When I was ten or eleven, I used to liked looking through a Stoeger's Shooter's Bible. Some of the guns that Stoeger itself marketed were illustrated in color. These included Mannlicher-Schoenaur rifles and carbines, some neat Spanish doubles, and Llama pistols.
A pistol that caught my eye was the little 1911-like Llama semi-auto. The plated and engraved model with pearl grips was beautiful--"just my size", and it looked like the nickel plated "Colt .45 Automatic" that my uncle kept under his pillow.
My 1944 Gun Digest still listed the Colt pocket automatic.
Those were my introduction to the .380 ACP. Years later, a friend who was selling an old Llama said it wasn't very good.
I read of semi-automatic pistols in that caliber that were once used by the police and military forces of Germany and Italy.
I think I remember Ken Waters as having described the .380 as the minimum for defensive use.
Later, I handled the pre-GCA Browning .380 in a gun store. I really liked how thin it was. I did not know enough about defensive shooting to think about disengaging that safety in a hurry.
Just before GCA '68 was enacted, a friend bought a Walther PPK. I liked shooting it.
When the LCP came out, a number of local LEOs were buying them for backup. One of my officer friends disapproved, and said he thought only one commercial load marginally acceptable. Of course, there have been advancements in ammunition since then.
I handled an early LCP in a store. I did not like it.
A few years ago, a friend who is a nurse started looking at handguns. I could not get out to help, and she went to a store with a range. She tried several guns and selected a Browning 1911 .380.
A few days ago, someone here posted a video on the new LCP Max, a pistol of which I had not heard. I was surprisingly impressed.
I did some research and some thinking, with the idea of acquiring one for occasional back-up.
It came home today. If anything, I would like the grip to be a tad wider.
Ammunition? One box only, FMJ, at $1.00 per round. That's the next challenge.
A pistol that caught my eye was the little 1911-like Llama semi-auto. The plated and engraved model with pearl grips was beautiful--"just my size", and it looked like the nickel plated "Colt .45 Automatic" that my uncle kept under his pillow.
My 1944 Gun Digest still listed the Colt pocket automatic.
Those were my introduction to the .380 ACP. Years later, a friend who was selling an old Llama said it wasn't very good.
I read of semi-automatic pistols in that caliber that were once used by the police and military forces of Germany and Italy.
I think I remember Ken Waters as having described the .380 as the minimum for defensive use.
Later, I handled the pre-GCA Browning .380 in a gun store. I really liked how thin it was. I did not know enough about defensive shooting to think about disengaging that safety in a hurry.
Just before GCA '68 was enacted, a friend bought a Walther PPK. I liked shooting it.
When the LCP came out, a number of local LEOs were buying them for backup. One of my officer friends disapproved, and said he thought only one commercial load marginally acceptable. Of course, there have been advancements in ammunition since then.
I handled an early LCP in a store. I did not like it.
A few years ago, a friend who is a nurse started looking at handguns. I could not get out to help, and she went to a store with a range. She tried several guns and selected a Browning 1911 .380.
A few days ago, someone here posted a video on the new LCP Max, a pistol of which I had not heard. I was surprisingly impressed.
I did some research and some thinking, with the idea of acquiring one for occasional back-up.
It came home today. If anything, I would like the grip to be a tad wider.
Ammunition? One box only, FMJ, at $1.00 per round. That's the next challenge.
