First CCW Gun -- TCP, Bodyguard 380, P938 or LCR 357?

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PorkChopsMmm

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I am looking to get a CCW specific pistol for daily carry in business casual clothing, which with my body frame and many attempts to IWB carry, is limited to pocket carry. I shot an LCP and it's recoil and my inaccuracy with it and my lack of interest in the S&W Shield after shooting it has me looking to other options. Any recommendations for a carry piece or thoughts on the guns below?

Taurus TCP: Yes, it is a Taurus, but it seems to get excellent reviews. Only 380, but small, light, and is around the $200 price point which is attractive. Has slide lock back, which is nice.

S&W Bodyguard 380: On paper sounds awesome -- laser, almost same weight as LCP and supposed to fill your hand better, has real sights, has a safety if I want to use it, etc. But I keep hearing of bad reliability and frequent warranty work that needs to occur to get them to run properly.

SIG P238/938: This sounds like the Rolex of CCW pieces. A joy to shoot, SA if that is your thing, light weight, shoots like a larger pistol (from what I have read) and a quality piece that you will hand down to your kids. Crazy expensive and I don't like if I am a Rolex kind of guy. 9MM if you go 938.

LCR 357: I'm not sure if this is suitable for pocket carry. Opinions? Seems like it is the best of the 357 snubbies and is light, but only 5 shots seems limited (but that is an argument for another day). I have a 6" 357 revolver and a 357 levergun, so the ammo sharing is attractive.

I have about $600 to spend but I am hoping to spend less so I can spend the rest of my budget on a simple reloading set up. If I got with the P938 I won't have money left over but maybe it is worth it?

Any advice, feedback, etc? Thanks!
 
I am the gunsmith for a local indoor range so I have worked on all of those gun in the past year. Here is what I think of each:

TCP: It works fine for the price. Recoil is stout.

Bodyguard 380: The trigger is terrible and is usually the first request to change from customers. I have sent two back for repairs. Very stout recoil.

Sig P238/938: These are top end guns with top end performance. The price reflects it. Softest recoil of the group (P238).

LCR 357: They work great but are a bit pricey. The .357 loads are almost unbearable to shoot and will be the most painful of the group.

Here are some other guns to consider:

S&W 642: Reliable, economical and is chambered for .38 special +P. Great pocket gun.

Glock 42: Very soft recoil and comes in at half the cost of the Sig P238.
 
I like the TCP for a pocket .380, fits great in my hand and is 100% reliable. My only complaint is that it is ugly. The Sig p238 and 938's are beautiful, accurate guns, I just prefer a DA for carry. The LCR in .38+p is less expensive and easier to shoot than the .357 version. I enjoy shooting .44 Magnums, and .454 Casull, but five shots from a .357 LCR was enough for me.
 
Thanks for the input. I think the BG380 is off my radar. I don't own many handguns and I am leaning towards the P938 because, from what I read, it is a nice shooter and is actually pleasant to plink with. That sounds appealing vs. fighting the TCP whenever I want to train with it. Where I live is rural so I have to travel to even hold these. Hopefully I can make the decision in the next few weeks.
 
Sig p238/938 if your comfortable with cocked and locked pocket carry. Some people aren't. S&w 642 or ruger 38lcr are good choices. You don't want 357 from a lightweight snub.
 
I was about to say the same thing, the SIG pistols are meant to be carried like a 1911, Cocked & Locked. I have no problem with that but many do!

I carry a S&W M442 daily. It's light and reliable. (just like the M642 but in black)
I'm not a fan of carrying a small .357 Magnum for SD. The deafening report is only one reason, the recoil is another.
 
Did you shoot a newer LCP? Ruger has improved the sights and the trigger. The recoil is what it is for a lightweight pocket gun.

I've shot the LCR and really liked it...its easy to pocket and has a very smooth trigger pull.

The Sigs are sweet, but not for my pocket.
 
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I would go with the new SW MP Bodyguard (no laser and scaled serrations). I love my regular Bodyguard. Mine did have issues with the takedown lever, trigger, and laser hard to turn on/off initially. I sent it in for warranty work and it came back 2 weeks later with a smooth trigger, better working laser switch, and the takedown lever worked. It also came with a new free extra mag. Couldn't be happier with their customer service.

I've put a couple hundred rounds with the Bodyguard and it's surprisingly pleasant to shoot (my gf just shot it and put a box through it and loved it, and she was accurate too, her first time shooting). Never had one failure with it and have used multiple brands of ammo. It's also really accurate. Out to 30 feet it's right on.

I just shot my gf's new Ruger LCP Enhanced (better sights and trigger than the regular LCP) and it just didn't perform as well. Much harder to hit the target for some reason and the recoil after awhile hurt my trigger finger.



