380 what is the draw

[HOUSTON RICK]

I have no 380 guns, but I have fired a few. This hobby is about everyone getting what they want and to each their own. This is largely emotional. If you like it, you like it, and should buy it. I get it. I am not criticizing anyone's choices. However, what I do not understand is a "logical" reason for a 380 gun. It is not as strong as 9mm, but generally cost more, and comes in about the same platforms. There are enough types of 9mm to satisfy almost any preference. 22 lr is also cheaper and I understand (perhaps incorrectly) performs nearly as well in a higher variety of platforms again generally at a lower price. Maybe it fills a niche between 9mm and 22lr? It seems that I just do not get it. Thank you for your civil education of this old 22lr/9mm/45ACP/357Mag guy.

 

[SC_Mike]

While I'm not a huge fan of the .380 it certainly beats a sharp stick and harsh language.

I wanted a pocket carry 9mm a while back. I couldn't find one I liked that fit the bill so I went with a Glock 42. I bought a nice pocket holster that covers the trigger and I've been happy. Recently bought an IWB holster just to see how it feels but if I'm going to carry on my waistline why not just take the G19...

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

As a SD round, it is about as small as you can have confidence in. If and when you put 9mm into those platforms, 9mm gets a little hard to hold onto, hit with, or rack the slide. That is the broad appeal of 380. If you have no problem with 9mm, 40, or 45 in a small platform, you don't have to worry about it.

Ivan

 

[sigp220.45]

The appeal to me is the guns the .380 is made for. I’m sure I can find 9mm guns smaller than my Colt Pocket Hammerless, but so what? I don’t feel the need to have the absolute most power available in a particular sized gun. Same with my Beretta Model 85. I like it, I like to shoot it, and I like to carry it.

The only “size appropriate” .380 I have is an LCP. I hate to shoot it and I rarely carry it.

 

[7tenz]

You bring up some good points, particularly cost of ammo.. I pay more for 44 spl than 44 mag, 32acp for my Seecamp costs more than 10mm etc.

Seecamp has proven that the 380 can be downsized incredibly small too. I'd like to see them make a 9mm that small.

 

[keith44spl]

I don't know what the draw is..........

I own one....Don't carry it any.

The 9mm Kurz (short)....I don't have a lot of confidence in it.

But, they're cute lit'l buggers...

.

 

[Farmer17]

There is no small 9 mm that is as small as a Ruger LCP, Taurus TCP or Keltec 380. Some guys can pocket carry a 44 magnum but I wear regular fit cowboy cut bluejeans so my Ruger LCP is the biggest Gun that will fit comfortably in the pocket.

 

[Absalom]

The .380 made its reputation historically as the largest pistol round that could still be comfortably chambered in a simple non-delayed blowback action. That resulted in a lot of legendary models being chambered in it, FN, Colt, Walther, etc.

Once a caliber is established like that, it doesn’t just go away

And successfully shrinking full-size 9mm and other large calibers down to the size range where traditionally .32/.380 guns ruled is a fairly recent thing.

 

[Kanewpadle]

People are drawn to the 380 not because of the ballistics but because of the availability of true pocket guns.

Some people will buy a gun in a caliber suitable to them and dress around it. Some won’t.

 

[CH4]

People are drawn to the 380 not because of the ballistics but because of the availability of true pocket guns.

Some people will buy a gun in a caliber suitable to them and dress around it. Some won’t.

^^^^^^^^^^^
This

 

[paplinker]

People are drawn to the 380 not because of the ballistics but because of the availability of true pocket guns.

Some people will buy a gun in a caliber suitable to them and dress around it. Some won’t.

I know someone who prefers and normally carries a larger caliber but carries a 380 just for jogging. The light weight and concealment factors were part of his choice.

 

[bigwheelzip]

When I first got into this hobby, I couldn't operate the slide on semi-autos, and stuck with revolvers. The .380 SIG P-238 was the only semi I saw that was operable by me at that time.

 

[mooosie]

I live in Florida, 90 percent of the time I’m wearing Columbia shorts and a tee shirt. No 9 mm available is as small as an lcp or keltec p3 at. In a pocket holster you cannot see it in my front pocket. It is loaded with cor bon hardball ammo. I have never had anyone say , oh you have a 380, well go ahead and shoot me! No one wants to leak! I hate to break it to you guys but 9’s , 40 S&W, or even a 45 acp is not going to knock some one down. If you don’t hit the head or spine you will probably still have a fight on your hands. If you hit the head or spine a 22 will do the job. Shot placement is what does the trick.In a stressful situation very few people shoot like Annie Oakley[emoji2]that is why we are taught to shoot until the threat has ended.A 380 in your pocket is better than a cannon sitting at home[emoji2]

 

[Watchdog]

I've had two Glock 42s. Sold them both, not because I didn't like 'em, but because I wanted the money for something else.

I know a guy calls the .380 the ".38 Short".

I liked the Glocks...they're simple pistols to shoot and simple to disassemble and reassemble (like all Glocks). Recoil is pretty much negligible. I've seen "reduced recoil" .380 ammo for sale and I'm like...what??

May buy another one sometime, but it's really one of those take-it-or-leave-it pistols for me.

 

[federali]

The Best Defense

I feel the .380 ACP is adequate for its intended purpose of one-on-one self defense. No one is going to absorb a .380 and laugh at you.

Where the distinction really exists between .380 and some 9mms is the former's lack of offensive capability. I feel that should I find myself in a situation of a sudden convenience store robbery, I would want reach and firepower and the 9mm platform in its many forms, such as the Glock 17/19/34 or the SIG 226/228 or Beretta M9 is far better suited should you have no choice but to engage.

For this reason, I don't think the .380 ACP is the correct cartridge for an off duty police officer or the store owner. Once again, the power is marginal but sufficient but the platform lacks the ability to seriously carry the fight to the adversaries and put them on the defensive.

 

[Fishinfool]

Not huge fan of the .380 cartridge per say, but almost always have an LCP in my pocket because no one makes a 9mm as small. For comfortable pocket carry, I want small. Yea, I can stuff my Sig P-365, or bigger, in my pocket, but not comfortably. I usually have something bigger on my hip as well when out in public, but the LCP is still in my pocket. Carrying a second gun is an old cop habit, I guess.

My big issue with the .22 as a SD cartridge in a semi-auto is the reliability (or lack of) in rimfire priming. Even the good stuff is not as reliable as a centerfire round, and the last thing I want to be doing in a SD situation is the old tap, rack, and bang routine, right out of the gate.

Larry

 

[Rustyt1953]

I have been comfortably pocket carrying an LCP for over 6 years. I have complete confidence in the round and the pistol. It checks all my boxes.

 

[LVSteve]

380 in a locked breech gun is way easier to rack than a similar sized 9mm and generates far less recoil. This is a factor for many. See the AR test of the 9 EZ this month where they compare it to the 380 EZ.

 

[ladder13]

I don’t have the time, nor inclination to put on a gun belt and full size gun. Lifestyle precludes that. Pretty simple.

 

[df06]

I don’t own a 380, but several friends carry them. It’s the size of the gun.