Nice to carry, painful to shoot

[AdamSean]

I work in the hot and humid temps of Alabama and wanted a nice pocket gun that wouldn't rust from me sweating a lot so I picked up a Cobra Derringer CB38 .38 special. It is chrom with rosewood grips and rides nicely in my pocket. It also has a manual hammer block safety which is nice to have.

I took it to the range to see how it shot. It took me about 20 rounds to get used to the massive recoil and put the rounds where I wanted them at about 10 feet. That was easy enough to get used to. What I did not get used to was the painful recoil! The tiny little .38 smarted quite a bit. The good thing is this gun is not a range gun. Only a few rounds every now and then to remember the aim is needed. I like having it if I need it in a hurry and if I have to, have the fullsize pistol in the car. Two shots of .38 special Critical Defense should give me enough time to get the big boy from the car.

The Cobra CB38 is nice to have, but sure stings the hand...lol.

 

[mothermopar]

I feel the same about my Smith and Wesson 340M&P with 357 magnums... great carry gun, but MAMA MIA! she kicks like crazed mule!

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

I may hold a minority view ...

Call me a wimp or whatever, but I dislike guns that are downright painful to shoot. Shooting, even for self defense practice, should be a fun activity above all. If this derringer is going to be your main or most frequently used carry gun, it is the one you should practice with. If you hate shooting it, you won't practice with it.

 

[mothermopar]

Lone does make a valid point. I'm forced to qualify with my 340... although I use 38+p for that.

While I agree with Lone, I also have another view... if you know your weapon, its limitations and your abilities, and are able to apply them all accordingly, then you're good to go. How much practice will give you this knowledge??? That's up to the individual I suppose.

EDIT: Lone, that's not being 'wimpy'.

 

[armoredman]

I have a snubby, Taurus Ultralite CIA, love carrying it, 10 rounds at the range and I am done. I have load light stuff if I want to have fun with it. It shoots PA and never burps, so it's a great carry-often/shoot-rarely.

 

[Lonestar49]

Very hand freindly

...

Maybe think about looking at some of the many nice, soft shooting, Sc 9mm's out there..

I invested in a SA EMP 1911 SAO 9+1 9mm and with its 3" bull barrel, aluminum frame, 3-dot night sights and factory wood grips, not only is it a beauty, but it is very ccw, thin grip, yet full with no pinkie extension required and is a very balanced, very very accurate, shooter..

Mine has just over 6500 rounds thus far with no problems, none using 124gr JHP

Wife loves it as well, as it replaced the Sig P232 SL 380 I bought her and she didn't like its harsh recoil, let alone, its much harder (blow-back action) longer, stiffer, return spring and much harder to rack than an EMP's much softer closed breach action with much softer return springs.

It's very easy on the hands or one handed shots along with their mags hand load all 9 "very easy" from the very get-go..






Luck,


Ls

Ps.. forgot to mention, for the very most part I carry it in my left front pocket (horizontal opening) with the grip just up, and outside the pocket, in its holster, cross draw (right-handed shooter) with "any" shirt just hanging out and no printing, no sitting, standing, bending over, problems, etc. with either the small gun itself or its 2 safety's being carried locked and cocked.

 

[gordy]

very close range. touch me kinda gun

I have the same 38 derringer, It is for putting under the chin or ribcage and firing, you don't need anything other than swc lead.

 

[smince]

I work in the hot and humid temps of Alabama

I do too, but I carry a Glock 26 or 19 and a spare magazine.

 

[docsleepy]

The extra foot lbs of energy that will carry the projectile clear through the person are not going to do you much good anyway. I handload and choose lighter charges for lighter firearms and suddenly, they are fun again! With an airlight s&w 38, 165 ft lbs is about my limit; with a lightweight .380, about 125 ft lbs. Revolvers will function with ridiculously little powder. If you wish, carry commercial ammo for self defense, but it sure isn't that much fun at the range and I'm not into hurting, for fun!

My 148 double ended wad cutters pass right through a 2x2 and that will probably do about all the damage I need.

 

[AdamSean]

I will soon have my Bersa .380 back from being Gun Koted, but until then, this was the best and least expensive choice for pocket carry. I find the Hornady Critical Defense 110 gr easy to shoot accurately and is the mildest on the hand so far. I may try the Federal Personal defense low recoil stuff too.

I can't wait until I find a Ruger LCP in stainless steel!

