Ooops...
I mentioned The Beard was shopping for a .45 now, and was thinking .38 Special for CCW. Something small from Ruger. I was thinking the SP101 with a short barrel and bobbed hammer was what he had in mind.
Glad I gave him a nickname because this is semi-embarassing. But most people make this mistake.
The model of Ruger '.38 Special' he was thinking about was called the "LCP". Yes, he meant the Kel-Tec clone. Which makes more sense now because I was already aware he loathed revolvers. (and mores the pity.)
I told him that Elsie Pea is .380, not .38 Special. Which ellicited the question, "How many .38 types are there?!"
I listed a bunch in seconds, off the top of my head. And didn't even go into the various 9mm varieties. (You can play this game at home, too! How many '.38s' can you think up? No cheating! There really are too many...)
The plethora of choices caged his eyeballs. I told him not to worry. There are only so many common calibers out there and they are easy to find guns to shoot those calibers. When you are at a gunstore and there are more than 1 pistol in a single caliber? Chances are it's one of the common ones. Still.... I gave him a list. In case he goes to a store that happens to have 3 pistols in .45 GAP or .454 Casull or .32 H&R Magnum, or what have you. You know the list to stick to. The stuff Wal Mart generally has on hand:
.380
.38/.357
9mm
.40
.45
But really, nothing dissuaded him from the .45 and the .380. He just knows to call it .380 now. And another coworker knows to call the ammo for his 1911 .45 ACP (Auto Colt Pistol), not .45 APC. Which, on his version, he is buying little less than half of a Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicle.
Oh, and full disclosure... I was embarassed and misnamed the .380 as .38 Special at one point in the beginning of my firearm purchase journey, I am sure. And The Beard regularly schools me on automobile topics.
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6 comments:
Nae worries lad; we're all ignorant of many things...
Given that the XD in .45 and the LCP are my most common carry battery, I'd be hard-pressed to be critical of those choices. The XD won me over long ago, the LCP, not so much, though it is certainly easy to tote around and the CT laser greatly enhances getting bullets where they need to be.
Huh. Just hit me. The .40 S+W is the .40 S+W, period. Not the 10 mm Short, not a .40 Special vs. a .40 Magnum, just the .40 S+W. No confusion possible. And with all the polymer framed single stacks in 9mm for CCW coming out, there should be some .40 S+W out there. So if it's really, really hot outside, and I want to CCW with an Ultra Compact that makes bigger holes....I think we'll see a new version of the Snubbie From Hell soon. 6+1 in 17 ounces? 155 grains at 1200 fps in .40 vs. 124 at 1200 fps in 9mm? All in the same size Bullet Launching Platform? Hmm. I think I'll be spending a lot a time talking to Manufacturer Reps at the NRA Con in a few weeks.
Oh, I dunno, the case could be made for the .40 being "10mm Short". The guys I know who have S&W 610's say they can shoot the .40's as well.
Myself the nicest thing I can say about the .40 is that I can get bullets to reload my 10mm much easier these days...
There is a tee shirt printed with the "periodic table of ammunition." I was going to invent it, but took too long.
Isn't the .380 called the 9mm corto or 9mm short in some places around the world?
Not only are there lots of different ammunition calibers, there are too many names for them!
A periodic table of ammunition. That's something to look for. I've seen one for cursing.
9mm Kurz... 9mm Short...
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