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Noticing a lot of pistol caliber carbines being sold

John A.

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Noticing a lot of pistol caliber carbines being sold. And I'm honestly glad to see it.

For any who have been around the forum long, knows that I have a healthy admiration for pistol caliber stuff. Matter of fact, other than a few offerings, it was difficult to even find a new pistol caliber carbine for a long time and was an under-served market.

For several years, the industry all jumped aboard the AR Train and heralded their "advantages" and got away from a lot of pistol caliber stuff and just about went completely off the radar for a while, but I'm seeing a lot more options being available lately.

One being a few 45acp AR style guns that appeal to me coming out, though they're pricey.

Then there are glock and colt style AR 9's, scorpions, uzi's, sten's, soon an MP38/40 semi being imported from ATI, Hi Points, Beretta, Sig, several MP5's being imported, Taurus etc.

In the immortal words of Hickok45: "Life is good".
 
I've noticed that very few places can keep .357 lever guns in stock. Or, at least, the less expensive versions are rarely in stock. Rossi, for instance, is nearly impossible to find. Henry's are much easier to find and much more expensive. I don't like the Henry anyway, because of how it is reloaded (no loading gate).

9mm, 40 S&W, .45 ACP, etc. carbines are pretty easy to find. And I love my .40 Hi Point carbine. Take care. Tom Worthington
 
Once upon a time I was shopping for a 357 lever gun, but ultimately got a barrel for my NEF break action single shot. It worked out to the good, though having a quick(er) followup shot would have been nice. I'm not going to lie.

I found that USED marlins and Winchesters were far too expensive for my taste.
 
Yeah, the sig is a pretty neat design. Especially if ATF hadn't bucked on their original muzzlebrake. That would have made a good starting point for a form 1 suppressor.

SIG_SAUER_SIG_MPX_Submachine_Gun_SBR_Carbine_Multi-Caliber_PDW_Personal_Defense_Weapon_SHOT_Show_2013_David_Crane_DefenseReview.com_DR_4.jpg


I don't really know it offers anything over any of the 9mm AR's though. Especially the newer ones with the dedicated 9mm magazine lowers for the Colt or Glock mags.

I looked at the sig for a while, but I ultimately went with the CZ scorpion.

I can honestly say that I have not been disappointed with the scorpion. I've made a few personalized tweaks to it, but it's been a good gun. Not saying the Sig isn't a good gun. But I can't wrap my mind around the price tag.

The B&T. This one in pistol form is also a different choice.

p26bt%20(5%20of%2016).jpg
 
Ive noticed same thing and its a great trend. Pistol caliber carbines are such a fabulous tool. I really appreciate that you can take a new shooter and have them banging away accuratley and safely in short period of time. It seems to be real confidence booster. They serve so many purposes and work from kids to old folks. Home defense excellent some people just wont practice enough to be effective with handgun others are not willing or capable of handling the venerable shotgun. Enter the pistol carbine easy to shoot well and negligible recoil. I agree theyre awesome. Plus they seem to be available in everyone's budget.
 
Those are some very good points Djcala.

Recoil isn't as bad as a lot of higher power (rifle) cal's. Noise isn't as bad indoors or out. And especially when set up correctly and suppressed.

Just a couple of years ago, people would say that pistol calibers had become obsolete and were on their way out entirely. I couldn't tell you the times I have heard that.

On just about every forum out there.

They have their place, but obviously aren't for everything.

For home defense and even short range (150 yards and in), can be used just as effectively as anything else. And to be honest, I don't know of a single self defensive shootout taking place 150 or more yards away. Maybe there are some out there, I just don't know of any.

So, to me, they also make good truck guns. Good camp guns. Good HD gun.

Another positive for many pistol calibers is cost.

Not all that long ago, it was less expensive for me to reload and shoot 9mm than it was to find and buy a little box of 22lr ammo. That's the world we've been living in for the last several years.

Just considering the cost and availability of 50 rounds of 9mm compared to 223 or 308 for example, also has shown it to be a viable choice for most of us.

And I just can't imagine having to pull the trigger on my Fal indoors during a HD/SD situation. I seriously would never want to go there. Not just for the noise/concussion, disorientating fireball but also over-penetration concerns for my neighbors down at the other end of the block.

Pistol cal's aren't perfect for everything. No gun really is in my opinion. That's why I'm glad that we have choices to make our own minds up about what's best for us given the circumstances.

skip up to 5:39 to hear the gun

13:23'ish also shows the gun shooting out to 150 yards. Does OK once he see's he should be aiming toward the head to hit center mass.

 
I've noticed that very few places can keep .357 lever guns in stock. Or, at least, the less expensive versions are rarely in stock. Rossi, for instance, is nearly impossible to find. Henry's are much easier to find and much more expensive. I don't like the Henry anyway, because of how it is reloaded (no loading gate).

9mm, 40 S&W, .45 ACP, etc. carbines are pretty easy to find. And I love my .40 Hi Point carbine. Take care. Tom Worthington

Part of that Is due to MI changed the rules for deer hunting to allow them in the "Shotgun Only" zone. I think there is also another state or two adopting similar rule changes. I've not seen a lever 357 since that went into effect. Not that the 450 BM is becoming more readily available, I hope to see more of the smaller calibers hit the shelves again.

That said I have also noticed an increase of smaller 9mm and 45 caliber kits and guns. I as well think that's a good thing. I like having a variety of different guns in the same caliber, it keeps ammo buying/reloading a little simpler.
 
I shot the SIG and liked it plenty, but reports from the field when shooting suppressed is that the SIG is miserable at blowing gas and schmutz into the shooters face.
 
My son, home from the USMC, and I were shooting at my home range last week and he chose my 22" scoped rifle chambered in .223 Rem.

The sun was at a bad angle and low and was flaring in the scope so I stood to his left just forward of the muzzle and held a piece of cardboard to shade the front glass element.

The crack from firing the rifle even though I was wearing foam earplugs (which were perfectly fine when behind the gun) was painful.

A pistol caliber carbine would have been so much less decibels.
 
Funny how a few feet difference in where you are located will have such a drastic effect on sound. On a slightly different note, (sound) reflective surfaces can also do the same.

As for blowback gassing from a can, the scorpion isn't bad at all. Especially considering the left side (or the shooters side) is solid, unlike how AR's are made, and there is no gaps or openings to port any gasses into the shooters face.
 
Have any of you been following the glock fed CMMG guard in 45acp or 9mm. They have a radial delayed blowback setup that lets you run a lighter bcg+buffer setup then the standard blowback style AR PCC. The recoil is softer due to less reciprocating weight.
 
Have any of you been following the glock fed CMMG guard in 45acp or 9mm. They have a radial delayed blowback setup that lets you run a lighter bcg+buffer setup then the standard blowback style AR PCC. The recoil is softer due to less reciprocating weight.

Sounds mighty worth looking into. Thanks.
 
Been interested in the 45acp for a while.

Alas, no money to get into one anytime soon.
 
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