 

[AdamSean]

I will soon have my Bersa .380 back from being Gun Koted, but until then, this was the best and least expensive choice for pocket carry. I find the Hornady Critical Defense 110 gr easy to shoot accurately and is the mildest on the hand so far. I may try the Federal Personal defense low recoil stuff too.

I can't wait until I find a Ruger LCP in stainless steel!

 

[hemiram]

My most unpleasant to shoot little gun was my Astra A-75 in .40. Even though it's solid steel, it made my hand feel like I had just held a small firecracker in it (Didn't we all do that when we were a kid?), and the next day, they hurt bad. I got another A-75 in 9mm, and it's fine. I made a little money on the .40 when I sold it. The mags are the same, so that worked out great.

 

[David E]

A 2-shot manually cocked derringer is a very poor choice for a primary defense gun, regardless of caliber.

 

[22-rimfire]

I have often considered buying one of the old HS derringers for a pocket gun. It would be the gun I would carry when I normally wouldn't carry anything. From that perspective, it is a lot better than pulling a knife. I have a strong dislike for knife fights.

A derringer is essentially a belly gun. You don't need to practice other than to familiarize yourself with the function and that it reliably fires.

 

[David E]

You don't need to practice other than to familiarize yourself with the function and that it reliably fires.

You choose a 2-shot derringer with a horrible DAO pull and don't think you need to practice with it?? Astonishing.

 

[Bubba613]

I would take a 2 shot derringer like that over a pointed stick most days.

 

[pcwirepro]

Kel-Tec PF9

You want painful....
My PF-9 is down right unpleasant. It's a joy to carry but range time with that thing is like going to have my taxes done. I loaded up several hundred powder puff loads for practice but still shoot several +p JHP each session to make sure all is well. Oh well, can't have it all.

 

[kenno]

To all my faithful brohiems; Belive me when I say that when it comes time to USE your CCW
You will neither feel or hear the gun being fired!

 

[MedWheeler]

Yeah, my PF-9 isn't the charm to shoot, either, but it is manageable. The closest piece I have to it in size and caliber is a Bersa Thunder in 380, and that thing feels like a 22 after a few mags from the Kel-Tec.
I have, from back around 1990 or so, a Grendel P-10 380, a predecessor to the Kel-Tec P3-AT. With its optional grip extender off, that is also unconfortable to shoot but, like its bigger great-grandson (the PF-9), it's easily controllable.
Like the OP said, these are "carry" guns more than they are "range queens"..

 

[XxWINxX94]

I wouldn't call this painful to shoot, maybe a little inconvinient if you have big hands.

Anyway, Its a Walther model 5, supposedly its pretty old but I can't be sure because it was inherited. Its very small, and can easily fit in any pocket of your choice, with or without a case/holster. Fires the 6.35mm/25ACP. Not alot of power, but its a real nice little gun.

P.S. The gun is very thin, no more than an inch, I would say. Weighs next to nothing and is hammerless.

 

[Cactus Jack Arizona]

IMO, a gun is not very useful if you are unwilling to practice with it because it is uncomfortable to shoot. Again, IMO, a person who only runs a few rounds through a carry gun to make sure that it functions and then never shoots it, or rarely shoots it, runs the risk of being just as dangerous, to the general public, as a perpetrator. That being said, how much practice is required depends on the shooter. Some are more naturally inclined at shooting and can get away with minimal practice. Others will require more practice to become efficient.

If you can't efficiently practice with what you have you might want to consider something else. Just my two cents worth. I hope this has helped you. Good luck.

Lastly, what Kenno said is probably very true.

 

[BADUNAME37]

I appreciate......

I really appreciate this post, as I, for one, always wondered how those little guns shoot, I mean - how does it "feel" to shoot them.

I have seen those tiny guns in very large calibers, and in the past actually have considered purchasing one.

Now that I have read this, I will definately not ever buy one. I have two guns already that fit nicely into a pocket with Robert Mika's Pocket Holsters for each (both in round-cut bottom and square-cut bottom RM holsters).

 

[ccsniper]

Call me a wimp or whatever, but I dislike guns that are downright painful to shoot.

+1 I agree. If I can't shoot it comfortably and without pain, I won't carry it. Even if it means printing cause I carry a bigger gun.

 

[RevDerb]

When I saw the title, I thought that you would be posting about the Ruger LCP. I usually only put 10 rounds through it when I go to the range; just to ensure that it functions properly.

 

[TonyT]

The smallest carry gun I have used is the Kahr PM-9. I would not want to put a 200 runds through it in a short itime but it is quite pleasant to shoot even in an IDPA match of less than 100 rounds.