[Cyrano]

Swenson, if you can find one - they are not the easiest thing in the world to find - you can get what boils down to a hi-cap Kel-Tec P3AT in a Grendel P-12. It's a DAO .380 ACP concealed hammer pocket pistol. 3 inch barrel, 11+1 capacity, no safety, no slide release. It's about the same size as (and is the ancestor of) the P3AT. Might pan out for you if you can find one.

[KW Gary M]

Quote:       Originally Posted by Cyrano

Swenson, if you can find one - they are not the easiest thing in the world to find - you can get what boils down to a hi-cap Kel-Tec P3AT in a Grendel P-12. It's a DAO .380 ACP concealed hammer pocket pistol. 3 inch barrel, 11+1 capacity, no safety, no slide release. It's about the same size as (and is the ancestor of) the P3AT. Might pan out for you if you can find one.

I've never seen a P3AT that holds 11 + 1. I want one. Any pictures to share?

[sunwheel29]

I have a Taurus Millenium in .380 that has a high capacity magazine.
I bought it instead of a Kel Tec or other smaller .380 becuase I wanted a gun that could be used for CCW/Back up Gun AND would be fun to shoot.

Some of those micro guns are tough to shoot and no fun at the range.

[stalebiscuit]

Quote:       Originally Posted by randomwhiteguy

kel tec is not that great a gun. nylon mag retainer that wears down fairly quickly , and double action only not my fave.

yes, but you can pick one up for under 250 dollars that isnt a jennings, hi-point, or bryco

all said its pretty decent

[BaserRonin]

I have heard the Kel Tec's wear out fairly quickly as well. The price is good, but they, apparently, just do not hold up to what you probably consider moderate use. Fine for the average joe, but I am assuming you shoot more then 200 rounds a year.

They sure make some thin light-weight pieces though. At 3/4 or less of an inch thick you can probably conceal one in a bathing suit...

[KW Gary M]

Quote:       Originally Posted by rascaldog

While I like the idea behind some of these ultra-compacts, they are not fun to shoot (for me anyways).

+1

I love my P3AT but after a 200 to 300 round range day my hand hurts like hell and is usually cut up pretty bad too.

[stalebiscuit]

Quote:       Originally Posted by BaserRonin

I have heard the Kel Tec's wear out fairly quickly as well. The price is good, but they, apparently, just do not hold up to what you probably consider moderate use. Fine for the average joe, but I am assuming you shoot more then 200 rounds a year. They sure make some thin light-weight pieces though. At 3/4 or less of an inch thick you can probably conceal one in a bathing suit...

i dont think they are meant as heavy duty shooters, more back up guns and small conceal carry

[KW Gary M]

[quote=BaserRonin;766298]I have heard the Kel Tec's wear out fairly quickly as well. The price is good, but they, apparently, just do not hold up to what you probably consider moderate use. Fine for the average joe, but I am assuming you shoot more then 200 rounds a year. quote]

I have over 1,000 rounds through my Kel-Tec and it is only 3 months old. The first time I took it to the range I put 400 rounds through it without cleaning. Every round cycled fine and shot perfect. I won't shoot more than 200 rounds through it in one day just because it is tough on my hand but the gun holds up fine.

[stalebiscuit]

[quote=KW Gary M;766556]

Quote:       Originally Posted by BaserRonin

I have heard the Kel Tec's wear out fairly quickly as well. The price is good, but they, apparently, just do not hold up to what you probably consider moderate use. Fine for the average joe, but I am assuming you shoot more then 200 rounds a year. quote] I have over 1,000 rounds through my Kel-Tec and it is only 3 months old. The first time I took it to the range I put 400 rounds through it without cleaning. Every round cycled fine and shot perfect. I won't shoot more than 200 rounds through it in one day just because it is tough on my hand but the gun holds up fine.

seriously? wow, i mean, wow your a trooper

[KW Gary M]

[quote=stalebiscuit;766567]

Quote:       Originally Posted by KW Gary M

seriously? wow, i mean, wow your a trooper

The 400 round day was educational. I did it, it was fun but I had trouble writing for a week and had cuts all over my hand. The educational part was I learned it was dumb but I also learned the little Kel Tec is tough.

[stalebiscuit]

[quote=KW Gary M;766590]

Quote:       Originally Posted by stalebiscuit

The 400 round day was educational. I did it, it was fun but I had trouble writing for a week and had cuts all over my hand. The educational part was I learned it was dumb but I also learned the little Kel Tec is tough.

haha, ill take your word on it, i dont see myself going out and blasting 400 rounds from a kel-tec in one day

[tappedandtagged]

I wouldn't trade my kel tec in! It's just too easy to conceal. Only had one "big" problem when the ejector broke. Kel Tec mailed me another one in about 4 days. For the price and the size, you can't beat it.

[BaserRonin]

Quote:       Originally Posted by KW Gary M

I have over 1,000 rounds through my Kel-Tec and it is only 3 months old. The first time I took it to the range I put 400 rounds through it without cleaning. Every round cycled fine and shot perfect. I won't shoot more than 200 rounds through it in one day just because it is tough on my hand but the gun holds up fine.

That is good to know. Any visible wear yet? If they maintain that kind of reliability right to the end, you can't lose. I have been intrigued by how crazy thin they are for a while now, but have been told that they have a limited life. Fine for a concealed if they are all that reliable. I recently took a job that requires me to dress up more then I used to. I have found it difficult to conceal with a tucked in button-up and no suit jacket. Been thinking a thin pocket piece is the way to go.

[KW Gary M]

Quote:       Originally Posted by BaserRonin

That is good to know. Any visible wear yet? If they maintain that kind of reliability right to the end, you can't lose. I have been intrigued by how crazy thin they are for a while now, but have been told that they have a limited life. Fine for a concealed if they are all that reliable. I recently took a job that requires me to dress up more then I used to. I have found it difficult to conceal with a tucked in button-up and no suit jacket. Been thinking a thin pocket piece is the way to go.

No signs of wear yet but it's only 3 months old. I have a friend who has a .32 Kel-Tec that she bought before they made the P3AT and then she bought a P3AT when they came out. Her .32 is about 4 years old and has over 5,000 rounds through it and still looks & shoots great.

[Deep13]

Mine is a Beretta 84F, but that might be a little big physically. It is double-stacked and is as wide as a 92FS. It's a nice gun, probably the best shooter of the bunch. Unfortunately there are no laser sights or night sights available for it. And it is a bee-atch to rack the thing. It has a sharper recoil than one would expect from a pistol its size due to the direct blowback cycling.

Of all the single stack .380s, I am most partial to the Walther PPK. It is all steel and very compact. Also, the Sig 232 is very nice.

Having said all that, a compact 9mm is not much bigger, is cheaper to shoot, more comfortable to shoot, easier to clean and it shoots a more powerful cartridge than a .380. It might be out of your price range, but the Sig 239 single-stack 9mm is so much better than a 0.380 except it is not as compact as an itty bitty sized .380.