[Chris Stephens]

Hello all,

I picked up a Kel Tec P-32 today for deep concealed carried handgun. I thought it would be a nice addition to have a pocket gun for those long early morning walks, trips to the convenience store and daily meetings with clients in some not-so-nice parts of town.

In any event, on the outside, it's not something to "write home about" and I was curious as to how many Kel Tec owners and shooters out there favor the little pistol?

Regards,

Chris

 

[jonnyc]

Love mine. I'm not very accurate with it, but COM at short ranges (what it's meant for) is very easy.

 

[oldgranpa]

Good little BUG. Sometimes carry mine in a pocket holster made from an old sunglasses case. But it's only good as a last resort, up close, defense. And your placement had better be good. Fine if you need a deep conceal gun for something like going to a party or social event where "you can't carry a gun".
Better rely on something larger for main carry in BG territory.
just my opinion,
og

 

[Chris Stephens]

Thanks for the opinion Old Grandpa.

The Kel Tec P-32 is for social and business occasions here in South Carolina were the average temperature/daytime high has been close to 70 degrees. It is hard to carry a belt gun, because very few people wear jackets when the weather is this warm.

Kel Tec advertises that their accuracy rivals much larger guns, but I have still not made it to the range to find out myself.

I like the idea of using an old sunglass case for a holster. I am looking at the De Santis Nemesis for a pocket holster, but carried the pistol all day yesterday and it did not twist in my pocket.

I am also going to load it up with Glaser Safety Slugs for a carry load when I run across them.

Chris

 

[oldgranpa]

carolinaman,
in most of my tests the .32acp JHP is marginal and will not always expand. When it does expand, penetration is less than desired. Some brands, Speer Golddot and Corbon don't expand at all for me in the P32 and are therefore a waste of money. The best .32acp JHP round I've found so far is the Federal 65gr HydraShok. In my tests to date it expands everytime with decent penetration. Win Silvertip is pretty good, about 75% (that is expansion) but low penetration when it expands.
But like all .32acp JHP rounds there is the possibility of what is known as 'rimlock' due to the round being shorter than FMJ and can bump forward in the magazine during recoil 'locking' the round above it with its' rim in the groove of the round above.
The way I avoid this Murphy's Law problem is one JHP in the chamber, one on top of the magazine and the rest FMJ in the magazine.
Just my opinion.
og

 

[Chris Stephens]

Hi there old grandpa,

Again thank you for the information.

I just ordered a box of Federal Hydrashoks in .32 ACP for the Kel Tec, as well as, the DeSantis Nemesis inside the pocket holster from Natchez Shooters Supply. www.natchezss.com.

I have complete confidence in the Federal Hydrashoks and also want to try the Glaser Safety Slugs as well. Do you have any experience with their ballistical performance?

The Kel Tec instructions warn of rimlock and caution the user to use a rap of the back of the magazine to seat the rounds. The magazine is a Meggar/Italy and I have complete confidence in it.

Chris

"a bug in the pocket is better than a rock in the hand..."

 

[erich]

I had one, to answer your original question, but I traded it off when I found I wasn't carrying it. It was certainly easy to carry, and it worked very well, but I just never could bring myself to trust the .32 acp when I could carry something more powerful. :-/

 

[Chris Stephens]

Hi there Erich,

I agree that the .32 ACP round is marginal for self-defense, but I was carrying a Beretta 21 A Bobcat.
Unfortunately, my current line of work takes me into places that are deemed unlawful to carry concealed weapons and I find that a pocket pistol is a lot better to leave in the pocket, than a larger pistol is to leave in the car.
Its kind of like having pocket knife...

Chris

"An armed society is a polite society..."

 

[oldgranpa]

carolina,
I've only 1 data point on the Glazer from a range trip with my friends. You can read the results here.....
http://www.ktrange.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=2339
Not too promising.
Also, a fellow by name of Goldenloki has a neat web site with gelatin test results on .32acp. Just look for goldenloki.com and click on his gelatin tests.
Good luck,
og

 

[bbbbill]

A friend just purchsed a P-32 for his wife (to carry while selling real estate) on recommendation of several folks. This particular gun is bulging and blowing brass on almost every round. The front edge of the ejection port is rolling over/burring the locking shoulder on the barrel. The ammo is PMC. The takedown pin is also walking out on its own. Very disconcerting! ??? I told him to send it back to Kel-Tec with some of the brass.
My experience with the P-11, however, is quite good.

 

[Chris Stephens]

BBBBill,

That report on your friend's wife's Kel Tec is very disconcerting and I will be heading to the range shortly to do some of my own "testing". It sounds like the slide was not properly differentially heat treated after CNC milling.

Kel Tec does have a good reputation for customer service and I am 100% certain that they will address the issues with the pistol.

Should I have any issues or problems, I will most certainly post them on this forum.

Chris

 

[erich]

Hi Chris,

Have you gone over to the Kel-Tec Owners Group (KTOG) site and looked at their "fluff & buff" instructions? I performed this simple performance-enhancing procedure on my P-32 (although it was one of the more modern ones that supposedly don't require it), and I never had a single problem with the gun - not even during break-in.

I'd really discourage Glasers, and even JHPs. I've worked on killings in which the .32 acp was the cartridge used, but expansion and energy-transfer were not what stopped the men: shot-placement and penetration were. Since even the (73-grain) FMJ bullet of the .32 masses very little and the velocity is pretty pitifully low, I am very worried about anything that might lead to a diminution of that velocity or that mass before adequate penetration is achieved. Accordingly, I used hot European FMJ loads (Fiocchi, GECO, S&B) in my P32, and I'd encourage all to do the same.

There is a very nice man who posts under the name "Goldenloki" who has a site with all sorts of penetration and expansion info vis-a-vis the P32. You would probably enjoy looking at his site (which is linked to the KTOG site).

Use it in good health, carolinaman!
erich

 

[Chris Stephens]

Hi Erich,

Thank you for the information.

I have gone over to the Kel Tec Owners Group (KTOG) site to look at their contributions and looked at the fluff and buff section. I will most likely put around 200 rounds through the little pistol for its initial "break-in" period before I start polishing anything.

Thank you for the comments regarding defensive ammunition use. I appreciate the fact that you have some "real world" experience with the .32 ACP round and agree that shot placement and penetration is the absolute key to the effectiveness of the little Kel-Tec (and any other firearm for that matter). I am going to experiment with the ammunition preferences that you have given me.

Now, if I can keep my wife from wanting it for herself...

Chris

 

[werewolf]

Love mine! Easy to clean, no glitches after 1000+ rounds of ammo and VERY easy to conceal.

I carry the Fed Hydra-Shok 65 gr in mine as the SD round and have never had any problems with it - no rimlock, FTF or FTE.

Its also pretty easy on the hands - you can burn 100 rds of practice ammo per range session and your hand won't fall off (unlike the P3AT).

For what its meant to do (IE 3 FT COM type stuff) its accurate - and priced right. Its just so easy to carry I have to say it gets carried the most ,unless I'm going into an area (in Houston/Galveston) where maybe a G19 or some flavour of .357 gives me greater comfort.