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Kel Tec 380

theoicarry

Regular Member
Joined
Oct 19, 2010
Messages
178
Location
baraboo, wisconsin
I have plans on purchasing an Kel Tec 380 pistol for my wife. She needs something smaller and lighter as she can not handle recoil of a 40 cal. My plans are for her using this for CC if this law ever passes. I have read good reports, but have never shot one of these. I assume the recoil is less than a 9 mil. Any negative comments and/or suggestions would be appreciated.
Many thanks
 

GLOCK21GB

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Apr 22, 2009
Messages
4,347
Location
Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA
I have plans on purchasing an Kel Tec 380 pistol for my wife. She needs something smaller and lighter as she can not handle recoil of a 40 cal. My plans are for her using this for CC if this law ever passes. I have read good reports, but have never shot one of these. I assume the recoil is less than a 9 mil. Any negative comments and/or suggestions would be appreciated.
Many thanks

less recoil than a 9mm & virtually no stopping power. 380 is just a bad choice.

take a look at this. http://ruger.com/products/lc9/models.html ...it's small, well made & a 9mm with the right loads - Federal 147 grain golden saber Hollow points you have an effective round.
 

Peacekeeper

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 23, 2010
Messages
171
Location
Fond du Lac Wisconsin
A .380 is better than nothing. I plan on using a .380 for constitutional carry once in a while. As far as stopping power goes Glock34 is right ... but if someone is fearful of or unable to control the recoil of a larger caliber ... something larger might not be very useful. When seconds count ... if one heisitates ... because of a larger caliber ...
 

Krusty

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 11, 2010
Messages
281
Location
Trempealeau County, Wisconsin
Virtually all adults can handle a .38 Special. Get a snub with a ported barrel if needed. I have a ported snubby .357 and it is very manageable. A sidearm does NOT need to be an auto.
 

blaze

New member
Joined
Jul 8, 2009
Messages
242
Location
Above the tension line
I would recommend going to ktog.org (kel tec owners group) you can find anything and everything you ever wanted to know about the P3AT(.380) pistol. The good and the bad.
 

Irish_Dave

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 16, 2011
Messages
39
Location
Peoples Repulic of MA
I've had a Kel Tec P3AT (1st generation) for about five years here's my breakdown:
Pros:
Easy to conceal-I carry it either in an inside the pocket holster or an ankle holster with no problem. Also it's incredibly light.
Easy to break down and clean
Short money-you should have no problem picking on up around $250

Cons:
It's a .380
Stove piping-after the break in phase it was still stove piping 1 round every mag. I had to send it back to Kel Tec to be fixed (lifetime warranty). It took about 2 months to get it back but now it's fine.
Shooting comfort-if you put a hundred rounds through it the web of your hand definitely feels it.

I only carry it a lot during the summer when other pistols will print too much, but it's not bad for a pocket gun
 

SIGdude

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2010
Messages
89
Location
Baraboo, Wisconsin, USA
The whole stopping power thing really bothers me.

Saying .380 doesn't have enough stopping power is like .45 people saying 9mm is like a real bullet set to stun. Do you want to be stunned? I sure don't. I don't want to get shot with a pellet rifle. I definately don't want to get shot with a .22 short. And I will go out to great lengths my entire life to make sure I'm not shot by anything larger than that.

95gr at 1100 fps will kill you. It would kill you at 700fps. With today's modern hollow points, it is a highly effective self defense round; even with FMJ it is highly leathal.
 

anmut

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2010
Messages
875
Location
Stevens Point WI, ,
The whole stopping power thing really bothers me.

Saying .380 doesn't have enough stopping power is like .45 people saying 9mm is like a real bullet set to stun. Do you want to be stunned? I sure don't. I don't want to get shot with a pellet rifle. I definately don't want to get shot with a .22 short. And I will go out to great lengths my entire life to make sure I'm not shot by anything larger than that.

95gr at 1100 fps will kill you. It would kill you at 700fps. With today's modern hollow points, it is a highly effective self defense round; even with FMJ it is highly leathal.

A great site is http://www.theboxotruth.com/

This guy shoots pretty much everything into water jugs and compares it to the FBI standards for stopping power. He backs up what the general view is on the .380, that it doesn't live up to the full stopping power of FBI standards.

IMHO, a bullet is a bullet - either way you're going to do some damage. However I would still choose a 9mm over a 380 just for the extra piece of mind, especially for my wife.
 

Captain Nemo

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2010
Messages
1,029
Location
Somewhere, Wisconsin, USA
Buy the gun your wife is most comfortable with, both carrying and shooting. Borrow some various models for her to try. A brand new concealed carry firearm is no good if it is sitting in a gun safe at home because it is too uncomfortable to carry or to shoot. It then has no stopping power. As far as stopping power goes there are some people that wouldn't be happy unless they were toting around a 30 pound 50 caliber Barrett. In my farming days I butchered many hogs and 1000 pound cattle with a single shot .22 long rifle. If your wife is comfortable with and likes to shoot the gun she picks, she is likely to practice with it more and become a proficient shot. Proper shot placement at 20 feet will compensate for a lot of so called "stopping power". Year after year the FBI reports state that the only time a bullet has "stopping power" is when it strikes the central nervous system. It is suprising how much trauma muscle tissue, including the heart, can endure and not cause immediate incapacitation. just look at videos of our soldiers wounded in war. Practice, practice, practice and shot placement is the key.

My opinion.
 

oak1971

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2008
Messages
1,937
Location
Wisconsin, USA
Kel Tech=Crap. I had one and it fell apart twice before I got sick of it and dumped it.

.380 is a poor caliber for stopping.

