Will Sucompact 9mms Wither the .380 Market?

[Spyvie]

The .380s will/have simply get/gotten smaller...

Look at the Kel-Tek P3AT and the NAA Guardian .380, there are no 9mm pistols as thin as the Kel-Tek or as small as the NAA. The one 9mm that comes close, the Rohrbaugh R9, cost $1000 if you can find one, and it can't shoot +Ps out of its way too short barrel.

There will always be a place for the .380 and even the .32, with their effectiveness as a carry caliber judged on a sliding scale.

I must say I'm not sure there ever was a good reason for the .25 ACP.

 

[Timthinker]

Guys, thanks for the insightful responses. Let me clearify my position on this issue. No, I do not believe the .380 will become obsolete in the near future. Many people will want a small pistol with less recoil than a 9mm. Also, there are places where citizens can own handguns not chambered for military rounds as one of our members correctly noticed. But I believe the advent of "subbie 9s" will diminish the .380 market. How much will the .380 market decline? I do not know, but the question intrigues me.

 

[pap1105]

answere no. as long as shooters have a free choice. they still sell and make .25 guns every day .

 

[Fisherman_48768]

Everallm: I think this is the CZ that was Denali referred to, this particular one is a CZ82 in 9x18.Denali mentions CZ82 but the 83 is the same gun in 380 or 32acp.Excellent firearm priced around $200.00. 12+1 mag,ambi safety and mag release, DA/SA. Basically the same size as the PPK/s but the grip is a tad wider to accomodate the double stack.

 

[Beowolf1911]

the Cz82 or 83 is more then a tad wider then a PPK/s the profile is almost as wide as a 1911. It makes a good cold whether gun or a good nightstand gun if your other carry guns are also in .380 or 9mak but they are in no way compact. I personally don’t see the rush to get the Highest power round out there. I live near a pretty bad city and when the gang bangers around here get shot they run and hide, I hear it in the news almost every day, bad guy shot with a 9 or a .40 or even a .45 and they run away and end up getting picked up by the cops at the hospital. As far as stopping power is concerned placement is always the king. (yeah I know this coming from a .45 guy just seems odd.) Most compact 9mms are DOA and I am just uncomfortable with that I would rather have a .380 because most of the same size .380's have DA/SA actions.

 

[MachIVshooter]

I must say I'm not sure there ever was a good reason for the .25 ACP.

There was when it was devloped a century ago. BAck then, the technology didn't exist to make .32's that small (the .32 ACP preceeded the .25 by 9 years), and .22 RF has always proved more problematic than ceterfire cartrdiges. The semi-rimmed, centerfire .25 provides the same power, but with improved feeding and ignition reliability. It had (has) a purpose. There still are no smaller auto's than the Baby Brownings (or the Bauer copy, of which I have one). Much smaller than even the KT P32 (albeit heavier):



And yes, I have a soft spot for .25's as well as .380's:

 

[Spyvie]

Very cool guns, Id like to own one of those Baby Brownings some day.

25 years ago back in AZ, a good buddy of mine was held up at gunpoint by a couple of banditos. He was shot in the head at point blank range with a .25 auto, the bullet broke the skin but bounced off his skull and stuck in some drywall. He was treated and released.

I'm sure there are better ammo choices today than the BG used back then.

 

[polekitty]

OK--If you’re concerned about recoil start looking at different kinds of ammo. I bought a Taurus 24/7PRO to have something for those days on the range where I want to shoot 100-200 rounds at one sitting (my old muscles were starting to complain about my 45.) So far I’ve shot everything in it up to 9mm+P+ and even then the recoil is quite acceptable. There is an almost unbelievable range of recoil in 9mm ammo---you just have to look around a bit. And if you want to shoot a lot you may discover that .380 costs a whole bunch more than 9mm. Cost will discourage practice a lot more than recoil! Size? My “little” Taurus 24/7 makes a really dandy “pocket gun.” Right now I’m trying to see how long I can go before it says “clean me!” So far it hasn’t noticed about 3-400 rounds of just about everything I can get hold of. I just don't think there is any reason at all for a .380 to even exist!

 

[mudslgr]

Well, they say size doesn't matter....... When it comes to self defense I don't subscribe to that point of view. If you can get a bigger aaaaaaa load into the same size package, go for it. The .380 is a nice round but... size DOES matter. Time will tell.

 

[KevininPa]

I'm a .380 Fan...........

........and will remain so until I can get the basic features in a 9mm that I have in my .380's. I have a FEG SMC-380 for the pocket, A Sig 232 SL for most of my general use ( lighter clothing, warmer season, sometime winter pocket, etc. ), and a CZ83 for winter and nightstand as a backup to a coachgun. The basic features that I prefer are DA/SA and an exposed hammer. Almost all 9's and 40's that are the same size as my pistols are DAO. And plastic. I'm not a fond lover of plastic. Or DAO. However the plastic pocket guns are in , so I don't think the .380 round will disappear. As stated in another thread, it's actually going through a re-emergence(sp?) due to the pocket rockets. I personally want a little more barrel in case a longer shot is needed. So as long as older guys with older tastes or lovers of the new pocket rockets are around, I not only think that the .380 will survive, but will gain some popularity. Being a .380 lover, I notice anything pertaining to this caliber. And if you look back, there are quite a few topics on the .380 as of late. So I don't think that interest has waned, but actually increased. BTW, the one pistol that meets my criteria that I would trade some of my .380s in( but not the Sig!) for is the SA EMP. But at $900, I don't think that will happen any time soon. If I didn't get a bargain on it, I wouldn't own the Sig! But that story is on another thread somewhere.

 

[Soybomb]

They should be killing the larger .380s like the bersa but plenty of people still seem to be willing to buy a large .380 so I don't think so.

 

[KevininPa]

Yep!...

.........that's me!