What are people's opinions on parkerized versions of the P3AT? Is it mostly hype, or does it really help cut down corrosion? Mind you... if I buy a P3AT, it'll be to carry while exercising; any portion of it not completely covered by the holster is likely to encounter a lot of body sweat.
parkerizing is supposed to be better but as long as you maintain it you most likely won't have a problem with either. Mine is parker finished but I just like the way it looks, but my P-32 is blued and carried everyday for the last few months in my back pocket but I give it a once over 1-2 times a week with CLP.
i got a blue model. it is one of the first 2nd gen made. so it got many mango season on it. in the summer i carry it in my back pocket in a leather pocket holster while i am working at my farm. in other words it gets wet, i mean wet. so wet i can pour water out of the mag when i get home. sometime i fall in the creek, etc.... you get what i mean. so far the gun looks just as good as day one. even the insides. i will break it down once every two weeks and do a good cleaning, then do the oil and grease thing. other times it is a wipe down and air dry outside the holster. next day i use a different (dry) holster. so the blue will also hold up. the parkerized finish will allso works well.
Like many here, I have Kel-tecs in all 3 finsihes. Their bleuing is not an industry best. It is consistently ok with some outliers. The parkerized is more durable and corrosion resistent. However, IMHO, the most durable, corrosion resistant, trouble-free and attractive finsih offered by Kel-tec is the matt hard chrome. Spend the extra $25 up front and get the best. You won't be sorry.
doesn't KT offer to do your slide and barrel in parker or HC for like $25 no matter what finish you have? Just send them the slide and barrel and they coat it and send it back; I don't know if this is true but I believe I read it fairly recently and I have been trying to find it again but am having no luck.
No, that is not true, although it was true years ago. Currently, Kel-tec will do a hard chrome exchange (slide and barrel) for $75. That is why I say it is best to get that finish up front. It is cheaper. The cost difference between a new blued gun and a new hard chrome guns is much less than doing an exhange after the fact. They will probably also do a parkerized exchange for something less than $75. I don't know as I have not seen anyone ever go that route.
Thanks for everybody's opinions. CDNN is offering the Parkerized version for about 20 bucks more than the discounted 'wallet brown', and it caught my attention. I think they're also offering the freedom package or whatever it is, nickel plated with a bunch of extra goodies, but that might be out of my price range; I'm trying to get this done without selling another firearm.
What Tx said. Here is some real basics in finishes; Bluing is an oxidation process of the steel converting it into the black oxhide of iron, (red oxide of iron is called rust). This is why blued steel must be kept oiled. Ok unless salt from your nasty sweat is always going to be an issue. Cold bluing is not the same process and offers little hope. Parkerizing is the next best, an electrochemical phospate conversion coating. Hard Chrome or sometimes called Industrial Chrome is not the same as the chrome plating on yur earring. Not only does it have the best corrosion resistance of the three, it has a very low coeffient of friction along with high wear resistance where the others do not. The factory did not, or I din't know Hard Chrome was an option when I purchased my P3at years ago. I have some light rust on the side that faces my skin. This has occured from sweat through my Uncle Mike's & jeans pocket & my weekly choice of under britches. And ya, I keep it oiled. When I bought my PF-9, I'll give ya one guess which of the 3 finishes I picked Off subject, which of the Hogue Handall fits the PF-9?
Mine is hard chrome (HC) and withstands all that I put it through (running, kayaking, mt. biking) and all I do is keep it lubed. A blued finish is not going to last long IMO. A parked one will hold up better as long as you keep it clean.
Hogue Handall Jr. - Model 18000 http://www.hoguestore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=114&products_id=147 Note, since this the P3AT forum, to avoid any confusion, the Hogue Handall Hybrid Grip - model 18100 fits the P3AT, LCP and other smallish pocket guns. It is barely or not yet available. http://www.hoguestore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=666_692&products_id=7331
My bad, I meant to ask Hogue for my P3at. Already have one on my PF-9 (tis why I really want one for my P3at!! Tanks fer the link and #!
Parkerized finish holds oil and is better than blue. However, two weeks ago I met a fellow at the range who has carried the blue model in his back pocket for several years and it had only the slightest hint of patina, not even rust. While I like the parkerized finish best, the hard chrome is the most practical. I have both Park and HC and both are very practical. The HC costs very little more. If you get a deal on a Park or Blue model, then jump on it as they will work fine, especially in a good pocket holster.
I just purchased a parkerized version of the P-3AT, and it didn't take a week before the finish was already coming off in my back pocket. Now I don't use a pocket holster, as they are too bulky for my taste, but the only thing in my pocket is a handkerchief and a small blue comb to aid in concealing the print. By the third day of carrying I started seeing the blue color from the not new comb appearing on the finish if I had it between the two. Along with several light scratches of the parkerized finish coming off. A plastic comb causing scratches? I carried a stainless 22 of a different brand in the same manner for over a decade and never saw any wear or tear on it. I did call Kel-Tec up and they told me the current price was in fact $75 to exchange my slide and barrel for a hard chromed one. As mentioned in a previous post here, the difference in price of an initial purchase is way cheaper for the upgraded finish than what a factory swap is going for. I bought my P-3AT for one reason only, and since I'm not showing it off for every body to see obviously, I am not greatly bothered by the premature failure of the finish. I have owned pakerized weapons of other brands in the past, and none of them were this vulnerable with more abuse given to them.
TX, almost sounds like the Factory has gone cold? Real bluing shouldn't rub off, if that is what is happening: is not a plating but an actual conversion of the top layer of the steel.
Perhaps the some of the top layer of phosphates may come off with initial wear. Might not be a bad idea to make an investment in a minimal pocket holster that breaks the outline while still keeping a small imprint. There is also increased safety in covering the trigger and it will keep the gun a lot cleaner. http://www.rkbaholsters.com/Ambi-Holsters.htm
No, I paid extra for the parkerized version. A guy that walked up and looked at the same ones I was looking at grabbed the blued one and saved twenty bucks, it was the only blued one there. I settled for spending a bit more for the parkerized finish, just as it is stated on the factory label above the bar code of the case it came in. But for the over all price I did not expect it to be of the same quality as some of my higher end guns. It serves its purpose.
