Pocket Glock - To continue our discussion of the benefits of the .380 ACP for concealed carry, in this installment of our pocket pistol series, I compare six popular micro .380 pistols. For more details on the video below or to read the full article, scroll down.
I believe there are no fewer than 16 different models of .380 AKK holsters currently in production. And that doesn't even include all the different colors and configurations and other variations of each model. Almost every major gun manufacturer has at least one pocket .380. And the simple reason these guns sell. They're foolproof, easy to carry, cheap, and have become one of the most popular concealed carry guns of the past decade.
Pocket Glock
I've spent a lot of time with the 380 pocket rifles over the past two weeks, and today we're going to look at how some of these models compare to each other. I couldn't spend time on every .380 on the market, so this is limited to six of the most popular models. If you're considering a .380, even if it's not what I'm talking about, this should at least give you an idea of the different types of models and what to look for.
Pocket Rocket: For Its Size, The Mini Glock 42 Packs A Real Punch
I've limited this review to truly pocket-sized micro pistols. The Glock 42 is the largest pistol on the list, and it pushes the boundaries of the size category in its own way. So today I don't consider older heavy handguns like the Smith & Wesson Shield EZ or the Walter PPK/S. That's not to say there's anything wrong with these guns, they're just outside of our focus on modern pocket guns.
The models I'm looking at today are the Glock 42, Sig Sauer P238, Kahr CW380, Smith & Wesson Bodyguard 380, and we have two since almost half of all .380s made in the US come from Ruger. Their micro guns: LCP Custom and LCP II.
Before we get into the details here, I want to offer one major caveat about .380 pocket pistols in general: they are all rare. Understand that when I say one of these is great, I only mean it compared to other pocket pistols. I say this mainly because of all the modern firearms we have chosen, micro-sized semi-automatic weapons are the least likely to perform when they are most needed. Semi-automatic pistols can generally be extremely reliable, but when they get smaller, they are more likely to malfunction, especially in real combat situations.
If you have to take your gun out of your pocket and it's uncomfortable, or if you shoot the gun while pulling your hand back to prevent someone from grabbing it, these are things that encourage mishaps. Most of these pocket guns seem to suffer from mechanical issues – quality control issues are more common than their full size and compact counterparts. So if you're going to carry a pocket size .380, make sure you inspect it carefully, keep it clean and well lubricated, and familiarize yourself with the wrong drills.
Talon Glock 43 Cargo Pocket Holster
Glock was a relative latecomer to the .380 scene. The 42 was released in 2014, and many people were skeptical at first because it was so small that it usually outperformed most of its competitors in the most expensive product category. But that's what makes this gun, in my opinion, the best overall .380 you can buy. It's a pocket pistol that fires like a full pistol. It's not a bad rifle for beginners to learn, and if you're already shooting at a high level, the 42 is effortless. It takes a lot less brainpower to make one of these pistols work well than smaller .380s or Micro 9mm pistols like the Glock 43.
A lot of people find the G42 too big to carry in a pocket, but I think it works well in a Vanguard like this Raven concealment. You can carry it on your waist, but it is much smaller than a normal case. I reviewed this Glock 42 for our blog in 2014 and have since added a set of Trijicon HD night sights. With low recoil and a large orange front sight, it's like a pocket pistol in easy mode.
I have a few thousand rounds through this gun and have never had a malfunction, but I have seen it choke several times when I let inexperienced shooters try it. It seems too sensitive for anything less than a textbook. So the Glock 42 has a lot going for it, but it still suffers from the same problems common to all pocket-sized pistol designs.
Sig Sauer released the P238 in 2009 as a clone of the discontinued Colt Mustang in the 1990s. It is a 1911 style design with only one action and a manual safety. This only has a left-handed safety, but Sig also offers ambidextrous versions. There are few other 1911-style .380s on the market. Years are similar to this. Colt brought out the Mustang a few years ago, and Kimber and Springfield Firearms also have entries in this category.
Boraii Eagle Pocket Holster For Glock 43x
The P238 is slightly smaller than the Glock 42, but at 17.2 ounces loaded it's the heaviest pistol on our list. Like the Glock, the P238 is incredibly easy to shoot well with low velocities, a short and light trigger, and great night sights. The slide is easier to maintain than most smaller .380s, which may appeal to shooters with below-average grip strength. But for several reasons, it's not a gun I'd rush to recommend for concealed carry.
For inexperienced shooters, hand-held safeties are generally problematic simply because people forget to use them. They don't have the safety when they carry their gun, or they forget to raise it when they want to shoot. Both of these mistakes can be fatal, so if you want to handle the gun safely, you'll need a lot of practice in turning the sights off when on target and reactivating them when off target. It happens unconsciously. Also, the P238 safety lever itself is not a perfect design. It makes it difficult to control with your thumb joint or pad unless you break the shooting arm.
In addition to safety, the P238 appears to have some serious reliability issues. But unlike the Glock 42, these are mostly not user-generated problems. This P238 in particular has worked well for us, but I owned one a few years ago who couldn't get through a full box of .380 ammo without two or three feed failures. After speaking with other P238 owners and shooting instructors who have seen many of these rifles enter their classrooms, reliability issues are common even in the pocket pistol ranks. You may or may not find one that works.
Kahr entered the .380 market in 2010 with the P380. Three years later, they added a more affordable entry-level version called the CW380, which we tested. Functionally, they are basically the same gun, except that the CW380 is equipped with smaller sights and only one magazine.
Glock G42 .380 Acp, 3.25\
Like all Kahr pistols, they are trigger-fired designs with a simple double-action trigger. It's not the absolute smallest or lightest .380 on the market, but it's not far off. Much smaller than a Sig or Glock.
Of the six guns I tested, this was the only one that impressed me the most. I've owned three different 9mm Kahr pistols at different times over the years, and I've never warmed any of them up, and I've never shot them well. We used the Kahr CW45 for some ballistic gelatin tests, and it has to be one of the most miserable and unreliable rifles I've ever seen. So I had low expectations for the CW380, but it turned out to be a great shooter. Recoil is surprisingly easy for a gun of its size. It's not as easy a shooting experience as a Sig or Glock, but it doesn't have the fantastic quality you often get with a small pocket 380. I'm kind.
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