.380 Bodyguard Worth Consideration ?

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Consort

New member
In the market for a pistol for pocket carry. I need something that is a slam dunk to work with jeans, shorts, and business casual attire. I thought the G42would work, but there are times when it is just too bulky. (Left front pocket in a Mika pocket holster). I have owned and shot both the Ruger LCP (early version), Kel Tec P32, and the Kahr CM9 and have sold or traded all three. Wasn't in love with either brand or product.

I was wondering if the newer version of the S & W Bodyguard 380 (minus laser) is worth considering. Yes, I know that many report that the trigger sucks, but I am looking for something reliable and suitable for deep concealment. I can train to deal with the trigger. Just need something to carry when the G42 has to be like Cinderella and get left at home.
 
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Cosmodragoon

New member
There is another current thread about this gun here.

In it, I said that "I owned one and carried it for over a year. ... it disappeared in a leather Desantis IWB holster. The grip felt nice in my hand, when I wasn't firing it. Otherwise, it felt like a toy. The trigger was downright terrible. Having long fingers, I had to train specifically to get proper position on the trigger. Alignment wasn't intuitive like it is on other guns I own and if my trigger finger didn't align properly, I'd end up pulling that heavy trigger all the way back to a millimeter before the break."

The trigger seems to be a running complaint and that complaint often includes the words "worst" and "ever". Several people have reported malfunctions but I don't recall ever having one. I did have a friend stovepipe a round in mine but that's usually just a matter of not having a firm grip while shooting.

The bottom line is that I need a higher degree of confidence in what I'm trusting for serious emergencies. The Bodyguard wasn't that so I sold it.
 
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bedbugbilly

New member
I'm sure you are going to hear and read both "good" and "bad" in regards to the 380 BG.

A number of years ago, I almost purchased one but opted for a LCR instead (I wasn't worried so much about size as you are for your purposes). The only experience I have had with the 380 BG is the one a friend of mine owns. He got it for SD purposes - he is 83 and an active 83. He put several boxes of store bought ammo though it and said he was having some problems with FTF/FTE. I suggest he change ammo and try it.

I offered to go through he CPL class with him so he'd have someone he knew with him. He was able to find two boxes of 380 FMJ ammo - 2 different brands. I asked the instructors to let me shoot next to him (I knew the instructors) so if he had a problem, I could help him if needed.

He is of course older so his hands don't work as well as they used to. The first thing I noticed was he was having trouble with racking it as it was pretty stiff. As he shot the various targets that were required, he still continued to have problems with FTF/FTE at times. During a break, we took a good look at it and everything looked fine on it. I took a turn shooting it and while it was "O.K." - I had troubelwith several FTF and I found the trigger to be pretty crappy . . and I am not that finicky on trigger pull as I just adjust to the pistol - I've been shooting 50 years and have many revolvers as well as several semis.

When we finished the class - both the instructors and myself suggested he look at a revolver do to the problems he had with racking it, loading the magazines, etc. My main concern was that I did not find it reliable and I would never carry one that I couldn't depend on.

Maybe it was just "his" BG . . . others may not have problems. But if I were to personally want a small 380 for pocket carry, I would look at an LCP or similar. And I have nothing against S & W - I have a Shield that I love as well as 6 or 7 Smith revolvers. Everybody has their own opinions but after shooting his, I was not that impressed.
 
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Dragline45

New member
I had one, really liked it, but I heard too many horror stories and I could never trust it. Light strikes seem to be pretty common across the board. It's a shame S&W never got this one right, it could have been a great little pistol.
 
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wnycollector

New member
I really wanted to like the 380 bodyguard when they came out. I liked that they had better sights and fit my hand better than my first gen LCP. Several of my friends hopped on the band wagon early and purchased them. That allowed me to shoot them alot without taking the plunge and buying. Long story short was that the three bodyguards I shot were just not reliable enough to stake my life on one. Each made at least one trip back to S&W for work, but two of the three still had issues.

