Posted: 3/22/2008 2:53:36 PM EDT
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Which ones have you owned? I've had a bunch over the years. Beretta 950BS: Loved it, small and reliable. I sold it though, stupid. Beretta 21A: Bigger and less reliable than the 950BS NAA Mini revolver: Cant hit shit with it and has fragile lockwork. S&W SW380 "sigma": What a hunk of crap. Was glad to be rid of it. Sig P230: Great .380! Wife's favorite CCW gun. Walther PP .32: Accurate, reliable but wicked hammer bite. Taurus 85CH: Was a nice revolver except it had poor quality FP return springs that often had to be replced. Ruger SP101 22LR. Accurate revolver but it would bind bad when it got dirty. S&W 442: Great gun. Will keep this one forever. Favorite BUG. Glock 26: Great gun. Reliable, accurate. Often used as my primary CCW. |
I currently have the SW380. It was real pricey for what it was. Was unfortunate they used Zinc die-cast for the upper. The lower polymer was more solid. The trigger pull is very heavy, but probably very safe though. It fires shots without hitch. Cannot use +P loadings in it though as per the manual. Been told that if it goes into SW for the Lifetime warranty, if they cannot repair it, they will offer a replacement model.(Maybe a Sigma ).I don't mind the SW380 for what it does. Mine is reliable and fairly small. Better than a Lorcin, for sure . Waiting to see how the new Ruger LCP380 shakes out.Was was POS'y about yours? |
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Fun topic!! I am now in a no-CCW state (though do have a TX permit as I go there often and had a chance to get one), so don't pack the little guys anymore. Still own.. (1) Beretta Jetfire (yes, mine's that old). Shot over 10 boxes through it. Never a hiccup. It bites the hell out of me, but if I avoid choking up on it I'm OK. Won several bets with it -- if you're willing to practice enough you can get to breaking clays (STATIONARY) at 30 feet or more. (2) PPK in 7.62ACP (50's vintage). Also a nasty nipper, but beautifully finished, and like many .32s amazingly accurate. Wish I could supress her (..."Bond, James Bond...") (3) Two Maks, both Bulgys (borderline as mouse guns, but I think they qualify). Nothing need be said except a great design, and everyone should have one. (4) SP101 in .357. Bought from a friend who needed the dough; he has never wanted it back. I think it's a riot. A mouse that roars, my friend. I love handing this to "manly" range guests to light off a few of my old leftover 180gr deer loads -- lots of 2400 out of a 2 1/4" bbl will light up the sky. Used to own... (5) S&W M49, stolen with only a few rounds fired through it. Tragic. (6) Charter Arms Pathfinder (not the new one -- I mean the 1976-ish one). I actually put a 1.1x Hutson Handgunner scope on it (if you remember what those were you are, like me, too fookin' old). One of the few guns I've ever sold, definitely regret it. People tell me I got the only good one. (7) Grandma's .22 short RG revolver. Holy crap -- Charles Atlas hand exerciser trigger, yet despite the AWESOME mainspring it would light a primer only about 60% of the time. Spit lead like a demon. I took it in for a "buyback" and got $50 for it. Next stop is a CZ82 because they're neat, and a PM9 Kahr (again, not a mouse per se, but surely in the tiny class). |
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I've owned two Kel-Tec P-32's The first one I had was a 1st generation one, it ran pretty well for about 500 rounds before I sold it (foolishly). It was pie plate accurate out to 10 yards or so in my hands, and I even broke a few clay targets at 20 yards with it once!  The second one I recently bought is the newer version... verdict is still out as it has less than 100 rounds through it right now. The sights are better than the original. I dont like to carry such a small gun as a primary, but for work in the summer I needed something ultra-small. I've carried it as a BUG to my G19 a few times so far. If I could find a good deal on a J-frame size 5 shot revolver in 9mm I'd pick one of those up to try. I dont think anyone makes one anymore though. |
I definatly do NOT consider the ones in red as "mouse guns". The .38 was a standard service cartridge in military and LE for a LONG time. 9MM  it's what we're killing bad guys in Iraqistan with right now.The .380, maybe. I don't aggree about the Mak either. It was also a service pistol. It is a weak caliber, but still a service weapon. |
I classify it by size not caliber. a 44mag derringer is a mouse gun. A ruger Mk11 .22LR is not. Call then subcompacts or pocket pistols if it makes you feel better. |
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Colt Pocket Models in both .32 and .380. Should have kept the .380. Both flawless reliability with FMJ. A bit large but thin...very thin. Older Browning / FN .380...Single action auto...not the target sight model and not the newer DA version. Nice pistol but not as thin as the Colt...very reliable with FMJ. Colt Vest Pocket .25...too small to handle but reliable with FMJ. Baby Browning .25...same as Colt above but no grip safety. Even smaller. All later SS copies were shit. All these were older, 'classic' models but readily available thirty five years ago at decent prices in varied stages of 'used'...mostly unused but carried a lot. Only one I miss is the .380 Colt and I don't miss it all that much. |
That means it is tight, not a thing to complain about . |
| I miss my Colt Pocketlite. Everybody should have one unless they're already carrying a .38 snubbie. Same ballpark. I had Beretta 950BS in .25acp, and carried it with Magsafes. While it's not my first choice as a manstopper, it's easy to toss it in a pocket. Accurate for what it is. I shot .25 magsafes into the same media as lots of larger calibers and I must say that these things (magsafes) in tiny calibers make a small gun into a bigger gun. Not much, but it will help some. FWIW, .25acp magsafes will penetrate a 12" ham with a 2" exit hole. Not scientific, but impressive for a cartridge that you can swallow like a tylenol. |
