I Finally Bought a P32

[Tallball]

I have read so many good things about them that I finally bought a Keltec P32 (32acp). It was only $156, so I figured what the heck. It seems to be the same size as my P3AT, except thinner.

My friend at the LGS said this is an older model with a slide that is coated with nickel something. I have worked the slide and so forth, and everything seems to work okay. I was surprised to find that it has practically no sights at all.

I don't intend to use this for SD. It is just a range toy and plinker. I won't have a chance to try it out until Wednesday.

Since this is an older one, is there anything I should know about it? I don't know what changes they made to the newer ones. Do the newer magazines work better? Are they interchangeable with the older ones?

Any knowledge would be appreciated. The members of this board have done a whole lot to better educate me. Please forgive the poor quality cell phone picture. In real life the dark parts look black.

 

[C0untZer0]

I was surprised to find that it has practically no sights at all.

Someone will chime in and say that the gun is a belly gun for bad-breath distance, but anyway, if they made a P-32 with Novak sights I'd buy one tomorrow.

 

[Gordon]

Luis Awerbuck carried one as a BUG in his back pocket and never told many about it. A good one is reliable and 32 acp ball will penetrate the skull pretty reliably, much more effective than a .22 pistol or a .25acp fwiw. I too use it as a bug .

 

[imashooter]

Congrats on the P-32. I really like mine. Regarding the comment about Novak sights, that's humorous. Let it be I who "chimes" in. These are effective for very close range, point and fire. Put it in the gut, the groin, the eye, in the ear, and fire away. Anything beyond 12 ft or so is nothing more than cover fire while getting the hell out of Dodge.

 

[verdun59]

You may know this, but it a good practice to depress the mag release when inserting a mag. It's plastic and this saves it from wearing out. These are reliable and fun little pistols. This first generation has a different extractor than the second gen, and the profile of the slide is better looking (opinion) than the second gen. Load it up and happy shooting.

 

[kokapelli]

If the magazines do not have spacers in them only carry fmj or you could have the dreaded "rim lock" common to 32acp.

 

[Onmilo]

I've had one for a long time.
I like it
It still works
It's a close range BUG

(Waits for claims of 1 1/2" 25 yard five shot groups while shooting one handed in complete darkness to come rolling in)

 

[rcmodel]

Go here for a lot of good info.

http://www.thektog.org/forum/f86/faqs-vips-228634/

http://www.1bad69.com/keltec/index.htm

rc

 

[C0untZer0]

I don't intend to use this for SD. It is just a range toy and plinker.

Please set the targets out farther than 15 feet and let us know how you do

 

[Tallball]

With my P3AT I can put them all on a paper plate at seven yards, but it is much closer to having actual sights. It will be interesting to see if I can do as well with this one.

 

[Snowdog]

I have an early model (0014XX) bought in '99 and have well over 500 rounds through it. After the half case of S&B 73gr FMJ, I simply stopped keeping track. I'm halfway through a half case of "leadless" 73gr Fiocchi and have put various JHPs through it as well, so that number is likely closer to 1000.

I had to send mine in after snapping the main spring within the first 500 rounds and have had to replace the plastic magazine release twice (it wouldn't hold the magazine flush). I found the best way to prevent the steel magazine tube from scraping plastic off the release and eventually hanging low is to simply apply upward pressure to the base of the magazine, then engage the mag release. I haven't had that problem since.

As for malfunctions? None! I do stick with FMJ, primarily Fiocchi and Sellier & Bellot, but I have put Hornady XTP, Corbon JHP, Winchester Silvertips (older "thin aluminum jacket" version) and Federal Hydra-shok though mine and have never experienced the dreaded rim lock I keep reading about. Mine has never seen a magazine spacer nor experienced any fluff and buff. It's straight stock and reliable.

I used mine initially as a CCW piece on exceedingly warm days and then as a yard work pistol (we have larger stray dogs that come around on occasion that display aggression).
I have since replaced my P32 with the Taurus TCP for this role, but I will hold on to that P32 forever. Being an early model with half its bluing worn off and of high round count (likely beyond its intended use), I wouldn't get much for it anyway.

Besides, it has earned its tenure, I suppose.


I hope you get as much use out of yours as I did mine!

 

[Panzerschwein]

It was only up until recently were .32 ACP wasn't considered a serviceable PRIMARY law enforcement cartridge in Europe.

Truth be known, you aren't unarmed with a .32 or a .380.

 

[commygun]

Probably hard chrome, not nickel. If it's reliable I'd carry it. Effortless pocket gun.

 

[ABTOMAT]

Older P32s have triggers that won't reset if you short stroke them. The Taurus TCP has this problem too.

The biggest change in the 2nd gen P32 has to do with the extractor and slide. But I think the 1st gen ones are lighter.