I stuck with my old LCP until the LCP Custom came out. I then upgraded to a Custom and couldn't be happier. Now i have better sights and trigger plus this gun has olny had one failure to feed in 1000 plus rounds. The ftf came at round 50 so I'm very comfortable with the reliability of this gun.
 
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JohnRaven

New member
Another problem the Bodyguard has (the integrated laser version) is the laser assembly is held in the frame with a small allen screw, under recoil, it unscrews itself and locks up the slide.

I have personally witnessed this issue and the only fix was sending it back to the factory.
The gun was locked up completely, making the gun useless.

DESIGN FLAW.

I like how its a little gun, but it feels like a bigger gun.

If I were to ever own one, it would be one WITHOUT the integrated laser.
 
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Ibmikey

New member
Sorry to be in opposition to the "horror stories" but my Bodyguard works just fine and makes a great drop in the pocket pistol. I cannot remember a malfunction with the pistol but a target gun it is not, nor something you want to shoot for an extended time.
 
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WaltherP22ASSN

New member
My body guard stove pipes and some FTF problems. I like shooting it but don't trust it. Might need to polish some things in order for it to work better.
 
C

Consort

New member
Okay. Thanks. From the feedback received, I think I will not be considering the .380 Body Guard any longer. Might be time to go look at the LCP Custom a little closer.
 
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db4570

New member
I am very active on the S&W Forum, especially regarding this gun, which I have become a minor expert on due to the problems I had with three of them. BUT- I still own and now trust this gun 100%, and really like it. I know that sounds contradictory. Let me explain.

1. Most people report zero problems with this gun. I attribute this either to dumb luck or the fact that they just never shoot it much.

2. Common problems are FT Feed, FT Fire, FT lock slide back after last round. All except the FTFire are easily remedied by a free trip back to S&W.

3. The FT Fire problem is the most perplexing.

a. Some say the gun is ammo sensitive, and to just find a brand it happens to like. I say that a defensive pistol should be 100% reliable with any name brand ammo. (I will concede to ruling out cheap import stuff.)

b. There is no simple fix. All BGs are a little different, which contradicts the whole "interchangeable parts" concept pioneered on firearms 150 years ago. For a while I thought the firing pin specs were off, and that a new pin with different dimensions would solve the problem, as it did in one of my BGs. But that only worked on that one.

c. If you send it back to S&W enough times they will eventually get it right. I don't blame anyone for finding this unacceptable, though.

4. I could not care less about the heavy trigger. Nobody will ever consider it a target pistol. I never really notice it. And I have shot hundreds of rounds through it.

5. The reason I put so much effort into sticking with this gun is that there is NOTHING else out there anywhere near the same size with the same features and operation. Those features are important to me, but aren't to many people. They are:

a. External safety.

b. DAO, not 1911 style.

c. Second strike.

d. Last round slide lock back.

e. +P sorta OK.

f. Nicer sights, although I noticed no accuracy difference between BG and LCP.

g. It's nicer looking than the LCP.

FWIW,

David
 
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herdman

New member
I own a MP Bodyguard, no laser. I like it. Some do not. When I went to get a pistol that day I went to buy a LCP. Walked out with the Bodyguard. I thought it had more features and seemed "better" to me.

I have had one failure to fire. But, that was with some cheap ammo I had. Pulled the trigger again and it went off. So plus one for the double strike capability. I blame that more on the ammo.

I think where people get upset with the Bodyguard is that they buy it for range gun. I admit, it is not real fun to shoot. I go to the range and fire a couple of magazines at most with the Bodyguard. It is not a range gun. It is a self defense weapon designed for close range.

Second, the trigger is a long pull. Yep, not the greatest or even I would say good. I admit that, but again it is a self defense weapon that is easy to conceal.

I have just never really had any problems with it. I don't try to shoot it all day and don't try to hit targets at 25 yards either. I like the Bodyguard for what it is designed for.

I would not get the one with the laser.
 
