold my P3AT and S&W 642.
 
oh, i don't plan on carrying one, at least not as a primary; i carry a full size 1911 daily! i just want one for fun. not every gun has to be for self defense, you know. :p
 
Cheap guns can be great as fun guns. You should probably consider some of them to be disposable but sometimes you can run upon a real gem.
 
I don't think the Sterling had as bad a reputation as some of those others, but like all these little pistols it wasn't "drop safe," therefore unfeasible to carry cocked and locked.
 
Mauser? Like in Mauser HSc? If you can get THAT one for under 100 bucks, jump all over it with both feet!

I've had some cheap toys over the years, have a Phoenix Arms HP22 that's pretty fun for a cheap gun cause it's actually pretty danged accurate. It's also hammer fired, not a striker fired gun, which I like. I had a .25ACP RG26 once that was a reliable gun, though I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn from inside the barn with it. It always went bang, though. I had a RG .22 revolver that was more worthless than a POS, though. Click, bang, click, click, bang. :rolleyes: Then, I had a Davis P380 that was 4" at 25 yards accurate and shot to POA. With most ammo, it was reliable. Thing was a brick in the pocket, though, heavy as hell. I didn't have it long before I sold it.

This is about the limit to my zinc gun experience. As a toy, what the hell if they're cheap enough. :D
 
My FIE Titan wasn't too much, most reliable semi-auto gun I own.
My FIE derringer was even less but needed a a few parts to get the lower barrel working.
I carry both, not always at the same time though.

If it's a serious pocket gun take the .25 or .32, I don't trust the .22 rimfire unless it's a revolver/derringer.
 
Look for alloy-framed FEG in 7,65, 9x18, or 9mm Browning. Those used by their homegrown Cheka were particularly compact.
 
Radom P64s are fantastic and can still be had around 175, but won't be available forever. They need a spring kit to make DA worth while, but a Wolff spring kit transforms them. :D

This is a real gun, a steel gun, not a zinc gun. It's one I will actually carry for self defense.

25tl36r.jpg
 
Pyro said:
My FIE Titan wasn't too much, most reliable semi-auto gun I own.
My FIE derringer was even less but needed a a few parts to get the lower barrel working.
I carry both, not always at the same time though.

If it's a serious pocket gun take the .25 or .32, I don't trust the .22 rimfire unless it's a revolver/derringer.
Click to expand...
I don't totally disagree but my Beretta 21A Bobcat .22lr using CCI Stingers is rock-solid reliable and my BUG. I also have a Taurus PT-25 that I sometimes BUG as well. Oddly enough, these little mouse guns can be fun at the range:).


-Cheers
 
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I have a few carry no carry to the range yea great guns for plinkin stick to 22 cause 25 is expensive I like to warm up with them before I shoot what I brought to shoot there fun warm up guns. Sterling are little higher quality
then some of the pocket guns out there some sterlings like mine are stainless also the phoenix hp22 great gun interchageable barrels lengths always have people at the range ask about it.
 
Astras are cheap here in Canada but they are well made and reliable.

Mine is in .22 short so it is cheap to shoot.

astrachrome2.jpg
 
I had a Davis .380 that was good until the slide cracked after about 300 rounds. My Bryco .380 was excellent except for slide bite. My Jennings J22 works fine with the right ammo.
 
jahwarrior said:
oh, i don't plan on carrying one, at least not as a primary; i carry a full size 1911 daily! i just want one for fun. not every gun has to be for self defense, you know. :p
Click to expand...
If you want some cheap guns for fun, get acquainted with comm bloc surplus instead. This way you'll actually be purchasing working firearms made from steel that you COULD carry if you wanted to. I don't understand the allure of jennings, raven, etc. They're junk and usually don't work, and they might even be dangerous to fire.

Under $100? Buy a Nagant revolver. It'll chamber and fire 32s&w short and long, 32 h&r mag, and the 7.62x38 it's designed for. DA is awful, but cock it and SA ain't bad. It's fun to pull out and fire at the range in a sort of "what the hell is that piece of crap" kind of way. Crappy design, but tough and reliable.

Got $200? Buy a cz-82 or p83. Both are quality, reliable firearms and fun at the range. As a bonus, if you get a p83, nobody will ever know what the hell you're firing, because it's weird looking and rare.

SOG has all this stuff.
 
For under $100 you might as well get one. I probably wouldn't encourage somebody to buy one of these as their primary gun, but it sounds like you are buying this as a range toy, so I say go for it.
 
I have a Phoenix HP22A too. I like the pistol. Very accurate. I did have some FTF problems do to the kind of ammo I was using. By recommendation from Phoenix I started using CCI Standard Velocity ammo and have not had a problem since. But I will tell you this, I would not recommend a 22 LR or 25 for personal protection. The smallest semi-auto for protection would be a 380. Lots of good choices on .380 pistols.
Good luck,
Howard
 
I own several they all have ther issues mostly just a few tweaks. Ravens have been awesome though i got 3 and ive never had any of them fail in any way. The last pocket gun i got i won off gb for 16.01.
 
my first centerfire handgun was an accutec .380. it functioned pretty good but far from 100%, it was surprisingly accurate though.
 
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