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Mine has always had failures to extract, even after paying a gunsmith to work on it. Nice little gun and reasonably accurate for having almost no sights and it has almost no recoil. Safety is far too small for a pistol intended to be used for self defense. Attractive little pistol, but time has passed it by. |
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Nice pics - thanks. I wouldn't call it a "Mouse Gun" , but +1 for the 442. Does sub-compact define "mouse gun" or is it the caliber. If just the ability to ride easilly in a pocket is the criteria then the J-frame gets the vote everytime. If a J-Frame is too big to conceal I'm changing outfits. I used to own a first gen Kel-Tec P32 and never really felt that I had a capable weapon when carrying it. It was a picky eater too. Friends don't let friends carry "Mouse Guns" as a primary. But there is a place for them and they are fun to own and collect. I like the pics. Thanks. JC |
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Kel-Tec P11 9mm. 10 plus rounds of 9mm +p in a ultra small gun that I feel confident I can shoot accurately and trust it. Also love my AMT Backup in .45 cal. gun is built like a tank and has been very reliable for me. It is truly a 6 round pocket rocket if I have a serious need. Both guns are very small, easy to conceal, more than powerful enough for their size, |
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Bersa Thunder380: nice, but not a potent round for the size of the gun. Mine required a bit of smoothing of the frame, as the edges were super sharp, and cut the wife when she shot it. Mags are expensive as the only ones that work are factory. Kahr PM9: best little gun I have ever shot. Easy to shoot, super accurate and reliable. Way smaller than the Glock. |
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I've carried a dedicated pocket-gun/BUG for most of my 20+ years of licensed carry, and I have owned a bunch of them. FWIW, I'm not sure how you define "mouse gun" but I dress in lightweight suits/dress slacks 6-7 days a week and don't consider several of the guns already mentioned in this thread as true "pocket-guns" (at least not for my purposes -- YMMV) based upon their size, weight, and/or propensity to "print." I've had a Baby Browning and its stainless Bauer cousin, Berettas (950BS Jetfire, 21A Bobcat, 3032 Tomcat), various derringers, Grendels (P-10 & P-12), an Intratec (Pro-Tec), Kel-Tecs (P-32, P3ATs), an NAA Guardian, and some Sundance .25s (  ) and other "junk guns" as well as a bunch of smallish .380s, 9mms, and revolvers that might well be "pocket guns" to someone else.The best balance of "power" and true pocket concealability (i.e., complete disappearance) I have personally found is the P3AT (again, YMMV), and I carry one all day, every day, whether or not my primary CCW is on my hip...  And before the slings and arrows of the resident KT-haters, my two (like my P-32 before them) have been utterly reliable once properly broken-in -- and again, YMMV. A few others...  
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I call the AR15 a mouse gun. (it's just a .22, right?) Anyways. Berreta 21A: faily reliable, I bought after market mags that were SUPPOSED to be OEM, they suck, so the only mag to use is the one that came with it. Davis P380: Actually handles pretty well. Very heavy though, for the size. My friend bought an AMT back up 380 at the same time, he said he acvtually liked my Davis better after shooting both. I won't carry it loaded, because I am not confident in the lock work. A pair of Davis 38 special derringers. Actually pretty good. Accuracy sucks, of course. Trigger pull is WAY heavy, some people can't even pull it. Pheonix HP22. I also got the target kit. I shot it in a competition shoot, got 3rd. Actually a good gun. Very accurate. Pretty reliable. The fireing pin retainer came appart and I gun smithed it back together, other than that, great.G26: Glock perfection. I don't like calling this a mouse gun though. S&W 642 S&W airweight chiefs special (forgot model #) Both S&Ws are great. A pair of Leinad (sp) side by side derringers. OK, but they don't lay flat in your pocket like an O/U design.  They're cool to play with.Leinad pepper box. Really heavy. Cool to have, play with, but not practical for carry. A pair of bulgy maks. Great gun. As good as a Glock, reliability wise. I don't call these mouse guns though. Is a Llama Mini Max .45 a mouse gun? |
Yes, I think you're misusing the term "mousegun". It usually refers to caliber. I thought something was wrong when I saw the Glock 26 on the list. |
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I have had a couple of "Mouse" guns over the years. I started out with a, Astra Constable in .380, then went through a a trio of Walthers, a blued PPK/S, a blued PP and a stainless PPK/S. Somewhere along the line I also had a couple of Beretta 21's. Now the only two I have are a Sig P232 and a NNA Guardian in .380:     
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Aimless My Pocketlite is like yours. would not extract brass cases. The extractor barely makes contact with the rim while in battery. Once the slide comes back and the barrel tilts down, only one corner of the extractor has conact with the case. If I stoke the pistol with Hydrashoks, with the nickel cases, the pistol extracts just fine. I have not been successful locating a spare extractor before I send the pistol to one of the better known smiths to tackle the brass case extraction problem. The Pocketlite has since been retired from CCW and in its place is a Kahr PM9. |