Best .380

[stinger 327]

Did someone say PK380???


View attachment 482705


I got one last month and I must say if you want a .380 that's good sized, has a great grip with excellent ergonomics, and is an absolute dream to shoot then the PK380 is the way to go.

A bit big for CCW but it is very thin. Everyone who has held it is just amazed at how great it feels in their hand, and recoil is almost non-existent.

Still too early to judge on reliability, although so far after 200 rounds it's been flawless, or durability, but as far as ergonomics and shootability go it's excellent.

I haven't seen this gun in real life but here in the pic it looks large. I would rather have a .45 ACP instead if that's the case.

 

[stinger 327]

Put down another vote for the sig P238. The size is right, the nite sites are right, the trigger is right, and the recoil is easier to deal with than a ppk or a bersa thunder, IME.

Add real controls and an external slide lock/last round lock back to several hundred flawless rounds of my current carry load choice and I'm done shopping.

JMO.

What's the cost on this?

 

[Coltdude84]

SIG 238 Price..

Stinger327 the average price I have been seeing on the new SIG 238's are anywhere from 450-600 to some it may seem a bit much for a 380 but IMO you get your moneys worth, I have been thinking about picking one up myself..

 

[stinger 327]

Stinger327 the average price I have been seeing on the new SIG 238's are anywhere from 450-600 to some it may seem a bit much for a 380 but IMO you get your moneys worth, I have been thinking about picking one up myself..

Nonetheless it's made in Gemany and I'll have to check it out.

 

[Weevil]

I haven't seen this gun in real life but here in the pic it looks large. I would rather have a .45 ACP instead if that's the case.

Well I'll guarantee you that a .45 that size won't be anywhere near as easy to shoot and control and the felt-recoil will be a lot more "existent"!



There is something to be said for control and shootability.

A hand cannon for blasting away at point-blank range is fine and dandy but if you want to take aimmed shots and have a chance at accurate follow-ups they just don't cut it.

Plus I like to shoot any weapon I carry, a lot!

Big honking calibers in wee tiny little pistols are brutal to shoot and not conducive to lots of range time and plinking.



Different strokes for different folks, we all have our priorities.

 

[stinger 327]

Well I'll guarantee you that a .45 that size won't be anywhere near as easy to shoot and control and the felt-recoil will be a lot more "existent"!



There is something to be said for control and shootability.

A hand cannon for blasting away at point-blank range is fine and dandy but if you want to take aimmed shots and have a chance at accurate follow-ups they just don't cut it.

Plus I like to shoot any weapon I carry, a lot!

Big honking calibers in wee tiny little pistols are brutal to shoot and not conducive to lots of range time and plinking.



Different strokes for different folks, we all have our priorities.

So true I'm used to shooting Glock 21 and that's certainly not a small pistol. Something like an officers moldel 1911 or one of those compact .45 ACP I would be interested to shoot or whatever is the smallest .45 pistol.

 

[philip964]

I have now put 100 rounds through my new Sig P238. I couldn't be more pleased.

100 rounds doesn't sound like much until you try to find 380 ammunition. I recently was able to buy 500 rounds so I have started shooting it more.

I have not fired any other 380's so I can only tell you about the P238. It is very small and can easily fit in your pocket. The fit and finish is 1st clas, as it is an expensive little pistol. I enjoy target shooting with it at 15 yards. It is fun to shoot. The single action trigger is very light and it has very little recoil due to its weight and the small size of the round.

I have not had a malfunction (yet) and it shoots the entire magazine.

I thought that with only getting two fingers on the grip it would be hard to control. It is not.

The single action trigger is what sold me over the other 380's I looked at. So far I am not disappointed.

 

[3845]

I've gone through a dozen .380s over the years. Currently my only one is an LCP, mainly bought for size/weight. That said, my favorite pistols in that caliber were a Beretta 85 and a Sig 230 stainless. (I had a 230 lightweight, too, but didn't care for it as much.) The Beretta was as reliable as any firearm I've owned. The Sig carried beautifully. Excuse me, I think I'm going to cry.

 

[stinger 327]

I've gone through a dozen .380s over the years. Currently my only one is an LCP, mainly bought for size/weight. That said, my favorite pistols in that caliber were a Beretta 85 and a Sig 230 stainless. (I had a 230 lightweight, too, but didn't care for it as much.) The Beretta was as reliable as any firearm I've owned. The Sig carried beautifully. Excuse me, I think I'm going to cry.

I have always been a fan of Beretta products. Great little mouse guns with tip up barrels and a quality made product.

 

[Weevil]

I've gone through a dozen .380s over the years. Currently my only one is an LCP, mainly bought for size/weight. That said, my favorite pistols in that caliber were a Beretta 85 and a Sig 230 stainless. (I had a 230 lightweight, too, but didn't care for it as much.) The Beretta was as reliable as any firearm I've owned. The Sig carried beautifully. Excuse me, I think I'm going to cry.

One of my former CCWs was a Browning BDA.





They were made by Beretta and are very similiar to the 84/85.

Yeah a lot of people will gripe that it's too big for a .380 and I might as well have a 9mm or a .45 or some other "man's" cartridge, but that BDA was one of the sweetest shooting pistol I ever owned and with 13 rounds I never felt undergunned.

I still kick myself in the butt for selling it but like a fool I fell for idea that I needed a bigger caliber.


