Reloading your own .380 ammo for practice is highly recommended. You'll save money on it and can dial down the recoil to make practice more enjoyable which is a good thing for something you protect your life with.
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Reloading your own .380 ammo for practice is highly recommended. You'll save money on it and can dial down the recoil to make practice more enjoyable which is a good thing for something you protect your life with.
From what I've read, many reloaders don't reload the .380 because it's size is a P I T A. I stumbled upon a good deal on used .380 dies at a gun show, have a little bit of brass saved, never got around to ordering the little pills.
I don't practice with the KelTec P3AT. I made sure it works with the ammo that's in it. I know if i point it, the bullet will go where I am pointing, just like the handguns I do practice with. I also consider it a 21 foot and less effective range (red that point-shoot accuracy). When I am serious about self defense (such as when I went to the polls to vote yesterday) I carry my Glock 23 in .357 Sig configuration. The original .40S&W barrel resides with the 9mm conversion barrel that I use for practice.
I watched the Bull vid of the choices of .380s. That's fine for his 2-3/4 barrel, but hardly relates to the KelTec or Ruger copy with 1-3/4 barrel. I'll stick with my mix of FMJ and Gold Dots. One of 'em should discourage a bad guy or two.
Just curious - where are you getting your 1.75" barrel length? A KelTec P3AT has a 2.7" barrel as does the Ruger LCP
https://www.keltecweapons.com/pistols/p-3at
https://ruger.com/products/lcp/models.html
There's nothing to worry about lawfully owning a .380 (9x17mm).
These days, affordable cartridges are readily available unlike a decade ago when those cartridges were the equivalent of unobtanium at nearly any price. And finding brass for your reloading endeavors was equally troubling.
They're pretty easy to conceal/carry.
Easy to reload too - you most certainly don't need the thump of a Dillon 650 - a Dillon 550 progressive press (and others including single stage presses) will do just fine. And of course, you can tailor your load for your particular .380 and your preferred shooting distance. While the .380's I have (Beretta, Browning, Colt, Walther) shoot quite well out to 15 yds. (paper, clays, steel plate targets,etc.), you've got to remember that these aren't rounds capable of putting the hurt on the likes of, say, Godzilla.
But as a defensive round in a 5 yard or less defensive perimeter, they do just fine - especially if you lawfully carry, know how to shoot, and remember to bring your gun (with a extra mag) to the fight.
Congrats on your acquisition.
Attachment 112054
Congrats on the purchase. I carry a Ruger LCP occasionally. .380 may not be the most powerful caliber, but I don't know anyone who'd want to be shot with it.
One bit of advice though... It seems you sort of did things in reverse. You bought a gun, then decided to research it and the caliber. Most folks would do the research BEFORE making the purchase. You'll probably have more success and be more satisfied with a new gun purchase if you learn some things about it prior to handing over your money. Getting a chance to shoot the gun or a similar one prior to purchasing is great too, but not always possible.
Enjoy your .380 and welcome to the forum!
+1
Common with the smaller 380 pistols.
Snakebite is definitely one thing to keep in mind when choosing smaller .380 pistols as it can limit the amount of time and number of rounds you will shoot while practicing at the range.
Beretta makes a larger compact .380 pistol- the Cheetah series. The larger frame size and steel construction mitigate felt recoil, and allows for longer and more enjoyable range time.
Yikes! Can't believe I did that. Measured from muzzle to forward end of the ejection port. I certainly know better, but that's what I did.
Well, that's great. Maybe I will look into the XTP stuff. Sorry to post bad info. Thanks for jumping on it.