Pocket CONFUSION!

[briang2ad]

A couple weeks ago, I almost did an impulse buy on an old ASTRA cub. It just looked and felt cool, and boy, it was small. Gee - I could carry it. It also has good reviews and decent workmanship.

I read more, and boy the 25 seems like a joke, so now I'm thinking 380. The LCP and Keltec seem OK, but a bit larger. Also, the trigger is a bit long and pointy - not so comfortable. TCP seems more comfortable, but has issues.

If you go for more comfort and quality you get to spend $500 on a Micro Desert Eagle, or SIG P238. So I want to spend $500 on a 380???

And I want to stay pocket-size...

Its very confusing...

 

[LarryFlew]

The majority of the time I carry IWB .45 Kimber Ultra !! or CZ PCR alloy in 9mm but I do have an older Keltec in .32 that I occasionally carry. BUT, if I where to go looking now I'd look at some 9mm since they are making them in the same physical sizes and 9 has a LOT more power than .380.

 

[troy_mclure]

i carry a keltec p32 daily and have almost half the 5000 round barrel life thru it so far.

its been great. admittedly the trigger sucks, but you get used to it.

for the size and weight of it ill gladly take a crappy trigger on a self defense gun that i only shoot 100 rounds or so a month.

 

[briang2ad]

I cannot see even a PF9 in my pocket. I wear dress pants and shorts plenty, and my jeans aren't "painter pants".

That is why I even looked at the Cub. Smaller is better.

 

[cwok]

pocket

Would you carry weapon XYZ:

• While cleaning out the garage on the hottest day of the year ?
• While washing the car or mowing grass on the hottest day of the year ?
• While at a crowded park on the hottest day of the year ?

Eliminate the weapons that you would not carry and then decide if you want the one that is:

• cheapest
• most powerfull
• most accurate

and buy that weapon.
If your decide you made a mistake - sell the weapon and start over.
.

 

[jreXD9]

Kahr PM9 for pocket carry.....and on the wishlist is the PM45.

 

[brabham78]

briang2ad,

First, I'm not a fan of the .25 acp round (like in your ASTRA cub), but even as a non-fan of that round, I'd still bet that with some FMJ ammo, three or four deep .25 caiber holes in an assailant would probably give him a quick change of heart about picking you as a victim. You or I wouldn't want to be shot with it, and neither will any criminal.

But to respond to your inquiry about pocket guns? Some people will wedge anything into their pocket, and say its comfortable. And I guess if it's comfortable to them, that's all that matters. But most people who pocket carry, eventually come to the conclusion that something very light, and very flat is what will be needed. They don't feel like carrying a pound of gun in their loose fitting summer shorts.

For $300 you can have a reasonably powerful, and very light weight pocket gun. The LCP or Kel Tec (.380 or .32) are well suited for pocket carry. You are one a very few people that I've ever head of that thinks either of those guns are "a bit large"? And you said that they have long and pointy trigger? I haven't really noticed that, but even if I had, these guns are made to carry a lot and shoot a little. Of all the guns I own, regardless of caliber, my LCP is the least comfortable to shoot. But it disappears in my pocket, just the way it's supposed to. I actually prefer to carry a revolver IWB, but that preference must take a back seat to comfort on the hot shorts and t shirt days. For pocket carry in loose summer shorts, a gun's lightness pays dividends at the end of a long day, when every extra ounce becomes noticeable. As an example: When pocket carried, something as light as that 13 oz snub nose feels like it's tugging on me after 8 or 10 hours, yet my 9 oz LCP is hardly even noticed. That's what a 30+% weight reduction can do. The LCP is a compromise compared to my revolver, both in the areas of power and reliability, but it's the compromise that I choose to make during the heat of the summer, to make sure I am carrying all the time. I'm not telling you to pick what I picked, I'm just suggesting that right behind functional considerations, light weight is the main factor that keeps a gun in my pocket during the summer. You might end up finding the same is true for you?

I thought member cwok hit the nail on the head when had asked:

Quote: Would you carry weapon XYZ:
• While cleaning out the garage on the hottest day of the year ?
• While washing the car or mowing grass on the hottest day of the year ?
• While at a crowded park on the hottest day of the year ?

 

[coldpointcrossing]

I went window shopping today and my eye caught a used NAA Guardian .32 in very good condition for about $250.00. Since I am looking for something else in particular, I walked on by. I have no experience with the maker or model but I think it has a solid reputation among pocket pistols.

 

[Bill DeShivs]

I have been through the dilemna. I own (or have owned) most of the older, pre-1968 pocket pistols-Browning .25, Llama .22 short and .25s, Bernardelli .22 and .25s, Astra Cub, Beretta 950 Beretta mod. 20, Beretta Mod. 21, and a lot of others. For years I carried mini revolvers and a Star DK .380.
When the new .32s started coming out, I bought the Beretta 3032, then a NAA .32. The Beretta was just a little large for a pocket pistol for my taste and it was no lighter than the Star .380. The NAA was small, but it is thick and very heavy-heavier than the Star, Beretta, and any of the other guns I considered. Then I got one of the first Keltec P32s. It is flatter than almost any other pistol, weighs 9 oz. (less than the lightweight model Baby Browning .25,) holds 8 rounds, is very accurate, has little recoil. The others are good guns, but the Keltec has the right number of positive attributes for my purpose. I bought a couple of the Keltec P3AT models, but the .32 shoots and carries so well that I have not bothered to even shoot them.
The .22 and .25 autos will work for carry. Nothing except a mini revolver is easier. I prefer the inexpensive Keltec P32 for my use.

 

[Skans]

For pocket carry, I see no reason to get anything smaller than a .380. Personally, I like 9mm or .45 as there are guns barely small enough for pocket carry in these calibers.

For pocket carry, I only need 6 rounds, at most, and only need it to be accurate to a distance of 10 feet.

 

[camjr]

I went through the same thought process, initially looking at a NAA Guardian in .32, then looked at .380 in the same gun, along with the P3AT and PPK platforms for pocket carry. Lots of research led me in a direction that surprised me. I went with the ubiquitous S&W 642 revolver for several reasons.

I found that the rounded shape of the revolver tended to soften printing when carried in an appropriate pocket holster such as a Mika or Nemesis. I liked the idea of .38spl +p over .380. I also was somewhat leery of pocket lint, etc., gumming up a semiauto, and the constant cleaning that would be required. Granted, the 642 only carries 5 shots, but that's not that much different than the pocket-sized semi-autos, and the power differential is more than enough to compensate (IMHO).

To answer one of the respondents above, I live in Texas, and I DO pocket carry the 642 when mowing the lawn, cleaning the garage, etc when it's 100+ degrees. My other carry gun is an XD carried IWB in an MTAC Minotaur, but due to heat, attire, etc., I find I carry the 642 and a speed strip reload or two about 75% of the time.

Cheers!