New carry pistol...pocket rocket

[halfmoonclip]

W.E.G., nice shooting.

Pull the trigger LIKE YOU MEAN IT. No "target trigger" milking. Get on with it! Keep pointing through the shot and the recoil.

Shoot it like a revolver, just roll that trigger all the way through. It really isn't any worse than the double action trigger on a J-gun.

Been fighting this battle for years, and have posted about it here.
-The little Rugers (the original especially) are little, but utterly no fun to shoot. I get trigger pinch/slap from all the Gen II versions; the originals always work. But they have nearly nonexistent sights, and are stinkers to shoot.
-The little Kahr has an okay trigger, and decent sights and ergos. But it takes two men and a boy to rack the slide, no idea how I'd ever clear a stoppage in a pinch.
-Realize that there are some really nice single action pocket guns, but cocked and locked in my pocket? Plus I hate trying to wipe off a safety under stress.
-Ended up with the Bodyguard; it is literally as small as an LCP, although heavier. The OEM sights aren't bad; I put some TrueGlos on mine. (As an aside, the sights are really secure....) It is much more pleasant to shoot than the little Rugers.
One caveat; first one has run perfectly, and I bought a spare. That one has had issues, and is back at Springfield. If yours works, then you should be fine.
Do use an Alabama kydex pocket holster.

I move down to the LCP and then down to the P32 depending on the clothes I am wearing. But the DB9 works with most of the clothes I wear daily.

This is a good idea. Have a 365 and a G42 as slightly larger alternatives.

Moon

 

[sparkyfender]

My pocket semi auto.

 

[entropy]

TCP 738 in a Vedder pocket holster.

 

[jstert]

my favorite pocket rocket is a keltec p32, also have a safe queen naa guardian 32 and a naa bugout1 22lr revolver. the p32 is way easier to shoot and i am happy with it.

i recently got a new s&w bodyguard 380, also minus the laser, in a search for a pocket rocket with more readily available ammo to shoot more regularly than the p32. i have run about 300 rounds through the bodyguard without issue. at 20’ i’m doing 4” groups, at 10’ doing 3”. like the p32 it is very easy to carry. thus not so bad so far, but i still dont really like the bodyguard’s really long trigger pull. my waistband ccw is a s&w 642 snubbie so i should be ok, go figure, i cant. i may or may not sell the bodyguard…

btw i had a:
taurus spectrum 380: decent shooter but uncaptured, sharp, guide rod spring made field stripping bloody awful and a galloway captured guide rod spring caused numerous malfunctions.

sig p238 380: couldn’t get used to single action, cocked & locked, carry at all.

bersa thunder 380: bloody slide bite and safety/decock lever simply sheared off after 20ish rounds into one shooting session.

 

[S.Crockett]

Pocket rockets... always understood they have their place in the world, just never liked the idea of depending on something so.....weak.


But, things change, situations change - and we gotta adapt or get left behind.


After my heart attack a while back I've been talking a long look at how I earn my living... I'm a flatbed truck driver, which is and always has been a young man's game (I've come to understand that I'm no longer a young man) ... the hours are long (12-18 hour days), the work is hard (lifting 160 pound tarps, throwing chains over loads, etc.), and it's outside in the 100+ degree heat or below 0 cold, depending on the season.


I'm too old and uneducated to change... so... I'm going to get some help... I'm going to become a driver trainer and see if I can teach these new kids a thing or two.


Hence the pocket rocket... having someone in the truck with me 2-4 weeks at a time means no more conventional carry, it's gotta stay truly hidden and out of sight...100%, all the time.... the company has no rules or policies against carrying, but I figure it's best kept out of sight and out of mind.


After weeks of research I settled on the M&P Bodyguard 380 without the integrated laser...lots of people love that gun, lots also hate it.... the trigger has a very long, very heavy pull that most folks just don't like.


I figure a true pocket pistol should have just such a trigger to be truly safe, it took some practice but I got used to it.


The gun has been 100% reliable and is way more accurate than it should be for what it is (something a lot of people who hated it still also noted about it).


Carried in a Sticky Holster it just disappears into the front pocket of my work pants (Dickies, Carhartts, Wranglers).


