I did this with my .380 by manualy inserting

WB
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 09:47 (2164 days ago)

a round into the chamber and letting the slide slap closed on the loaded round from the slide stop. The inertia hammered the bullet back into the case. Very interesting.

Feeding a round from the chamber over and over is rough on the bullet noses, to slowly lower the slide you have to whack the back of the slide to make the extractor jump over the case rim and fully close, and the slap closed method does this.

Now this does occur over several carry/chambering cycles. With the bullet seated deeper in the tiny .380 case pressures skyrocket. Not likely to the point of blowing anything but it could cause a malfunction at a very bad time for a carry piece.

Just some interesting points for consideration on the tiny mini-guns. They can have big problems, besides being so much harder to shoot accurately.

[image]

I’ve never had a problem like that with

Brent Foy
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 10:01 (2164 days ago) @ WB

My Ruger LCP. Are those factory loads or reloads?

Factory Hornady. Probably 12-15 sessions of being chambered

WB
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 13:13 (2163 days ago) @ Brent Foy

Feeding from the magazine manually does not adequately simulate actual function, which is much more forceful in aaction, and besides being a bit difficult is rough on the bullet HP noses. The SIG FMJ with a flat tip will not feed at all manually from the magazine but shoots OK. I decided not to use it. My best function and wear/tear ammo is Federal FMJ RN. Basically all .380 seems to show about 12" ballistic Gel penetration, no matter JHP or FMJ. This gun is well market proven, the feed ramp is mirror polished and seems to be well designed. It's just very tiny and all stiff. Lots smaller than Gary's .25 and weighs about half! Incredible it functions at all, to me.

The smaller and lighter the gun is (considerably smaller than a LCP Ruger) requires a steep feed angle and super stiff recoil spring. There are actually three springs inside each other! My wife cannot even work the slide. It's sort of my lazy, last ditch, for dockers w/no jacket or swimsuit carry. lol Tiny, 12 oz., flat, and has great sights.

I'm probably swapping back to my untralight snubby .38 but wanted to show this. You might not notice unless you looked close. With such a tiny micro gun (they used not to even exist - unheard of advancements) the dynamics are magnified. Trigger control, follow through, something to kick against to work the slide's locked breach, are all more intense and complex than any larger 9mm or .45 auto. At some point you seem to reach a point of diminished capability pursuing minimal small size.

I've now been there (the edge) and learned.

I’ve probably only loaded the same

Brent Foy
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 14:58 (2163 days ago) @ WB

Bullet 2 or 3 times by dropping it in the chamber. When I get home in a few days I’ll try it. My LCP might do the same thing loading it that many times. I generally load it from the magazine except when I’m working up new loads and checking OAL and other things.

12-15 times? No wonder!

ORG
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 15:30 (2163 days ago) @ WB

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My thoughts, as well. If I have to unload a...

Stuart in GA
[subject]
Tuesday, April 17, 2018, 10:41 (2163 days ago) @ ORG

...chambered round more than once or twice it goes into the practice stash.

Typically I unload 2x on Sat. and 2x on Sun.

WB
[subject]
Tuesday, April 17, 2018, 13:06 (2162 days ago) @ Stuart in GA

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OK, I give. Why are you unloading your gun? Load it

Gary Reeder
[subject]
Tuesday, April 17, 2018, 16:45 (2162 days ago) @ WB

and leave it be. What are you gaining by unloading it several times?

Practice

WB
[subject]
Tuesday, April 17, 2018, 18:44 (2162 days ago) @ Gary Reeder

If someone wants to burgle my home at 2am then I need to be quick on the loading. It would be careless of me to leave a loaded firearm in the house.

that is where you and I differ. Why would you have a gun for

Gary Reeder
[subject]
Tuesday, April 17, 2018, 21:01 (2162 days ago) @ WB

protection of your family that is not loaded? What guarantee do you have that you will have the time to load the gun? Shit happens and happens fast. I keep probably 6 or 7 loaded guns within reach no matter what room I happen to be in. I have done so as long as I can remember and my kids knew not to touch them. I let them handle them unloaded to get the curiosity factor taken care of. I would never think of keeping a self defense gun unloaded in my house.

