Posted: 12/9/2010 8:27:59 PM EDT
| your thoughts? i've promoted mine to truck gun status for the sole fact that it's a cheap (however, reliable) gun and where I work isn't the best part of town. I'd hate to lose my USP 45 or my G19 if anyone broke into my truck. Now before all the 9mm or .45 fanboys jump in, no I don't trust .380 over other, bigger calibers. I just figure loaded with defense rounds, it may not kill someone but I imagine most would stop what they're doing and reconsider. Unlike what is probably most people here, I couldn't care less if they died or not, just quit buggin me. Now what are your thoughts on .380? Like it? Love it? Hate it? What's up? |
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Didn't James Bond carry a .380? LOL. I would think range and shot placement would mean a lot. Up close and personal (3ft. or less) I don't think you would be able to tell the difference between .380 and 9mm Luger during an autopsy.
10mm, when you care enough to send the very best. |
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I think of it as a loud knife. That's probably the best description of .380 I've ever heard. I won't carry less than 9mm as a primary weapon, but I won't fault others who do. I also don't really trust that a .380 HP will expand and penetrate deep enough. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Didn't James Bond carry a .380? LOL. He carried a .32acp and it was also a fictional series.  Many European intelligence operatives used the Browning 9mm in real life (.380). I love my .380 for carry. There was just a thread not too long ago where a guy said he was using one as a truck gun and got jumped on. I say: shoot what you like  But, if your only qualification for a truck gun is "cheap", why bother narrowing it down by caliber? Grab a cheapo converted 9mm Tokerav for $150 and leave it in the car forever, or an old beater .38 revolver for $100... Lots of options on the used market for a reliable pistol on a budget. Speed |
| I carry a Ruger LCP .380 on my person. For a truck gun I would probably use your G19... not THAT expensive (compared to other brands) and you can find one anywhere. I just carry my Ruger because it's so small and comfortable, I hardly know it's there. Not much for sights but it is very, very accurate for that little gun. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Didn't James Bond carry a .380? LOL. He carried a .32acp and it was also a fictional series. IIRC from the book, He chose the 32 because the character thought the 380 kicked like a mule.  Its been a long time since I read it, I may be wrong.IIRC Bond didn't chose, nor want, the .32. He preferred his .25 Beretta, but Major Boothroyd insisted on the "upgrade."  |
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IMHO, a .380 is the gun you carry when you can't carry a gun. (And, until the last decade or so when tiny .380s came on the market, that niche used to be filled by tiny .32s and tinier .25s.) For a pocket-gun or BUG when you can't carry bigger, sure; for a truck gun, no way IMO. All of that said, I have .380 in my pocket all-day, every day. If I could pocket-carry a .38 snub as invisibly, I'd sell my .380s tomorrow... but I've tried over the years and, personally, I can't. When I can carry, the .380 is simply back-up to the Glock on my hip; when I "can't carry," it's at least there on me when nothing bigger can be. All handguns are marginal, but that doesn't mean they are equal. Given a choice, I'll take the bigger gun... but with choices restricted (by whatever means/reasons), I'll take a tiny gun over no gun, every time. YMMV, as always. |
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Didn't James Bond carry a .380? LOL. He carried a .32acp and it was also a fictional series.
IIRC from the book, He chose the 32 because the character thought the 380 kicked like a mule. Its been a long time since I read it, I may be wrong.IIRC Bond didn't chose, nor want, the .32. He preferred his .25 Beretta, but Major Boothroyd insisted on the "upgrade."
You are correct sir. In the Dr.No book, The Major brought in a .38 and the PPK, and Bond was to choose between those two. He tried to swipe his .25 back, but M caught him and made him leave it. (this may have been just from the movie, I'm not sure) Bond ended up taking both the PPK and .38 with him on his next mission. Another bit of side info, is that in the books, Bond slept with a .38 under his pillow, and kept a .45 Colt under the seat in his car. It wasn't ever made clear whether this was a 1911 or a SAA. In the later books, he had a concealed mount under the dash of his car for a Ruger .44. There's your useless knowledge for the day. T_B_S can have the day off. |
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IMHO, a .380 is the gun you carry when you can't carry a gun. (And, until the last decade or so when tiny .380s came on the market, that niche used to be filled by tiny .32s and tinier .25s.) For a pocket-gun or BUG when you can't carry bigger, sure; for a truck gun, no way IMO. All of that said, I have .380 in my pocket all-day, every day. If I could pocket-carry a .38 snub as invisibly, I'd sell my .380s tomorrow... but I've tried over the years and, personally, I can't. When I can carry, the .380 is simply back-up to the Glock on my hip; when I "can't carry," it's at least there on me when nothing bigger can be. All handguns are marginal, but that doesn't mean they are equal. Given a choice, I'll take the bigger gun... but with choices restricted (by whatever means/reasons), I'll take a tiny gun over no gun, every time. YMMV, as always.
