Kel-tecs, need honest info here

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After 130,000+ P-32 were made, the BATF told KT that they wanted them to start using alphanumeric serial numbers so they started adding some letters. So the one with the 'C" is newer but it doesn't really matter, they're all the same. Last mod was about 40,000 pistols ago. Won't be able to easily tell anymore how many have been made though, they were consecutively numbered.
 
Ok, I got the FFL transfer rolling. What should I do to get it worn in. I've seen alot of various stuff on the keltec owners forum, but would like to here some success storys of good wear ins. Whats some cheap but working ammo to use for a wear in?
 
I have a Kel Tec 3AT and classify it as for advanced users only and for deep concealment only. A novice will find it quite hard to cock and will be intimidated by its' heavy recoil, blast, and shell casings hitting them in the head quite hard. It can also bruise your hand between your thumb and index finger.

On firing, the round that is next up in the magazine will slip forward under recoil as the feed ramp of the barrel is coming back. The nose of the bullet smashes into the bottom edge of the feed ramp causing a pretty large dent in the front of the bullet. Hollow points receive some pretty bad damage. I use FMJ exclusively.

The ejected shell casing will often come back at the shooters head. My Dad was hit in his glasses and the impact cracked the lens.

This is not the gun to hand to your Mother, Wife, or girlfriend.
 
Now that you have saddled your mom with the light weight .38sp revolver have you taken her to the range so she can learn to shoot it? Snubs are not the easiest handguns to shoot and a light weight one is even harder especially for someone who doesn't shoot. You should have let her try the difference in shooting a light weight handgun vs a heavier, bigger frame one. Then she could see that just being light is not always the answer.
If she is really inexperienced with handguns you may have created more trouble than good. She will need some kind of experience and training to be effective. Just sitting down and talking just won't cut it. She needs hands on experience and that requires shooting.
Experienced shooters should reconize that a new shooter has absolutely nothing to base their ideas about firearms on. It's up to you to show her how her ideas may not be the best thing for her and start her off on the right track. Either take on the responsibility of teaching her yourself or get her to a basic handgun class.
If you really value your mom like you say then make sure she understands and knows how to use the tool you provide her with.
 
p3at

ibmii, i'll echo your comments. there is an owner "fix" for the "smilies" problem of the ramp/bullet interface. also winchester mfgs. a round with a truncated nose. i have used them and due to the configuration they do not suffer that problem. i believe they might be quite an effective round, more so than the rn solids. the concensus thinking on the brass to the face and head syndrome is that the old bugaboo "limpwristing" is the culprit. as you pointed out recoil is rather violent. i was prepared for it and so far have not experienced it, although there have been a few grazing my hat. if you don't have a firm grip on it, the ejection port is facing directly at your face during recoil. i think the plusses outweigh the minuses for the pistol. it is extremely carryable, an effective round for it's purpose and enjoys a great reputation for mfgs. support. i'm quite pleased with mine. the "fix", with pictures, for "smilies" is available to members at www.ktrange.com if you prefer to use hp, and is reccomended. if you look at your mag follower you'll find an impact mark there too. after a few hundred rounds it is much easier to cock. be careful when dis-assembling. the ejector and guide rod retainer can and do fall out easily but are easy drop ins. just keep an eye out for them. azrael, who posts on this forum has a nice pocket holster at a quite affordable price. i'll be using it daily after i pick up my permit TODAY.
 
p3at. it is a true double action only pistol and the hammer is only cocked and released by squeezing the trigger
Click to expand...

The P3AT is not a "true double action" like a Taurus Millenium. Its like a Glock or a Kahr in that the slide has to be moved back some amount to reset the trigger in order to get a second strike on a hard primer. If this is important or not is open to debate.

--wally.
 
Helpful hints

sevenpoint62mm, if your Mom isn’t a frequent shooter, I would advise picking up an extra P-3AT magazine and installing a pinkie extension on it. This is a great help for folks new to these little mouse guns. See http://1bad69.com/keltec/p3at-fingerrest.htm also you may find other helpful hints at the bottom of this page http://1bad69.com/keltec/newownerinfo.htm The P-3AT and P-32 are very similar except the P-3AT has a fall-out Ejector and no slide lock.
Wilson
 
personally, I think a kel-tec pistol is a terrible choice for a non-shooter type, especially a woman.

They have terrible, heavy triggers, heavy recoil, excessive muzzle flip, hurt your hand, etc...

