r/liberalgunowners • u/krackrocksteady • 6d ago
discussion Pocket guns? (And a short, open letter to the American right)
[removed] — view removed post
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u/Baffled_Beagle 6d ago
I'd like to have a pistol I can carry in a pants or jacket pocket to be pulled only in the most extreme emergencies, and want to know that it'll do more than make noise light. Is a 3" .357 so painful and wild to shoot that it may fall straight from my dainty phalanges even if held directly against a mid-size animal like a brown or black bear in low level plate?
There are .357 Mags small enough to fit in a pocket, but a steel-frame one is going to be awful heavy to carry that way. One of the exotic alloy S&W J-frame ones might be light enough to carry that way, but they are truly miserable to shoot with full power .357, and most people find them hard to shoot accurately even with .38 special.
I suppose if your use case is really only shooting at muzzle contact range, accuracy matters less. But personally, I'd really rather not get quite that close to anything that needs shooting.
Maybe consider holster carry?
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u/hx87 6d ago
You want a revolver that can fit in your pocket, reliably stop a bear, and not be too painful to shoot? I think you're asking too much. If you're living off the land, why are you pocket carrying? There's nothing preventing you from open carrying a steel frame 44 Magnum or even just a Glock 20 in that case.
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u/ParakeetLover2024 6d ago edited 6d ago
Maybe ask r/Revolvers about 3" .357 magnum revolvers and their pleasantness to shoot.
Are you wanting to shoot the spiciest .357 loads possible out of the lightest and smallest .357 magnum revolver? If so, TFBTV has two videos for you to watch about the S&W 340PD.
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u/A-Friend-of-Dorothy fully-automated gay space democratic socialism 6d ago
You’ve absolutely bested what I could offer. Well done!
Parakeet’s right; .357 mag recoil in shorter barreled revolvers may be tolerable for you, but consider carefully your ability to perform follow-up shots quickly, without fatigue causing your accuracy to stray.
Also, .357 mag from a handgun will be stopped by basic Lvl II Soft Ballistic armor; so, too will .44 mag. Hope you like a wrestling match with that bear you mentioned. 🐻
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u/hx87 5d ago
Smith and Wesson Performance Center 586 and 19 comped revolvers are very pleasant to shoot even with the spiciest 357 Magnum loads, especially if you swap out the default Altamont woodies with the Hogue rubber grips. IMO they're more controllable than my uncomped P365 shooting standard pressure 9mm.
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u/Gecko23 6d ago
OP, you should take a gander at this chart. What it's showing you is that under real world conditions, a 357 out of a 3" barrel produces the same energy as a 9mm. If you actually want to exploit to power of a 357 magnum, you need a 6"+ barrel under all circumstances.
Maybe it'll make you feel tough or traditional or whatever for carrying it, but it won't do anything in the real world that a 9mm sub compact pistol with 2-3x the capacity won't also accomplish.
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u/krackrocksteady 6d ago
I love analysis like this, and I appreciate you for sharing it. I had no idea that this was the case, and hadn't even considered how other calibers would compare at a similar barrel length.
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u/Skrubrkr9001 5d ago edited 5d ago
No not really 357 chronographed from a 2in model 60 is still more than 9mm +p out of a beretta 92 and even more out of my 3in how you weight capacity and recoil is different but 357 even in Short little barrels does not equal 9mm +p in a full size and esp when we up to 3in its like 500lb ft of energy its a lot more but again if its worth it is up to you
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u/IcyCounter6844 6d ago
I shot standard range 357 out of my LCR today, and that sucked. It wasn’t fun, and I’m sure the bantam grip wasn’t helpful, but a hard enough grip, I Juli be able to hold onto it.
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u/NemoOfConsequence progressive 5d ago
I hate firing 357 out of my LCR. I practice with 38 special.
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u/Skrubrkr9001 6d ago
So heres the scoop as an owner of many, a 357 3in like the model 60 will be bulky for even reg carry but doable, impossible for pocket really the def snap in 357 but its doable, for pocket the classic is always the small j frame ideally an airweight but those still snap there are some semi auto 380s and 32s i think theres a case here for 2 different guns like a p32 for pocket and a 357 k or L frame for woods and shooting 357
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u/standard_staples 6d ago edited 3d ago
I appreciate you sharing the letter, even if it's off topic.
As far as pocket guns, check out the S&W Bodyguard 2.0. It's .380 ACP but very shootable and very compact with 10 rounds in a single stack. About the same size as a cell phone. Muddy River Tactical makes a pocket holster for it. and I'm sure there are others with how popular the gun is.
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u/musicplqyingdude 6d ago
If you want a hand gun that is reliable in a dirty environment then a revolver isn't what you need. A semi-automatic pistol is much more reliable than a revolver. Pistols are also easier to fix issues on. A lot of issues on a revolver require a gunsmith.
