[Wrascal]

I'm debating whether to go with the P32, or P3AT.
I'm leaning towards the P32 as I believe it'll be easier to control the gun.

If I go with the P32, can I use the Walmart Win white box ammo (w/ truncated nose) for practice? I think I've read its not too reliable for feeding on this (or perhaps both) KelTec.

If not, how about the similar flat nosed 380 ammo for the P3AT?

I've got some of these rounds stored away, and I'd prefer not to have to purchase more ammo until these are gone.

Still undecided - which forum to put this in, so finally just posted it. Thanks.

 

[Hutch01]

Some folks will suggest the .32 because they consider them more reliable. I don't know about that.

I do know that virtually no one recommends a .32 for self defense. .380 is at the very bottom in terms of recommended calibers for that purpose.

WWB is rather weak ammo, but it's OK for practice in either caliber if it goes bang.

 

[JFB]

welcome Wrascal,

whether the P32 or the P3AT, you will be glad you did. May chose for me was made by what I could find. I went looking for the 32, but dealer just got in the 380, so I got it (First). I got a 32 a few months latter when the dealer only had them.

One thing to consider with ANY 32 is the design of the case. the rim is a bigger diameter than the body. If the rounds can move in the magazine, the upper round's rim may jump behind a lower round and lock the magazine from feeding. to prevent this, you want a round with an over all lenght that fills the magazine. the magazines for P32 will take full lenght rond nose rounds, thus with a JHP or the flat nose wwb you might get rim lock. there is a modification to the magazine if you want to shot the shorter rounds (the Flyer wire)

 

[Dan334]

FWIW, I recently bought a P3AT for my wife's use when her Glock 26 was more than her attire-of-the-day permits her to carry. So far, we've ran a box of WWB practice rounds through it and half a box or so of Corbon DPX without so much as a hiccup.

I've got a couple of boxes of CCI Blazer Brass (my preferred range ammo because it shoots so clean) to try and plan to run a few more DPX just to be sure no problems crop up. If all goes as expected, DPX will be the carry round...

 

[flonder22]

Hi wrascal, welcome to the forum. I`m with Hutch01 on this. The P-3AT IMHO will be a better round for a CCW. I sure love mine. Get yourself a fingertip extension and a Hogue Jr. Rubber sleeve for the grip for better control. By the way, I`m down here in L.A. also, Mobile, where you be at?

 

[Guest]

Wrascal and Dan334... Glad to have you here.


I went with the P3AT. The recoil is not near as bad as some report, and the 3AT is a great point and shoot. The extra "umph" behind the .380 Carbon DPX vs. the .32 is a no brainer for me.


What ever gun you get, consider the fluff and buff, good clean and lube.


golden loki fluff and buff

http://www.goldenloki.com/guns/keltec/prep.htm

http://www.goldenloki.com/guns/keltec/prep2.htm


new gun prep
http://1bad69.com/keltec/newgunprep.htm

dissasembly
http://www.1bad69.com/keltec/disassembly.htm

lubrication hints/tips
http://www.ktog.org/tecwerks1.htm#Lubrication

Dan334... A special welcome to you from another Louisiana boy! I sent you a PM. You will see that link at the top right of the page under the advertising banner. It will say " Hey, Dan334, you have XX messages". Click on that link to see your private messages.

 

[RAT76]

No problems here with WWB JHP in any of my weapons P3AT included. Polish the feed ramp to a high shine and these little guys will eat anything.

 

[olemissmike]

I went with the P3 AT also. I think it is very controllable and it makes me feel better having the more powerful round. With 6 in the mag and 1 in the chamber of .380 that is pretty good for a "get off my back gun".

The difference in sizes between the P32 and P3
AT are very minimal. They are a great front pocket gun.

I keep FMJ in mine just because I don't think JHP is that effective in that caliber IMO.

 

[CHW111]

welcome to the forum,Your pick is good ,but you will most likely get a P-32 & a P-11 most of us did.I used Power Ball in my P-3AT at first, then I picked up a box of Sellier & Bellot at $10.99 for a box of 50 and I think just as hot.Now I carry a mixed mag.I also have a +1 extension on all of my K-T's.If I were you I would shoot up the ww box ammo then try other ammo to see what works best,also I would take the gun down clean and oil it shoot it then if it needs the F&B do it,my 1 gen.P-32 has never had a thing except clean and shoot. 8)

 

[Dan334]

 Wrascal and Dan334... Glad to have you here.

I went with the P3AT.  The recoil is not near as bad as some report, and the 3AT is a great point and shoot.  The extra "umph" behind the .380 Carbon DPX vs. the .32 is a no brainer for me.

Dan334... A special welcome to you from another Louisiana boy!  I sent you a PM.  You will see that link at the top right of the page under the advertising banner.  It will say "   Hey, Dan334, you have XX messages".  Click on that link to see your private messages.

Last things first, thanks for the nice words and the PM.

FWIW, below is a little DPX water jug testing from the P3AT & Glock 26. Certainly of little scientific value however, I do this with most of my defensive rounds and it does provide a bit of a baseline comparison between loads and calibers.

Speaking to the .380, it was fired from a Kel-Tec P3At at about 12 feet and penetrated almostly precisely 12-inches (2-gallon jugs complete, punched a hole into the 3rd but remained in 2nd). If memory serves, the 9MM included in the pic for comparison (fired several months ago) penetrated 3 jugs completely .

