Finally Pulled the Trigger

After talking about getting a small pocket pistol for several years now, I finally got a Ruger LCP (380 ACP). My LC9's are fairly small, but not small enough to conceal comfortably when wearing form fitting summer clothes.

It came with a small sleeve to put it in within your pocket so that it just looks like a wallet in your pocket. I'm pretty stoked about it! Now I can carry all the time!

Phillip Gross wrote: small enough to conceal comfortably when wearing form fitting summer clothes

Gotta be an awfully small gun to fit in your speedos. Stick with your bermudas so you can carry a cannon.

Oh I conceal a canon in my speedos too....

Don't worry, Phil. That's just a Navy "Bigger is Better" thing.

Years ago, the officers from the Wisconsin used to give him a hard time about his little Assault Ship.

Phillip Gross wrote:Oh I conceal a canon in my speedos too....

The reason I ended up getting it tonight was because my wife and I went out to dinner WITHOUT the kids. I had heard that they were on sale at one store, but they were all sold out. Went to another store and it was only $20 more than the sale price at the previous store, so I picked it up. Enjoyed a pleasurable evening at a nicish restaurant without anyone being able to see a "print". As alluded to earlier, I always have a problem comfortably concealing unless I want to look sloppy and go untucked with my shirt. At 6'2", 195lbs I'm slim and more form fitting clothes tend to make concealment difficult. Tonight I was able to wear nice slacks and a polo with nobody being the wiser about what I had.

I went to several dealers in the area.  Most said that they cannot keep LCP's on the shelves.  To make my quest even more difficult, I wanted one with a stainless slide, because I know that the blue version will look pretty rough after being carried in my pocket for a couple of months.  (It doesn't effect the function, but life is too short to go through it with an ugly gun.)

My wife asked why I needed it.  I told her that it was because my Kel-Tec had a design flaw that allowed lint and foreign material into the firing pin channel and cause a fail-to-fire. 

She said, "When you get the LCP, are you going to sell the Kel-Tec?"

Right!  When you get a new piece of jewelry, are you going to sell your old pieces?

(I didn't SAY that, but I THOUGHT it real loud.)

It came with a little sleeve that softens the outline and protect it in you pocket. It has a surface that catches in your pocket, so the pistol comes right out without the cover when you pull it out.
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Neat!

I just picked up my "Birthday Present", about 20 minutes ago. It is exactly like yours, except for the stainless steel slide assembly. It even has the nifto pocket-holster, like yours.

I had it in the house for 5 minutes, before I disassembled it, to insure that it did NOT share the same weakness as my Kel-Tec (a path into the firing pin channel for dirt & lint).

The LCP passed visual inspection. I did hate to pry out the take-down pin with a screwdriver. With the Kel-Tec, you can use the rim of a brass cartridge case, as to not mar the finish. The stainless steel is pretty resistant to marring, but I may be concerned about the blue/black slide assembly.

Maybe using the rim from a brass .38 Special (or even a .380) case with a wooden dowel for leverage would be a good non-marring pry tool.

On second thought, I think that I will lay a rag or piece of leather on the side of the slide when prying out the takedown pin. That should help to protect the finish.

I'll have to give it a try.

So what was your finding? Will lint and dirt get in?

I noticed this evening as I was getting ready for a shower that the mag release button and the slide release already have slight surface rust from being in my pocket and being exposed to sweat. Is there something I can coat the gun with so as to hold off rust?

Those pieces are stamped sheet steel, rather than castings or forgings (the magazine button might be MIM), and so the finish on them will generally be the first to show weakness.

Break-Free Collector is about the best protectant that I have found for perspiration, but it does have to be re-applied, as it rubs off.  It has a thicker consistency than regular Break-Free CLP.  I use a tooth brush, to get into all of the little ridges.

Birchwood Casey also makes protective gun-wipes in little packets (like lens-wipes).  That stuff kind-of goes on wet, and then dries - like Glo-Coat or Turtle Wax.

Some folks like to clean the part, and then rub on a dab of Paste Car Wax.

Good luck.

Wife and I met a church friend at the grand opening of Cabela's in Avon, OH. AWESOME shop. Bought some .22 LR Stinger 50 rounds and of course drooled over the gun showcases. I saw my Windham AR on vice grip on the counter. Planning to go back when crowds die down.

Phillip Gross wrote:Oh I conceal a canon in my speedos too....

Probably compensating. If you can fit a canon there must be a lot of room...

Lol! I thought that could be taken either way. Was waiting to see which wise guy would come from that angle. Dan, you never disapoint!

Either way my foot. Chris called foul before I commented 

Phillip Gross wrote:After talking about getting a small pocket pistol for several years now, I finally got a Ruger LCP (380 ACP). My LC9's are fairly small, but not small enough to conceal comfortably when wearing form fitting summer clothes.

It came with a small sleeve to put it in within your pocket so that it just looks like a wallet in your pocket. I'm pretty stoked about it! Now I can carry all the time!

Yesterday, I went to my shop and found my .380 reloading dies (haven't used them in several years).

I got on Gunbroker, and purchased 2,000 pieces of .380 brass, 500 Moly-Coated Bullets, and I have another 500 Copper-Clad bullets in the old house.  That should keep me out of the taverns for a while.

That is a good line for indulging oneself on hobby stuff. "That should keep me out of the taverns for a while" What wife would argue with that one. GRIN!

Educational stuff found here.

Mark Jones

I have always said that, if I spend a few dollars per week on my gun hobbies, the Wife can always sell the stuff after I'm gone and recoup 50% to 75% of what I have spent.

After Hubby dies, try going to a tavern and ask to get back 50% of what he spent there.

Very good logic Mark and Claymore!  Oh how I see that $$$ being spent this weekend in Cle running uber. My gross rate per hr minus gas is $19.39/hr. 

Ask the wife how much selling her movie or shoe collection will net you 

RRCmdrBennett wrote:

Ask the wife how much selling her movie or shoe collection will net you 

Do NOT get me on that subject...........

We have TRUNKS of videotape movies that my wife purchased. I asked why we don't just go out to a movie and enjoy them for the same price. Her "logic" was, "...but we haven't seen these, and we will have them forever...."

Right.....

Grainy outdated videotapes that we will never watch again, and we cannot even get a good tax deduction, when I take them to the Salvation Army Store.

I thought mine was the only movie collector wife haha. VHS has mostly been converted to DVD/BD or digital VUDU streaming collection now. At least if mine goes first I should fair better selling digital media.

Well, since this thread started out about Ruger LCP's....

I have been Out of Pocket for a while. I had to go to Wisconsin on family business. While I was at it, I swung by Milwaukee to attend the Annual Retirees' Picnic, and to shoot my annual Retired Officers' Qualification Course and update my I.D. Card.

I did it with my Ruger LCP. I cleaned the course, shooting 100% hits, even though the last shots were the "Accuracy" Phase at 50 feet from the target.

I am glad that I highlighted the Front Sight, by putting a drop of white base-coat paint, and then a bit of light red paint over that. It really helped to pick up that front sight; especially at an indoor range.

Two different magazines, 44 round course, no malfunctions (except those intentionally introduced by the instructor when he placed empty brass in the magazine for practicing malfunction drills).

No harm done, but I will have to take up some .380 dummy loads for the next time.

I want the 2nd Gen LCP now. Came out after I bought the 1st Gen.

Glad you're home safe.