I agree with you on this as well. And your sigline too, to be honest! |
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For me,there's a line where a pistol is just too small for me. I bought a pair of Seecamps and never really carried them due to just never being comfortable with how they handled,as well as there being very few occasions where carrying one actually was any easier than my SIG 230 or PPK.
However,now I carry a Walther PPS which is a sweet spot between being small enough to conceal very easily,large enough to shoot well and as a bonus,9mm has a little bit more oomph. ETA: for a truck gun that isn't dependent upon concealability,I'd just go find a cheap 9mm or .45: Sigma,Ruger 89/90,any of the huge number of S&W autos, FEG BHP clone, Star B/BKM/BKS,Firestar.There are plenty of great functioning guns out there that are cheap simply because they're not the latest and greatest.It doesn't mean they're not very good guns though. |
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If I had one, I'd carry it with ball instead of hollow points. Check out the new Hornady "Critical Defense" ammo in .380. Looks like the .380 has some real potential now that it's selling well enough to get the attention of the better bullet designers. |
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For me,there's a line where a pistol is just too small for me. I bought a pair of Seecamps and never really carried them due to just never being comfortable with how they handled,as well as there being very few occasions where carrying one actually was any easier than my SIG 230 or PPK. However,now I carry a Walther PPS which is a sweet spot between being small enough to conceal very easily,large enough to shoot well and as a bonus,9mm has a little bit more oomph. ETA: for a truck gun that isn't dependent upon concealability,I'd just go find a cheap 9mm or .45: Sigma,Ruger 89/90,any of the huge number of S&W autos, FEG BHP clone, Star B/BKM/BKS,Firestar.There are plenty of great functioning guns out there that are cheap simply because they're not the latest and greatest.It doesn't mean they're not very good guns though. I'm sure that I'm not the only one, but the ultimate sweet spot for me would be a PPK in 9x19mm! |
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Didn't James Bond carry a .380? LOL. He carried a .32acp and it was also a fictional series.
IIRC from the book, He chose the 32 because the character thought the 380 kicked like a mule. Its been a long time since I read it, I may be wrong.IIRC Bond didn't chose, nor want, the .32. He preferred his .25 Beretta, but Major Boothroyd insisted on the "upgrade."
And IIRC, he told Bond the .32 was "like throwing a brick through a plate glass window". 
Edited to add: "Major Boothroyd: [to Bond] Walther PPK, 7.65 millimeter, with a delivery like a brick through a plate-glass window. The American CIA swear by them." Dang, I'm good.
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if your just going to leave it in the car why don't you buy a $200 .357 or .38 revolver.
More reliable than .380 and much better performance. If i had to carry a .380 and no sharp sticks or rocks were availiable I would carry ball ammo. All the .380 JHP i saw tested had very shallow penetration, which will get you killed. |
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if your worried about someone breaking in buy a hi point in .45
costs less, hard hitting round, more capacity accuracy from a full size hi point will probably be better than a ruger lcp as much as everyone hates on them hi points are pretty reliable for what they are |
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For me,there's a line where a pistol is just too small for me. I bought a pair of Seecamps and never really carried them due to just never being comfortable with how they handled,as well as there being very few occasions where carrying one actually was any easier than my SIG 230 or PPK. However,now I carry a Walther PPS which is a sweet spot between being small enough to conceal very easily,large enough to shoot well and as a bonus,9mm has a little bit more oomph. ETA: for a truck gun that isn't dependent upon concealability,I'd just go find a cheap 9mm or .45: Sigma,Ruger 89/90,any of the huge number of S&W autos, FEG BHP clone, Star B/BKM/BKS,Firestar.There are plenty of great functioning guns out there that are cheap simply because they're not the latest and greatest.It doesn't mean they're not very good guns though. I'm sure that I'm not the only one, but the ultimate sweet spot for me would be a PPK in 9x19mm! They do- it's called the PA63. They're actually more like a PP but has an alloy frame. I actually bought mine to use as a truck gun; minimal work on it and I'm happy.
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Quoted: I'm pretty sure it will kill someone dead just fine. Not likely. Handguns are notoriously poor man stoppers and most people who get shot with handguns survive. TJ from Tiger Valley tells a story about a time when they served a warrant on a guy back in the 1980s. They roll up and they suspect is standing in the driveway drinking beer. The cops pour out of their cars and surround the guy. One cop grabs the suspect, throws him over the back of a car, jams a .44 magnum into the suspect's back and says 'don't move mother fucker, or I'll blow you away!' The suspect replies "You can't shoot me, this is only a misdemeanor!" and pushes up off the back of the car. Of course the cop had his finger on the trigger and the gun goes off sending pieces of lung and rib bones all over the car. The cop falls on his back and the suspect turns around and says "You just shot me!". In the end it took 4 cops to wrestle the guy onto the gurney to take him to the hospital. The suspect survived. |
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I love my Sig 238, but it is a pcoket gun, not a truck gun.
Want a cheap, reliable truck gun? No worrys about penetartion with these... |
