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FREE GUN FRIDAY > Enter to WIN the Ruger PC Charger & PC Carbine, Ammo from Black Hills and the Caldwell Portable Range Kit!

10 Street-Ready Compact Pistols In .380 ACP

by Dennis Adler

in Guns, Handguns

compact pistol, compact pistols

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The Pico is remarkably small, even for a .380. The entire gun only weighs 11.5 ounces and the polymer frame is interchangeable for any of four different colors— Flat Dark Earth, ranger green, violet or pink. There are also two interchangeable LaserMax frames, one with a red Laser and the other with a tactical light. This little .380 even has dovetailed white-dot sights that can be switched for Trijicon three-dot night sights. The 6+1 capacity Pico operates on an internal hammer-fired, short-recoil system. It has no manual/external safety and, by virtue of its design, has a second-strike capability. The Pico is also the narrowest semi-auto available, at 0.7 inches wide. (http://www.beretta.com)

You might call this gun a ringer because it has everything a 9mm would have but is a .380 with a hefty 13+1 capacity. Chiappa has the MC 14 built by the Girsan Machine & Light Weapon Industry Company in Giresun, Turkey. Producing an increased-capacity .380 requires a double-stack magazine, and the MC 14 holds a baker’s dozen plus one in the chamber—that is almost double the majority of .380 semi-autos on the market today. The 24-ounce Chiappa uses an aluminum alloy frame and a steel slide. It is by no means a “big gun,” but by modern .380 standards it is larger than most at 6.8 inches in length, 5.17 inches in height and 1.34 inches in width. (http://www.chiappafirearms.com)

Colt brought the .380 caliber to life in 1908, extinguished it in 1940 and then resurrected it, first with the .380 Government Model Series 80 in 1983 and then the Colt Mustang in 1986. The latest version is the Mustang Lite, introduced in 2015. The newest version of the Mustang sports a polymer frame with an accessory rail suitable for a small laser; a squared-off, undercut triggerguard; a larger grip profile; an ambidextrous, easy-to-reach thumb safety; and rough-textured checkering. In other respects, it is the same great single-action Mustang with a 6+1 capacity, a 2.75-inch barrel, an overall length of 5.5 inches, a height of 3.98 inches and light weight of only 11.5 ounces unloaded. (http://www.colt.com; 800-962-2658)

The Glock 42 features the smallest frame, slide and barrel length available from the famed Austrian arms maker. The G42 has every desirable feature, including dovetailed white-dot sights, easily operated slide and magazine releases, and a slide that locks back after the last round is fired. The subcompact Glock .380 employs a dual recoil spring unique to the model as well as a cold-hammer-forged, 3.25-inch barrel. While it’s slightly longer than most .380 pocket pistols, the Glock is a very pocket friendly 0.94 inches in width.(http://us.glock.com; 770-432-1202)

The Kimber Micro Carry Advocate has an overall length of 5.6 inches, a width of 0.94 inches (including the safety, slide release and grips), a weight of 13.4 ounces empty and a height of 4 inches. Capacity is 7+1. This new .380 is meticulously finished and hand-fitted. The 2.75-inch barrel is polished stainless steel, the black anodized hammer is skeletonized and the match-grade trigger, made from solid aluminum, is factory set to approximately 7 pounds of resistance. The gun’s aluminum frame has an undercut triggerguard, a deeply curved and rounded beavertail, and a finely checkered mainspring housing.

