p3AT or PF9 - for the wife thread

I own both the PF9 and P3AT, and my wife shoots on a regular basis. The only advice I can give is that she dosen't like the PF9, she isn't unusually sensative to recoil as she will shoot my G27. I just bought the P3AT and wifey hasen't shot it yet. I know it's now on your list but I might suggest the P32 my wife carries ours on a regular basis and enjoys shooting it.

CJ

 

My wife does not like to shoot my 3at, it hurts her wrists, never tried a P9, but she enjoys her K 38 Masterpiece, and other heavier guns, but for carry she likes her pt 22, with tip up barrel, she is self reliant with that, she can load the mag, and barrel, and not have to rack it. She cannot rack the 3at, or P32, hopefully the P32 will get easier with use, and she will use it. Jim <><

 

I have both.  The PF-9 recoil is much more than the P3AT.   Your wife will like shooting the P3AT more.  

With that said, I love the PF-9.  The recoil does not bother me, although it is stiff.  Mine has been flawless from the first shot and is extremely accurate for a gun of it's size.

The PF-9 is larger so it will be my winter carry gun and I'll use the P3AT for summer.

By the way, My 15 yr old son loves to shoot all my guns.  The heavier recoilling rifles do not bother him, but he does not like to shoot my PF-9.  He does like the P3AT, however.

You'll probably end up with both anyways.

 

Don't have a PF-9

The wife put three rounds through the 3AT and said, that's it no more for me thanks.

If you happen to be in the Central Ohio area, i'd be happy to let her try my 3AT.
Maybe some others will chime in and let you try theirs.

 

I don't own a PF-9 but I can't say that I would recommend a P-3 for an occasional shooter. As was mentioned here, limpwristing the P-3 is easy to do and I doubt that your wife will find the recoil too pleasant if she is used to shooting bigger, heavier guns (even in larger calibers).

You might want to consider a hammerless .38 by S&W or Taurus. I know that suggesting that isn't in the spirit of keeping KT sales up, but you are looking for a gun that you wife can reasonably conceal on a regular basis and shoot comfortably/confidently. All the concealability in the world does you no good if you close both eyes and turn your head before pulling the trigger because you can't tolerate the recoil.

Just an opinion.....

 

Great image! ;D

 

I'm a newbie here myself and I just bought my first KelTec,  a P-3AT .380.  I have only fired it 34 times so far due to the total lack of .380 ammunition at any source within practical driving distance from my area, but those few rounds have given me  fairly good estimations of the little gun's recoil, reliability, and accuracy potential, all of which are favorable. But I won't even suggest to my wife that she try it out for herself because both of her hands are adversely affected by botched carpal tunnel surgery on both wrists. Recoil is painful enough for her that she can't tolerate any more recoil than that of a .22 rimfire handgun, or at most the .32 S&W Long round that her little S&W J-frame revolver is chambered for. Your wife may not be that recoil-sensitive, and if not I would think that she could comfortably handle the very moderate "kick" of the .380 KelTec, but probably not the 9mm K-T which old man  Newton's law causes to "kick" harder. I haven't fired a PF-9, but I have fired +P ammo in a lightweight alloy .38 special revolver and that comination was definitely a  hard "kicker", and I suspect the 14 ounce 9mm KT would recoil harder than the lightweight .38.

As you can see, I don't have anywhere near enough experience with KT guns of any caliber  to be giving advice regarding the suitability of KT pistols of any caliber for anyone.  But never the less,  I will go waaay out on a shaky limb and say that in my unsupported OPINION the .380 K-T is a more suitable gun for the great majority of lady shooters than the 9mm versions.  If your lady's gun causes her pain with every shot it is inevitable that she will practice much less than she would with a lighter recoiling gun, and consequently she would  be less effective against a potential attacker with the 9mm gun that hurts her than she would be with the less potent .380 gun that she will practice with more because it doesn't hurt when she fires it.  Of course this is just the humble opinion of a man who has virtually no experience with the gun he is tentatively recommending so take it for what it's worth, which along with another 98 cents will buy you a  cup of weak coffee at any Waffle House in town.

