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Pocket gun discussion

12K views 185 replies 83 participants last post by  gamecocks 
#1 ·
Seems like today is the golden era for pocket guns. Ever since i started ccw'ing, I've wanted to have a satisfactory pocket gun.

Im generally happy with my iwb set up, but still desire a pocket gun for those times when it's appropriate

Ive tried a few:

Lcr - Soured on the internal lock, and it was too long for some pants pockets. Had a couple issues with bullet crimp jumping. Slow to reload. However, probably the best pocket gun i had. Shot reasonably well.

642 - Too long for some pants pockets. Felt like crap in my hand, couldn't hit accurately enough to my liking, slow to reload. Questioned durability if used regularly for practice. Didn't like the 100 year old side plate design. Crazy, right?

G26 - prints like crazy and is heavy. Only works for me in a couple pairs of pants. Draw isn't snag free

G42 - too long for some pants, doesn't draw as well as i feel a pocket gun should. Prints an obvious gun shape when sitting

Sp101 - hammer snagged on draw unless covered with my thumb. Too heavy, might as well carry the g26 with double the rounds, slow to reload, trigger was heavy and I didn't hit that accurately with it



I have looked at trying a few more, but am having trouble with a few things:

Lcp - probably ideal. However, aesthetically, ruger semi's make me want to puke. Loathe the safety warnings, billboard graphics and lettering

Lc9s - probably too tall for some pants, ruger semi aesthetics, ugh...

Bodyguard - haven't really read/heard much positive things about them

Shield - too big

G43 - too big

Xds - too big, i think heavy too

Cw380 - seems great but read nonstop complaints about reliability and a ton of break in required

Cw9 - same as the cw380, but probably in addition to the same issues as a g42

Remington r51 or rm380 - too many quality issues to bother

All others i can think of, like sig, are too expensive

Looks like I should just buy an lcp and not look at it, right? LOL
 
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#66 ·
Pocket carry? S&W J frame, either a Bodyguard or a Centennial works fine. Easy to hit with 'em once you learn how to handle a DA revolver trigger. Personally, I prefer the older style wood panel grips to the newfangled plastic "boot" grips. For ammo, I prefer a standard vel HP, less muzzle blast and easier control. Always carry speed strips with mine, easier to hide than speedloaders.

And if my pants pockets aren't deep enough, time for some different pants. Nowadays I always check in the store before buying jeans.

Just my opinions, worth every penny you paid.

Best,
Grumpy
 
#69 ·
Been through most of them. Main thing to focus on after the obvious is DISASSEMBLY. Some of them are nightmares to break down or reassemble. My choices shook out as the Colt Mustang .380 pistol and the Smith and Wesson 351PD Air Lite 7 round .22mag revolver. Chose the Mustang for reliability and accuracy and never a failure.
 
#74 · (Edited)
I carried a Rohrbaugh R9s for years in a pocket recluse holster. Never printed and carried easily in just about any pants type.
My fashion choices have changed a bit and for the last year, when I pocket carry it's an LCR in 357. I just shoot it better than any small auto. That said, I just got a Glock 43 that is an easy shooter. We'll see how that goes...
As others have stated; pocket carry is a subjective issue and more a process than a single choice. One adapts to it, not the reverse.
I hope you find what you seek and that all these opinions help!
 
#76 · (Edited)
Does the lc9s work in all of your pants pockets? It doesnt look much bigger than an lcp
I have a G26 and never felt comfortable pocket carrying it. The size and thickness made it look like I had a small brick in my pocket and the weight dragged the pants down more than I liked on that side.

I spent several months looking at alternatives. For succesful pocket carry a pistol must be small, slim, lightweight, and be well dehorned (nothing to snag on the inside of the pocket during the draw). A number of likely candidates failed due to snagging on the draw, specifically the Shield (rear sight is like a fishhook) and surprising the G43 (smooth enough, but the top rear of the frame protrudes too far). A smooth draw is the primary advantage to a pocket revolver with a shielded hammer.