As you can see, typical DPX expansion and frankly, I was a bit surprised at the violence produced on the 1st jug by the little .380...the way it exploded, you'd have thought it were hit by a more powerful round.

IMHO, this is about a good as it's going to get with a .380 defensive round. I can't argue with those who choose FMJ in the smaller calibers (penetration does count) but for me & mine, I think while the DPX may not be the "holy grail", it's an awfully good compromise between reliable expansion and penetration.

 

[CC_Dave]

Great pics. I really need to get some DPX carry rounds.

I also feel that 380 is the lowest I would go on a CCW round. I like the CCI Blaser Brass or S&B 380's as I have never had a problem with either. I am now up to 300 S&B FMJ 92g rounds through my P3AT and all 300 rounds have been totally flawless. I would highly recommend a Hogue Handall Jr. to make your range time more... comfortable.

http://www.1bad69.com/keltec/handalljr.htm

Also, I love my Guru pocket holster:

http://www.pocketholsters.com/Kel-Tec_Pocket_Wallet_Holster/kel-tec_pocket_wallet_holster.html


Have fun and be safe.
Dave

 

[Wrascal]

As far as the ammo question: in summary then, the P32 will shoot the flat nosed stuff with a magazine modification, and the P3AT will shoot it as is. Is that a correct summary? Thats how I was thinking I had heard before asking the question here.

Probably a more important question is can I handle the 380 in this size gun. Without shooting either of them, I'll never know. Its a given that the 380 is more powerful, but is it controllable?

I usually CC a Glock 19, sometimes falling back to a Bersa Thunder 380. Neither can fulfill a pocket carry option for me, so the search is on.

Thanks for the current responses.

I'm in the Dothan area of LA.

 

[Sangueffusor]

I think it's very controllable - and I have small hands and sit around in front of a computer all day. I think the larger factor in controllability is using the proper grip.

 

[Dan334]

As far as the ammo question:  in summary then, the P32 will shoot the flat nosed stuff with a magazine modification, and the P3AT will shoot it as is.  Is that a correct summary?  Thats how I was thinking I had heard before asking the question here.

Probably a more important question is can I handle the 380 in this size gun.  Without shooting either of them, I'll never know.  Its a given that the 380 is more powerful, but is it controllable?

I usually CC a Glock 19, sometimes falling back to a Bersa Thunder 380.  Neither can fulfill a pocket carry option for me, so the search is on.

Thanks for the current responses.  

I'm in the Dothan area of LA.

I can only speak to the P3AT I recently purchased, the 1st & only Kel-Tec I've had any 1st hand experience with. I settled on it for 2 primary reasons...first, I consider the .380 bare minimum defensive caliber and second, the P3AT provides ultimate concealment.

I don't find it difficult to control at all, quite the contrary. My wife's only complaint is that the trigger hurts her finger a bit but I'll add a modified trigger shoe to cure that.

Yesterday, we put 50 rounds of WWB and 20 rounds of DPX through it without issue. Frankly, neither of us could detect any appreciable difference when shooting the DPX vs. the WWB...for defensive rounds, the DPX shoots very soft.

The little gun shoots to POA and so far, is all I could have asked for in a small, pocket pistol. From the little I know, Kel-Tec seems to have ironed out most of whatever wrinkles they had in earlier versions. For times when her Glock 26 just "doesn't fit", I think her P3AT will be just fine filling in...

 

[flonder22]

You will love the P-3. Get a fingertip extension and you will be fine. Nice little place, Dothan, been through there a few times.

 

[rcmodel]

Probably a more important question is can I handle the 380 in this size gun.

My impression is that the P3AT is much easier on the hand then the Walther PPK/S shooting equal power loads. (very similar to your Bersa in size & weight)

The blow-back Walther gives a sharp stinging blow to the hand, whereas the locked-breach P3AT seems to spread the recoil out over a longer time-frame.

Other then the very small grip, I find the P3AT is much more pleasant to shoot then the much larger & heavier Walther.

rcmodel

 

[unit1069]

Without shooting either of them, I'll never know. Its a given that the 380 is more powerful, but is it controllable?

I never shot the .32 a chance encounter owner showed me when he told me Kel-Tec made a .380 in the same size and weight as his pistol. I've never shot any .32.

All I was looking for was the optimum CCW pistol as to size, weight, caliber. and ease of conceal.

You can handle either the .32 or the .380. No question in my mind.

 

[Bobo]

... All I was looking for was the optimum CCW pistol as to size, weight, caliber. and ease of conceal

If this is indeed your criteria then the Rohrbaugh might fit best - at about $1000.

Caliber: 9 mm Luger
Capacity: 6 +1
Overall Length: 5.2”
Height: 3.7”
Width: 0.91”
Weight Empty: 14.3 oz.
Weight Fully Loaded: 17 oz.


If cost is also a consideration then the P-3AT is the only one that fits - at under $300.

Caliber: .380 ACP
Capacity: 6 +1
Overall Length: 5.2”
Height: 3.5”
Width: 0.77”
Weight Empty: 8.3 oz.
Weight Fully Loaded: 11 oz.

 

[Wrascal]

For my intended use (pocket carry) the biggest issue is weight. I guess it should be reliability; but if it's too HEAVY I won't be carrying it.

I can physically hide a Bersa 380 in my pants pocket, but I can't carry it there for long. It just weighs too much on my leg.