Wife is coming around (well, maybe) 2 new heaters

[Streetstar]

I posted earlier about a new Colt i aquired, and Rita, my better half, showed amazing restraint and tolerance when i showed it to her

---- The next day while out scouting ammo, i came across a shop that not only had a Smith 642 no-lock, but a Glock 42 as well ---- The Glock 42's are popular right now and tend to disappear from dealers shelves for weeks at a time, but they had just gotten this one in in the AM, so i told them to pile it on the 4473
My thoughts were that she gets one, i get the other, as my Sig 238 (a tiny 1911 in 380 for those not familiar) is going back to Sig for a tune up --- no matter the ammo, mag or state of lubrication, it wont make it through a full magazine without having to tap rack it ---
Anyway, my confidence was shaken a little until i can get it fixed, so another belly gun was in the cards

--- We dry fire practiced with them a bit when i got home, and oddly enough, she said she liked the little wheelgun better ---
So i fitted it with some Crimson Trace lasergrips and the lady of the house has her belly gun

She put 5 rounds through it, but went back to shooting my Model 66 with .38's for practice -- recoil is still a bit brisk for her (me too --- you have to concentrate to hit anything with a J-frame for sure)
----We are on the hunt for a decent .22 for her to practice with as well -- but she shoots my Single Six quite well

---- That leaves the Glock 42 --- its small, but not tiny --- If a person has spent anytime at all with a Glock, the operation and controls, even the trigger pull, fall into place like a comfortable shoe ---
-- I only shot it at 12 yards max, as it was an indoor range, but it laid down a grouping equivalent with what i typically can do with a full size at that distance - which is not great, but definitely effective

Since i was shooting at an indoor range, i left the new SAA at home --- i want fresh air, plenty of ammo and some impromptu reactive targets to play with (beer cans, clay birds, - you name it -- the type of shooting i like to do)

----- It was a great week, as i was able to off-load 3 seldom used defensive shotguns on Armslist within a day of listing them , to help off-set the new additions a little

[7.62 Precision]

Your G42 groups well? Maybe the new pistol is throwing off my technique a bit, but I was pretty confident in my sight picture.

I just shot the one I have here and can't get it to group. I was shooting from a rest at about 15 meters. Could not get better than an 8 inch group and the groups are very random. Also, the front sight slot is sloppy. The front sight can be turned to one side during installation, if you are not careful.

It functioned fine, the little I shot it, but they have received a reputation for unreliability, so I will see if that shows up when I shoot it more.

After shooting the Kimber Solo and the XD(s) and similar pistols, the G42 left me less than impressed, but it does balance well and trigger pull is familiar if you are familiar with Glocks. I will shoot it more as soon as I have the night sights installed. If it were a 9x19mm at that size, I would be more impressed, so long as it functions.

[vancelw]

The G42 costs a third of what a Solo costs, so one should expect some difference in quality.
I like mine just fine. Would like it better if it was 9mm. Sold my Kahr CM9 due to sloppy trigger and I didn't like how poorly the magazines held the top round when the weren't in the gun.
I would think groups are no more important for a G42 than they are for a NAA mini revolver. Not it's intended purpose.

[TedH]

I think most of the reliability issues being reported with the G42 stems from the ammo. They do seem to be pretty sensitive as to what they like. With 2 brands of factory defense loads mine is flawless. With full power handloads and jacketed bullets, flawless. With full power cast loads, flawless. Where I ran into issues with mine is less than max handloads, and one brand of import cheapo FMJ, that judging just by the recoil, were pretty puny loads. They wouldn't get the slide back far enough to spit out the spent round and pick up a new one.
As far as accuracy goes, mine shoots as well as many full size pistols. I can't complain about that at all. This is a 25 yard group shot with 90 gr. Corbons, using a 6 o-clock hold.

[Streetstar]

I've never been that much of a pistolero, -- granted, some pistols out there make me look good (my pythons and Smith 66 make me seem like a modern Buffalo Bill out to 30 yards or so in single action mode ) -- so with that info, my "groups" may look like shotgun patterns to some of you, -

Also, since i am not setup to reload 380 -- i was just using brass cased Blazer FMJ ammo - and non branded hollow point re-loads in the .40

- I usually try them at 7 yards just to make sure they are on paper (tried the little snub at 5 yards for the first wheel full ) -- then back it up to 12 yards (max at this particular range) --- and if 12 yards is entertaining enough -- i find a longer range to check 'em out

---------- These were shot at 12 at a brisk tempo (not rapid fire , but an attempt to maintain proper sight picture was made) ----
like i said, under those parameters , - the little 42 shot essentially the same as the much larger G23 .40 cal. -----
For Glocks with stock sights, -- (and for me) -- it prompted me to say "Good enough" -- at that point, shooting anymore felt like wasting ammo