 

[MedWheeler]

I love mine. It's a Gen 2 I got in 2011. I carry it when traveling to and from my no-carry job site in EMS in uniform, and also when working my one-a-week pizza delivery gig (also requires tucked-in shorts.) It's light, effortless to conceal, and works really well with Fiocchi and S&B FMJ ammo. I did have one incident with rimlock using WWB FMJ, which has a "truncated nose" (flat tip.)

Otherwise, I carry a PF9, but the P32 frequently rides BU in a pocket. If it's not there, it's at least in the bag I carry whenever I leave the house, which gets stowed in whatever I'm driving.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

With practice it can be fired with enough accuracy to protect yourself during those times you need something very concealable. I like mine well enough.

 

[roscoe]

I wear mine with the slide clip (condition 3). It literally disappears inside my waistband. A great pistol for deep concealment, or if you are going for a run. And mine is plenty accurate - 15 yards COM without a problem.

 

[Tallball]

I will operate the magazine and release button as you suggested. TYVM! I have several other 32acp's. They are all larger service weapons. I too have had problems with WWB. I only use round nosed FMJ now.

Thank you for all of the tips. My others are a Mauser Model 1914, a CZ70, an MAB Model D, and a Colt 1903 (the Colt was issued a little bit, but isn't really a service weapon like the others). As the summer goes on I intend to do a little "shoot and compare" article with the four of them.

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

They are great guns, especially if you get one that works (most do). If you want to carry h/p or short oal ammo like Buffalo Bore you can load one in the pipe and top off the mag. with 1. Any more and you may get a rim lock. I thought rim lock was bull until I had one and I had another a few weeks ago. Call k/t and tell them you need a new recoil spring and mag. spring. If you are intent on carrying a mag. full of hollow points k/t sells a spacer called a flye wire for about $10.

 

[Panzerschwein]

Oh, man! I might have to finally pick up a P-32 for those times my PM is just a little too big/heavy. Loving these P-32 pics guys!

 

[Pokajabba]

Someone will chime in and say that the gun is a belly gun for bad-breath distance, but anyway, if they made a P-32 with Novak sights I'd buy one tomorrow.

Yeah, the lack of sights make it a point and shoot gun, which is why I don't like it. I like the low weight of it, but it doesn't offset a gun you'll struggle to hit with out to 10 yards.

That's why I like the LCP Custom, the one with the stupid looking, but awesome feeling red trigger. For so long all the pocket .380 makers just copied off one another and decided that little .380's didn't need sights. You put some actual sights on a little .380 and all of a sudden you can reach out further than you can poke with a stick.

I give a lot of credit to Ruger and Kahr for making a pocket .380 with usable sights.

 

[R.W.Dale]

For a sightless gun mine has been surprisingly accurate over the decade I've owned it.

I added an armalaser touch activated laser sight and typically carry it with the 10 round mag.



One of my favorite methods of carry I've recently discovered is to carry it like it was a cell phone, it's blocky profile fits in a phone case brilliantly and its light enough to hang on my belt without resorting to my back hurting gun belt

 

[kBob]

Google P32 and choose images.

There actual was one I saw last week that had novak style sights WITH tritium inserts some one had put together.

I would bet the sights and installing them cost considerably more than the gun.

You know if you could mount a tritum dot in that slot at the back of the slide and another in the front sight so as to have a glow in the dark ":" sight picture such a P32 would be even more handy than the issue ones are.

-kBob

 

[Pokajabba]

For a sightless gun mine has been surprisingly accurate over the decade I've owned it.

I added an armalaser touch activated laser sight and typically carry it with the 10 round mag.



One of my favorite methods of carry I've recently discovered is to carry it like it was a cell phone, it's blocky profile fits in a phone case brilliantly and its light enough to hang on my belt without resorting to my back hurting gun belt

Oh yeah? Ruger LCP with 15 round mag and laser gets the job done every time. Pretty much the ultimate EDC gun right here, but it could be a little better if it had a scope and a brace added.

 

[RecoilRob]

My P-32 has been carried daily for over 10 years and every time it comes out to shoot up the carry ammo it has gone bang until the mag is empty. I have to admit that I don't like shooting it very much at all. No grip to speak of to hold on to and manipulating the trigger is just so much different than any normal sized gun that mine is carried a heck of a lot more than it's been fired. But I have confidence in it to work if needed.

You have a P3AT so you should be familiar with the trigger operation, but just to be sure you know it's a DAO that MUST be fully released between shots or the hammer will fall from the pre-cocked position and will light strike. Back when I frequented KTOG we had lots and lots of 'light-strike' problems that went back to the factory and just couldn't be fixed! Of course, they were releasing until they felt the first 'click' then pulling...which drops the hammer from half-cock and I was completely surprised that they'd fire maybe 60% of the time! Fully release and they'll smack the crap out of the primer and fire reliably. I've not seen a better deep concealment gun than the P-32.