I'd feel better with my M&P 9mm, but that's a no go... the Glock 43 and Sig P365 are too big for "me" to hide in a pocket (others say they can).


The little M&P Bodyguard is a cute little thing, kinda like a puppy, lol....I didn't choose it based on looks, but it is in my opinion the best looking of the polymer micro pistols.


Oh well, it beats a sharp stick anyways.

I too have always liked the concept of a “pocket rocket” for concealed EDC. But proof is found only in a valid execution of the concept by way of a pistol that actually fulfills both terms: “pocket,” referring to size and fitment (so diminutive) and “rocket,” referring to the power and ballistics of the cartridge the pistol is chambered for.

Anything south of the 9-minimeter fails miserably to satisfy the second half of the concept …. and even the minimeter is borderline. At that level you’re only LARPing it.

Noop. Real “pocket rockets” are chambered in one of two flavors: .45acp or 10mm AUTO. So for example:

3” Colt New Agent (.45acp):





3.5” S&W 1013 (10mm):

 

[Ridgerunner665]

I too have always liked the concept of a “pocket rocket” for concealed EDC. But proof is found only in a valid execution of the concept by way of a pistol that actually fulfills both terms: “pocket,” referring to size and fitment (so diminutive) and “rocket,” referring to the power and ballistics of the cartridge the pistol is chambered for.

Anything south of the 9-minimeter fails miserably to satisfy the second half of the concept …. and even the minimeter is borderline. At that level you’re only LARPing it.

Noop. Real “pocket rockets” are chambered in one of two flavors: .45acp or 10mm AUTO.
So for example:

3” Colt New Agent (.45acp):

View attachment 1195791

View attachment 1195795

3.8 S&W 1013 (10mm):

View attachment 1195792

View attachment 1195794

Them are dang fine pistols for sure, and I do prefer all the power I can get... carried a 357 Sig for many years (G32)... but those are all too big for my pockets.

I tried all the micro 9mm options....I wanted a 9mm for this, but it wasn't happening... they're just too big to truly hide in a jeans pocket, for me at least.... hell, the Bodyguard is just barely small enough.

I'm not a big guy, 6 feet and 190 pounds, I wear loose but not baggy clothes (typical outdoor work clothes type thing)... none of the 9mm's will hide as well as the single stack 380's.

Sure, the 9's have gotten pretty small these days but they're still just a little bigger, and that little bit matters to some body sizes and uses more than others.

100% total concealment in any pants I have is priority #1, for me...everything else has to fall in behind that.

 

[Armored farmer]

Them are dang fine pistols for sure, and I do prefer all the power I can get... carried a 357 Sig for many years (G32)... but those are all too big for my pockets.

I tried all the micro 9mm options....I wanted a 9mm for this, but it just wasn't happening... they're just too big to truly hide in a jeans pocket, for me at least.... hell, the Bodyguard is just barely small enough.

I'm not a big guy, 6 feet and 190 pounds, I wear loose but not baggy clothes (typical outdoor clothes type thing)... none of the 9mm's will hide as well as the single stack 380's.

Sure, the 9's have gotten pretty small these days but they're still just a little bigger, and that little bit matters to some body sizes and uses more than others.

100% total concealment in any pants I have is priority #1, for me...everything else has to fall in behind that.

It's not only going to matter what you carry...but also WHERE you carry. A front jeans pocket pistol will be slow to dig out if you're seated.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

It's not only going to matter what you carry...but also WHERE you carry. A front jeans pocket pistol will be slow to dig out if you're seated.

Agreed... but that's where it has to go in my case.

 

[S.Crockett]

Agreed... but that's where it has to go in my case.

Then it’s just a “pocket pistol,” … not a pocket rocket. Two totally different things.

 

[Alain72]

Another very nice 380 is Walther PPK/S. Mine was made in 1977 and it has served me well.
Others listed here are darn nice also, we’re all partial to the ones we own, that’s great!

 

[halfmoonclip]

My pocket semi auto.
View attachment 1195756

Those are handsome pistols, and the one I had ran 100%. It's just the racking thing; mine would only charge from slide lock (which was also the factory's direction). Doubtful I could have cleared a stoppage in the field.
Dammit, wish Kahr would have done some fine tuning on this pistol, I still like them.
Moon

 

[westernrover]

If I was the trainee and I saw yours, it would just make me want one of my own if I didn't already have one.