My short list ended up consisting of the Sig P938, LC9s-Pro or a Kimber Solo. The Sig was a delight to carry, and exuded quality, the only thing I couldn't get over was carrying a pocket pistol cocked and locked. I much prefer striker fired pistols without a manual safety for this. The Kimber Solo was beautiful and very nicely designed and built, but the price at double that of the LC9s and ammo sensitivity issues ruled it out for me. I now pocket carry an LC9s-PRO about 80% of the time. It works fantastic in cargo pants pockets, but it still a bit to large and heavy for jeans carry. Lightweight shorts are also not great with the LC9s.

I have an LCP, but for tougher pocket carry applications, I keep falling back on my High Standard .22 mag derringer. I can carry that in the pocket of swim trunks. I took the grips off to make it just a bit thinner which improved the draw from tight jeans pockets. This gun works fine in every kind of pants I have ever worn.

Wood Gun Firearm Hardwood White


Good pocket holsters make a difference too. I really like the Desantis Superfly for the LC9. I wish they made one for the High Standard. Had to make my own holster out of a crappy LCP holster I had laying around.

Wood Hardwood Wood stain Pattern Laptop accessory
 
#86 ·
I know too many people whom I see shoot Taurus handguns reliably at the range to ever critique them. I don't, never have, and probably never will shoot one, unless it is just a super deal.

I did buy a Taurus 92 compact once, but sold it almost immediately to a friend for a modest profit. He named a price and we shook hands on the spot. He already had one and wanted a second for a double shoulder rig, during the winter can carry both and 4 mags under a hoodie. If you are looking for the print you can see it, if you aren't looking you won't notice it.

The Slim has gotten good reviews from several folks, the only downside to the brand is inconsistency. There is a reason so many complain about their reliability, due to the fact they at one time owned a dog of a Taurus.
 
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#85 ·
Just thought I'd point out that the P238s can be found for about or a bit under $500 if you shop around, and maybe $50 more for the 938s. By far my favorite when it comes to shootability while retaining actual pocketable size.
 
#88 ·
My occasional carry for many years was a Colt Govt. Model IV .380, so have zero problems with the design. I actually think Sig may make the better handgun, as mine just was never that accurate. I have shot both 238's and 938's and did acceptably for me.

Only thing is, I never felt comfortable carrying the Colt cocked and locked, always carried it Israeli stye, on an empty chamber. I also maintained at the time it was the best way to carry that design, and still feel that way.

The only 'incident', if you want to call it that, I ever had related to self defense pretty much happened in slow motion. It was about a 15 minute situation, where I had to unload a LOT of expensive stuff in the wee hours of the morning, in what I later found out was a very bad part of town. When the thugs rolled in for the kill, I had had the luxury of opening my suitcase in the truck 10 minutes before, getting out the handgun, putting it in my belt Mexican carry, then having the time to draw it and rack the slide.

I didn't touch the handgun until I had 4 grown ass men casually walking at me from 3 different directions, about 30' away. As soon as I racked the slide, they just as casually found somewhere else to be, just sort of drifted off in other directions.

I then spent the next 30 minutes in the motel room bathroom puking my guts up from nerves.

The reason the Sigs and the Colt are now off my list as realistic carry guns is because I used up my one 'Don't Get Your Ass Mugged' card on that incident. Next time I need to be able to do something within 5 seconds, not over 15 minutes.
 
#90 ·
i do not understand people that want a carry self protection gun,
that is designed for cocked and locked carry, and instead they go
with an empty chamber ? or not cocked.
that makes not sense at all.
cocked and locked, draw, drop the safety and pull the trigger.
empty chamber carry, pull your gun and get shot while trying to rack the slide.
 
#91 ·
Lots of people are scared of C&L in general, even more of it on a pocket gun. I have no idea why. A proper holster (belt or pocket) will cover both the trigger and the safety, making the chance of a mishap astronomically low. Probably even lower than a safety-less gun.
 
#93 ·
If you are comfortable with it, go for it. Many of us aren't. In my world being carried in the pocket the way I work, constantly climbing over stuff and snagging on vines, branches and briars, weird stuff can happen.

One of my crew chiefs about 30 years ago was open carrying a .38 special in a typical holster on his hip, with the trigger completely covered. He had something get between the holster and the pistol and had a legit AD that grazed his ankle and ruined his boot (as well as his rodman's underwear). It could've also been from a vine hanging up on the hammer and then dropping it with enough force to fire it, as it was a double action only.

