Posted: 7/11/2011 4:30:38 PM EDT
Wifey is looking for a new pocket-pistol. She currently has a Kahr P380 with the crimson-trace laser on it. Recently, it has begun to get a little picky with ammo and we are thinking of ditching it. She already has a line on a Glock 26, but she needs something in the super-small and super-thin class for summertime and when dress does not permit the wider Glock. Hard to hide the block on a 5'8" 115lb blonde in skinny jeans.
While at the crack-dealer ( I mean gun store) today, I found a really sharp looking mustang for sale. Wifey has always liked these guns, as she had learned how to shoot on an old Colt Government many many moons ago. Can anyone tell me anything about this gun? It appears to be high-polished stainless steel. Is the frame Aluminum or steel? I'm not sure I want a gun from Colt's "strike years" either. Are these reliable and reasonably accurate? I think this particular gun comes with a few extra mags and some extra grips for $600. I could probably get it for a little less than that, as my dealer likes to haggle. We would be looking to trade the Kahr, that we have about $580 in already. Obviously, it is a Cocked & Locked condition 1 carry. Wifey thinks she can live with this, and I seem to trust her. She does not F-around. All I know is that looks like a damn pimp-gun 
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I can almost guarantee you that the slide stop area will peen back and wear out if you shoot it and allow it to lock back. This is the only complaint I have about mine (that and adding night sites will cost $250). They are great shooters and accurate. The recoil is very low due to the locked breach design. Presonally, I would buy the sig P238 if I had it to do over again. You can get one with night sights for a little less than $600.
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May or may not apply to your piece. http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=260225&referrerid=36767 |
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Quoted:
May or may not apply to your piece. http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=260225&referrerid=36767 Interdasting 
Need to find out the difference between the Mustang and Mustang II.... If anything goes wrong with it, I can always drop off the gun at the Colt factory on my way to work in the a.m. At least living in CT has SOME bennefit
Also of note.....The front sight on the pistol in question appears to have been ground or filed. It is smooth, like from the factory, but certainly not the perfect hump you would see on an old 1911 or 1903. I did notice that the guiderod is plastic. Is the trigger plastic as well? I'm pleased with the feedback so far. Keep it coming. It is hard to find good info on these guns. |
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My wife carries a stainless gvt mdl .380, nice little guns. Never had a Mustang but I hear they are pretty similar. $500 is a good price, not sure if the extra $100 puts it over the edge or not.
(And disregard the haters, mother-of-pearl grips look good on a ladies stainless) |
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Quoted:
Quoted:
May or may not apply to your piece. http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=260225&referrerid=36767 Interdasting
Need to find out the difference between the Mustang and Mustang II.... If anything goes wrong with it, I can always drop off the gun at the Colt factory on my way to work in the a.m. At least living in CT has SOME bennefit
Also of note.....The front sight on the pistol in question appears to have been ground or filed. It is smooth, like from the factory, but certainly not the perfect hump you would see on an old 1911 or 1903. I did notice that the guiderod is plastic. Is the trigger plastic as well? I'm pleased with the feedback so far. Keep it coming. It is hard to find good info on these guns. The factory trigger is plastic. There are after market aluminum triggers as there are after-market steel guide rods. That gun appears to have a S.S. frame. The aluminum frames had very porous castings. As previously mentioned the slides are a bit soft. I personally have a spare slide for my Mustang. Very slick .380's, if a bit heavy by todays standards. |
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Thanks for the info again folks!
Some research indicates that Colt has indeed resumed production of new mustangs with a late Q3 release. I'm not holding my breath on that announcement, but I do think I have enough info to go take another look with the wife some night this week. She still wants to give the kahr another 100 -150 rounds before giving up on that too, but who knows, it's up to her. |
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It's a .380... But with that said, if you like the 1911 platform the Sig P238 is a viable option.