Agree

IC
[subject]
Wednesday, April 18, 2018, 07:00 (2162 days ago) @ Gary Reeder

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If this is your daily carry piece

backroadsrambler
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 10:34 (2164 days ago) @ WB

and you haven't had it gone over by a knowledgeable gunsmith, it is a most worthwhile investment. I've had them find the damnedest things over the years. Give them at least two mags plus a box off of your carry ammo. After it is slicked-up, you can add a sealant for peace of mind and besides locking the bullet 'hard' in place, it adds an additional visual heads-up should a seal break. If you have to get a new carry mag or mags or change your carry load, drop the piece back off and have it checked out anew. Remember, you're betting your life...

personally, other than a back up to your back up

Gary Reeder
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 11:03 (2163 days ago) @ backroadsrambler

I wouldn't carry anything under a 9mm. The 9mms these days are the same size as a lot of the 380s so size is not a consideration. Just out of habit I have carried a 45 since the late 70s. I would never recommend a 380, 32 or 25 as a primary concealed carry piece.
Thru the years I have carried a Budischovsky 25 ACP in my cowboy boot. But it is simply in a last ditch situation when all else has failed.
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[image]

On long trips to custom gun shows where I was on the road by myself, I had little piece of shit autos stashed everywhere but again these were just in case some fat girl decided to take advantage of me.

A cop friend in Florida that was in our gun shop just about everyday (we were next door to a donut shop) told me he carried 3 or 4 "throw down" guns on him all the time. One in each ankle holster, one in a small of the back holster, a small one in a pocket and his normal Glock issue gun. He told me about situations where he and a couple of his buddies were jumped on by several Jamaicans and he had to depend upon those little hide out guns. After that when on a trip by myself I started stashing little P.O.S. guns everywhere. A couple of them are shown below. All my hide out autos were the same caliber, 25 auto, so I didn't have to worry about carrying a lot of extra ammo. And remember in a situation where you have to use something like a 25 auto, it won't knock the bad guy on his butt. But it will hurt him and when he sees blood on his chest or stomach that will normally persuade him to get the hell off you.
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[image]


A little 22 mag Hi Standard went inside my other boot..
[image]
[image]

But for concealed carry, don't depend upon a little clunker like these. Go with a good quality 9mm or 45 that you can bet your life on.

So what is your favorite .25? I get the

ChrisG
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 14:43 (2163 days ago) @ Gary Reeder

urge for a Baby Browning once or twice a year but just haven't ended up with one yet.

the Budischovsky is one of the best small autos

Gary Reeder
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 17:00 (2163 days ago) @ ChrisG

made. They were only made for a few years so they are a bit hard to find. If you find one for less than $400 to $450 you are doing good. They are all stainless, have a slick double action trigger pull and mine feeds everything.

Phoenix

Clint H
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 17:34 (2163 days ago) @ Gary Reeder

I bought a phoenix arms 22 auto about 20 years ago with a litlle work on it and it has been really reliable, I know is a cheap little gun but it has been pretty accurate it has larger grips for my hands. It makes a great little gun for a boot holster. My sister bought a 25 auto colt years ago i thought was going to be a great gun. But that Particular gun i could not hit a cow if it was standing on my foot. I put in in the safe for the protection of the public at large. Some day I will see if i can figure out what going on with it.

Thanks Gary. I'll start checking them out!

ChrisG
[subject]
Tuesday, April 17, 2018, 09:43 (2163 days ago) @ Gary Reeder

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I've had several Bauers, stainless clones

WB
[subject]
Tuesday, April 17, 2018, 06:19 (2163 days ago) @ ChrisG

The design is sound. I've always wanted an earlier Colt. Had their later version made by Astra in Spain. Good guns but just not the same. The little SA Berettas are fine too. A .25 ACP is more for the pleasure of ownership than serious defense. Truly a last ditch from the era where getting shot with anything was bad! You know several countries issued them as officer sidearms!

Gary's choice is a pretty rare and very pleasing mechanical piece if you ever find one. They can break though so check them out well. Probably the best of all is the crappy but outrageously reliable "Raven". They are becoming a bit collectable in some circles!

This is why you should always . . .

ORG
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 11:03 (2163 days ago) @ WB

. . . load the chamber from the magazine and not let the slide slam shut on a chambered round. Let the gun work the way it was designed to.

You can always remove the magazine and replace the round you just chambered to get the "fully loaded" condition.

And yes, it's a really good idea to not re-use a round that has been chambered repeatedly.

In all, that has shown the most success

WB
[subject]
Monday, April 16, 2018, 13:29 (2163 days ago) @ ORG

but I really go through the $1.50 each JHP. Certain FMJ's would work well and I feel just as well armed out of a 2.5" .380 using them. Tests lead you to believe the .380 FMJ would not over penetrate.

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