Colt .380 Gov't VS Colt Mustang Pocketlite

[MICHAEL T]

I will take my Mustangs over the Sig any day I have read to much bad on the SIG
I tried the steel guide rod and my Mustang turned in to a jam-o-matic . I went back to factory . I have 2 at present and they are carried and shot.

 

[Jimmy10mm]

I will take my Mustangs over the Sig any day I have read to much bad on the SIG

I have a P238 SAS and it hasn't had a malfunction of any kind in 300 rounds. It is accurate in the distances it was meant for. I think the bad press Sig got is because of the old saying, a happy customer will tell one friend and an unhappy one will tell ten. Not to say there haven't been problems but I guess I was lucky.

 

[rtpzwms]

I had a Colt Government 380 mine was junk. I kept buying part after part.... never worked that well. I sold it and replaced it with a stainless PPK/s. I'm much happier now.

 

[DBR]

FTSESQ: check your PMs

 

[HisSoldier]

Given the choice between a Colt Gov't .380 and a Sig I'd take the Colt. I have both. They both came with the obnoxious plastic triggers but the Sig also has a plastic mainspring housing. I made a bunch of stainless triggers in my CNC production shop, they are for sale and fit both the Colt and Sig. I'm still considering making stainless mainspring housings.

The Colts have no MIM, the Sigs are full of them. It's not that the Sig is a lot worse than the Colt, just a little, has better sights too.

 

[IMTHDUKE]

I have both also...and agree with your evaluation.

 

[sideways]

I have stainless Mustang been carrying about ten years have yet to have problem one I change guide rod to wolf stainless rod for really no reason other than I just don't like the thought of plastic even thought pistol was designed for it .

 

[HisSoldier]

even thought pistol was designed for it .

90% of the time plastic is specified to keep costs down, not for any advantage it provides.

With triggers there is a very real reason to keep weight down, as it minimizes trigger bounce.

However, trigger bounce only occurs when trigger pulls are very light, as in under two pounds. These triggers in the Sigs and Colts are pivoted triggers, and the pull weights are universally high relative to a target 1911 (A whole different ignition system).

The pivoted trigger means the trigger bounce potential is cut in half, and as I said, with high pull weights it isn't a factor.

But when they put a plastic mainspring housing in a little gun like this they can say it's to keep weight down all they want, I know the real reason is cost.

 

[ruger1228]

I have a P238 SAS and it hasn't had a malfunction of any kind in 300 rounds. It is accurate in the distances it was meant for. I think the bad press Sig got is because of the old saying, a happy customer will tell one friend and an unhappy one will tell ten. Not to say there haven't been problems but I guess I was lucky.

There are problems with the P238 as evidenced by the number of guns that have been returned to Sig for warranty work. Mine has gone back to the factory twice due to FTF, FTE, and stovepiping. After the 2nd trip back, Sig agreed that there definitely something wrong with this gun and repaced it with a NIB gun. It will arrive at my FFL dealer on Tuesday.
I have a Colt Mustang that is a great little 380. It is reliable with no FTF, FTE, and no stovepiping.
Given a choice between a P238 or a Colt Mustang, I would choose the Mustang day in and day out over the P238.

 

[GratefulShooter]

I have both a Government Pocketlite model and a stainless Mustang. Both of mine are fine, reliable, and suitably accurate weapons. Being locked breach pistols, it seems to me that they have less sharp recoil than similarly sized blow-back .380's I have fired like the Walther PPK/s (very similar in size to the Government model), they are fun to shoot.

Now to answer the original posters questions ("..I would like to know the difference between the Colt .380 Gov't and the Colt Mustang Pocketlite. I know that the Gov't has a barrel bushing and grip safety where the Pocketlite doesn't, but are those the only differences?"):

The Government model is larger, having both a longer barrel and a longer grip than the Mustang. Much like the difference between a full size 1911 and an officers model...but on a much smaller scale. They also made a Mustang Plus II which was the short Mustang barrel and slide on the longer gripped Government model frame.

The Government and Mustang models were available in either all steel or Pocketlite versions, the Pocketlites had a steel slide with an aluminum frame. I don't believe the Mustang Plus II was available in a Pocketlite version. The all steel versions were available in blued, stainless, or with a nickel finish. Some two tone versions were also available.

The Pocketlite guns had what I believe was called a ColtGuard finish on the aluminum frames. Both the frame and the slide on my Government Pocketlite are black. Pocketlite guns with stainless slides came with a gray finish on the frames.

The Government model used a barrel bushing and a short guide rod. The Mustangs had no barrel bushing and used a full length guide rod. The guide rods and triggers on all models were plastic (nylon I believe).

The only other plastic parts were the grips. I've replaced the trigger and guide rod with stainless versions on my Mustang, and the grips with black micarta. My government model is still using the plastic parts, except for the grips which are now ivory.

None of these Colts had a grip safety.

 

[Deaf Smith]

Personally I have a Colt 380 govt. stainless model. It sleeps in the safe.

The Taurus TCP is the backup gun. I don't care if it gets worn out.

Deaf