Take her to handle some different types and see what she likes the ergonomics of, and then let her shoot it to see if she is ok with the 'shooting experience' of it.
 
kel-tec

dorrin i can tell that you have extensive experience with kt pistols. my advice would be that you confine your shooting to bb guns or at most, 22's. :rolleyes:
 
I like pistols that kick hard.
I like Kel-tecs.
I handload extra hot, and make my Kel-Tecs kick even harder.



I know a guy who is bigger than me that will not shoot a .380, because "It's a cannon."

He carries 22s and 32s.

He owns a 44 mag, but will only shoot 44 special in it.




It takes all kinds of People.
I am a weight wimp.
My steel 1911 feels like I am carrying a brick.
I can't stand it very long.
I want to take my pain all at once in recoil.
So Kel-Tecs are for me, but not for every body.
 
The P3AT is not a "true double action" like a Taurus Millenium. Its like a Glock or a Kahr in that the slide has to be moved back some amount to reset the trigger in order to get a second strike on a hard primer. If this is important or not is open to debate.
Click to expand...
Doesnt the fact the that the hammer is off the firing pin help it resit drop fires, unlike the P11? Also makes less trigger travel i guess.
 
MOD 12,

Thanks for pointing out the Winchester Win-clean style ammo for use in the Kel Tec 3AT. Also until you mentioned it I had never noticed the smiley on the mag follower. The fact that the smiley is on the mag follower is troubling. The barrel simply moves back too far. If the barrel came back just 1/16 to 1/8 of an inch less it might be OK. I really do not want to take a file to the barrel feed ramp. This should have been done during the manurfacture of the pistol.
 
Fired my new p32 for the first time today. One box each of Winchester whit box, silvertip, and UMC FMJ. Surprisignly accurate, one FTF in all 143 (I kept 7 of the silvertips) rounds fired. Not a bad little pistol so far. Much better than the 3at I got to try out a few weeks ago. Maybe that was just a bad one, but it had at least one FTE or FFT per magazine. I wonder is the p32 more reliable than the 3at in general?
 
Kel-Tec makes nice little reliable guns. Some people hate them, Im not one of those people. I would really reccomend it.:)
 
smilies

ibmii, agreed again.however, what we see is what we got. i havn't gone the file route yet either, but am considering it just to suit my fancy. if i mess it up i'll just send it back to kt and request another bbl. so far have not heard any negative comments about the modification and i respect the posters solution who did it. as far as i've heard the pistol functions perfectly after the mod. stay tuned.:)
 
I had a Kel-Tec P-32. Three trips to the factory couldn't solve the jamming problems. It broke one day and I had had enough, I dumped it at a huge loss and never regreted selling it, I regreted buying it but not selling it.:D

Some people have reported that these guns can be made reliable but I guess I was one of the other 50% that got a lemon.:rolleyes: Worst gun I can think of to give to your mom, if she ever really needs it, it may fail. Get her a Bersa and save a few bucks and have a MUCH better gun if size is not a limiting factor.
 
I'm now going on OVER 4 weeks of waiting for my P3AT to come back from the factory. I called yesterday to check on it and they would not even look it up. The woman who answered the phone said they were running behind and it would not do any good to check with the gunsmiths.
 
lbmii

The magazine follower flew out of the magazine. I also seemd to have more than the usual problems with brass smacking me in the head, even after I replaced the extractor. Good test of my reflexes!
 
These are my first Chronometer results for the Kel Tec 3AT:

American Eagle brand FMJ 95 grain had a span between 840 to 888 FPS with an average of 867 FPS.
I fired a total of 9 rounds in 3 groups of 3. All rounds that were the first to be fired in the pistol (hand chambered) were on the lower end of the velocity range. The rounds that came after the first round fired (rounds that were in the magazine) had all been dented in the nose by the feed ramp. These rounds with "smileys" produced their velocity on the higher end of the velocity range.

I had only three Speer Gold Dot 90 grain to spare for the test. The velocities were 888, 901 and 906 FPS. The 888 was the first fired. The other two were badly dented.

I had two Remington Golden Saber 102 grain. The velocities were 787 and 812 FPS with the second round being dented in.

I will test some other brands in the near future.
 
If brass is hitting you in the head, try something different, like holding it one handed. I found that with such a small light pistol, there's not much the off hand can do to help anyway.
 
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