I almost bought one before the M&P, but I held off to re-evaluate the power of the .380 I carried the Beretta 85 (chambered, hammer down, safety off, and mag topped off) for a long time and my M&P9c is just as concealable when on my waist or in the smartcarry. If I had to get another .380, I"m pretty sure it would be the sig p238. Just for the cool factor though because cocked and locked w/o double action and only a thumb safety doesn't give me warm and fuzzies for pocket or smartcarry.com. Which is the way I carry for ultra deep concealment. I don't see that happening though, because I already have the J-Frame Airweight for that. |
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My P238 has been flawless and recommend it when someone asks about pocket .380s. Having shot or owned most pocket .380s out there, the P238 is above them all in almost every category. Excellent trigger, sights and feel. Mags eject with authority and recoil is next to nil. Yes its C'd and L'd carry which scares people in pocket pistols as well as full size 1911s so if your afraid of one, you'll probably be afraid of the other. The safety is very positive which also includes a firing pin safety. Use a pocket holster. On the rare occasion that I do pocket carry, its the P238 and the extra weight over a P3AT or LCP is not a problem and more desirable since it allows extremely easy follow-up shots without a long trigger pull or reset.
If you get a P238, avoid Mustang mags or the older Sig mags. I've had zero problems with my P238 but I'll mention to use the newest mag type that have a slope/dimple follower which has proved to be the most reliable. Yes, some people have had no problems with the older mags or Mustang mags but its not as many as those that have had 100% reliability with the 3rd gen Sig mags. Colt allowed Sig to make the P238 and I find it funny that Colt is coming back out with the Mustang again. Are they going to use Sigs changes to the design of the gun or magazine and/or do they want to get in on the sales of the pocket pistols again since seeing how popular they are? The picture of the Mustang at the SHOT show looked identical in apperance to the original, tiny sights and all so we'll see if they changed anything internally. 
ETA: Here is the vid of the Mustang from SHOT - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uOh5g5mbyaM Seems they improved the quality according to the Colt rep. but, their release date of June this year has obviously not happened so who knows when it will appear on store shelves. |
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Quoted:
Im glad to see the Colt Mustang is coming back into production maybe it will drive down the price of the old ones since they are no longer discontinued. Series 70 1911's sure are not going down
The woman is still torn between the two. Still doing my homework, and not surprised either, that the mustangs are finnicky too. These little .380s are perfect for women. Finnicky. May end up doing it arfcom style and getting both.
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While the Colt has a good name, and the Sig is essentially the same thing - if you shift to other practical .380s and consider viable options you should at least pick up and hold a S&W Bodyguard 380 - and if you're already at the shop, hold a PPS in 9mm to see how much more you get in a size that might still work. As an owner of both the BG380 and PPS - I personally would like that Colt to lay next to the PPK/S which is essentially a safe queen, or used when a sport coat allows for a shoulder rig when out for fine dining. |
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PgrjCy58d0&feature=youtube_gdata_player
It might be tough for some of you to watch, but there is lots of good info in there. |
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I have two Colt Mustangs, a regular blue and a Pocketlite. Personally, I never had any problems with either, and I would recommend it.
The only "con" that I have, in the cleaning. When the gun looks like a 1911, it is like 95% 1011. When you clean the gun, be double, sure that you don't push the ejector too far down, otherwise you will have to depress the "sear spring" in order to reset it. You just can push it back into position. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: May or may not apply to your piece. http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=260225&referrerid=36767 Interdasting Need to find out the difference between the Mustang and Mustang II.... If anything goes wrong with it, I can always drop off the gun at the Colt factory on my way to work in the a.m. At least living in CT has SOME bennefitAlso of note.....The front sight on the pistol in question appears to have been ground or filed. It is smooth, like from the factory, but certainly not the perfect hump you would see on an old 1911 or 1903. I did notice that the guiderod is plastic. Is the trigger plastic as well? I'm pleased with the feedback so far. Keep it coming. It is hard to find good info on these guns. The factory trigger is plastic. There are after market aluminum triggers as there are after-market steel guide rods. That gun appears to have a S.S. frame. The aluminum frames had very porous castings. As previously mentioned the slides are a bit soft. I personally have a spare slide for my Mustang. Very slick .380's, if a bit heavy by todays standards. Not to say you don't have a clue about what you're talking about, but the frames were forged not cast. So no, they were not cast or porous. |
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Quoted: Well my S.S. Mustang's frame has casting marks and is somewhat porous. I like my Mustang, despite a soft slide that gets dinged by the slide stop (heck that is why I have a spare Colt slide for it). Do you like yours? Colt does not, and has never, used casting for the slides or receivers in their 1911s or mini-1911 pattern pistols.  I had a Government Pocketlight .380 but I'm trying to get away from the .380 for carry. Of course, it's kinda easy now that I can just use an issued pistol for carry off-duty.  |