The Firearm Blog

Next month Kahr Arms will be shipping the P380, a new .380 pistol that is even smaller than the Kel-Tec P3AT.

Along with the fairly new Ruger LCP, competition in the .380 compact carry niche is really heating up.

The P380 features a DAO trigger, 6+1 capacity and is obviously chambered in .380 ACP. Much the same specs as the Ruger LCP and Kel-Tec P3AT.

Click to expand all images.

Kel-Tec P3AT vs. Kahr P380

Some photos of the pistol:

Specs:

Caliber .380
Capacity 6+1
Barrel 2.5″, polygonal rifling
Length O/A 4.9″
Height 3.9″
Slide Width .75″
Weight Pistol 9.97 ounces (w/o magazine)
Grips Textured polymer
Sights Drift adjustable, white bar-dot combat sights
Finish Black polymer frame, matte stainless steel slide
Magazines 2 - 6 rd, Stainless

More at Kahr Arms.

More pics from glocktalk:

Hat Tip: Suburban’s Domain

John Snow @ The Gun Shots has written a review on the Sig Sauer P250. Well worth a read.

Took delivery of a new toy today—a Sig Sauer P250 in 9mm. For those not familiar with this handgun it has a hyper-modular design that allows you to mix and match different sized frames with different grip widths, swap out slides and barrels to change calibers and even install different length triggers to achieve a custom fit with the shooter’s hand.

Read it here.

James has an interesting post on cyclist’s guns which were used by cyclist’s to keep dogs at bay back in the late 1800s.

Well worth a read.

An interesting holster made by Stellar Rigs:

These were announced by the manufacturer on rec.guns recently:

Our Kel-Tec neck chain concealment rigs were developed originally for
LEOs to carry the back up gun under their vests. Over time a number of
“civilian requests” had us make a vertical version for better
concealment. Now comes the “Extreme Duty” evolution. The most popular
question by phone or email is “how well does it hold?” Our standard
answer is “fine for cruising around in you car or walking but not well
enough to jump out of helicopters or off fences - is that what you want
to do?” The answer is usually no - but just in case.
We are now making “Extreme Duty” versions in Black and the sexy carbon
fiber laminate and they hang on almost as well as the NAA mini-revolver
models. In fact, You nearly have to “force load” them. Yeah, they hang
on good !

Personally I think the chain looks too thin and I could not carry a gun pointed to my chin, holster or not.

You may say that is superstition, and maybe it is, but I know of many cases of people shooting themselves in the foot while practicing for IPSC when drawing from holsters. I just would not feel comfortable.

UPDATE: I posted this in a hurry. Links to the manufacturer and rec.guns discussion are added.

Gunner’s Journal has a very in depth post about the Hi Power pistol. Highly recommended.

Browning Hi Power Mk III

As much I as I like these handsome pistols for informal target work, small game hunting, or just knocking around in the woods, their original purpose was for “serious” matters in one area of the self-defense arena, military service. Like its Browning-born predecessor, the 1911, the single-action Hi Power’s initial reason for existence was as a military sidearm and not individual civilian self-protection. It is nice that both readily lend themselves to this, however.

Read it here.

NCIS contract calls for over 2,000 pistols to replace the aging fleet of refurbished M11 (SIG P228) pistols purchased more than 15 years ago. The contract represents the first “new” pistol procurement for NCIS agents since the agency’s inception. The new P229 and P239 models will be chambered in .40S&W and fitted with SIG SAUER’S exclusive DAK™ trigger system.

SIG SAUER P239 (photo from wikipedia)

The press release is after the jump:

Continue Reading »

I was emailed this. It apparently was made in New Zealand but I do not have any other information. It uses a conventional zip gun design: a bolt in a tube with a threaded barrel.

What makes it interesting is that it looks like both barrels can be fired at once by pressing on or pulling down the rod (on the left side of the photo).

Click to expand the photo

SOUTHPORT, Conn. (AP) — Firearm maker Sturm, Ruger & Co. said Wednesday it is recalling Ruger SR9 pistols made between October 2007 and this month because of a safety defect.
The company said the guns could fire if dropped with the safeties in the “off” or “fire” position.

“As a responsible manufacturer, we want to make our customers aware of this safety concern as soon as possible,” the company said in a statement.