Either one fits the bill for me for a defensive use pistol -- so i put 'em up and went back to tinkering with the little J-frame --- It was considerably more challenging to maintain proper sight picture and took longer between shots to get it back on point , but the cylinder spun every time and it was reliable (i had heard some of the newer guns have had issues out of the box )

The little Sig 238 with the same ammo performs better on paper with me shooting, but as i mentioned, - its going back to Sig - if i have to monkey with it to make it through a full mag, i'm not going to carry it - - even so, i need to put a few more rounds through the little G42 before i truly pronounce it Good To Go, -- as the rangemaster made a comment that it looked like i had a good one, as they had one go through earlier in the day with problems, like 7.62 was alluding to


Sorry, i neglected to get pics of the revolvers, -- as i said, my efforts with the J frame were not pic-worthy, but i also had a Taurus .44 Special snub i aquired over the winter that i was able to put on paper --- its an "ultralight" model, but the frame is roughly K frame size - so my results with that were much better
--- but i had plinked with it before and it had proven itself to be "beer can accurate" out to as far as i wanted to shoot it

[Blaine]

Your G42 groups well? Maybe the new pistol is throwing off my technique a bit, but I was pretty confident in my sight picture.

I just shot the one I have here and can't get it to group. I was shooting from a rest at about 15 meters. Could not get better than an 8 inch group and the groups are very random. Also, the front sight slot is sloppy. The front sight can be turned to one side during installation, if you are not careful.

It functioned fine, the little I shot it, but they have received a reputation for unreliability, so I will see if that shows up when I shoot it more.

After shooting the Kimber Solo and the XD(s) and similar pistols, the G42 left me less than impressed, but it does balance well and trigger pull is familiar if you are familiar with Glocks. I will shoot it more as soon as I have the night sights installed. If it were a 9x19mm at that size, I would be more impressed, so long as it functions.

Sorry, but if you bought a small carry .380 and expected it to shoot really well at nearly fifty feet....well.....My LCP will either hit, or scare a pop can really badly at half that distance. It's for SD, not target practice.

[OldWin]

Wow, you really been lugging home some new iron lately. Good for you and your wife.

My wife is the same. She could carry whatever she wants but carries a no-lock 442 daily (even at work). She has carried for about thirteen years.

[Streetstar]

Wow, you really been lugging home some new iron lately. Good for you and your wife.

My wife is the same. She could carry whatever she wants but carries a no-lock 442 daily (even at work). She has carried for about thirteen years.

Nowadays, any new iron i tote home hinges on my ability to off-load some of my never used equipment --- I was able to unload an Encore muzzleloader just this afternoon
--- felt pretty good to give a solid deal to a young hunter who will actually use the ML -- i won't use it. The shotties i sold were each 18.5" barrel 870 variants ---not a huge loss for me
Now that i have more Glocks than i can stomach for everyday carry ---- its back to amassing more Winchesters and Colts when i can --- but i'm done for a while

[7.62 Precision]

The G42 costs a third of what a Solo costs, so one should expect some difference in quality.
I like mine just fine. Would like it better if it was 9mm. Sold my Kahr CM9 due to sloppy trigger and I didn't like how poorly the magazines held the top round when the weren't in the gun.
I would think groups are no more important for a G42 than they are for a NAA mini revolver. Not it's intended purpose.

My purpose is to test night sights on it, which means shooting groups.

However, the groups pictured in this thread are better than what I was getting from a solid rest, which answers my question about whether my results were representative or not.

[TedH]

However, the groups pictured in this thread are better than what I was getting from a solid rest, which answers my question about whether my results were representative or not.

Just to be clear, the group that I pictured with my G42 was fired from a sandbag rest on a concrete bench. I don't claim to be that great of a pistoleer.

[EdinCT]

I carry a 442 often because the 1911 got heavier ever year. I will say after a few hundred rounds a bowling pin at 25 yards is toast, but I had to work at it and if I don't shoot it I get rusty fast.

[wm]

These reports on the real world performance of the G42 interests me as I am in the market sort of for a CCW besides my S&W 36 and Charter Bulldog. I was excited about the Remington R51 but then the negative reports FLOODED in. I like the 42 (& Ruger LCP 380) but think I may hold off a bit as I hear Glock is going to bring out a single stack 9mm that is approx. the same size as the 42.

As you and you & your wife shoot the 42 please stop back and let us know how it performs through the 'break in' period.

[jazman]

Man, i just liked to see " heater" on a gun board again, seems like a long time. Great you and your lady are liking the new ones.

[rjohns94]

Congrats on the new purchases.