That resulted in a no handguns company policy and me having to lug a Snake Charmer through the woods in addition to the rest of my gear.

In a nutshell, it is a safety thing. As I said, if you are good with it, no worries. I'm not, therefore I changed my carry gun to something that I have 100% confidence I can carry with a round in the chamber and no safety engaged.
 
#94 ·
If you are comfortable with it, go for it. Many of us aren't. In my world being carried in the pocket the way I work, constantly climbing over stuff and snagging on vines, branches and briars, weird stuff can happen.

One of my crew chiefs about 30 years ago was open carrying a .38 special in a typical holster on his hip, with the trigger completely covered. He had something get between the holster and the pistol and had a legit AD that grazed his ankle and ruined his boot (as well as his rodman's underwear). It could've also been from a vine hanging up on the hammer and then dropping it with enough force to fire it, as it was a double action only.

That resulted in a no handguns company policy and me having to lug a Snake Charmer through the woods in addition to the rest of my gear.

In a nutshell, it is a safety thing. As I said, if you are good with it, no worries. I'm not, therefore I changed my carry gun to something that I have 100% confidence I can carry with a round in the chamber and no safety engaged.
nice story has little to do with pocket pistols and cc.

hmmm but i do have a safety in cocked and locked.......
my p64 has a mid position on the safety that disconnects the trigger, cocked and locked...is not the same as just cocked.
 
#127 · (Edited)
Not been made yet. It's also not on the radar as of yet according to Eric Rohrbaugh. He posts all of the time on the Rohrbaugh forum if you care to inquire of any details.

Cabelas has a nice Rohrbaugh R9 for like $735 or something. Pretty killer deal IMO.

http://www.gunsinternational.com/gu...pistols/rohrbaugh-r9-9mm.cfm?gun_id=100766479

Remington is now covering the warranty on the old Rohrbaughs. They took care care of mine on their dime about a year ago.
 
#158 ·
I have the LCP Standard and the Custom (fancy). The trigger and sights are much better on the custom than the original. However, the custom showed a few rust spots when I took it out last week. Not sure when last cleaning was. Old LCP has been carried longer and suffered more neglect, zero rust.

Seriously considering a stainless.
 
#100 ·
I settled on the Beretta Nano primarily for its size. You should run 124 grain ammo with them, though, as they were designed around the .40 caliber cartridge and some of them may hiccup with 115 grain stuff. Mine always goes bang with 124 grain, and I forget it's on my hip when concealed.
 
#144 ·
I have been interested in the P32. It's incredibly light weight at 6.6 oz (Ruger LCP with empty mag is 9.4) carries 8 rds in the gun (7 + 1) and has a last round hold open.

My concern is rimlock with .32 and the overall longevity/quality of kel tec with which I have no experience. If they have a lifetime warranty maybe I'll take the plunge!
 
#115 ·
Seems like today is the golden era for pocket guns. Ever since i started ccw'ing, I've wanted to have a satisfactory pocket gun.

Im generally happy with my iwb set up, but still desire a pocket gun for those times when it's appropriate

Ive tried a few:

Lcr - Soured on the internal lock, and it was too long for some pants pockets. Had a couple issues with bullet crimp jumping. Slow to reload. However, probably the best pocket gun i had. Shot reasonably well.

642 - Too long for some pants pockets. Felt like crap in my hand, couldn't hit accurately enough to my liking, slow to reload. Questioned durability if used regularly for practice. Didn't like the 100 year old side plate design. Crazy, right?

G26 - prints like crazy and is heavy. Only works for me in a couple pairs of pants. Draw isn't snag free

G42 - too long for some pants, doesn't draw as well as i feel a pocket gun should. Prints an obvious gun shape when sitting

Sp101 - hammer snagged on draw unless covered with my thumb. Too heavy, might as well carry the g26 with double the rounds, slow to reload, trigger was heavy and I didn't hit that accurately with it



I have looked at trying a few more, but am having trouble with a few things:

Lcp - probably ideal. However, aesthetically, ruger semi's make me want to puke. Loathe the safety warnings, billboard graphics and lettering

Lc9s - probably too tall for some pants, ruger semi aesthetics, ugh...

