In keeping with my earlier poll on P3AT reliability, I figured this would be an interesting poll to show some numbers of actual P32 owners instead of the "P32 vs. P3AT" thread that we see so often. I've done advanced searches & seen old experiences posted, but I want to see the current state of things with numbers.
How reliable is your P32?
- Thread starter Juna
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Rexrider
Member
I bought my P32 in '01. I have not had any failures with it from day 1. Nothing has been changed on it. No fluff and buff, etc.
My wife shoots it almost every time she goes to the range with me. Which is kind of a pain in the butt because it is the most expensive handgun I own to shoot. But she has fun with it and that is priceless.
My wife shoots it almost every time she goes to the range with me. Which is kind of a pain in the butt because it is the most expensive handgun I own to shoot. But she has fun with it and that is priceless.
Charles S
Member
I love mine, I just had to find the right ammo for it. Mine has rimlock issues with Speer Gold Dots.
denfoote
Member
100% since it came out of the box!! 
In fact, I prefer the P32 over the P3AT because of the addition of the slide stop.
In fact, I prefer the P32 over the P3AT because of the addition of the slide stop.
denfoote
Member
Let's say you are out in a situation where you have to pack a mouse. I've been in that situation before. Now, you do know that the myth of the one shot stop is just that, a myth. These days criminals tend to be gang members and travel in packs, so you are going to need more than just those six rounds, couple with the fact you are probably going to need more than one round to put down a threat, especially with a mouse gun!!
The P3AT has no slide stop, so that means not only do you have to count you shots (the locked back slide is a good indicator that you are out of ammo), but when you are empty, you must drop the old and insert a fresh magazine. To further complicate matters, you then must fully retract the slide manually in order to return the pistol to functionality.
In a stressful situation, you are not going to count your shots and you stand to get the inevitable "click" when you pull the trigger, possibly at the worst possible moment!!!
Now consider the P32. It has a slide stop. The slide locks back when you are out of ammo. You drop the empty mag, insert a fresh one, give a slight tug on the slide, it returns into battery, and you are good to go again!!
The extra time taken in figuring out you are out of ammo and doing the manual reload, could be the difference in living!!
The smaller caliber, which holds more ammunition, by the way, is an acceptable trade off for me!! When I carry my mouse, I hoof 29 rounds of .32acp truncated cone hardball. I don't mess with hollow points in this small of a caliber because penetration is what's going to save the day!!
I hope this is somewhat clearer than mud!!
peacemaker45
Member
I can't say 100%, but should say 100% except for ammo related probs. Mine hates fiocchi ammo. Had I had the tools at the time, I'd have measured the stuff. I suspect it was out of spec.
Feanaro
Member
Not mine but my father carries one. Last time I checked with him, 100% reliable.
MICHAEL T
Member
Well I can only vote once but I have 2 P-32 that have been perfect from day one.
Stevie-Ray
Member
100% so far.
wally
Member
As to having/needing a slide lock on mouse guns:
When I need to carry such a small gun, if I had room for an extra magazine I'd be carrying a bigger gun instead!
P32 replaced my .25 (P32 is a bit bigger but thinner & lighter and ~30% more power per shot), and the P3AT replaced the P32 (~40% more power per shot in the same sized package). The P3AT may get replaced with a Rorhbaugh someday when I have a lot of extra money.
My P32 was 100% out of the box, but did have rim lock when I tried alternating FMJ and JHP at the range to finish off a couple of boxes of ammo.
My P3AT suffered the assembly pin walking out problem and self-destructed -- gun never malfunctioned I noticed the damage when reloading the magazine. Returned gun still had the problem but since I was watching for it didn't damage the gun. The Kel-Tec user forum had a mod that fixed mine. Gun has been 100% with all non-steel cased ammo. Get extraction failures with steel cased ammo.
--wally.
When I need to carry such a small gun, if I had room for an extra magazine I'd be carrying a bigger gun instead!
P32 replaced my .25 (P32 is a bit bigger but thinner & lighter and ~30% more power per shot), and the P3AT replaced the P32 (~40% more power per shot in the same sized package). The P3AT may get replaced with a Rorhbaugh someday when I have a lot of extra money.
My P32 was 100% out of the box, but did have rim lock when I tried alternating FMJ and JHP at the range to finish off a couple of boxes of ammo.
My P3AT suffered the assembly pin walking out problem and self-destructed -- gun never malfunctioned I noticed the damage when reloading the magazine. Returned gun still had the problem but since I was watching for it didn't damage the gun. The Kel-Tec user forum had a mod that fixed mine. Gun has been 100% with all non-steel cased ammo. Get extraction failures with steel cased ammo.
--wally.
JohnBT
Member
My P-32 was in the small batch that came with a defective trigger axis. Immediately after I bought it the trigger would pull all the way to the rear without firing the gun. They fixed it and it's been fine ever since. SN - 12xxx.
John
John
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