México´s .380

Status
Not open for further replies.
I consider the .380 a marginal defense round but if it's all you are allowed to have, a .380 or .38 special +P is better than nothing. For pocket carry I use a .380.
How many rounds do those G25s hold? Are they limited to 10?
 
No, thanks God.

Thanks God in México we don´t have that kind of restriction, at least not now. I have read that in some states of USA have that restriction. No, here just have to be the legal caliber, you can have a G25 original 15 rounds magazine or 17 with the +2 extension, like mine :D. If you get a 30 round magazine for your 84f, you can have it, it´s not mentioned in the law. We have the caliber restriction (.380 or .38 spl) and the assault rifles. Shotguns and rifles can be semiautomatic only.
 
Welcome B&G!

I'm taking off tomorrow for 10 days in Guadalajara - my mother's hometown.

I just took delivery of a PPK/S in .380 a couple of weeks ago and so far I'm very pleased with it.

What kind of ammunition can you get in Mexico? American stuff? European? Are there Mexican ammo makers?
 
Ley Federal de Armas y Explosivos

Pursuant to Mexico's Federal Law of Firearms and Explosives:
http://www.natlaw.com/trans/tnstcs1.htm

Arms are prohibited by specific caliber. The FLFE provides:

ARTICLE 11: The weapons, ammunition and materials for the sole use of the Army, Navy, and Air Force are the following:

b) 9 mm. Parabellum, Luger and similar pistols, .38" Super and Commando pistols and those of larger caliber than these.​


What this means is that the only 9mm caliber prohibited is the 9x19, which we understand to be 9mm, 9mil, 9 milimeter, etc. Article 11 DOES NOT prohibit 9x17, .380, 9x18 Markarov, etc. It specifically names 9mm. As for size of caliber, that is also a bit of a misnomer as the prohibited calibers refer either to diameter or enumeration/name. For example, .357 magnum is an enumerated round but is also the same "caliber" or diameter as .38 special which IS legal under Article 9 below. Though both are .38 or .357 only .357 magnum is barred.

Thus, .357 Sig would be the proper diameter AND is not one of the named/enumerated prohibited calibers.

The following calibers are allowed under FLFE:

ARTICLE 9th: According to the terms and limitations set by this Law, the following weapons may be possessed or carried:

l. Semi-automatic pistols of greater than .380" (9 mm.) caliber, with the exception of .38" Super and .38" Commando pistols, as well as similar models of other brands, of the same caliber.

2. Revolvers of caliber not greater than the .38" Special, with the exception of the .357" Magnum.​

Article 9 read along with Article 11 means hat any caliber "larger" than 9x17 (.380) is legal, except for 9mm parabellum (9x19). As mentioned above 9x18 Makarov is not on the list.

Now, turning to all of the calibers not on the list:


.17 Mach. Imagine this tiny little bullet in FMJ, http://www.handgunsmag.com/accessories/mach2_101204/ . Nice little pistol caliber.

.22 Magnum. Clearly, this round is smaller than .38 or .380, and it packs a lot of sting. http://www.gunblast.com/AMT-AutoMagII.htm

.32 ACP. Ah, a classic. It has it's own place in history and its own pop in a little package.

9x18 Makarov. It is not 9mm parabellum, Luger, etc. It passes.

.25 NAA. A lot of zip in a tiny hand held pistol, http://www.naaminis.com/25NAArel.html

.32 NAA. A bottle- necked bit of trouble, http://www.naaminis.com/32NAA.html

.30 Luger. Yes, .30 Luger! That under-appreciated round. Recall that the Hi Power in .30 Luger was made specifically for countries that banned the 9mm parabellum. The .30 Luger is a hot botte necked bullet.

5.7x28 mm. The FN Five Seven fires this devastating little miniaturita of a round, http://remtek.com/arms/fn/57/. And it is legal under the plain terms of the above laws.

.357 Sig. It is clearly not the enumerated .357 magnum. Nor is it the enumerated 9mm Parabellum, Luge, etc. It is however approximately the same diameter projectile as .380 or 9x17 mm. Until the Mexican legislature enumerates this round, it is good to go.

7.62 x 25 mm Tokarev. Clearly the caliber is smaller in diameter than any 9mm. This is an extremely powerful round.

This should be plenty of pólvora (firepower) to keep malhechores (wrongdoers) acting under color of law or not at bay.

Folks, feel free to chime in with any other calibers not on the list .25, .30, .32, 5mm, 6mm, 7mm, 8mm calibers for auto pistols.

