Does anyone carry a C & R pistol daily?

I have p64 (see other post) p38, cz52, cz50, Yugoslavian M57 TT Tokarev, 1891 nigant, Chinese Type 54 Tokarev

I know a guy but it wasn’t c&r when he bought it. He’s just been carrying it that long

I would not trust my life to70+ year old metallurgy.

I don’t normally, but I have on occasion.

i used my p64 during my w & c class. it was older then 1/2 of the students.  a lot of the new fancy carry pistol had  feeding and extraction issues.  my p64 ran perfectly fine. in fact i was one of the highest scores in class with a 24 out of 25 points. not a single person  got a 25/25. i was using brown bear steel cased ammo.

It's not the metallurgy to be concerned about unless you're talking old iron framed revolvers or something. The concern would be worn springs and magazines that don't feed properly due to many decades of abuse.

I collect WW2 German pistols and have always liked the way the Sauer 38H handled, so when I spotted a nickel plated 38H at a gun show for cheap I bought it. I used it as a CCW pistol for a while but given that it's only a .32 I decided to get something in a larger caliber. I still carry it on occasion but it's mostly a safe queen now.

Most C&R guns are not rated for +P ammo which is the majority of self defense rounds out today.  For reliability the only guns I would consider would be makarovs or a cz-82.  There are much better carry options today so using a C&R gun would be handicapping yourself with weaker rounds and lower capacity.

Unfortunately cost is a big factor for me right now.  i bought a ruger max 9 from the classified section here and waiting for it to be shipped. The p64 will have to work until i get the max 9 or my lcp 380 shooting right.

I have carried with complete confidence lots of C&R age guns

WWII 1911A1
S&W revolvers made in the 1950’s
Plus some others

A well maintained gun shooting appropriate ammo can get the job done even if it is 100 years old

part of my carry rotation  is a mid 60's Smith Centennial,
Colt M1903 in 32
and a Browning Hi Power that is dated 1969


no issues with either of them,  all run well and  are reliable

carrying a P64 for years, I practice with it often never had an issue with it. I did put new springs in it when I got it years ago. Just take care of it and practice with it.

P64 with new Wolff springs

It works, is accurate, and is cheap to replace

What ammo are you running as self defense ammo in the P64?

I have done lots of times. In both Iraq and Afghanistan we were issue M2 50’s ( the vast majority of the heavy lifting gun wise in these places was the belt feds)
The majority of which dated to WWII
In Iraq our squad designated marksmen were issued M14’s the last of which was built in 1963.

I typically carry a M1911a1 (newer Kahr made), as I don't own an original unfortunately.  But I have been known to carry a Chinese contract Inglis made Hi-power,  early Luger in 7.65x21 (loaded with Fiocchi semi jacketed soft points), Walther P38. If I could figure out a way too, I'd carry the Colt M1917 too. But it's a beast.

I routinely carry a 1955 Sistema as well as 1930s-60s era Colt and Smith revolvers.

Makarov. Still have a few boxes of Hornady HP's and a nice Kramer horsehide holster.

I daily carry a PPK in .32, it has new grips , springs , magazines and the loaded chamber indicator and spring have been updated to the new ( late 1950’s) spec. Nothing shoots better for me in that size of gun than my ppk. Before the ppk I carried a S&W model 40.

I could understand from the issue of not wanting to run +P in an older weapon, but are there any other considerations that you have in mind?

I've carried a Mak in the past.  But, no not normally.

I used to carry a Makarov, because it was cheap and fit my hand well.

These days I can't imagine why I'd carry any C&R pistol, unless it was for fun as part of a costume or for a special event where a historical carry piece made thematic sense. You can get a Beretta Pico for $199 if you want a small reliable .380, and for a 9mm you can get plenty of good modern guns for way cheaper than most decent C&R pistols.

If you want to carry a C&R anyway, go for it. I wouldn't worry about normal carry/holster wear unless the gun was pristine factory-new condition, or is a gun you can't get consumable parts for (if you can't at least get new recoil springs you shouldn't carry the gun anyway). Just oil them so they don't rust from sweat.

Definitely replace the recoil spring of any old gun you plan to shoot, they are almost always worn well beyond when they should have been replaced. Wolff makes them for most guns.

ETA: I see you are talking about a P64. They are fine, just replace the recoil spring with a much stronger one (be sure to use a dremel or metal file to flatten the rear end to match the original spring or the slide won't want to function properly. I use the Wolff 22lb recoil spring (along with one of the hammer springs from the reduced power hammer spring pack, can't recall which one) and have never had a malfunction and it tames recoil a LOT. I'd highly recommend both it and the reduced power hammer spring. Just be sure to grind the back of the recoil spring flat to match the original or you'll have a bad time.

No because I bang against counters all day long when I work. Don’t want to damage anything, that’s why I CC a Shield or a Glock.

I inherited both from my grandpa. I carry them sometimes mostly on holidays and special occasions.

One of my CZ 82's was beat to snot and that I use as carry gun when hiking/backpacking in a decent OWB leather holster. Recently refinished it and replaced all the springs with new springs along with new sights and would have no problem carrying it everyday if I didn't have other options.

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Magnificent!