I now have Kahr MK9 in 9mm that is very compact, high quality and is chambered for what I consider to be the bare minimum for defense, 9mm. They make a polymer version for those who want to save weight.
 

duckdog

Regular Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2009
Messages
68
Location
Northern Wisconsin, USA
SIGdude hit it on the head. It'll work if need be. I read once that the #1 caliber for the mob hit men was the measly 22 LR, and they do all right. I second the motion that I wouldn't want to get shot with a .380. I wonder if the "experts" that are putting out all of the data are watching too many Steven Segall movies! I know he can take a couple in the guts from a .380 and keep on coming, but I gotta believe he's the exception to the rule.
 

Citizen

Founder's Club Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2006
Messages
18,269
Location
Fairfax Co., VA
I've owned a KelTec P3AT.

The little beggers jump around in your hand a lot. The gun is tiny. A person can hardly get a grip on it. Even with the magazine extension for a third finger, the gun is still mighty narrow.

The .380 may not be a powerful cartridge; but it is enough to make that mostly plastic little gun jump around a good bit. I never got off more than three to four shots without having to reposition it in my hand. Not great with a gun with low muzzle energy where you might have to empty the magazine to stop a threat.

Also, the P3AT only has a three inch barrel. Meaning that after you subtract for chamber length, the bullet only has a little over two inches worth of acceleration lane. The .380 only has what? high 100's/low 200's in ft lbs of muzzle energy out of a four or five inch barrel. Lop off two or three inches of barrel, and I'll bet your muzzle energy is down in the mid-100's of ft. lbs. (Assuming I'm right with the 4-5" muzzle energies.)

There is also the old advice that beginners and folks who can't or won't practice regularly are better-served with the simpler operations of a revolver.

Unlike other posters, mine never gave me an mechanical trouble. I think it might be due to KelTec design and quality improving over time--worth checking into.

If she is set on a semi-auto, I'd look also at one of the KelTec 9mm. They're only a little larger, but you get a better muzzle energy and something you can hang onto in a repeat-fire situation.
 

oak1971

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2008
Messages
1,937
Location
Wisconsin, USA
The point is there is no reason, other than preference, to use .380. There are other platforms, just as compact, that chamber 9mm and .40 S&W. Kahr Mk9 and MK40, CM9 and CM40, Rohrbaugh 9mm, Kimber Solo 9mm.....
 

Citizen

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Joined
Nov 15, 2006
Messages
18,269
Location
Fairfax Co., VA
The point is there is no reason, other than preference, to use .380. There are other platforms, just as compact, that chamber 9mm and .40 S&W. Kahr Mk9 and MK40, CM9 and CM40, Rohrbaugh 9mm, Kimber Solo 9mm.....

Good point. But, don't say that to Bersa owners. :)
 

oak1971

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2008
Messages
1,937
Location
Wisconsin, USA
There is one HUGE reason.

Life is short.

I'm not going to my grave having only tasted Vanilla... because the internet said so.

:monkey

Oops forgot you had a 380. If you call it 9mm Kurz it sounds more :cool: :lol:

You also get points for buying a Sig.
 
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SIGdude

Regular Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2010
Messages
89
Location
Baraboo, Wisconsin, USA
A great site is http://www.theboxotruth.com/

This guy shoots pretty much everything into water jugs and compares it to the FBI standards for stopping power. He backs up what the general view is on the .380, that it doesn't live up to the full stopping power of FBI standards.

IMHO, a bullet is a bullet - either way you're going to do some damage. However I would still choose a 9mm over a 380 just for the extra piece of mind, especially for my wife.

The only problem I have regarding FBI standards is they are held to the standard of an OFFENSIVE round. No, of course I wouldn't ever choose a .380 as my service round for going out and actively having a chance of getting into a gun fight where I need to shoot through a car door or a windshield, but I sure would use one to protect myself in a defensive situation.

Saying .380 isn't an effective self defense round is ignorant. Saying you wouldn't personally use it is just preference. A 9x18 mak is 5gr heavier and 40fps faster than a .380, and that's killed plenty of people in wartime, with solid rounds. The .380 with gold dots will more than amply kill just about any soft target you engage within the distances we are talking.

All the .45 in the world won't do anything if you cant hit what you are aiming at, and you can't miss fast enough to save your life. I'd rather put 6 .380s in someone than zero .45s because I left it at home since it wouldn't fit under my sun dress.

Do I admit to the ballistac superiority of just about EVERY handgun round to the .380? Of course.
Do I admit that it is an ineffective round for putting down a soft target? Absolutely not.
 

HandyHamlet

Regular Member
Joined
Nov 17, 2010
Messages
2,772
Location
Terra, Sol
Oops forgot you had a 380.


Don't worry. You aren't going to hurt my feelings. You saw the hat I was wearing at Lizzy's!

:cool:

I guess I am weird. Cal means nothing to me. I even enjoy 22LR. :uhoh:


Saying .380 isn't an effective self defense round is ignorant.

Timeless "my penis is bigger"....
My Hemi is better than your Rocket 350.
My Harley is better than your rice burner.
My Marantz is better than your Luxman.
My PC is better than your Mac.
My Play Station is better than your XBox.
My Canon is better than your Nikon...
 
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oak1971

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2008
Messages
1,937
Location
Wisconsin, USA
Don't worry. You aren't going to hurt my feelings. You saw the hat I was wearing at Lizzy's!

:cool:

I guess I am weird. Cal means nothing to me. I even enjoy 22LR. :uhoh:




Timeless "my penis is bigger"....
My Hemi is better than your Rocket 350.
My Harley is better than your rice burner.
My Marantz is better than your Luxman.
My PC is better than your Mac.
My Play Station is better than your XBox.
My Canon is better than your Nikon...

I saw the hat but I can't recall what was on it.:confused:
 
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