 

When my wife expressed interest in ccw I got a friend and we went shooting. I had a Walther PPK/S .380 and he had a .22 semiauto and a Tarus Titanium 38 revolver.

She decided in less that ten shots that a revolver is what she wanted. We got her a S&W 38 Airweight revolver and she loves it. No slide to rack or to cut her hand, easy to load, point and shoot.

If there is any possible to let her shoot before you buy, I would very strongly suggest you do so. Some of the gun ranges here rent guns and they encourage you to try several. I think they let you pay rental ($5) and switch between several guns they have available.

My wife will not carry a PF9 or a P3AT. Yours might not either. Of course you would be very happy to have both!

Billy

 

Haven't shot the pf9 but I can comment on the P3at. My wife has shot the P3at along with my Glock23 and a Rossi .38.
She really likes the little kel-tec a lot. When it was new she couldn't rack the slide but after a fluff and buff, some lubrication and a break in shooting session, she has no problems. I also recommend going over the entire grip, trigger and trigger guard lightly with some 150 grit sand paper to take off some of the flashing and other sharp edges. Makes the little sucker a lot more pleasant to shoot. I would also recommend just enough grip extension to make sure she can get a full two fingers on the grip.

I think she likes the P3at better than the other two guns because it's lighter although she shoots all three equally well.

If I could really choose what my wife carried though I'd make it a .38 revolver.

 

Yes the PF-9 kicks but it's a ***** cat compared to the Taurus 38 Ultralite I once owned. I had that 38 for four days and then traded it on my PF-9. It has less felt recoil than the Ultralite 38. The Ruger SP101 or full weight S&W 38 both have less felt recoil due to their weight though. My wife's first gun was an SP101 in 38 spec. Now she carries an XD SC 40S&W. As an experienced shooter she doesn't notice the recoil and has never had any trouble cycling the slide. However, for a novice shooter, whether a man or a woman, the revolver is the way to go. It's easier to shoot, reload, and clean. I would never recommend a semi-auto of any kind to a novice, especially a Kel-Tec.

I also own a P3AT and an Elsie Pea. Both have less felt recoil to me than the Bersa .380 does. My wife has yet to shoot either though I'm hoping to get her to the range with them this Summer. Our plan is for her to use the LCP as a bug to her XD. She will also be able to carry it this Summer when she doesn't want to carry her Galco purse whether at the park or shopping with me. Again, though, these guns are not for novices.

 

Some one edited my post for an "objectionable" word apparently. In the context used and given that Tweety bird was never censored for saying it on Saturday mornings when I was a kid, I wonder why I was edited. That word is found in the dictionary as a non-obscene word in numerous examples from ---footing around to ---willow. Ergo, just because it can be an obscene word in certain contexts, does not make it obscene in every context. I was taught that context, context, context was the most important thing when writing. It would seem, I was wrong.  >

Besides, everyone knows that I am a pastor. Rest assured, I would never use the word in an obscene way, period. What's next? Will I be censored for using titmouse in a post? What about a thread about horny toads? Where I come from, dog hunters still call the matriarch of their pack the grand b_tch. Again, not obscene in its proper context though I chose to edit it myself before it could be edited for me. I am not very happy that I was censored, not very happy at all.  >

What is next from the word police? Will I be edited for calling Ted Kennedy a murderer? What about calling Ellen Degeneres a lesbian? What about referring to Jesus Christ as the only means of salvation for humanity? Is that going too far as well? I know this was probably edited by an anti-obscenity software but I could care less. It should not kill a word out of context.

I'm not very happy!---not very happy at all! >

Context! Context! Context! I hope my point has been made.

Now back to my mild-mannered self. I will try to refrain from using anymore "objectionable" words. You would think that as a pastor I could control my tongue or at least my keyboard.

