The advent of the growing number of newer, smaller .380's has brought some attention back to this diminutive cartridge.
Up until the time I bought the previous version of the LCP (before the change in sights & "trigger"), the only .380 I'd owned and used for off-duty was a chunky Beretta M84, and that was over 25 years ago.
As the demonstrated reliability of the .380's has seemed to improve with some of the newer little .380's, and the ammunition has benefited from some attention by the major American ammo companies, I started paying more attention to the little BG380's & LCP's coming through the qual ranges.
Then, a longtime friend & firearms instructor ('Nam vet & state peace officer who typically always carried a pair of handguns around with him) sheepishly told me he'd bought a LCP.
Told me he'd been shooting the daylights out of it for several months, and that a lot of his peers have been buying & using the LCP's.
He let me borrow it and I was impressed by how much easier it was to pocket carry than my several J-frames. I went down to the local cop shop and bought one.
I was more than a little surprised by how inherently accurate and reliable the little LCP was with some different JHP loads. Yes, the sights were about as hard to quickly see and use as the older narrow J-frame irons, but being a long time J-frame shooter I was able to use them to get pretty quick and accurate hits running the LCP through our qual course-of-fire and some fast-paced drills. (I later added some bright neon yellow nail polish to the front post and center of the rear notch, making it much easier to pick them up for sighted fire.)
The little .380 is still a viable defensive cartridge
within reason. I don't try to make it into something it's not, and I feel the heavier bullets available in the .38 S&W Spl do offer some advantages to be carefully considered within situational context.
I went to a couple of outside training classes last year, one for the field LEOKA class (LE killed & assaulted) and another for street tactics & ofc safety. Both were lecture venues and discussed a lot of shooting situations. The importance of how little .38's & .380's had been successfully used, repeatedly, by on & off-duty cops to save themselves was interesting. Impressive, even.
Now, I know a couple of instructors with very large hands who simply can't handle and shoot the littlest .380's well. Not a good match for them.
I've watched other guys have a hard time trying to shoot the little guns as accurately, let alone as quickly, as their full-size duty weapons. (Like a lot of younger cops who didn't learn their handgun skills on DA revolvers can often have a hard time learning to shoot a 5-shot snub accurately and effectively.) The little guns require more work on the part of the shooter, and they may not work for everyone.
Now, I tend to carry my LCP when my risk assessment of my planned activities, and areas of those activities, don't make me feel I should reach for one of my larger pistols or revolvers. When it's still possible and appropriate to be armed, and my clothing choices permit it, but I don't feel it's likely to be necessary. No, I don't have a crystal ball, but after more than 30 years of having carried with a badge & ID card, I've acquired a little experience in considering potential risks I might face.
Other times I'll usually grab one of my several J-frames, or even one of my larger 9's, .40's or .45's. Just depends.
I've even carried the LCP as a secondary retirement weapon when away from home under some conditions (traveling, long rides on the motorcycle through backroads, etc). Only because it's so small, light and convenient.
FWIW, I didn't pick the S&W Bodyguard .380 because it was just enough larger than the LCP for me to notice, and I didn't particularly want the added integral laser.
I know the whole "comforting, not comfortable" saying, and I used to carry off-duty weapons including issued 4" K & L-frames, Security/Service/Speed-Sixes, N-frames, a Redhawk and a variety of newer full-size, compact & subcompact pistols throughout my career. I even carried the large revolvers IWB.
I know it can be done, and I've done it enough years. I just don't particularly feel like doing it anymore. The smallest guns are the handiest and more practical for my retirement needs ... although I'll still pull one of my OWB belt holsters, paddles, etc from time to time.
Situational context and some prudent risk assessment.
I also practice shooting the smaller guns a fair amount, since I'm still keeping my hands in things as a firearms instructor & armorer. The little LCP doesn't see much distance practice out beyond 20-25 yds, with the bulk of it at 3-11+ yds, but the J's see practice out to 40-50 yds (long time revolver shooter, and someone who enjoys testing the "basis" at demanding distances
).
Shooting is a perishable skill.
The little guns can be harder for many folks to shoot than larger guns. Practice.
I think Ruger and S&W have a couple of winners on their hands with the LCP & BG380. Handy little examples of the newer generation of .380's.
Oh yeah, of the 3 JHP's I successfully used for function-testing with my LCP (Rem BJHP, Win T-Series & Speer GDHP), for the time being I have the best access to the Win & Speer loads, so those are what I usually carry. I mix in the Win FMJFP practice loads, but still use the JHP's for practice.
