Good backup weapon for a NY LEO

**ojgsxr6** · Posted On: 4/12/2007 2:05pm

My friend is looking for a concealed backup gun. In NY it can only be a .38 - 9mm. Two other friends of mine are using the hammerless S&W .38. They love it. The one who's looking likes the Keltec .380 and I told him about the likely reliability issues. His reasoning is if he gets anything bigger, he won't wear it. Does anyone have a suggestion about a good compromise.

**pauli** · Posted On: 4/12/2007 3:35pm

that's pretty much exactly what j-frames are designed for.

**rw4th** · Posted On: 4/12/2007 3:38pm

How about a Glock 26?

**ojgsxr6** · Posted On: 4/12/2007 3:41pm

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/w...04&isFirearm=Y

http://www.kel-tec.com/p3at.html

**BackFistMonkey** · Posted On: 4/12/2007 3:44pm

Originally Posted by ojgsxr6

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/w...04&isFirearm=Y

I thought I was hearing that SW wasn't holding itself to the high standards it started and kept up with for many years ...

**Neildo** · Posted On: 4/12/2007 4:09pm

Doesn't Anthony have a couple of those J-frames? I'm pretty sure he likes them.

**Equipoise** · Posted On: 4/12/2007 5:06pm

What does he carry on duty?

We carry a .45 S & W. Decent gun, but outdated and heavy. I carry it off duty as well. I'll be purchasing a Beretta Storm shortly to also carry with me. Tell him to look into that weapon.

I'm not a big fan of revolvers. All due to possible jamming issues, lack of ammunition and speed in reloading. This isn't the wild west. Due to the inaccuracy of handguns especially in an active shooter situation, supressive fire and tactics are going to matter much more than getting a clean kill shot.

**chemistry** · Posted On: 4/13/2007 9:46am

Originally Posted by ojgsxr6

My friend is looking for a concealed backup gun. In NY it can only be a .38 - 9mm. Two other friends of mine are using the hammerless S&W .38. They love it. The one who's looking likes the Keltec .380 and I told him about the likely reliability issues.

The S&W hammerless J-frames are a great choice. Reliabilty isn't an issue, and the aluminum alloys that they use are strong enough to handle +P loads.

A S&W 442 is only 15 ounces, and fits in a pocket holster or ankle holster with relative ease. Just make sure you have a *good* holster, though, and not some cheap POS.

If you want to shave off an ounce or two or three, the 340 series uses a bit of Scandium in the alloy, although I really don't notice a huge difference between 12 and 15 ounces, since ammo also takes up some weight. Also, having to spend twice as much to shave off those couple of ounces isn't worth it to me, since good holsters mitigate that.

For ammunition, I would suggest using Speer's .38 Special 130 grain Gold Dot +P JHP load that was designed for short barrels. This will have the "SB" designation on the box. This load was designed so that you can get reliable expansion from 2" barrels. Recoil from a J-frame may be a bit stiff, but hey, it's a backup gun after all.

I simply do not recommend using full house .357 magnum loads in a J-frame, unless it's the all-steel model 60 or 640. Then again, those guns are about 22 ounces, and not really that ideal for pocket carry.

**chemistry** · Posted On: 4/13/2007 9:47am

On another note, S&W and to a lesser extent, Taurus, are the only real choices when looking for a small frame revolver. You can pretty much take Ruger off the list, since their SP series is all-steel, and too heavy as a BUG.