 

PBJ - breath, swallow, release. NOBODY edited your post! The net-nanny filter built into KTOG did it automatically. That's why the context didn't matter. I lol'd when I read your post and saw the change, but nobody here did it to you.

-Scott

 

I know, Scott. It just bothers me when my freedom of speech is limited.  > Yes, I believe in common decency but sometimes we can go too far. I know that the nanny did it but I will always protest an out of context edit. In my opinion it is better to muddle through a few obscene posts than to limit anyone's free speech.

Uh-oh, I think I saw a putty tat. I did! I did see a putty tat! It's asleep in my chair.  ;D Well, I'm off to bed.

 

I put a grip extention and a Hogue Hand-all Jr. on my 3AT. They didn't add substantially to the size or weight, but those adds REALLY helped reduce perceived recoil, and handle-ability. Very manageable and fun to shoot. Although I haven't had my wife shoot it yet, I know she would have no problem with it.

Fairly inexpensive mods that result in a much more comfy shoot. IMO.

G

 

There; fixed it for ya.   ;D  Gotta be accurate, you know...

 

Not to belabor this point, go way off topic or stir anything up (please do not take this post personally) - nor am I a lawyer or expert, so this is just my opinion - but keep in mind that we are posting on a privately owned site.  This is not, technically, a public place or a government-maintained site.  Instead, this is a privately maintained site that requires membership and agreement with the site rules - no matter how silly they may be/seem.  Therefore, just like you can ask people not to say certain things when they are in your privately owned home and have the right to ask them to leave if they do not comply (and just like businesses have the right to restrict firearm carry within the confines of their privately owned stores), the owner or owners of this site have the right to restrict language and I don't believe that they are violating your Constitutional rights to free speech by doing so.  To my mind, there is a difference between government restriction of speech in a public area and private restriction of speech in a privately owned area where rights of ownership apply.

I do sometimes have to give a derisive chuckle to some of the things the software blocks - like you can't type D i c k ' s Sporting Goods without the spaces, nor can you say you have to c o c k the hammer on your gun.  Which makes me wonder, if you had typed the phrase that was changed as one word (which is actually the correct way, btw) would it have changed it?  Let's see:  pussycat.  Nope.  Didn't change it.

+ eleventy-thousand

These same mods took mine from 'can't shoot it with reliable accuracy' to 'wow, that's accurate for such a small gun with such small sights.' I still don't think my wife could handle shooting it, though (but she sometimes has joint problems in her hands and wrists.)

 

Well, to return to the actual subject...

My wife actually enjoys shooting my P3AT. Of course, she enjoys the .22's more, but she likes the P3. When I finally persuade her to get her permit, she said she would like to carry one. She is not a very experienced shooter, but she shoots the little guy quite accurately. She hasn't tried the PF9, but she wants something she can pocket carry in her jeans, anyway. I pocket carry the PF9 24/7, but I always have the "I'm just happy to see you" excuse .

The moral of the story is this: Ya never know 'til you try. Buy them for you, and let her choose one. You can get them both for about the price of a Sig, anyway...

Where are you? Perhaps there is a member relatively close to you that would let you take one or both for a spin...

-Matt

 

bill, I'm certain it's some kind of software that 'sees' certain words that altered or edited your post. It's happened to me on several sites. The first time it happened I was shocked. Just SHOCKED! But to say..." It just bothers me when my freedom of speech is limited..." is going over board.

Yes, I've used certain words in ways never intended to offend - like 'it's a 'B' to work this slide' - and it was edited. But like it was stated, this forum is a private forum. And I guess they can set whatever standards they want. Just like you and I do in our own homes. And if a guest violates those standards we too have the freedom and right to politely ask them to stop or leave.

I'm certain no one is trying to infringe on your freedom of speech.

By the way, to get back on topic: I love the P3. I think your wife will be able to handled it.