I just did a review on the Ruger vs. the Bodyguard today here:


http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=746496



I've heard from a friend who worked at Gander that the Ruger and Taurus's came in a lot for repair there.
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Thanks for the help, guys. Yes, the LCP I shot was only a few weeks old.

What do you all think of the Ruger LC9? Is it pocket carry friendly? I like that it is 9mm, has better sights than others, and has a manual safety, like the P938. I understand it has a completely different trigger and is larger... but it is only ~$325 vs. $600.
 
PorkChopsMmm said:
Thanks for the help, guys. Yes, the LCP I shot was only a few weeks old.

What do you all think of the Ruger LC9? Is it pocket carry friendly? I like that it is 9mm, has better sights than others, and has a manual safety, like the P938. I understand it has a completely different trigger and is larger... but it is only ~$325 vs. $600.
Click to expand...

Shoot an LC9 before you buy one, if possible. You may or may not be able to adjust to the long DA trigger pull. Think LCP trigger with 2x the travel.
 
Ugh, that's not what I wanted to hear. I don't want a trigger with that long of travel and I don't want to spend $100 on a trigger kit to make it acceptable. The Shield felt huge to me and the XD's don't do anything for me.

Slickguns.com has some sold out P938's that were selling for $509 a week ago with a laser and extra mags from Bud's. If that was available right now I would definitely buy it. Now there are only plain 938's going for $600. There are some used P238's around me in the mid $400 range -- not sure if I should just save up a little more for a deal on a P938 and call it done.

EDIT: I called one of the best gun shops in the area with a range and rental guns and was glad to hear they had what I was looking for (not for rental, just purchasing) but disappointed to hear that the prices on the guns were marked up anywhere from 60% for the TCP to ~16% for the P938. I know they need to make money but that's crazy. At least I will get to handle them.
 
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You will find the right gun at the right price if you are patient. Half the fun is in the search.

If you have a local FFL to do transfers, check KY Gun Co...they always seem to have great prices
 
I love revolvers so that lets you know I am all for a SP101 in 357 magnum .. I have just read about a new 9MM by Walther single stack .. whatever you choose Sig S&W or Taurus.. Practice buy a good holster practice some more .. and remember to practice .
 
Thanks guys. I have some alerts set up on slickguns.com to email me when there are deals. I am hoping something comes up in the next week or so.
 
I own a 938, LCR, and have owned a TCP. Here are my experiences and thoughts on them:

938 - This was the first of the three that I purchased. It was built after all of the teething issues were supposed to have been resolved. I've had some failures to extract and issues with some UMC ammo that shipped with extra hard primers. Also had a grip screw fall out that Sig replaced...after about 5 weeks. (I'd given up on them and just ordered replacements from Midway.) It has very nice sights. It's not what I would consider a hard recoiling pistol. The stock trigger has very sharp ribbing on it that caused some discomfort. A few swipes with some sand paper took the sharp edges off. Like most 938's, my right side safety is loose but functions OK. New magazines have very strong springs, making it difficult to insert the last round and causing the next round to be drug forward when chambering the top round. i.e. You may have a loose round fall out of the magazine well if you remove the magazine to "top off". The situation improves as the magazines are broken in. The last time I shot this pistol I got some bite one my thumb from the left side safety. Also had the magazine drop out between shots; might have been shooter induced, but it was the first time for me. Thoughtful consideration of it's intended use and thinking about the condition I may be in mentally and physically at such a moment has relegated it to "range gun" status. The manual safety and it's reliability contributed to that decision.

TCP - My second purchase and I really can't fault it! Mine was reliable with only one failure to feed. The trigger is long, but so light that one can shoot it far more accurately than it has any right to be. That said, the sights are nearly non-existent. Of the three it's the only one I would legitimately describe as a pocket pistol. It was snappy to shoot and the tip of your trigger finger might sting a bit. I sold mine because it had a colored frame, but would buy another.

LCR - Winner. Mine is the .38 Special version. Even if it were the KLCR, I'd still shoot just .38's. I have a thread in the strategy and training section on a defensive pistol class I took with this one. I've had zero reliability issues. The soft rubber grip can stick to your clothing causing a cover garment to ride up, but that hasn't been an issue for me. It's on the big side for pocket carry unless you're talking about a coat pocket or cargo pants. The size helps while shooting it in defensive drills. The trigger pull is excellent imho. Mine's a keeper.

Just my experience. Hope it helps.
 
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I just bought a S&W M442 yesterday (no lock). I'd been wanting a smaller CCW gun than an SP-101 for awhile and now that I've got a job lined up, I figured why the hell not?!

