Pistol Caliber Carbines

[roundgunner]

I shoot handguns very well but it took hundreds of thousands of rounds and many years to get there. A PCC is much easier for most to master and is great for 99.9% of self defense distances.
My wife's in the house defense gun is the Beretta 40 with a dissipating /compensator on it so it is not so loud.
I have a surpressed 9mm for fun but would not grab it for SD only becouse it is too big with a 16" barrel.
I'm in the process of building a short one. It will probably be between 7+10" becouse the 10.5 300 BO seems right for a SBR.
Uncle Sam let me put a lot of ammo thru MP5s and I think they are great if you can dump that kind of money. Nothing wrong with a 9mm. The photos are me at a long range MP5 demo at West Point quite a few years ago.

 

[Old Corp]

I like my PCC's, autos amd levers both. Not a huge subscriber to the 'common cartridge concept' for them and handguns. As a handloader, I usually tailor a specific load for each.
Also, as a hunter in an area that would be described as 'thick brush', have used carbines in .357, .44 Mag. and .45 Colt on deer with no less than excellent results. The old Ruger .44 auto carbine may be one of the best close quarter deer guns ever made.

One of my more 'fun' PCC's is a MechTech upper that takes a M1911 .45 frame. Got it used for next to nothing. Had a spare Chas. Daly M1911 laying around. It fit the MecTech VERY snugly.
Put a red dot optic on it. The MechTech stock was of the old design of flat spring steel and uncomfortable.
Solution? - Bubba to the rescue. I epoxied some automotive heater hose to the top stock frame and covered it in Paracord.

Yes, this contraption is ugly as homemade soap, but will keep most 230 gr .45 ammo in less than palm-sized groups at 100 yards all day. I've worked up a +P load for it with Hornady's 230 gr XTP that I hope to try on deer sometime next Fall.

 

[prescobd]

While on this subject, does anyone have a Chiappa M1-9 carbine that uses Beretta magazines? If so, your opinions? Is it reliable? I'm thinking of purchasing one. Thanks.

 

[tgiv]

The debate over the effectiveness of pistol caliber carbines has gone on for years. Many well known firearms experts think they are a great idea. Others state that if you’re going to use a long gun, use one in rifle caliber and stop messing around.

I understand both sides of the argument. I don’t think either answer is right for everyone.

I own a Ruger PCC in 9MM. It has the Glock magazine adapter installed. I have a large quantity of Glock magazines so for me it makes sense. I even have a 100 round drum for it.

It’s reliable, accurate, and a lot of fun to shoot. And 9MM is less expensive to shoot. And at close range, I wouldn’t want to get shot with it.

I also own a Rock River Arms AR. The two stage match trigger is great. But I don’t shoot it near as much. Essentially if I’m shooting indoors.

What’s your take?

Love the idea of same caliber for rifle & handgun, even IF the loads might differ.

Love the 100rnd drum but in 45acp aka Tommy only

Carbine = looonger barrel so the ONLY caliber that benefits is 357mag ... so much so it give more smack down power than 223/556 at similar barrel lengths. That said, the 223/556 bullet itself has some superior powers over the 357mags of today but maybe in a new era? Now there's the level action disadvantages to 357mag (except for some pistols) .... so was born too soon, me thinks all this resolved for 357mag with a new generation that again appreciates what old time law enforcement did and not so much emphasis on a) costs of ammo, b) recoil ouch, c) many shots vs one/two good big grain shots

Until that era, hanging onto 357s but only investing in 45s ACP/GAP

 

[duncan4521]

Beretta CX4 here paired with a Beretta 92 Centurion. SHTF under 75yd self-defense combo.
Red dot, sling, weapons light under the barrel that I can work with my left thumb. Beretta and Mec-gar both make 20/30 rd 9mm mags
OAL 29" weight IIRC 5.25lbs for the gun alone
2 spare 20rd mags on the butt gives me 70rds "grab and go" capibility.

Firm believer in the "double/triple tap".
Can get fast fist size groups at 50 yds!

Excellent, I am and always will be a fan of the subgun. I love the MP5. More maneuverable, less noise and very easy to make 25 yard head shots. Within the range of most armed encounters, it is good to go and probably better than a 5.56 in many applications!

 

[Squib_Load]

The debate over the effectiveness of pistol caliber carbines ...

My take is that they have ALWAYS been effective. They didn't become ineffective because others poo poo them as underpowered and choose a black rifle.

A 22 LR in the chest, belly, leg or arm can kill you. Uncontrolled bleeding is uncontrolled bleeding no matter what muzzle energy and bullet does the damage.

 

[marvin02]

I've got an M&P FPC, a Ruger PC Carbine and a Kel-tec sub 2k gen 2. I like them all, but my favorite is the FPC.

 

[Squib_Load]

...

Carbine = looonger barrel so the ONLY caliber that benefits is 357mag ...

Same with my handloaded 45 Colt revolvers and lever action. Beats the energy of a 357 Mag HUGELY.

 

[Imissedagain]

Starline brass, 45 Colt, in a Winchester '92, shock and awe?

