I have been looking very hard at different concealed carry guns while I have been waiting on my permit to come back. I was going to go with a 9mm due to availability and price of ammo but decided to go with a 380. The price has come down a lot on the ammo so Its not as bad as it was. I am not a man who just likes to shoot at the range and plink. I will shoot it enough to get use to the way it handles and shoots. It's a cc gun so I only have it for the time when you need it. I will stay proficient with it and practice but I wont be blowing off a lot of ammo for the bang of it.
Those of you who know me realize that my shadow is bigger than me, so concealment for everyday carry required a smaller pistol. I will be getting a larger pistol that can be open or concealed carried, but I picked up this 380 to keep in my pocket at all times.
I have been doing a lot of on line research for my prospective CCW and going to shops to hold and checked out the ones I have narrowed my search down to. I tried the Sig P238, the Ruger LCP, the Kel-Tec Pt3at and the Taurus PT738.
The Kel-tec felt a little to small and (cheapish) to me. Im not knocking those who have them, It just didn't do anything for me.
The Sig was a very awesome pistol and wouldn't mind having one. I had to keep in mind that this would be used in those cases where I have to have it now and use it. It is built on the 1911 style which is great, but in a panic situation, I just want to pull point and shoot. That safety could be forgotten quickly and get ya killed. The Kel-tec and Ruger both would be good point and shoot pistols, no safety's to remember. The Rugers looks and feel are good. It looks like a great little gun but again, it just didn't do anything for me in my hand. Once I had the Taurus PT738 in my hand, I knew this was the one.
The things I liked about the PT738:
Slide lock open on the last shot. It has the lock out built into it, If I need it. It offer's everything the other pistols offered and came with two mags in the box. I have to get use to shooting a little pistola but I like her. I put around 40 shots through her today without a single problem. I let the wife fires it a few times to get her use to it and she likes it also.
All around, the Taurus PT 738 is a winner in my book. Here are a few specs on this little subcompact compared to the P3at and the LCP
| Kel-Tec P3AT | Ruger LCP | Taurus 738 |
| Weight | 8.3 Oz | 9.42 Oz | 9.9 Oz |
| Frame Width | 0.798" | 0.790" | 0.775” |
| Barrel Length | 2.745" | 2.796" | 2.830” |
| Slide Width | 0.748" | 0.741" | 0.778" |
| Overall Length | 5.14" | 5.172" | 5.195” |
| Overall Height | 3.576" | 3.612" | 3.625” |
| Cartridge Capacity | 6+1 | 6+1 | 6+1 |
Her she is.
