Product Review: Kel-Tec P3AT (After 6 Years)

Shooting footage! YEET!

I've had this pistol since 2013 and ran it like crazy over the years, easily over a thousand rounds. What a wild ride its been. Today I will do my best to give an honest review and the history of my second EDC pistol.

photo by Oleg Volk

I purchased it in 2012. My first carry firearm was an Armscor .38 spl revolver, the M206. It was heavy, bulky, but it was adequate at the time. 

That wheelgun was on my hip and man bag for more than a year and I felt that a change was needed. 

Back then the Kel-Tec fever was in full swing as it revolutionized the pocket pistol world. Reviews of their guns were all over YouTube like Nutnfancy's P3AT Review. He's controversial, but I think he's a fun guy and has his heart in the right place.

Oleg Volk released iconic photography for the little pocket pistol.


RISE of the .380 ACP

The Ruger LCP made its debut soon afterward. Sites like Brass Fetcher, Poboyspecial and PocketGunandGear were around this era as well. Tests for the viability of the .380 acp helped a lot of firearm owners to rethink this cartridge.

Today it is considered to be the minimum caliber for personal protection.

Specifications

EDC lineup circa 2013

• weight: 7.7 oz

• overall length: 5.2 inches

• height: 3.5 inches

• width: 0.77 inches

• magazine capacity: 6

• caliber: .380 acp

Rough Start

I had to return the pistol to the company that I got it from for a week right after buying it. The gun had at least 1 failure to eject in every magazine for the first 200 rounds. That freaked me out. They fixed it and gave it back to me.

I started carrying it and trained with at least 100 rounds a month. That is a lot as far as pocket pistols go. 

Strong Points

This was indeed the lightest and most concealable pistol that packed a reasonable punch.

The P3AT was so light I could wear it on my BOXER SHORTS or go jogging with the help of that nifty belt clip and soft holster. It could even hide behind a big belt buckle with a little creativity!

As long as I'm awake, I could actually be armed 100% of the time.


Challenges

The pistol's sights were practically nonexistent but that wasn't a problem. I was determined to shoot it well and I was able to reach an acceptable level so it saw tons of range time.

The long trigger pull is part of the firearm's safety so it was a bit tricky for guys like me who are used to single-action triggers. Good thing the break at the end was predictable enough.

Recurring Problems

Trouble seemed to follow me in the form of infamous malfunctions such as the "P3AT Smiley". Google it or click that link to see what I had to endure. There were Failure to Feeds as you'll see in the video below and the FTEs had returned about two years later.

An old friend Huey's Gunsight also FTE issues but I'm really glad he was able to solve it.

not again

I also had light primer strikes, but they only happened on the reloads and magtech ammunition. 

The slide stop takedown pin also broke at least 3 times. I don't live in the USA so I had to wait a few months for me to travel to Oregon and order parts from Florida.

To their credit, Kel-Tek's customer service phone number people are VERY helpful. They even answer their email. I got a few replacement pins for free and I could hear their smile from the other side of the line. Thank you.

A few years after I mothballed the pistol it would finally light strike every single time. I believe the hammer spring had finally worn itself out. Sadly that would mean I would have to order parts from the plant again. 

The Good Times

When it was good, it ran well. Perhaps I was expecting too much out of this little gun. I was running it IPSC style fast and hard. I could ring steel plates at 15 meters, double tapping paper at point blank or in-between no-shoots. I was John-Wicking the thing because I needed to.

I made this video to remind me that there are many P3AT owners who have had nothing but good luck with their purchase. Perhaps they're the majority and I was just unlucky.


Hindsight is 20/20

I don't regret this whole experience even if I still feel a little bad about it because I wanted to make it work. And for a time it did.

This gun would have served me better if I had spare parts that could be delivered to me quickly. They're all minor parts. A few springs and pins, who cares? Well, I live in the Philippines. Oops.

For those who have proper support and who are among the majority of these pistols that work FLAWLESSLY, then you have an ideal backup pistol. There's loads of positive video reviews out there to prove it.

It was a tough relationship, but we made it WORK

All of this has taught me to put reliability out of the box at the very top of my requirements for any gun. Even if its a little heavier, I'll find a way. As long as I can trust it 100%, then its worth the minor inconvenience.