Enjoy
 
I am wondering if a Glock in .380 would withstand some "judicious" handloading. I imagine that a .380 pushed to +P+ velocities would be a very fine defense load.
Click to expand...

Don't know about the Glock, but an 84FS will tolerate handloads that push 300 ft/lbs. The load I keep in the wife's are 102 gr. Golden Sabre's loaded to 1120 FPS.

7.62 x 25 mm Tokarev. Clearly the caliber is smaller in diameter than any 9mm. This is an extremely powerful round.
Click to expand...

This is probably your best bet for an effective defensive cartridge. It can generate energy levels that exceed most 9x19mm loads. The biggest problem with the 7.62 Tok is availablity of platforms; there are about 2 choices, and neither is particularly well suited to concealed carry.

The .32 H&R magnum is not a bad choice either. I have a Ruger SP101 3" in this caliber, and would not feel undergunned with it. Small bullet, but it's zippy.
 
If concealment were B&G issue: 9mm => .30 luger

B&G did not ask whether any particular caliber arm was useful in concealed carry. However, if it were his issue, most of the calibers other than 7.62 x 25 and .17 Mach come in handy packages since the 9mm arm can be converted to .30 Luger by changing the barrel (the magazine remains the same since the base of the cartridge is the same diameter as 9mm Parabellum).

Such a conversion would allow very small handguns like an AMT back up, KAHR, etc, to carry an adequate, shock producing caliber. I do want to take this opportunity to point out that it is questionable that any pistol caliber has "knock down" or "stopping power." It appears from US DOJ research that such notions are purely myth: http://www.thegunzone.com/quantico-wounding.html . It seems that psychological shock is a key deterrent to ending aggression.

My reason for bringing up the issue of myth of "stopping power" and calibers is that we do each other a disservice by perpetuating the notion that one pistol caliber is worse than any other for personal defense. Notice that law enforcement and military personnel seek calibers capable of perforating body armor and vehicles. Such applications have nothing to do with personal defense.

In reality, body armor has made most pistol rounds (except for 5.7 Five Seven FN) obsolete in military application.

In this context, humble calibers like .22, .25, or .32 are no less adequate in creating psychological shock in an attacker in the personal defense setting. With that in mind, folks like B&G, or any of us, may be served well by a .32 H&R magnum revolver.

If you venture onto the 1911 forums, the participants make comments such as "I'd rather have a slingshot than a 9mm" and extoll the "stopping power" of .45 ACP. This is unfortunate because such outlooks limit our discussion of the sport which we enjoy and make it appear to the community at large that we have an obsession with lethality.

We are all enthusiasts and should offer each other meaninful dialogue (and educate the non firearms community about responsible firearms ownership). My best to everyone.

Saludes a B&G y todos los camaradas de este foro. No se deseperen si el Ejéricito no sabe la diferencia entre .357 sig y magnum. Tenemos que seguir exigiendo nuestros derechos al pie de la letra. Solo nosotros podemos hacer valer a las leyes y hacer valer nuestra soveranía personal.
 
Beretta&Glock,
Too many people say the .380 is too light for self defense but I feel it isn't. Americans are too hung up on caliber size and for some reason they think anything less than a .45 Auto is a small and underpowered round. I even like the .32 Auto (7.65mm Browning) and feel it’s a good round. Practice and do drills to get good at shot placement and you will be able to protect yourself well with a pistol chambered in 9X17mm.

I like your Beretta a lot and feel it's a great pistol. If you are looking for good ammo I feel Fiocchi makes good ammo that is a little hotter than the other ammo available out there. It is probably available in Mexico too.
 
.38 super is legal for civilians to own in Mexico. I'd go with that. As a matter of fact I'd like to own one but the ammo isn't cheap.
 
Lot a folks round here carry .38special. You already have a 10-5, and I would imagine that would be safe to shoot +P in. Buffalo Bore makes some loads that go ~350 ft-lbs.
 
Thank you for all your opinions.

I know about the .38 spl power for personal defense, I just prefer the auto´s capacity, with a +2 magazine and one in the chamber I bring 18 rounds in my Glock. Lot better (3 times) than the 6 from the 38 spl. But I don´t have to choose, I have both and carrie either whenever I want, jaja. I repeat, carrie weapon is out of law.

Sara Bellum, you are right, lot of calibers match legal restrictions, like .357 sig, but the militar guys don´t like it, so they rather not to alloud it. We have a under sized citicenship, becouse the politicians and militars aren´t enouf informed. Hablas muy bien el español y conoces muy bien la ley, de dónde eres? Tu nombre, Sara, es porque eres mujer? Saludos.