 

[film495]

I like that brand holster as well. If the fit is right to the gun, just a nice little pocket holster that can be an IWB holster too, a nicely done product IMHO

 

[Armybrat]

Those are handsome pistols, and the one I had ran 100%. It's just the racking thing; mine would only charge from slide lock (which was also the factory's direction). Doubtful I could have cleared a stoppage in the field.
Dammit, wish Kahr would have done some fine tuning on this pistol, I still like them.
Moon

Bought this new S9 Kahr last month on a close out from Locked & Loaded.
$218 plus shipping, tax, & FFL.
Pretty nice quality pistols, but too big for pocket carry unless wearing cargo shorts.

 

[Yamifrk]

I drive a semi truck as well, mostly van and reefer trailers. Occasionally still pull a flatbed , carry an sig p226 in 357sig in a hidden hybrid appendix holster. I personally would try different methods of carrying and you maybe able to still carry a gun you have….just a thought.

 

[Gordon]

Here is your "pocket Rocket" 13mm Destructive device . You'll shoot your eye out !

 

[halfmoonclip]

Any method of carry has its downsides. Ankle is great when seated, lousy when standing. Appendix is accessible, but uncomfortable when seated, and not having too much belly. Shoulder looks cool, (Hey, I'm Sonny Crockett!) has great access, but forces you to sweep the room when drawing. OWB requires a covering garment.
I like pocket for not having to think too hard about how I'm dressing, and where the gun will be. If things are looking hinky, a hand can be in the pocket in anticipation...hard to do that with other methods. Tough to draw when seated, an issue in a carjacking.
But with a really small gun, pocket carry is quite discreet. Sometimes this last is the big issue. And, if your gun goes on with your britches, you're not apt to leave home without it.
Moon

 

[Triggernosis]

3.8 S&W 1013 (10mm):

View attachment 1195792

View attachment 1195794

What model is that? I don't find any info on a "1013".

 

[S.Crockett]

What model is that? I don't find any info on a "1013".

A 4013 ———> 1013.

It was a conversion carefully done.

 

[kje54]

I'm still old school with my pocket pistol. I still love my P64.

 

[Styx]

Those are handsome pistols, and the one I had ran 100%. It's just the racking thing; mine would only charge from slide lock (which was also the factory's direction). Doubtful I could have cleared a stoppage in the field.
Dammit, wish Kahr would have done some fine tuning on this pistol, I still like them.
Moon

I own 5 steel frame Kahrs, and I don't find it difficult in the least to rack the slide on any of them. I can sling shot or hit the slide lock to load a round.

 

[Rexster]

I see that “pocket rocket” means something quite different, now, in the Twenty-Twenties, compared to the Eighties and Nineties. The Ruger SP101 was THE leading contender for the title of Pocket Rocket, once upon a time, in a Century far, far away.

 

[S.Crockett]

I see that “pocket rocket” means something quite different, now, in the Twenty-Twenties, compared to the Eighties and Nineties. The Ruger SP101 was THE leading contender for the title of Pocket Rocket, once upon a time, in a Century far, far away.

Very true. …. Remember, a “pocket pistol” can be any small handgun that fits concealably in your pocket.

A “Pocket Rocket” is a small concealable handgun chambered for a cartridge of substantial power.

 

[Ridgerunner665]

I put 200 rounds through it yesterday, mostly WWB but also some Hornady Critical Defense.

I don't find it hard to shoot, just different... it's not a Glock 19 or M&P 9 2.0.

After some practice, I can make rapid 15 yard hits on an 8 inch steel gong just fine...maybe not as rapid as with my M&P 9 2.0, but still pretty rapid.

 

[luzyfuerza]

OP, have you ever considered carrying a BUG on your ankle at the same time as your pocket pistol? For those moments when a pocket draw is impossible?

I've always figured that when seated, carrying a pocket gun is like carrying no gun at all.

I recently bought a high-quality ankle holster (from Ritchie https://www.ritchieholsters.com/catalog/p-100011/ankle) that is all-day comfortable. And hides completely.

Its now my favorite way to carry a BUG.