I still haunt the KTOG forums (Kel-Tec Owner's Group) and see that most of the guys there are happy with their purchase, especially with the later production models. 

Since then I've moved on to carrying a fantastic carry gun that has never ever let me down.


Stay vigilant!

Zombie Headshot Training: Pistols (part 3)

So lets start the year with a bang? :-)

The living dead can only be destroyed by shooting them in the head. You must breach the cerebral cortex to take them out permanently!

Competitive shooting can help you prepare for the enemy. Its a great way to hone this critical skill. You build confidence with your firearm by playing under match conditions which can ultimately toughen your mental game.

Watch dis!

Zombie brains are hard to hit! 

The brain is smaller than half of the head and we need to aim at the upper part of their ugly face. We need to be precise. This requires us to be familiar with its shape from various angles for each precious shot.

You could do it with pistols, rifles, bows, slingshots, or whatever weapon that is powerful enough to breach the skull.

You'll also need to be fast. We will be surrounded by hundreds or even thousands of hostiles.

The great Col. Jeff Cooper's motto was Diligentia, Vis, Celeritas (DVC) meaning accuracy, power. He was the founder of the International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC).

Practice hard. Your loved ones are counting on you.



Zombie Headshot Practice part 2 of 3
Zombie Headshot Practice part 1 of 3
Recuve bow VS Zombies!


Stay vigilant!

Zombie Headshot Training: Pistols (Part 2)

Bald zombies... are easier to hit. 

 

I finally get to step up my training in the sport of IPSC practical shooting. There are a lot of big tournaments that I'm looking forward to join this year and I'm hitting the firing range on a weekly basis. Good times are here!

Even my dad is returning to competitive form. He scores higher than me most of the time, and that means I often buy the cold drinks & chow after range time.

Aside from competition, I am using this as an opportunity to upgrade my zombie-killing skills. The video below is me practicing against a row of steel plates.  I love shooting at those palm-sized targets because of the nice "ping" sound you get when hitting them. I get a warm fuzzy feeling from knocking them down one after the other.

If only I could get our Range Officer to design moving steel plates for me to train with. That would be awesome!

Above is a video of a "man vs man" match, I'm on the right. Two guys try to knock down their row of targets faster than the other guy. There are numerous variations to keep it lively. Indoor practice is good, but I love being out in the sun!

Whatever you do, please practice the fundamentals of FIREARM SAFETY. Wear eye and ear protection at all times, and set steel targets at the proper distance to minimize ricochets. 

Train hard, train often, have fun. It directly contributes to winning the coming zombie war.


Stay vigilant!

Small Bullet, Big Hit: The new Armscor .22 TCM

About two months ago at the Bolo Tuason Cup I was able to try out the new .22 TCM bullet developed by ARMSCOR.  The little thing is based on a necked down .223, travels at 2,100 fps and its JHP head weighs only 40 grains. That is a tremendous amount of velocity and performance from such a small cartridge. It is quite exciting to see where this will go in the world of personal defense.

The photo below is a nifty size comparison between the two most common pistol calibers.

The birth of a new caliber and handgun:

The guys from Armscor were demonstrating the bullet with a prototype Rock Island Armory .22 TCM Pistol.  Its basically a double-stack magazine 1911 chambered for the new caliber.  This was definitely one of the early models judging from the low serial number.

While lining up for my turn, I was intimidated by the large muzzle blast coming from the gun. It was also really loud! I don't shy away from big stuff, but hearing it from a handgun gun was a new experience. I even flinched in anticipation before breaking my 1st shot. To my surprise, it had hardly any recoil despite the thunder from each trigger pull.

I love this fire-breathing pistol! There was hardly any kick, and placing 5 rapid-fire shots in the center of a target 10 meters away was really easy. This was a popular attraction at the Level Three IPSC Match and a lot of rounds went downrange.

This is one of the prototypes. Check out the old "Rock Island Armory" logo, and the rough "Armscor" rubber grips.

I found another video showing what it could do to a watermelon. Those things are heavy. Sure they're soft, but blowing it up like that is proof of physics.

