fastbolt
Member
...
For concealed carry, assuming pistols of similar size, reliability, accuracy, etc, would you rather carry a 380 with 8 rounds or a 9mm with 6?
Trick question?
Presuming same size of this pair of hypothetical pistols?
9mm w/6-rd mag over any .380 ACP, regardless of capacity.
Why?
Well, the only reason I picked up another .380 (after 25+ years since my last one) is because it's small enough to slip into some tighter/shorter pants pockets in which I can't carry one of my 5-shot J-frames.
I'd much rather have a 9mm than a .380 ... and I'd much rather have a 5-shot .38 Spl snub than my LCP (6-rd mag), if the J's would fit in all the same pockets as my LCP.
I tend to look at the .380's as being a compromise within a compromise. Handy? Yes. Useful? Yes. Better choices available? Obviously.
Now, I've seen and worked with some folks who found a largish .380 (think SIG P232) to be desirable over a similarly sized 9mm. Okay ... for them. It's going to be them having to controllably & effectively use it to save their life. I'll work with them to help them try to enhance their ability to potentially achieve that goal, even if I feel a better caliber/gun would be a better choice.
In the meantime, I'll continue to slip that diminutive 6-rd LCP into my smaller pockets at times, and looking at it as a compromise within a compromise.
And because I haven't yet found a 9mm pistol of the exact diminutive size as the LCP. Even if I did, however, then I'd have to consider it from the perspective of quality, demonstrated reliability and feasibility (cost, maintenance, etc), and - for my preference - something which has been evaluated and accepted within the LE field as a secondary/back & off-duty weapon.
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