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denster

New member
I like the bodyguard sans laser. The two I had did have some problems with light primer strikes with some ammo. Always went off second try though. I had no problems with premium self defense ammo and it was accurate enough.
I'm now carrying the new Remington RM380 which is essentially the Rohrbaugh design with some upgrades. It has a better trigger and has not bobbled anything in several hundred rounds of all kinds of ammo. It is also stupidly accurate. If you pay attention to trigger pull you can keep all shots under a half dollar at 7 yards. Nice gun and real street price is between $320 and $350 depending on who is running a sale.
 
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briandg

New member
This thread is enlightening. My bg has been unhealthy hundreds of rounds, and everything is wrong. Stove pipes. No locking on empty slide. I have come to deal with the trigger and relatively poor accuracy. I don't like getting hit on the noggin by brass, and finding it anywhere in a huge circle surrounding my feet. I just started loading for it, using 5 or so grains of accurate five, and got a very good load, but that thing barely dimpled the primers and I had two failures to fire. Apparently, cci primers are too hard. Winchester ammo was listed as low recoil, and not strong enough to cycle properly. I see that tweaking a few things is absolutely necessary.

It's been mentioned that this isn't good enough. This is a gun for combat and nothing else. If it puts your life at risk by malfunctioning,that's not good, and it's why they are going to find themselves swimming through sewage when the lawsuits start.

I contacted the company when I got it, but wanted to really work it over before sending it in.

I don't believe for a second that I have ever been at risk, I have carried the Sig :hp rounds without a bobble. I think that I would have gotten through any simple encounter in spite of these concerns.
 
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dirtd0g

New member
We've never had any reliability issues with S&W's little Bodyguard... My wife loves it and is her CCW of choice. No laser screws have worked themselves loose, no stovepipes, FTFs, FTEs... It runs everything we've put through it like a champ.

It took BOTH of us awhile to get a feel for its trigger; you just keep pulling and pulling and pulling and pulling and it breaks eventually.

She has become proficient with it up to 7 yards... I have a difficult time. It is VERY small for my hands and I can't really get a good purchase on it. To hit the center of an 8" target at 7 yards I have to pull and pull and pull and pull, then aim, then break.

I prefer the Shield in 9mm. With the pinky extension on the 7-round magazines it fells great and shoots just like our M&P 9c.

The Shield conceals well on my lean frame... The Bodyguard completely disappeared.
 
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rodfac

New member
My son and I bought two of them for our wives when they first came out. Both he and I and our wives have carried J-frame Smiths for years but found that the girls objected to the bulk of gun from time to time. The 380BG was just the ticket.

Ours have been 100% feeding factory FMJ, Hornady Critical Defense, and my handloads. It's a good, very flat auto but does have a revolver length trigger pull. Accuracy has been great for a little gun...on the order of 2" at 10 yds for all the ammo listed above. Plenty good enough for defensive carry.

In that role, it's important to do some study on good loads for it. We've had good luck with the Hornady offering...I killed a raccoon at an estimated 10 yds with that load that showed full through and through penetration and an exit hole the size of a 50 cent piece.

As to the laser, we don't use it whatsoever. It's just too hard to reach it up on the frame.

If you like and need a really small pistol, I'd recommend it. Rod
 
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10Ringmagic

New member
Consort
Senior Member

Join Date: April 20, 2011
Posts: 131
Okay. Thanks. From the feedback received, I think I will not be considering the .380 Body Guard any longer. Might be time to go look at the LCP Custom a little closer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If the LCP you had before was a Generation 1, you need to check out the Generation 2, vastly improved sights and trigger, I sure like mine.
 
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db4570

New member
My bg has been unhealthy hundreds of rounds, and everything is wrong. Stove pipes. No locking on empty slide. I have come to deal with the trigger and relatively poor accuracy.... If it puts your life at risk by malfunctioning,that's not good, and it's why they are going to find themselves swimming through sewage when the lawsuits start.
Click to expand...

Gee Whiz, Briandg. Why not just send the thing in to get it fixed, rather than torture yourself with it?

David
 
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kramden

New member
BG trigger fix

Just got my wife a new BG in Dec. The one with the red button for the lazer. I think S&W has got this pistol perfected all except for the long trigger pull. So I ordered the kit from Galloway. Night and day difference. Totally happy with it now.
 
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