I wish we could see lot of ballistic testing for this caliber, particularly in its terminal performance as a defensive round as well as how it will fare over a long distance. Does it tumble when entering a target? Does it expand? How will it deal with layers of denim and bone? Will it smash through a car windshield? We need answers. Another key to success would be the availability of the ammunition. I'm sure the company is working on producing sustainable quantities for this breakthrough caliber as it looks like it was designed to make a significant mark on the industry.

What if they built a rifle or submachine gun chambered in this round? What about a polymer concealed-carry pistol? Can we have a drum magazine? The possibilities are endless!

VS Zombies?  Think of a gun that shoots light as a .22, could hit harder than a .45, and could carry twice the amount of ammo. Accurate head shots are definitely not a problem. I sure hope to see more developments for the .22 TCM!

UPDATE: I've got more info about this bullet's penetrating power over here.

Stay vigilant!

Happy 100th Birthday to the 1911

Yeah, I'm one day late.  Thank you Huey for the reminder!

My granddad used it in WW2 during the Japanese invasion.  During the war he was a Major in the Philippine Army and was also a renowned marksman who fought in the jungles of Panay.  There are a lot of stories of how his unit conducted guerrilla warfare with only the barest of equipment. And guess what pistol he was using?

When I was growing up, we just thought of his firearm as "lolo's gun" (translates to granddad's gun).   Like any of his generation, he didn't glorify anything about it.  It did its job, never failed, end of story.

When I got into practical shooting some years ago, I got reacquainted with the M1911 and discovered it to be an IPSC staple.  I find it really cool that I'm using something in my sporting carrer that my granddad would approve of.

And so I raise my cool non-alcoholic beverage to salute my our beloved firearm.  Happy 100th birthday! Safe shooting to everybody!

Stay vigilant!

Weapons: Handguns

Melee Weapons are good, but firearms are better.

After you have learned the principles of Gun Safety and possess a sound mind & cool temper, you may consider getting yourself a pistol as your first firearm against the living dead.  They are easy to obtain legally and come in a delightful variety to suit your needs.

Revolvers

Armscor M206 .38 Special
the trusty sidekick

Made famous by cowboys and the Lone Ranger, they are renowned for their reliability, easy operation & maintenance. The only down side is that they carry limited ammunition and are slow to reload.

The minimum caliber you should consider is the .38 Special for its proven stopping power against human threats, undead or otherwise.  I recommend the use of JHP or Jacketed Hollow Point ammunition. This type of bullet expands upon entering, allowing it to transfer more of its energy to the target by creating a larger wound cavity.  As a rule, your ammunition should be able to penetrate 12 inches of flesh to reach a vital organ.  For the undead, the brain is the only relevant organ.  Smaller ammo will need more shots, but having a tiny pistol is better than none at all.

Shot placement, caliber, & skill will contribute to stopping power.

Higher caliber revolvers are also good, but you will not be able to conceal or bring them around easily. In pre-SHTF conditions, concealment will be very important because it will be intended to protect you against living & breathing (non zombie) bad guys. 

Semi-Automatic Pistols

 Para-Ordnance P16.40 
thank you Canada

Compared to revolvers, these carry more ammo, are much faster to reload, and have way more choices in model. 

The 9mm caliber is one of the world's most popular ammunition types for personal defense.  This is due to its accepted reputation for stopping power + higher capacity compared to larger ammo types.  Ballistic tests and real-life experience has taught many a patrolman the comparable performance of the 9mm JHP to the much larger .45 caliber.  In my opinion, the main benefit of the 9mm is that you can carry a lot more ammo in your magazines on a reasonably-sized pistol.

*****

I use a Para-Ordnance .40 caliber pistol as my primary weapon. Its magazine can carry up to 17 rounds +1 in the chamber.  I've got 50 rounds of JHP for both pistols and another 400 for practical shooting training.  The revolver I'm using is an M206 from Armscor & serves as a backup weapon.  If I had it my way, I would get a high-capacity 9mm for Mrs. Zombie Hunter so she can defend the home when I'm away.

Remember folks, practice and teach Gun Safety to your loved ones!