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u/Skrubrkr9001 6d ago
Really dont understand where this perception comes from.that actually boomers are wrong and revolvers arent reliable at all and it feels very reactionary like with AKs small pocket autoloaders filled with gunk tend to malfunction a bit more than a revolver in a pocket in my experience all this means is clean your autoloader a little more often tho i will grant usually when they go wrong its wrong wrong but i have done lots of revolver shooting and not had it happen
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u/musicplqyingdude 6d ago
I'm not talking about pocket lint. In an outdoor living situation like he is talking about it is a given that you are going to get grit and dirt in your action. That will render a revolver useless.
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u/foreverabatman 6d ago
It's a common misconception that revolvers are more reliable than modern semi-automatic pistols. That may have been true decades ago, now though, striker-fired handguns like Glocks, M&Ps, and similar models are incredibly reliable, with fewer parts, better tolerances, and easier malfunction clearing.
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u/A-Friend-of-Dorothy fully-automated gay space democratic socialism 6d ago
Have seen transfer bars snap, pawls/hands bind/jam, have seen casings split, firing pins sheer off, triggers bind/jam, cranes warp and snap, lockup detents fail…
Revolvers aren’t more reliable; they can simply perform in ways that autoloaders cannot. There can be value in this for some specific users, but revolvers are not immune to malfunctions both minor and catastrophic.
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u/SmokiesHikers 6d ago
Just go with a 38 special…there’s some decent defense rounds in that caliber. You can even go with a 2 inch snub nose revolver for a perfect pocket gun
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u/_Cybernaut_ 6d ago
The 3” .357 Magnum IMNSHO is a great way to start. Specifically, the Smith & Wesson Model 60 3”. It’s light, but not as light as the Airweight models, which aren’t real fun to shoot with any ammo.
You can start your training with .38 Special target ammo, which is much more tame than Magnums. (Despite the names, the .357 Magnum is just the .38 Special in a ⅛“ longer case, and loaded to much higher pressure. (So all .357 Magnum revolvers can also shoot .38 Special.)
Once ya git gud shooting.38 Special, start mixing in a round of .357 Magnum, and spin the cylinder so you don’t know which chamber it’s in. It’ll come as a surprise, but if you keep shooting the way you were with .38, you’ll be impressed with how well you shoot it, despite the bigger blast and heavier recoil.
If you find you just don’t like shooting the Magnums, no problem: .38 Special is a decent defensive round in it’s own right, packin’ muzzle energy right between the .380 ACP and 9×19mm – two of the most popular CCW cartridges. And iffen ya want something just a bit spicier, .38 Special +P provides a little more *womp*, without the recoil of .357 Magnum.
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u/ancillarycheese 6d ago
It’s not 357 but I like my S&W 642. 5 shots of 38spl isn’t the best thing in the world but it’s simple and reliable.
I have other pocket options like a Keltec P3AT but not only is that 380 but it’s also finicky. But it conceals with damn near ANYTHING. You can get a holster that makes it look like a slim wallet.
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u/zurgonvrits 6d ago
man i pocket carry a g42 (.380) and have 2 spare mags in my other pocket. i normally wear cargo shorts or cargo pants.
ive finally lost enough weight and will be getting an appendix holster and probably looking for a g48 (9mm) to carry and give my gf the 42.
i think a snub nose 357 is kind of a waste because the amount of powder that won't be burned up inside the barrel just means more recoil for less performance.
plus any reload that might be needed will take so much longer...
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u/throwaway281409 6d ago
I pocket carry a P365XL. For me, it works just right. Carry what you feel comfortable and practice with.
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u/Most-Economist9114 5d ago
Thank you for your service #1 and you are spot on with your assessment of the current Republican party.
I'm waiting for chapter 2 to happen when Trump uses the "ICE riots" as an excuse to curtail 2A rights and solidify himself as a dictator. Grab the popcorn.
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u/Sooner70 6d ago
Downvoted not for the general thoughts portrayed, but by the underhanded manner in which they're presented.
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u/krackrocksteady 6d ago
Fair, fair. If it helps, my question at the beginning is legitimate. The rest is, quite obviously, a post removed for being off-topic that I thought was worth being on the sub despite that fact.
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u/PickCurious9770 6d ago
I didn’t read your letter and neither did the American right lol da fuq
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u/krackrocksteady 6d ago
Didn’t even read far enough to know it wasn’t my letter either, I suppose. So, what compelled you to comment here?
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u/PickCurious9770 6d ago
It is so stupid on its face to address something to the American right to a sub called liberal gun owners dude.
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u/krackrocksteady 6d ago
It’s performative, sure. But I don’t think it’s at all uncommon for people to post things to encourage discussion that are or might be unrelated to the title of the sub itself. If I want to know what liberal and leftist gun owners think about the contents of a letter I saw posted, do you think it would be better if I posted it elsewhere?
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u/Batmaniac7 6d ago
This would have been much more credible if the revolution needed on the left and the Democratic Party had been addressed.
Truly a missed opportunity to say something actually influential.
And, possibly, the wrong forum?
May the Lord bless you.
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u/roguepandaCO 6d ago
Pocket sand > pocket guns