Updated CT380 Range Report

[RolandD]

My wife and I were able to go to the range for a bit after work, before it got too dark. The CT380 is my wife's and she managed to get 56 rounds down range in the little time we had. Here's the breakdown:

35 rounds of RPT 100gr, FMJ, RNFP
---One stovepipe on the fourth round of the first magazine. Probably a limp wrist.

21 rounds of Federal "Champion" 95gr, FMJ, RN
---No Malfunctions

After we got home and had supper, we sat down at the kitchen table and I walked my wife through the process of disassembly and cleaning. The only times I had to help was to pull the slide lock the rest of the way out, after she had successfully gotten it started, and to get the recoil spring and guide back into place. I was surprised by how much dirtier her CT380 was than my CW9. Way, way dirtier.

I fired a similar number of rounds through my CW9, and was very pleased with the performance of both. The only aggravation for me is the fact that my wife is a better shot than I am. :2eek:

Here's the range report on the CW9. (http://www.kahrtalk.com/showthread.php?28736-New-CW9-First-Range-Report&p=365886#post365886)

My second range report is in post 8 of this thread.

[torr8966]

Love my CT380! I've only had it a short time but I've put at least 300 rounds of a mix of ammo with not one issue! Funny you should talk about the dirtiness of this little pistol. I took mine apart for the first time and I couldn't believe it either!! It's super accurate too! Hope you and your wife enjoy your new pistols!


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[items]

All I've fired through my new CT380 (purchased in March) is Blazer Brass 95gr FMJ that I picked up on a sale at Gander Mountain last year for my Bersa Thunder .380. I thought that after well over 100 rounds that the cleaning was fairly minimal. Maybe it's the Blazer Brass but I'd always heard that it was a kind of dirty round. I need to try different JHP brands and see how they feed. I had LOT's of trouble with my Ruger LCP and hollow points jamming up so sold it - PLUS it was no fun to shoot and follow up shots were taking to long with the recoil. The Bersa is a nice shooting reliable pistol but after I fondled a CT380 in the LGS I had to try it. It carries almost as well as the LCP and is much more pleasant to shoot it. Can't wait to find a good hollow point that it likes!

[Armybrat]

Pocket carrying my CT380 takes a little more room than the LCP did because of the longer grip, but that makes it a more comfortable shooter, easier to grasp. And it's a 7+1. Mine loves the Remington & Federal FMJ, and runs fine with Hornady Critical Defense HP. It's a really neat little pistol. The only drawback is how tough the slide is to rack back into the locked position.

http://images.yuku.com/image/jpeg/7b815e43d914bf08b9eddd54cbe19ce7597b32b.jpg

[jayo84]

Nice! I love my CT380! I put a rubber grip tape kit on it, makes it even more comfortable!

[RolandD]

Nice! I love my CT380! I put a rubber grip tape kit on it, makes it even more comfortable!
I found a bicycle inner tube on clearance at Walmart, just a day or so after I ordered our Kahrs. I like that it doesn't add much thickness, but improves the grip so much.

[jayo84]

yeah absolutely. The kit I got doesnt add much mass at all but the texture makes is effective.

[RolandD]

My second range report

Last Friday, I took my 18 year old daughter to the range to teach her how to shoot. She's 5' 5”, 105 lbs, and had never shot a gun. As far as I know, the only time she had ever even seen one fired is when she held the flashlight while I shot a opossum in our backyard last year. So, I started her off with her mother's CT380. We went over grip and stance while waiting for a lane to open. I had already been drilling her with the four rules of gun safety for the past few months. Once the lane opened and we got setup, I loaded the first magazine and she loaded the second following my example. I then locked the slide back, inserted the first mag and released the slide, explaining my actions the entire time. I handed her the gun, coached her on her grip, trigger finger placement and sight alignment, and told her to slowly draw back the trigger. Being that the range is 25 yards, we were more concerned with form than accuracy. She did well. We fired 44 rounds through the CT380 and she fired 38 of those. Here's the breakdown.

15 rounds of RPT 100gr, FMJ, RNFP
---Loaded 7+1 and 7. First mag had no malfunctions. The second round of the second mag suffered a nose dive jam, which I cleared and fired off the remaining six rounds.

29 rounds of Federal "Champion" 95gr, FMJ, RN---Sophie loaded all the Federal rounds herself. 7+1 and 7, and 7+1 and 6. The second round of the second mag suffered an identical nose dive jam, which I cleared and she fired the remaining rounds without incident.

So,we had two identical errors with two different bullet styles. I failed to check which magazine was in use at the time and my sharpie numbers came off after I cleaned them anyway. Gotta dig out my engraver to fix that. Possibly one of the magazines is causing this,or perhaps she wasn't seating the rounds in the magazine properly. Time will tell.

100 rounds through the CT380 and still happy.

[Alfonse]

Likely slightly limp wristing.

[RolandD]

Likely slightly limp wristing.

I didn't realize that limp wristing could cause a nose dive. Could be. She didn't limp wrist the CW9, though.

[Armybrat]

Is the mag follower ok, or cracked?

[RolandD]

Is the mag follower ok, or cracked?

Well, I didn't specifically look, but I did fully disassemble both mags and wiped them down. I may get to run a box of Perfecta through it tomorrow. I'll do a thorough examination when I clean them. Thanks for the suggestion.

[Alfonse]

Good luck with Perfecta. Many Kahr 380s do not seem to like it much.

[RolandD]

Took my oldest daughter out to the range today, with one box of Perfecta 95gr, FMJ.

I fired the first 15 rounds, she fired the next 35. The Perfecta worked just fine. No nose-dives this time either. I examined the followers under magnification, they appear to be undamaged and working fine. The nose-dives from last trip must have been caused by my youngest limp-wristing. I also engraved the magazines so I can tell them apart.

So, it seems that Perfecta will run just fine in a CT380, or mine at least. With 150 rounds down range, our CT380 is running like a top.

[Armybrat]

Well that is good to hear! Can your daughter rack the slide back to the lock position? I can barely do it myself, but am an old codger with slightly arthritic hands.

[RolandD]

Well that is good to hear! Can your daughter rack the slide back to the lock position? I can barely do it myself, but am an old codger with slightly arthritic hands.
Out of the box, I was the only one who could consistently rack it and I had some trouble at first. I spent a few evenings racking it while watching TV. It has gotten much easier since then. Also left it locked back a few days. Wife and both daughters can rack it now.

[ctcw]

I've also fired a box of perfect a with no problems .

[RolandD]

A buddy of mine and I managed to get to the range today and I took along my wife's CT380 to put some more rounds through it and to test out some SD ammo. We put 50 rounds of Perfecta 95gr, FMJ and 7 rounds of Hornady American Gunner 90gr, XTP. In the first mag, three times it failed to fully cycle and strip a round off the mag, probably a combination of under-powered ammo and limp wristing. After I adjusted my grip, I had no problems. The Hornady ran just fine. I'm a much better shot with my CW9 than I am with the CT380. Glad it's her's. The CT380 now has 207 rounds through it.