All these guns are much smaller than the smallest gun I have and contemplate ever getting, but…
Small bullets, short barrels, means inaccurate and less deadly. These really are only an option if the alternative is having noting but your teeth to fight with. Unless you cram a full size round in there. Like a .44 Magnum!!!!
The point is to be armed in a situation where a Colt Commander or Glock 22 is just too bulky to have. I wouldn’t want to lug around .45 in t-shirt, shorts, and barefeet weather. Florida in the summer time.
The Kel-Tec .380 is wallet sized. And there is a wallet shaped holster you can buy after-market. And you can shoot with the pistol in the holster on some of them. Probably enough to drive a New York City cop crazy, as they routinely shoot you when you pull a regular wallet.
The Beretta Tomcat is about the same size as the Kel-Tec, but probably better made, if slightly bulkier and less ‘squared’ off. A bit more expensive too. And it’s a slightly smaller cartridge than the above, at .32, and they have options in the same sort of rig for a .25 or .22, too.
And for the ultimate small gun, the true Derringer. Classic styling and design Similar to the design you’d expect Doc Holiday to have playing card in Tombstone Arizona. Can you shoot .44 magnum out of these 2-shot classics? Ouch. Reports of shooting the .357 out of a light-alloy snub-nose revolver tell of discomfort. I can’t imagine the horror of shooting .44 mag out of this. Though they have a certain amount of HEFT. These things look and feel solid in the hand. At least. Nice piece of machining work. The ones I’ve seen. But murder on the hands in any sizeable caliber.
Ok, ok, they don't have a .44 Magnum in their catalog. I made that up. The biggest they have is the classic .45 Colt. A lot less powder charge in that cartridge. But that is a whole lot of bullet for a small gun, too.
Naw. If I am forced to go the mini gun route, to shrink beyond the pocket gun to the VEST pocket gun, a gun the size of a pocket watch, I’d probably go for that revolver from North American Arms, and in .22 magnum. The nifty thing with these is that they can come with a pocket clip, making them look like a pocket knife hanging on the inside of your pants pocket. Kim du Toit recommended the caliber. A little extra oomph and you can get the shot shell in that size. But is this mouse gun, or any of the other lesser contenders on my MASTER list? No, not yet.
9 comments:
Interesting.
I have a Kel Tec P3AT, a .38 special Derringer, and a NAA mini-22LR revolver.
I even have the belt clip holster/grip for the NAA...
Dude, seriously, stay out of my gun safe... ;)
I read an account of someone shooting a 44 mag Derringer, just to see if it could be done. He also wrapped his hand up beforehand, with an elastic bandage, to protect it. He was able to shoot it, but his hand was in so much pain after the second shot, that he couldn't even imagine trying to load and shoot it again.
Actually, the recoil out of a Derringer isn't as bad as you'd think.
The reason is that the barrel is SO short, the bullet has left the muzzle long before the recoil has reached its peak.
It's still a stout push, though: the .410 shotshell is a handful. But even the .357 Mag isn't too bad... and for a last-ditch, everything-must-go moment, there are far worse choices to make.
I still prefer my little NAA Mini in .22 Mg, though.
Apparently Kim is much more manly than I... Now the Bond Arms derringers are nearly a pound and a half, so it might be different from them. But I have a Cobra in .38 Spec and the recoil is stiff. I wouldn't shoot more than a dozen full loads at a time. I shoot low powered wad-cutters or Mag-tech's .38 Spec Shorts [similar to a .38 Colt round] to save my hand. Keep in mind that the grip is way undersized [not even 'finger and a half] and odd-shaped,so the recoil has very little territory to transfer the force to your hand. I am thinking of getting a .32 Mag barrel from them just so I can shoot wimpy .32 Longs. Cheers
Just FYI, they DO offer the 2 barreled derringers in .44 magnum, and even .45-70 for the bravest of men :)
I have fired the .44- while uncomfortable, it was still controllable for me. Then again, I thought the .500S&W revolvers don't feel bad at all, so if you're in the same boat...
I'm online looking for a smaller grip for my American Derringer .44 mag model M-4. It has a 4 inch barrel and th grip is 3 1/2 inches high ( almost full size.) I have fired this at the outdoor range in both .44 mag and special. I have an extra large hand and it hurt my hand every time I fired it. Twice it fired off both rounds at once and I thought my hand was broken ( I dropped the gun both times!)I went to the Am Der web site and didn't see the M-4 in this caliber?? Just wyi...
Having been a police officer for a good many years,I have had a longtime love affair with weapons. I decided to go out with a fellow officer to do some target shooting at an outdoor range I brought my usual,Glock 22,AR-15,Winchester Defender 12GA and my Smith.357 After a while at the range my buddy asked if i wanted to shoot his "baby" Curious i said sure. He said it kicks a lil. It was a derringer 44mag over .410 don't remember the brand. Didnt matter, after firing the first round of 44mag out of it, we were headed to the ER to get myself 3 stitches.My "buddy" then snickered and said, "you know, did the same thing to me when i first shot it. My buddy has since died at the age of 41 from lung cancer, but that day i was cussing him all day long. RIP Hubbard LWPD205
Years back and because of being in CA I've dealt with several American Derringers while we still could get them and then the dry spell for several years and now a couple of Bond models are now available and I have the stainless 3" 45LC model.
With the AD guns I once owned the double in 45-70. You have to get that in the slab sided M4 model as the bores are drilled off center (just look at the firing pin indentations). You also have to drag a file across the edge of one of the cartridges rims so they sit side by side. I fired the lower barrel first and WOW that was a kicker for sure. The gun ended up pointing at a 45 degree angle above horizontal. Then I fired the upper barrel and OUCH, that was painful. This time I still ended up at 45 degrees, but this time the gun was pointing backwards towards my head. First two and last two rounds I ever fired in that gun. It was for sale the very next day. I also had a single shot 45-70 where the upper barrel was the only one to work and the lower barrel was bored, then plugged and finally milled to look like a half lugged barrel. That one I actually shot a few more times than just once. It had a three inch barrel. If I could get the AD guns, I'd pass since the Bond Arms guns are now available and soon to have models with interchangeable barrels unlike the first two versions to hit the State.
I'M A TRUCK DRIVER. I USE TO RUN WITH AN OLD DRIVER 30 YEARS AGO. CIGAR WAS HIS NICKNAME. CIGAR CARRIED A 4 BARREL 44 DERINGER. WE WOULD STOP FOR THE DAY AND WALK IN WOODS AND TARGET PRACTICE. THAT GUN WAS NOT BAD AT ALL TO SHOOT. IT WAS STAINLESS STEEL AND HAD PEARL GRIPS.CIGAR CARRIED THAT GUN EVERYWHERE, AND FOR A DERINGER IT WAS NOT A SMALL GUN BUT CIGAR WAS NOT A SMALL MAN.DON'T REMEMBER THE MFG. CO. BUT I HELD IT, SHOT IT. CIGAR PASSED ABOUT 15 YEAR AGO HERE IN INDIANA AND I GUESS HIS SON ENDED UP EITHER THAT GUN.
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