"Get Off Me" Guns

Am Shooting Journal ^ | 4/9/2018 | J Hines

[w1n1]

With the small stature comes the debate of is that enough knock down power for personal defense?
Maybe not but like it or not, these little nostril guns play a roll as a secondary backup. Many gun gurus talk of using these GOM guns for “dynamic cover.” Its simply returning gunfire to get the bad guy to stop an attack just enough for you to escape.
Another tactic is when your primary gun is out of commission and out of ammo and using the .22 as a tactical retreat. Its understood that the .22 is not going to be used for standing your ground.

Accuracy is not a huge priority for "GOM" guns, due to the nature of its use at close quarter. Utilizing these mouses will be at arms range or even closer if we’re wrestling. But if accuracy is a concern and you’re a decent shot, you should be able to put it in one inch six to nine shot groups.
If you’re ok and understand the purpose of these “GOM” guns. Here are 5 "Get Off Me" guns that should help you in a tight spot.

• Beretta 950
  Coming out in the 1950, specifically for self-defense and considered reliable pocket pistol with an 8 round mag. Easy operation made for women and the elderly.
• Beretta 21A (Bobcat)
  The 950 pistols were fun to play with for someone with small hands, by the 1980s, the craze was double action autos. Beretta comes back with a revamped Model 21A (Bobcat) in both .25 ACP and .22lr. This double action trigger made is easy to draw and fire from the pocket instead of having to cock the hammer on the 950. Read the rest of this Get Off Me guns here.

[Vaquero]

With ultra light.380s and 9mms there is no longer a need for .25s, .22s etc.

My sons LCP 380 is small and light enough for anyone to pocket. My LC9s isn’t much bigger.

[mabarker1]

1911 .45ACP no point in screwing around.

[Basket_of_Deplorables]

NAA makes a tiny 5 rd .22 long SST revolver. Belly gun. Must thumb cock the first shot, but you can fan the hammer after. Really tiny!

[OldSmaj]

1911 .45ACP no point in screwing around.

Yeah...I agree.

I have advocated a .380, right here on these pages.

However, having looked much closer at the Colt Defender Lightweight...the .380 is back to being the backup, instead of the primary.

As light as the Defender is (and it is well and appropriately named), I can carry it as long as I wish or need to.

Damn fine gun...should of looked at it a long time ago for primary carry.

[ThunderSleeps]

Agree, we have a Ruger LCP 380 that is very easy to conceal.

Sure, it is not my favorite gun to take to the range - the trigger pull is long (but at least it is deliberate - good for a pocket gun!), the recoil is snappy, it tends to FTE and stovepipe for my wife, the sights are great as long as you're aiming at something in the same elevator car as you, racking the action seems harder than that on our full size 1911 or compact 9mm...

But I still take it, practice with it, clean it, and yes carry it. Because it is so ridiculously easy to carry, and 7 bangs are a better deterrent than none. I have even carried it as a backup to my G19 since my wife has adopted a 5 shot .38 spl revolver as a backup to her M&P 9C. I hate to see the LCP orphaned and just sitting there in the drawer so... ;-)

[BTerclinger]

PLEASE someone edit that author.

[Vaquero]

Check out the new improved LCP2. Great new trigger pull.

[PAR35]

I would go with a .380 over a .25 any day. .25s are essentially worthless.

[Dusty Road]

Start poking holes in somebody and it’s a game changer, hole size makes little difference, attempted assassination of Reagan proved that. 4 shot with a 22 stubbie, 3 on the ground and one made it to the car.

[Ancient Man]

You are 100% correct. I also carry a LC9s and an XDs .45. The days of the little belly-guns are over.

[Ancient Man]

I have one in .22 mag. You can carry them in your sock.

[IndispensableDestiny]

A revolver in .32 H&R Magnum or .327 Federal Magnum would fill this niche. I have a Ruger SP101 in .327 Fed Mag. It is nice. I load my own ammo, but factory cartrides are still available.