So far I've only shot about 35 rounds through it, but I'm getting dialed in on a reload. I'll crank some more out during the snow storm tomorrow. I love the size and light weight. It also fits my hand better than any mini 380 or 9mm I've owned or shot yet. One thing I like about revolvers in general is that you can change grips to fit your hand better - not always true with polymer framed semi-autos.

Observations so far:
1. It's accurate enough at defense ranges to do the job, and it'll get better as I shoot it more. I could use it right now at any distance in the house and feel confident on getting rounds on target. But I do have some experience with DA revolver shooting from years of Rugers and S&W's. If you're a revolver guy, you should adapt quickly enough.
2. Recoil is what it is. It's a small, light revolver and it's firing a "normal" defense round. It has some recoil. The grips help and it's better than a P3AT, but it'll still get your attention. It's not painful per se, but it's not a gun for a new shooter either.
3. Mine has a little grit in the trigger. I can stage the trigger in it, but sometimes in staging it, the last little bit is noticeably harder to squeeze than other times. I've oiled it a bit, including pivot points on the cylinder, and am hoping that lots of dry fire and some live fire wear things in. To be fair, it is firing every time - so if I'd just taken it immediately from the case and had to use it for defense, it would work.
4. The grips aren't relieved enough to use your standard HKS J-frame .38 Speedloader. I've got about ten of them for the SP-101 and they just don't fit. For now, I'm using Bianchi speed strips. Not sure if I'll change the grips. Speedloaders are little bulky to carry anyhow, but I'd have liked to be able to use them.
5. It doesn't have the lock. Whether they're prone to malfunction or not, I found one that doesn't have one. I wouldn't want one with the lock.

If I had it to do over, I'd also consider the LCR (either in .38 or in .357 but probably only shooting .38's out of it), but I'd probably still go with the S&W. I'd prefer stainless, but the 442 was there and I had money.

If you can, I'd say shoot some of the guns you're considering - especially the little .380's. I haven't shot the SIG, but I have shot the Colt Pony .380 and they're very pleasant to shoot. The SIG shouldn't be too different (or even consider a little Colt if one turns up). I haven't shot an LCP or Taurus TCP, but the P3AT I shot was the most horrendously painful handgun that I've ever had the misfortune of shooting. It was way worse than a full-power .357 from an SP-101. I'd be very leery of buying a gun of that size and class unless I could shoot one first.
Of the choices you have listed, if I positively had to go with one of them without shooting it first, I'd probably take the Ruger LCR first and the SIG P-238 or the S&W Bodyguard (without laser) second. I say this based on how they fit my hand, so some of that is subjective.
 
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I carry a LCP. I had the same impression when I first bought mine as you did. I added a hogue grip to mine and it made all the difference. I also reload rounds for mine that make it much more fun to shoot.

I also wear business dress/casual clothes at work and it fits great in my pocket. My brother has a LCR and a LC9. Neither would fit well in my dress pants pocket, both are too big and the LCR is definitely too heavy.

With time and practice, the LCP has become a fun gun to shoot, and I feel very confident in my ability with it.
 
My P938 is money. I got the Extreme edition so I rec'd one of each sized mag, then found out I like the extended one so i bought another one of those.
as another pointed out, there are sharp edges on various controls but that is designed that way. If your hand is bloody or you are in a driving rain you will be happy for that!
Doesn't make it smooth as a huge polymer gun to shoot at range all day but that isn't what this gun is.
Mine has been 100% dead nuts reliable, however I'm sure not every gun ever made of any model is so you better test it extensively before you carry your new gun!
 
PSA has a P250 Compact w/ night sights for $349 right now. You can get a subcompact frame from Sig for $40 (or a full size for that matter). That's hard to beat for a small 9mm.

I've got a few small pistols....still jonesing for a Boberg XR9-L, however.
 
Thanks guys. The P250 looks neat but it is just too big and heavy.

I checked out a P238 last night and it is definitely the right gun if you are looking for a quality CCW gun. The only downside, to me, is the weight and thickness. I am really looking for something thinner and lighter for pocket carry.

I also just talked to my local FFL. I don't think he would sell my a BG380 even if I asked -- he has seen too many quality problems. He has a used LC9 there for $300, supposedly one mag through it. I am going to go take a look at it tonight and most likely buy it. Even though it is larger than I originally wanted I think the 9mm caliber, the price, and that it has a manual safety sells me on it. Once I buy it I will most likely also buy a Desantis Nemesis pocket holster and probably even a metal pocket clip that mounts on the side of the gun. I am all ears if there is something I am missing.
 
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