Introduced in 2008, the original LCP was an immediate success as a concealed-carry handgun in the venerable .380 ACP caliber. This latest version of the 6+1 capacity semi-auto adds a stainless steel guide rod and a skeletonized aluminum alloy trigger (in an unapologetic anodized red). A polished blue slide has also been redone to feature a fixed front sight blade, glare-reducing horizontal serrations and a bright, luminescent center dot. At the rear is a tall, windage-adjustable square notch sight that quickly centers the front blade, making this a much faster gun to get on target than any previous LCP. The shape and angle of the skeletonized trigger is designed to reduce perceived trigger-pull weight. (http://www.ruger.com)

The CPX-3 is SCCY’s first .380 and the first to utilize the innovative Roebuck Quad-Lock system for improved barrel stability. The CPX-3 has an injection-molded polymer frame, an impressive 10-round magazine, a hammer-fired DAO trigger system and a stainless steel slide with replaceable white-dot sights. It just might be the most accurate .380 ever built, and at a suggested retail of just $314 it’s definitely one of the most feature-laden for the price. (http://www.sccy.com; 866-729-7599)

Much of the P238’s design is firmly rooted in John Browning’s original patents from the early 20th century. In fact, with the exception of its solid camming barrel lug and lock, the P238 is essentially a scaled-down variation of the Model 1911 without a grip safety. The Sig is slim, compact and solid in the hand. The P238 uses a stainless steel slide with an anodized alloy beavertail-style frame. With an overall length of 5.5 inches, height of 4.46 inches and a weight of 15.2 ounces, the P238 is one the best .380s out there. (http://www.sigsauer.com; 866-345-6744)

The 6+1 capacity M&P Bodyguard is a DAO with a second-strike capability, a feature that many look for in a pocket pistol. The trigger pull is heavy on the Bodyguard as a safety measure, but it’s very consistent with no appreciable stacking and a crisp break. The Bodyguard is built around a high-strength polymer frame fitted with a stainless steel, 2.75-inch barrel and a stainless steel slide. It has dovetailed, adjustable front and rear sights and offers a manual thumb safety that not only locks the trigger, but the slide as well. (http://www.smith-wesson.com; 800-331-0852)

The innovative Curve is a locked-breech, DAO semi-auto with the steel subframe and slide rails, trigger, hammer and firing mechanisms, grips and magazine well all combined into a curved polymer frame with integral twin LaserLyte tactical lights and a red laser. The shape of the gun is curved to hug the body when worn with its IWB belt clip. The six-round magazine has a curved basepad to correspond with the inner curve of the left-side grip and frame, and uses a built-in, ambidextrous release. (http://www.taurususa.com; 800-327-3776)

The .380 ACP is one of the oldest handgun calibers in use today, older than the .45 ACP by three years, and both calibers can be traced back to Colt and inventor John M. Browning. The .380 was developed by Browning 108 years ago and is a truly American cartridge, despite its fame in one of the world’s most famous handguns, the Walther PPK. For the past century the .380 ACP has remained among the most popular calibers in the world, and today, as American manufacturers expand their product lines, the .380 has truly fulfilled the vision John Browning had for it back in 1908. Scroll through the gallery above to see 10 compact pistols in .380 ACP.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Beretta Pico
http://www.beretta.com

Chiappa MC 14
http://www.chiappafirearms.com

Colt Mustang Lite
http://www.colt.com

Glock 42
https://us.glock.com

Ruger LCP Custom
http://www.ruger.com

SCCY CPX-3
http://www.sccy.com

Sig Sauer P238 Extreme
http://www.sigsauer.com

Smith & Wesson M&P Bodyguard 380
http://www.smith-wesson.com

Taurus Curve
http://www.taurususa.com

RELATED STORIES

The Next-Gen Beretta Pico

4 Concealed Carry Holsters for the Chiappa MC 14

General Officer’s Pistols: Colt Pocket Hammerless Model 1903 & 1908

Going GLOCK: 4 People on Why They Use GLOCK Pistols

Micro .380 Defender: Kimber’s Micro Carry Advocate

Pocket Powerhouse: The Ruger LCR Revolver in .327 Magnum

Quad-Locked & Loaded: The SCCY CPX-3

Transformer: The Sig Sauer P320

Smith & Wesson’s Performance Center M&P R8 Pistol

Bullish on Defense: Taurus’ Covert Autos & Revolvers

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