Now I'm a little older and wiser and realize it's shot-placement that counts and the biggest baddest caliber with the hottest nuclear loads you can find won't do a damn bit of good if you can't hit what you're aiming at.

 

[stinger 327]

One of my former CCWs was a Browning BDA.


View attachment 482984


They were made by Beretta and are very similiar to the 84/85.

Yeah a lot of people will gripe that it's too big for a .380 and I might as well have a 9mm or a .45 or some other "man's" cartridge, but that BDA was one of the sweetest shooting pistol I ever owned and with 13 rounds I never felt undergunned.

I still kick myself in the butt for selling it but like a fool I fell for idea that I needed a bigger caliber.


Now I'm a little older and wiser and realize it's shot-placement that counts and the biggest baddest caliber with the hottest nuclear loads you can find won't do a damn bit of good if you can't hit what you're aiming at.

looks like a classic like the Browning Hi-Power 9mm.

 

[BushyGuy]

Ruger LCP and Walther 380

 

[heeler]

Having never fired a LCP I am somewhat dismayed to hear from others how uncomfortable it is to shoot.
My Diamondback 380 is a pleasure to shoot and most times at the range I go through at least 100 rounds with absolutely no discomfort at all.
And I am not even a big guy.
Just to know this past Saturday I put my Diamondback on a digital scale and it had six rounds in the magazine and the total weight was exactly 12.3 ounces.
Then I slipped it back into it's leather RKBA pocket holster and the weight then measured 13.9 ounces total.
You hardly even know it's there in your pocket.
Which in Texas concealed means concealed so I really appreaciate these little guns.
Love them or hate them but these small .380's most definitely have their place.
Thin and light and handy in the event of real trouble.
No it's not a 40 caliber or a 45 but on the other hand it's not a pants dragging boat anchor either.
Again they have their place.

 

[Harvey]

Ruger LCP and Walther 380

It is questionable how anyone could compare the LCP to the fine fit and finish of the venerable Walther PPK/S, and it is almost laughable to compare the worldly substance of the Colt Mustang to the plastic and pot metal of the Diamondback.

How can any reasonable person exclude a fair consideration of quality materials and workmanship when deeming any one little pocket pistol as the 'best' 380?

Have we lost all standards in favor of today's black gun mystique?

 

[Haifisch]

Bersa?
Where are these made?

Argentina.

 

[GZOh]

Have a BROWNING BDA for sale in the Classifieds... great gun, 'mint' condition.

 

[stinger 327]

Argentina.

Is Bersa considered among the lines of Sterling, Raven and Davis?

 

[docsleepy]

Wow, I'm just amazed that the Taurus TCP isn't mentioned here at all!

 

[Weevil]

Is Bersa considered among the lines of Sterling, Raven and Davis?

No, they're generally considered to be a fairly decent quality pistol made of good quality materials and not one of the pot-metal Saturday Night Specials.

Another .380 that's a bit on the big side, basically a Walther PPK clone, but they're considered a good quality gun for the money. Although the price has gone up considerably. When they first started showing up a few years back they were around $200 now they're over $300.

I know two guys who own them, neither one shoots a whole lot but neither one has ever complained about them or had trouble with them at the range.

 

[Tacbandit]

Quote:
"so as to jump and get their share of the hot micro-market."

As far as getting their share of the micro-market...yep...Ruger did...and took away from
some of the others, as well. They're still selling like hotcakes... I took the plunge...I got
the engraved model... They're bound to be more accurate, right...? lol Now, if the ammo would just catch up to the numbers of new .380's being manufactured and sold...

 

[stinger 327]

What are the going prices of the Desert Mirco Mini? Does it cost more than a Ruger SP-100 .357 snubbie?

 

[Grey Morel]

IMO, the Sig 232 is the best 380 yet made.

Sure its a little bigger than the average pocket pistol, but the darn thing is STILL smaller than a Glock19, and it doesn't have the recoil of the polymer pocket guns.

Its an easily concealable size, and holds a few more rounds than the competition. Its also got FAR better sights and actually fits in a grown mans hand.

 

[stinger 327]

No, they're generally considered to be a fairly decent quality pistol made of good quality materials and not one of the pot-metal Saturday Night Specials.

Another .380 that's a bit on the big side, basically a Walther PPK clone, but they're considered a good quality gun for the money. Although the price has gone up considerably. When they first started showing up a few years back they were around $200 now they're over $300.

I know two guys who own them, neither one shoots a whole lot but neither one has ever complained about them or had trouble with them at the range.

I did shoot a .380 Walter PPK and hated it. It hurt everytime I shot it.

 

[stinger 327]

Quote:
"so as to jump and get their share of the hot micro-market."

As far as getting their share of the micro-market...yep...Ruger did...and took away from
some of the others, as well. They're still selling like hotcakes... I took the plunge...I got
the engraved model... They're bound to be more accurate, right...? lol Now, if the ammo would just catch up to the numbers of new .380's being manufactured and sold...

Yes there aren't many choices in .380 caliber as far as availability of different varieties of ammo and they are expensive.

 

[gordy]

Best 380 for me means the one I will have in my pocket when I need it.
For me that one is a p3a3, Love it. have shot the ruger, not to much in difference but the ruger is more money, Got my kel-tec and a trigger shoe and a extra mag for 200 bucks, factory box and small zippered bag in with the hole thing. Reload hornady 90 grain xtp hp fun gun.