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P365 vs. S&W 638

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May 08, 2019, 11:38 AM
parabellum
P365 vs. S&W 638
It has nothing to do with the P365 specifically, but rather, autos in general.

How many malfunctions have you witnessed/experienced with auto pistols? How many with revolvers? Don't misunderstand what I am saying. Revolvers can malfunction, too (once, I had a single grain of Unique lock up an N frame S&W, simply by being trapped between the frame and the crane), but the incidence is much lower.

Reolvers don't havee to go through feeding and extraction cycles during firing, and that fact by itself is enough to make the revolver more reliable.


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May 08, 2019, 12:25 PM
Warhorse
Yeah, I agree that revolvers are pretty much trouble free. It was even more so in the early 70's when I started shooting, when compared to the semiauto pistols of that period.


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May 08, 2019, 12:59 PM
BBMW
About revolver reliability:

If you carry a J-frame. I can absolutely guarantee you will have a failure when you go to fire that sixth shot. And it's going to take a fairly long complicated drill to recover from it. The P365 will have the same failure but on the twelfth shot, but the recovery will be slightly easier.

Yes, this is a bit pedantic, but it brings up a point. An auto may fail more easily than a revolver. But that failure can occur on any shot (after the first.) If it happens on a shot after the equivalent revolver would have run out of ammo, your still ahead of the game.
May 08, 2019, 01:37 PM
CPTKILLER
Keeping or selling a weapon is based on personal reasons for me.

1. It doesn’t meet my expectations
2. It’s not reliable or it isn’t accurate or both
3. I’m using the cash for another weapon project

That said I have some keepers that have a solid place in my life.
May 08, 2019, 01:50 PM
parabellum
quote:
Originally posted by BBMW:
Yes, this is a bit pedantic...
Is that what they call horse shit these days? We used to call it horse shit.

If your precious P365 malfs feeding the first round out of the magazine, you've got a one shot pistol. Or are you going to try to tell me that no malfunctions occur with autos until after the fifth shot?

Some of you guys, I just don't understand how your minds work.


____________________________________________________

"I am your retribution." - Donald Trump, speech at CPAC, March 4, 2023
May 08, 2019, 02:02 PM
BBMW
If you proof a gun with 500 or more rounds, and it shows to be reliable (which we seem to be seeing with the P365 and other small 9mm autos), how likely do you think a failure will be in defensive situation?

You have a G43. Has it had any issues (other than slide lockback, which I seem to remember you having)?

quote:
Originally posted by parabellum:
quote:
Originally posted by BBMW:
Yes, this is a bit pedantic...
Is that what they call horse shit these days? We used to call it horse shit.

If your precious P365 malfs feeding the first round out of the magazine, you've got a one shot pistol. Or are you going to try to tell me that no malfunctions occur with autos until after the fifth shot?

Some of you guys, I just don't understand how your minds work.

May 08, 2019, 02:47 PM
parabellum
Comparing quality firearm to quality firearm, revolvers are more reliable than autos. You know this already. The J frame is just five shots, but it's the first five. Get it?

The J frame is not obsolete, because these little revolvers work so very well. You can find stories of malfunctions of autos all over the internet- feeding, extraction and ejection issues.

I own lots of autos and I have great luck with them, but that doesn't change the facts in evidence.


____________________________________________________

"I am your retribution." - Donald Trump, speech at CPAC, March 4, 2023
May 08, 2019, 03:16 PM
Warhorse
Some malfunctions in a D/A revolver are resolved with just pulling the trigger again, thereby bringing a fresh cartridge into play, easy peezy fix. A primer that sits to high will/can lock up a revolver tighter than a bank vault, same with a bullet that has jumped its crimp. Most (but not all) malfunctions on a semiauto pistol can quickly and easily be cleared by performing a tap, rack, and bang drill that is way faster than those malfunctions that I mentioned with a revolver.

Basically, one pays his money, and takes his chances in this game of life and death.


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May 08, 2019, 03:51 PM
V-Tail
quote:
Originally posted by parabellum:

The J frame was in service before most here were born.
Well, not all of us. Wink



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May 10, 2019, 03:39 PM
radioman
Funny part is over the last 15 years, we've had a lot of threads declaring that *Fill-in-the-blank* semi auto has made the j-frame obsolete.

We heard this with the M&P Shield 9mm, the M&P EZ .380, the little Ruger LCP semi-autos (or was it the LC-9), various Kahr's, The Glock 42 (or was it 43), and even some Kel-Tecs. Now the 365.

I'll hold onto my j-frames for a while longer. Along with my P239, P228, and all the other "obsolete" guns that I carry.


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May 10, 2019, 07:06 PM
sns3guppy
Most of the time I have a G43 in my pocket, but I frequently carry a S&W 642, or one of several other snub nosed revolvers in .38.

.38 from a short barrel is a popgun, but it's been in use for a long time and it's a lot better option, especially up close, than some. When it runs dry it can be used to focus striking energy fi there isn't time or room to reload. Where the snub nose revolver really shines for me is light, concealed carry with an uneven outline that doesn't print nearly as well and carries in a pocket. When I'm carrying in the waistband, a second pistol, often a snub nose revolver in the pocket, is easy to carry, weighs very little, is reliable, and easy to shoot. Admittedly, more often now I have the G43

I've had two unrecoverable malfunctions with revolvers, both S&W with a pinned fireing pin in which the pin shifted and prevented the hammer from entering the frame slot; and I've had a couple of mafunctions in which the revolvers simply broke internally. It does happen. Probably a lot less frequently than autos fail, though. I carried revolvers for a long time, and continue to buy them today.

The P365 offers higher capacity, more muzzle energy, a more compact pistol, and it doesn't require bulky speed loaders or speed strips for a reload. Two magazines, one in the pistol and the other in a pocket would require a revolver and thre extra reloads for the revolver.

Then again, I have a lot more confidence in the snubby than the P365.
May 11, 2019, 07:15 PM
villageidiot
J Frames are to me the bee's knee's. Duty use it fit my coat pocket very well , yep it has been pointed at dangerous folks on the side of the road. Yep it ain't politically correct but , if you have to really press your weapon against someone a revolver will not come out of battery like a auto loader will. The first handgun I put on every day is a Smith 438 then my duty pistol. If you are concerned that 5 rounds is not enough then carry two J frames. I have... VI
May 13, 2019, 08:46 AM
SCfromNY
I sold my J Frame a long time ago for a Kahr PM9. Even with regular loads I found the J Frame difficult to practice with even a 50 round box while shooting 100 rounds with the Kahr was no problem.

I just purchased a P365 and need some time to make a final decision but seems really good so far. Only complain is I need a mag loader after 4-5 rounds.


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May 15, 2019, 02:02 AM
CAPT29
When I became a cop in 1965 (Chicago PD), I was permitted to pack a 6 shot S&W or Colt, plus 6 extra rounds in a dump pouch(dump was definitely the operative word). Depending who your boss was the limit of 6 extra rounds was strictly enforced. Now I can pack a 365 with 12+1 and an extra 12 round mag. That is 25 rounds with minimal reload time! And in minimal space and weight.
I still have a few small wheel guns, mostly the classics(working classics)and I do not feel under gunned with any of them.
However for a serious social event I cannot see myself better off than with an M18 and 2 extra 21 round mags and a 365 BUG with 2 extra 12 round mags. Not only a lot of serious ammo, but 2 very serious handguns.
I do miss my BHP though.........


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