The company will retrofit all Ruger SR9 pistols with serial number prefix “330″. SR9 owners can obtain information or register for the recall by contacting the company.

Shares of Sturm, Ruger & Co. rose 8 cents to $7.95 in after-hours trading after falling 45 cents, or 5.4 percent, to close at $7.86. The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $7.22 to $22.58.

From OutoorNewsWire:

The pertinent contact information for SR9 owners to obtain information or register for the recall are:
* Visiting the Ruger website at: www.ruger.com/SR9Recall/
* E-mail: SR9recall@ruger.com
* Fax: 928-541-8873
* Calling the Ruger SR9 Recall Hotline at 800-784-3701 between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. EDT.

Reader Joe kindly sent through photos of his .45 cal Philadelphia derringer made from a kit I blogged about some time ago.

It looks great!

Here are four pics of the derringer I built in 1978 at age 19. I colored the wood by staining with a Minwax walnut and then handrubbing linseed oil over it. I did not cold blue the barrel. For some reason I inlaid the side brass pieces where the pin comes through the barrel and stock.

Thanks Joe.

If anyone else has unique, custom, interesting or a firearm with a good story. Please send pictures through!

Ruger will be supplying 1750 9mm Ruger KP95 pistols to the Federal Bureau Of Prisons.

Ruger P95

The press release is here.

Guncrafter Industries are selling a .50 GI conversion kit for the the Glock 20/21.

Click to expand the image

The .50 GI round should not be compared to the Desert Eagle’s .50 Action Express or the .500 S&W. It is slightly more powerful than the .45 ACP.

Wikipedia information on the .50 GI:

.50 GI
Type	Handgun
Place of origin	 United States
Production history
Designer	Vic Tibbets / Alex Zimmermann
Designed	2004
Manufacturer	Guncrafter Industries
Specifications
Case type	Rebated, straight
Bullet diameter	.515 in (13.1 mm)
Neck diameter	.526 in (13.4 mm)
Base diameter	.526 in (13.4 mm)
Rim diameter	.480 in (12.2 mm)
Case length	.899 in (22.8 mm)
Overall length	1.221 in (31.0 mm)
Ballistic performance
Bullet weight/type	Velocity	Energy
275 gr (17.8 g) JHP	900 ft/s (270 m/s)	492 ft·lbf (667 J)
300 gr (19 g) JHP	860 ft/s (260 m/s)	493 ft·lbf (668 J)

The kit will retail for $595.

Hat Tip: Foodpounds

This year Auto Ordnance started selling a Thompson 1927A-1 “Lightweight Deluxe Pistol”, complete with 50 round drum magazine!

It has a 10.5″ barrel and aluminum receiver. A total length of 23.3″ and weight 5 lbs. 14.5 oz. Not exactly light weight, and that is before you load up 50 rounds of .45 ACP!

Model TA5

MSRP is $1,117.00.

More here.

Hat Tip: A Keyboard and a .45

James analyses the cool looking guns used in the move “Big Jake” (1971). Well worth a read.

More here.

Winchester has launched a reduced recoil .260 S&W for hunting. They claim it has 50% less recoil than a regular .460 S&W cartridge. The reduce recoil comes at a cost of approx. 34% less muzzle energy.

The press release:

For 2008, Winchester Ammunition offers a reduced recoil load for the .460 S&W Magnum, allowing shooters more pleasurable target sessions and hunting options. A proven big bore hunting caliber, the .460 S&W provides excellent energy transfer and deep penetration. The new Winchester Super-X® .460 S&W Reduced Recoil round features a 250-grain jacketed hollow point bullet, a muzzle velocity of 1,450 feet per second (fps) and an impressive 1,517 foot-pounds of muzzle energy.

Engineered to offer nearly 50-percent reduction in recoil compared to full power loads, while still retaining enough energy for hunting at normal handgun distances, the new .460 S&W Reduced Recoil load is an ideal choice for deer-sized game, predators and target shooting. The more manageable recoil also allows hunters the benefit of quicker follow-up shots.

The reduced load still has significantly more muzzle energy than the .44 Magnum.

Left to right: .460 S&W Magnum, .454 Casull,
.44 Magnum, .45ACP, .22LR