Pistol cartridge rifle vs Rifle cartridge pistol

PCR vs RCP

  • PCR “Pistol caliber rifle”

    Votes: 60 80.0%

  • RCP “Rifle caliber pistol”

    Votes: 15 20.0%
  • Total voters
    75
  • Poll closed .
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I was a HUGE fan of the PCC since the first time I shot on many decades back. For a very long time I was the "odd man out". When this market just took off I loved it. Now that I and my eyes are getting old I like them even more. Most of my shooting now is indoor. These are cheap and I can shoot there. For home defense they long ago replaced the shotgun. I can easily mag dump if I need to at across the home distance and hit what I shoot at. Wife who is VERY recoil sensitive can and will shoot the PCC's. Have shot some TC's in rifle caliber. They were so huge and heavy that it was fun, for a few rounds at least. Not for me but to each his own. I have a couple AR pistols in pistol caliber that I also LOVE for home and play. When these started to really hit the first time I was standing next to a guy shooting one in .556 I was shocked at the blast. I thought he had one of the hand canons until I saw the brass hitting the floor. Would not want to set one of those off in the house without protection on the ears.
 
WeekendReloader said:
All of the "Rifle Caliber Pistols" shown above are really just rifles with short barrels (only classified by law as pistols). They really aren't pistols, like a regular hand gun.
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This.

When I hear Rifle Caliber Pistol, I think of a Contender or similar single-shot pistol chambered in 308, 243, 30-06, etc.. A short-barreled AR with a brace really is just a loophole for a SBR without a tax stamp, practically speaking. Two entirely different tools for entirely different uses. RCP may be too broad a term.
 
If we're going to consider an AR with a 10.5" barrel and a brace a pistol, that's my choice. With 223, you still get very mild recoil, the only issue is noise.

Take that option off the table, I'd go pistol caliber rifle.
 
An AR platform 300 BO with a 8" to 10" barrel and a brace is called a pistol and can be a handy little gun with decent function for more than just SD or blasting at the range. I have assembled a couple of uppers along these lines. They are popular as they are generally used to circumvent a really outdated / dumb law.

A 16"to 18" lever gun in 357 magnum is a handy little gun that will do about the same function as the 300 BO described above. My son has one of these. Cost is a lot higher than an AR and much less flexible. For blasting at the range, it is not quite as fun as an AR. However, not a lot of worries about new government rules that could restrict use.

A single shot handgun in a bottle neck round is what it is. I have 2 Contender frames and a bunch of barrels including more than a few in bottle neck rounds. They get used a lot more than the guns described above.

An AR similar to the 300 BO above but in 223 / 5.56 is less useful (the big velocity loss really undermines effectiveness of the 22 cal bullet) and more obnoxious (much worse muzzle blast). Some folks seem to enjoy range blasting with these guns using cheap ammo. Not something that I want.

A 9mm or a 45 ACP in a PCC are probably most useful for "in home" SD and range blasting. Actual use for anything else is probably very rare. For many the ammo cost of a 9mm vs. a 300 BO is a big deal. I do not feel the need for a PCC for "in home" SD and have plenty of other platforms for range blasting.
 
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Pistol calibre rifle actions win! They give the round a bit more oomph, and reach. .357 or .44M! They improve performance. Then again I also like .410 solids in a lever action, or double barrel, as a hunting set up for pigs! Closer in to suburbia they don't travel as far, don't have as much 'boom', and do the job.
Reducing the punch, and reach, of a rifle calibre, by using a pistol length barrel seems counter productive, and the opposite of what you are trying to achieve with a pistol calibre in a rifle. (ps Just noticed the US spelling of caliber is different).
 
.308 Norma said:
You've obviously never gone to many IHMSA shoots. I haven't either in many years, but back when both my wife and I were shooting IHMSA, we saw hundreds, if not thousands of "rifle" cartridge (not "caliber") pistols being used.
I myself shot an XP-100 chambered in 7mm IHMSA (a 300 Savage necked down to 7mm), but 7mm-08s were also popular.
You're right about a couple of things though - a 7mm IHMSA or a 7mm-08 with a 14" barrel is fun, it throws a lot of flame, and it's LOUD!!!:eek::D
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Spot on. I shot years ago and one of my prized possessions was an XP that HS Precision built for me in 7mm-08, with a 15” barrel and it was spooky how accurate it was.
 