[Pollster1]

I’m a big fan of the .45 Auto, and to a much lesser extent a fan of the 9mm. However, even the .22LR is not worthless for defense. I’ll agree that a .22LR is not much of a deterrent to an NFL lineman who knows how to fight while hurt. Even a fatal .22 hit will not be fatal very quickly. However, we are almost never attacked by professional athletes. Criminals tend to be losers and sissies. A rapist with a .22 hole in the chest is likely to lose interest, as is an armed robber with a hole in his stomach.

I would not dismiss even the smallest caliber as a backup gun or as an everyday carry with the advantage of being so small and light that it’s never a burden. My new toy, a .380 Kel-Tek P-3AT, weighing 11 ounces loaded, is no more noticeable than the same-size iPhone in my other front pocket. Unless you hang out in thug central, gun beats no gun by such a large margin that the mouse guns do have a place in our self-defense plans. Amazingly, I can quickly put six out of six Kel-Tek rounds in a standard target at 25 years. I cheat - I got the laser too. It’s not fun to shoot, but it’s a tool that does its job well.

[Who is John Galt?]

There's a lot of truth in "KYJim's Rules of Carry":

1. Any gun is better than no gun.

2. A gun that is reliable is better than a gun that is not.

3. A hole in the right place is better than a hole in the wrong place.

4. A bigger hole is a better hole.

[Who is John Galt?]

1911 .45ACP no point in screwing around.

I once knew a guy, with a similar point of view: he carried a Wilson Combat Tactical Super Grade Compact. (Stuck in my memory, because I love how that rolls off the tongue! Kind of like ".375 Belted Rimless Magnum Nitro Express"! ;^) He ended up on the receiving end in a road rage incident: nobody hurt, and no shots fired, but guess what? The PD took posession of his $5000 1911 (w/ legal hoops to jump through after that). "To each his own" - I prefer something that's just as reliable, but a lot cheaper & a lot lighter, that I will actually carry...

;^)

[Georgia Girl 2]

Agree. I would not carry less than a .380

[sarge83]

I CCW in calibers ranging from 9mm, .38spl, .357Mag to .32ACP. The one piece to consistently carry is a little Kel-Tec P32. It does not have the knock down power of the .9mm or .357, but it is easily concealed in my pants pocket and I have 8 rds weighing nearly nothing.

Shot placement is everything in a gun fight regardless of caliber. Spray and pray is a recipe for disaster. Be deliberate and go for chest and if need be a head shot. You may or may not take incoming rounds, but that is the nature of the beast in a gunfight. I at least want aimed rounds going outbound if it comes to the SHTF.

[Who is John Galt?]

The one piece to consistently carry is a little Kel-Tec P32. It does not have the knock down power of the .9mm or .357, but it is easily concealed in my pants pocket and I have 8 rds weighing nearly nothing.

I like the Kel-Tecs a lot, for the same reasons (if it's sitting at home, it's not much help)...

[jim_trent]

I have a Beretta 21A. It is more accurate than I would have expected and it will hide anywhere. I really like the flip-up barrel for loading. The single/double action trigger pull is nice, too. Unfortunately, the .32ACP version is a lot bigger and not as easy to hide.

I also have an NAA Magnum mini-revolver. With standard grips, I could not hit anything with it. I recently put one of their grip/holsters on it. I can shoot better with the larger grips, but it is still not easy to hit much with it. With the grips closed, it is not that much bigger than the gun was originally. I am practicing snapping open the grips one handed (it is a problem), and of course, it is single action, so it is not ideal for self defense.

The smallest I have is a Kel-Tec 32ACP. Unfortunately, the slide must be racked to load it. When that happens, the gun is half-cocked. The hammer is hidden so that it is impossible to let the hammer all the way down. I feel uncomfortable carrying a half-cocked gun in my pocket.