 

[Mike LaNier]

I've always been a fan of pistol-caliber carbines, a perspective I got from my grandfather, an old Montana cowboy who had a Colt SAA .44-40, and a Winchester 92 in the same caliber; they rode with him always, either horseback or in his old Studebaker pickup! Sadly for my budget, that perspective became an obsession; I started out with a Ruger SA/Rossi lever gun combo in .44 Mag, and then the same in .45 Colt and .357 Mag, with a Ruger/Henry combo in .22 Mag. A Marlin Camp Carbine in .45 ACP and one in 9mm team up with a 1911 Colt and a Browning Hi-Power respectively, and then a Ruger 22/45 to go with a 10-22. I'm on the lookout for a .44-40 carbine to go with a Ruger SA, and the same for a .327/.32 H&R Mag carbine to match another Ruger SA. Does it ever stop? Maybe I need help.... ML

 

[DarryH]

Speaking only for myself, I've never felt any need for a pistol caliber carbine. If I can't do it with my handgun, it aint getin done! I DO like them for shooting fun. I currently don't own any semi-auto versions, but some may accuse me of having too many in lever-gun form! Still, only for cowboy action shooting and plinking.

 

[BAM-BAM]

Ballistics by the Inch: 9mm from a 16 inch barrel ; muzzle velocity of 1100-1379-1740 FPS ; with muzzle energy of 380-450- 620 Ft-lb

 

[LouisianaJoe]

Got lucky and found a Ruger LC carbine in 10 mm to go with my Dan Wesson Razorback. The trigger is the worst I and all the guys at the range and a gunsmith ever pulled.

I also have a 10mm LCC and the trigger was a little over 7 lbs. I ordered a spring kit from www.mcarbo.com and installed it. Trigger is now just over 3 lbs. I also put a Monstrum 4X prism scope on it. Saturday, I was hitting 1 ft round plates with it at 100 yds. They dance when hit. I like it better now.

 

[carrdon]

Interesting issue. I want a carbine/short rifle in the 7.5 BRNO. There isn't one made by anyone, the brace for the handgun is too expensive and requires an ATF license. I have thought of finding a busted up carbine of sorts and re-barrelling it. Probably not worth the money to do it.

 

[mscampbell2734]

I have a 9mm AR that I use as both a home defense gun and a training tool. 90% of my shooting/training is 50 yds or less, so I can use 9mm instead of full power 5.56. Plus 9mm can be shot on steel as close as 10 yards, don't try that under 50 with 5.56, even with frangible ammo.

Also PCC is all the rage in competition cirlces.

Finally I'm planning on getting a FPC as soon as I escape the People's Republic of Kalifornia, largely because my carry guns are Smith MP 9s, so the FPC is a natural truck gun for me.

 

[greenwellg]

My carbine is an 1894 Marlin, stainless, in 44 MAG. It's under the bed with 10 rounds in the magazine and a 20 inch barrel. I was surprised at the recoil, but when you have 2000 FPS and a ton of muzzle energy I understand it's lethality.
I have the gifted Model 36 Chiefs special in the house and my most recent purchase 659, with two 16 round mags, in case things get really crazy. I live in a condo with neighbors on each side with concrete fire walls (code) in between so any home invasion is very improbable, with the whole community being on a cul de sac. In the 3 years we have lived here I have not heard of a single break in a community of hundreds.

 

[RebCop]

The current PCC's serve the same function as the M-1 Carbine in that they are gunfighter tools. They are easier to shoot accurately and hit harder than their pistol cousins. For under 100 yards they are definitely useful.

 

[The Kid]

I am generally of the opinion that a PCC cannot do anything better than a carbine in 5.56. I have carried a 5.56 carbine as a truck gun for a long time now and killed an ark load of varmints, assorted pests, and game animals up to elk, as well as sick cattle with very good performance. It’s quiet with a silencer and recoil is low enough that getting multiple pigs out of a group is very common. With 75-77 grain bullets it kills like people who haven’t tried it cannot believe. Plus it uses probably the most commonly available and inexpensive magazines on this continent and offers a much flatter trajectory than any common pistol cartridge.

I have owned multiple 44 magnum carbines as well as a 30 carbine and they pale in comparison for versatility.

With all that said I have an unexplainable and unending desire for one of the original Ruger PC carbines from the 1990’s. I can’t put my finger on why, and they have the added disadvantage of limited magazine capacity as well as availability. May be the enduring influence of G&A mags from my childhood, but I sure would like to have one to fool with and shoot steel plates out at the ranch.

 

[SW41MAG]

I got into shooting pistol caliber carbines since my eye doc (an avid shooter) advised me to lower my recoil due to retina issues. Sold off those rifles and replaced them with pistol calibers. So I have a Ruger PC in 9mm, Ruger LC in 5.7, Hi -Point in 45ACP, and a GForce lever action in .357 Mag. For a long time I've had a Marlin 1892 in 44 Mag. I like having matching calibers to my handguns so when I so when I take one to the range I also take a matching handgun ( except for the 5.7).

 

[Harv 24]

I Play with .22lr, When play time is over, it's 5.56mm.

I want a rifle, when it's time to do rifle stuff!