P3AT, LCP, TCP, or other!?!?!

[Feddog82]

OK, once again it is getting warm and I am left without a "tiny" carry weapon for the days that I am in mesh shorts and a T-shirt, @ softball practice, out on the boat, or any other situation that takes away from concealment.

I had a Ruger LCP a couple years ago (before the recall) and it did not cycle hollow points at all. I do not know if these issues were throughout the line or if they were specific to the one I had. It did shoot the FMJs very well for such a small gun though. It also looked a lot nicer than the Kel-Tec line.

I have never fired a P3AT however I have handled them. I have not even handled the new Taurus TCP. I know that the Magnum Research is not for me just as the other heavy weight mini autos.

With all of that in mind, please recommend the .380 mini that you own and tell me why you recommend it over others. Thanks, I will be making a new purchase later this week so I'm looking for the final push.

[bripro]

I have the P3AT. It is what it looks like. A cheap, poorly fitted and put together pistol. But.......it works. Thats the bottom line. Mine has worked flawlessly with both HPs and FMJs from day one. It's what I carry when I can't carry a gun (if that makes any sense).

[*Klutch*]

I have the LCP and it's my second one. I like them better than the KT cause they are just nicer; better fit and finish and I don't have any feed issues but I only use Hornady CD and Speer GD. I also would recommend the Taurus for the grip being a bit better than the LCP and recoil is slightly more manageable.

[00gt1]

I agree with the p3at being made cheaply. But... I love mine. I can carry it anywhere and everywhere without anyone knowing and it takes anything i throw at it ammo wise. I was looking at an LCP but something told me to go with a p3at and i'm glad I did. Pair it up with a Don Hume leather holster and you have an invisible pocket gun minus the annoyance of pocket carry. I have no experience with the taurus.

[wellcraft]

i was looking at a 380 that looked like a baby glock produced by a company called diamondback. i've never heard of diamondback but it seemed to be a nice little pistol and fit perfectly in my front pocket. the only downside was the price, 425, which was to much money for a brand i've never heard of especially when the ruger, kel-tec and taurus were all priced a hundred bucks less. i really like the new ultra small 380's and i think i'm going to pick one up in the near future but it's probably be the ruger since i thnk their guns are of better quality than the rest that are out there.

[Coils]

I got a P3AT and agree, they aren't high end but they work.
It's a little snappy for a 380 but that's most likely because of it's size & weight.

[bgeddes]

My LCP would not feed HP rounds until I spent 10 minutes polishing the feed ramp. Now it will eat anything. The Ruger is a better built gun IMO.

[*Klutch*]

i was looking at a 380 that looked like a baby glock produced by a company called diamondback. i've never heard of diamondback but it seemed to be a nice little pistol and fit perfectly in my front pocket. the only downside was the price, 425, which was to much money for a brand i've never heard of especially when the ruger, kel-tec and taurus were all priced a hundred bucks less. i really like the new ultra small 380's and i think i'm going to pick one up in the near future but it's probably be the ruger since i thnk their guns are of better quality than the rest that are out there.

Don't waste your $ on the Diamondback they don't feed very well and they have trigger issues. Don't sleep on the Taurus they are not the same Taurus of the 1990's; their CQ has gone up greatly in the past few years and they are now designing some of their own pistols that are real nice. I have only owned and still do a PT1911 and I will say it's F-ing nice as hell and 1/2 the price of a Kimber or Springer. Take a close look at the Pt709 or the 738 the next time you go to the toy store compare them to the Ruger LCP and the KT PF-9 they really will surprise you. Commercial is now over!

[swack]

Seeing as how few people seem to own the TCP I'll just repost my experiences here that I already posted on another thread:

First, some general comments on the gun... I bought it because I was in the market for a pocket carry pistol for situations where a IWB simply doesn't work. The guns I was considering were: Taurus TCP, Ruger LCP, Kel Tec P3at, Sig P238, and Kahr P380. Price ruled the Kahr and Sig out, which left me with the LCP, TCP, and P3at (which are all very similar IMO). The Kel Tec was the next one ruled out because fit and finish was so far behind the Ruger and Taurus, and it lacked a slide stop. I liked the way the Taurus felt in my hand a lot better than the Ruger, plus the slide locks back on an empty mag, so I went home with a TCP. Also, I have shot the LCP and P3at before and IMO the Taurus is the most controllable of the 3, most likely due to the grip.

When I first purchased the gun, I took it home to disassemble and clean it. Dissassembly requires removal of the take down pin, and for whatever reason it simply wouldn't come out. I checked the forums, watched the instructional video and ended up calling customer service. The CS rep said that they can be tight from the factory and that it may require more force or I could send it in for service. I went with the more force approach, but scratched the plastic grip. This ticked me off, but wasn't the end of the world since this is a working gun and will get scratched eventually anyway. After disassembling and reassembling the gun multiple times, it becomes progressively less difficult to remove this pin.

I've had this TCP for over a month now but I haven't got the opportunity to shoot it much due to the cost and availability of ammo. At this point, I have 120 rounds through it. 50 UMC 95gr FMJ, 50 Independence 95gr FMJ and 20 Hornady HP.

When the gun shoots, I enjoy it. Recoil is not bad compared to others 380s of the same size, and it is more than accurate enough for its purpose. Reliability on the other hand has been atrocious. Every third round or so, the gun fails to extract the previous cartage from the chamber. This occurs regardless of what ammo I use, what lube, how clean or dirty the gun is, I have even used a wrist brace to make sure that I am not limp wristing. Nothing works. I called CS again today and the gun will be heading back to Taurus on Monday on their dime. Hopefully I'll have a functional gun when it returns.

[Flash]

I have the KelTec P3AT, and it is exactly what it is - an inexpensive, thoroughly functional, easily concealable, and very reliable defense firearm. 380ACP = 9x17mm.

Recoil is snappy, but that is to be expected, considering the dimensions and mass of the gun. Well within toleration for the average shooter. Surprising, but not at all unmanageable.

I have a "SOFT-AMOR" by MilTech ambidextrous IWB holster that will work just as well as a pocket-holster. I also have a sewn-in pocket in some of my trousers for pocket carry, which is nice.

My primary cary is 9x19mm, a KelTec also. Model P-11, 10+1 rounds.

Flash