Bodyguard - haven't really read/heard much positive things about them

Shield - too big

G43 - too big

Xds - too big, i think heavy too

Cw380 - seems great but read nonstop complaints about reliability and a ton of break in required

Cw9 - same as the cw380, but probably in addition to the same issues as a g42

Remington r51 or rm380 - too many quality issues to bother

All others i can think of, like sig, are too expensive

Looks like I should just buy an lcp and not look at it, right? LOL
The one pocket pistol you have not indicated, and I carry at certain times, is the USA MADE Kel-Tec PT3AT 380 caliber pistol. I have fired every type HP and Round Point ammunition through it, and never had a problem.
Couple things I like most about it, is it's very thin in design, a very simple break-down to clean and reassemble.
 
#118 ·
I've been carrying an LCP for a few years now, and I'm pretty happy with it. I pull it out of it's holster every few months, blow out the lint, run a few down the pipe, clean, lube, reload, start over.

I carried a Makarov for a while, but it's far too big and heavy to carry comfortably, and the recoil was a little too snappy. The LCP slaps hard as well, but it's not as bad as the 9x18.

I really don't see moving away from the .380 for a pocket gun, but a Springfield EMP 9mm in the hip sure looks appealing.
 
#121 ·
Personally the LCP is/was the best pocket gun I've ever tried. Craptastic but it functioned flawlessly and was perfect in a nylon pocket holster. That said, I've pocket carried a Model 60 and it worked pretty well but the cylinder left a pretty obvious bulge. My G42 worked well also but like you predicted it was a little tough to draw. I'd say try the LCP II, supposed to be an improvement in almost every way besides mag capacity.
 
#138 ·
I prefer the Gen 2 LCP in stainless. The LCP II is blued and will rust easily. It also weighs 1.5 more oz (oz count for pocket carry) and lacks the curved geometry of the frame and "melted" slide of the original LCP and is more boxy (like a Glock) and has a noticeably thicker frame and slide.

The LCP II trigger is still 6.5 lbs like the improved Gen 2 LCP despite the "single action" trigger design and DA is probably preferred for a dedicated pocket gun anyway.

I think Ruger went in the wrong direction with the LCP II, although the last round hold open is nice and IMO the only tangible feature on that gun.
 
#123 ·
Oh you youngsters....

Back in the day pocket guns were .25 autos i.e, Baby Brownings/Colt "Vest Pocket" 1908s, the Colt Hammerless pistols, Colt Junior/Asta Cubs or a myriad of cheap small imported .25s and .32s which may have included some of those break top Iver Johnsons, H&Rs, etc, etc. in .32 and .38 S&W (short). The GCA of 68 did away with a lot of cheap imported "Saturday Night Specials" only to be replaced by more powerful guns or domestically made copies (stainless Bauer/Fraser .25 copies of the Baby Browning) or the "Ring of Fire" guns i.e, Davis, Jennings, Bryco, Phoenix, Raven, Lorcin etc.

In addition other pocket guns popped up as as well i.e, Sterling and of course AMT brought out the .380 Backup which was one of the first decent quality purpose made pocket guns. It was striker fired but had a manual safety as well as a grip safety. The Sterling was a small decent quality striker fired pistol that came in both .25 ACP and .22 LR. When I say striker fired, I don't mean the safe action type strikers like in more modern duty pistols.

I admit that I carried a Colt .25 then a Bauer .25, then a Sterling model 302 .22lr as backup guns both on and off duty before getting a .380 Backup.

The Backup was replaced with Charter Arms Off Duty .38 spl with a pocket hammer, then a Charter Arms Bulldog Pug 2"bbl with pocket hammers. The Charter Arms were backup guns as well as off duty guns.

I often carried a Star PD .45 auto off duty which was a great little gun but too large for pocket carry.

I think Kel Tec kind of re-invented pocket guns with the P32 and then the P11 which is really the first modern pocket 9. Everybody pretty much jumped on the bandwagon after that by either bringing out their own versions or directly ripping off the P32/P11/PF9/P3AT.

I have a couple of the Kel Tecs and a Ruger LC9. I actually prefer the P11 since it is only slightly larger, holds more rounds and the thicker double stack grip is easier to manage in rapid fire.

Those are my adventures in pocket guns.
 
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