JJE, we have a mexican cartridge producer, Águila or Eagle. Salutes.

ArchAngelCD, I think that we only can get national brand cartridges here, the only imported brands we get are for long calibers, like for rifles.

Hello, everybody.
 
Why don't you get a 38 revolver. It carriers a little more punch than a .380.
 
Anther suggestion, I just read Ruger came out with a .32 Magnum load that supposedly packs more punch than a 9 mm.
 
¡Bienvenido al foro, Tatanka!

Sé que has dicho que te gusta mejor un semiautomático que un revolver (y a mí tambien), pero yo preferiría más un .38 que un .308 si esas fuesen mis únicas opciones. Aún así, no creo que un .380 séa un calibre horrible si es lo que prefieres.
 
I consider the .380 a marginal defense round but if it's all you are allowed to have, a .380 or .38 special +P is better than nothing. For pocket carry I use a .380.[/QUOTE

I view this often, marginal but we carry it anyway....I find myself doing that since smaller calibers are convenient for pocket carry....:)
Click to expand...
 
I have no idea how easy/hard it is to get firearms parts from Europe where you live, but if it's posible (which I doubt though) there's a company in Austria that now makes 9mm Makarov barrels for 9mm Glocks. They are supposed to work with the same (9mm) magazines too. If 9mm Mak. is allowed, that would be another option for you.
 
I consider .380 minimum, but if that's the most you can have, it's a moot point whether we approve it or not.

What is your opinion about the fact that the .380´s Glock isn´t saled in your country? I think is the only advantage we have instead. Glock designed the 25 and 28 model for latin american countries, where civilians buy it like the bigger we can.
Click to expand...

I'll gladly take that concession for the ability to own anything else up to and including 155mm guns. I don't like Glocks anyway.
 
32 NAA Makarov

I live in the U.s.-Mexico border area and have extended stays in Mexico in which I am allowed to have a handgun in my house.

I have two guns for Mexico. I originally bought a CZ 52 with a 7.62x25 caliber, believing that it would be permissible because it's smaller than the 9mm caliber. However, when I talked to a few people from the Mexican firearms discussion forum, they told me they believed this round would still get me into trouble because it seems to be on an "unofficial list" of unapproved handguns. Not wanting to spend 5 years in a Mexican jail working this out, I developed another handgun.

This is a Russian Makarov that was originally chambered for the 380 ACP, a caliber officially on the approved list. However, I bought a 32 NAA 4.5 inch barrel from makarov.com for the gun and carefully handloaded the ammo. With the 32 naa, I easily get 1400 fps with an 85 grain .32 caliber bullet. It has almost twice the energy of a common 380 acp. It's permissible according to Mexican law in two ways--the gun is a 380 acp and the bullet of the 32 naa is 32 caliber. It's also accurate enough, and I love the Makarov platform.

There's a lot of machismo around about being able to carry a 38 super, 357 sig, etc in Mexico and not have problems. I don't believe it. A recent article in Juarez's Diaro Hoy states that the jails in Cd Juarez are full of firearms felons, with the .40 s&w being the one caliber getting most of the people into trouble.
 
There is nothing wrong with .380. It goes bang and with modern ammo can get decent results. I carry a Beretta M85FS a lot when not carrying my 9MM CZ PCR. I also carry a Makarov 9x18 which is only marginally better than the .380.

Hey, at least you're armed.
 
I never realized that a .380 was a "marginal" caliber until I read it in these forums. The truth is that the perp facing the business end of the barrel will not have the concentration to discern if he is looking at a .45 or a .22. Moreover, the perp will not know if what hit him was a .22, .380, or a .50 caliber. He will hear the bang accompanied by the sting and if he can flee, he will. Lastly, in Mexico claiming self-defense will not save you from spending time in jail (guilty until proven innocent). So I much rather shoot a perp that runs away than one that drops dead at my feet.
 
I have a Sig P232 SL, which I believe is one of the finest 380's produced, I carry the DPX rounds in it and I have never felt under powered!! You need to check some of the specs in the Corbon line up, very impressive.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

S
  • Locked
CCW for Wife .380
2
Replies
28
Views
1K
rvehock
R
J
  • Locked
Glock 380's
Replies
7
Views
846
Quiet
Q
Rule3
  • Locked
What about Bersa?? 380 CC
2
Replies
28
Views
1K
tercel89
T
Wildbillz
  • Locked
9mm Makarov -Vs- 380 Acp
2
Replies
33
Views
5K
Smaug
Smaug
Tallball
  • Locked
Four 380's
2
Replies
37
Views
3K
KSDeputy
K
Back
Top