There was a time when a "rifle" cartridge was considered to be a full power, 30-06, 308 Win, or 8mm Mauser. Poodle cartridges, such as the 223, are technically "rifle" cartridges, and I doubt putting them in short barrel handguns improves anything but the muzzle blast. I have fired a 223 AR pistol, and in daylight, the fireball was impressive. Recoil was negligible.

I remember reading reviews in the early 1970's when these 45/70 and 50/70 revolvers came on to the market. I consider a 45/70 cartridge, tossing a 405 grain, or 500 grain bullet, to be a "rifle" cartridge.



Even then, I did not see a reason to own a 6 lb revolver, instead of a 7 pound rifle.

My 1894 Marlin in 44 Magnum will bust welds on my steel gong targets at 100 yards. And the recoil of the rifle hurt until I replaced the hard plastic buttpad with a hard rubber pad.
 
'Pistols' shooting rifle rounds offend my inner engineer. It is a huge waste of the energy in a rifle round to shoot it from a short barrel, with unnecessary noise, flash, etc., and a significant loss of potential power. However, a .357 out of a rifle really maximizes the round, and there are some that approach 7.62x39 power levels. I find that kind of efficiency aesthetically pleasing.

So put this aesthete down for 'PCC'.
 
Perhaps I am an old fuddy duddy, or in this context a fudd.

Personally I see these "pistol" AR things as just a real handy way around the SBR thing. Yea "arm brace"....don't make me laugh. But hay it is legal and if you enjoy it I don't care. I do have a feeling that it will go the way of bump stocks sooner rather than later.

Now you want to talk about a carbine I am all over that, be it an M1 carbine from years ago, a lever that shoots 357 or 38 or one of the 44 flavors. Rugers new, or Marlins old camp series, all over that and they are great fun and have been for decades.

Just my views, really have less than zero interest in this "pistol AR" thing. And you will have a hard time changing my mind from, it is a handy way around an SBR.
 
Of the two, I have more use for a pistol caliber carbine. Such can be used for personal defense (for me, in a home or living quarters setting) or just a 'range toy'.

Rifle caliber pistols strike me as handgun hunting or Metallic Silhouette use. I do neither. And rifle cartridges are too brutal - for my tastes - for 'fun'.

Obviously, my opinion is not universal.
 
I chose rifle caliber pistol since the .22 Long Rifle was originally designed for rifles and I shoot lots of it in pistols.

I also have a PCC in 9mm that is fun to shoot and have some pistol caliber inserts for my old stevens 12G so, I guess a both choice would have been nice, but I do shoot more .22 and .22wmr in pistols and rifles than any other PCR or RCP

d
 
Australian410hunter said:
Pistol calibre rifle actions win! They give the round a bit more oomph, and reach. .357 or .44M! They improve performance. Then again I also like .410 solids in a lever action, or double barrel, as a hunting set up for pigs! Closer in to suburbia they don't travel as far, don't have as much 'boom', and do the job.
Reducing the punch, and reach, of a rifle calibre, by using a pistol length barrel seems counter productive, and the opposite of what you are trying to achieve with a pistol calibre in a rifle. (ps Just noticed the US spelling of caliber is different).
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I live far from civilization. But I still completely agree with your thought process. If I want to slow a projectile down I'll do it with less powder. Not less barrel.
357 and 44 aren't extremely friendly in normal sized revolvers. The blast makes them impractical for defensive use. After firing my 357 indoors without hearing protection. I switched to a 40 S&W as a carry gun.
223 and 300 BO are as far up the RCP list I would go. That would have to be with a 10" barrel and a suppressor. Which puts you back to a carbine length firearm.
 
There is always much fun when I bring my 14" Contender 35 Remington out at the range. Even more fun when they light off full house loads :)

There's been a few hogs that didn't have much fun however. That pistol carries alot easier than any of my rifles for sure.

D
 
webrx said:
I chose rifle caliber pistol since the .22 Long Rifle was originally designed for rifles and I shoot lots of it in pistols.
Click to expand...
LOL this water has been muddy for a long time.
If I shoot cowboy action with 45 Colt I use a PCR but my 38-40 trio has two RCP.
And before we get into revolvers aren't pistols Col. Colt patented a revolving pistol.
 
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