Any body have one of these guns? I am considering downsizing my pack carry weapon from a snubnose S and W 357 - 24 ounces, loaded. The Tomcat weighs just under 15 ounces plus shells. I am aware that there is difference in knock down power, but with the 60 grain hollowpoints it would put a hurtin' at close range and 8 potential shots. Plus it fits in my Catalyst hipbelt pocket and the 357 will not.

I'm just wondering about the operation, jamming, corrosion- (I am considering blued steel), ect... thanks in advance

Searches turned up a kel-tec 32, but not the beretta. Keltec is lighter, but I am not interested in that gun.

Another question -- I would continue to carry the 357 because of its attrributes, but I cannot figure out a good way to carry it completely concealed and readily available. Can anyone suggest methods of carry. I use hipbelt and wear thin clothing. Short sleeves and shorts. I had considered some type of shoulder strap mounted camera case as an option.

To answer your question about the beretta, the tomcat is an excellant compact gun... ...depending on what you plan to use it for. I work in law enforcement and I've owned a tomcat for off duty/undercover carry purposes for about 10 years now. I am also a firearms instructor for my department. The 32 acp round is nothing more than a shorter, less powerful 9mm. 32 acp works great on paper and people at close range. If you're planing on using it for protection against animals, you're better off with the 357. Ballistically, it's a far superior round. In my opinion, if you're going to use a gun for protection against animals, I wouldn't buy anything smaller than a .45 or 44 mag. Now, these are usually heavy guns, (smith & wesson make five shot "airweight" snubbies that are VERY light and I think they make a 44 mag version) but anything less is just a waste of money and a false sense of security.

As for your second question, I like to use a shoulder harness for hiking for a couple of reasons: It is completely concealed under your shirt and under your arm. Because the harness is kind of worn like a backpack, it distributes the weight of the gun in a way so you don't even know you're carrying it. I don't really like carrying a gun on my hip while hiking because personally, it starts to pull my pants down on one side and gets really uncomfortable during the hike. Another way I like to carry is just to simply put my gun in a side pocket on my backpack. One that I can get to by reaching my arm back and unzipping the pocket without taking my pack off.

Anyway, hope this helps. Cheers!

... Oh, a few more things I forgot to mention. I have never had any kind of problem with my tomcat. It is a very user friendly and relatively "idiot-proof" gun. Since it is such a light and small semi-auto gun though, it can have a tendancy to "stovepipe" the expended shells once and a while, but that is a user error issue attributed to people who try and "control" rather than allowing the gun to recoil. (I could get into the science behind why that happens, but I don't want to bore anyone)

The tomcat is easy to clean and does not have alot of parts to it which increases it's reliability.

The second thing, don't buy a kel-tech. They are junk.

If you look around a bit, you can locate several pistols chambered for the 380 ACP that are in the weight range you are listing for the Tomcat. I have a FEG 380 that weighs about 15 oz unloaded. It has an alloy frame and a steel slide. It is stone reliable with the standard load of 90 grain JHP at 1100 fps. I think it has about the same muzzle energy as the standard factory load 38 Special. Might be worth a look.

Just my .02 Rootball .... I'd stay with the S&W revolver ... even if it were a .38 Special. I 've never been too impressed with the ..32 ACP cartridge when other alternatives were usable.

My experience with the Tomcat goes back to the early days following its release .... I bought a small number of them for my Narcotics folks as a "back-up/pocket gun" ..... reliability was OK if the gun was kept perfectly clean ..... unless they've changed the design, the Tomcat lacks a manual extractor. If the gun fails to fire or extract (for whatever reason) there's no remedy for clearing the round besides tilting open the flip-up barrel and removing the rounds manually. I personally would not rely on any weapon design that lack features such as a manual extractor .... slide lock devices (Walther PP/PPK designs) ... if other alternatives were available.

Another issue was the rudimentary sights and point-of-aim results - not much to brag about, which in all fairness is typical of most, if not all small semi-auto pistols.

As to concealed & accessible carry while wearing a backpack - the Safepacker is the only thing I've found to work well at all.

http://store.thewilderness.com/product_i...2c8c9c4f6b51558

Good luck with your endeavor .......

I am going to pass on the Beretta. It's not so much the gun as the caliber. Listen to those who know-- thanks for the advice.

If you hear a god awful BOOOOM!! in the woods, its just me, The 357 goes back in the pack.

Slo hiker -- I looked at the Safepacker. Their one picture did not explain much - do you have any pics of it in use that would show more about it? thanks

Try this link .....
http://store.thewilderness.com/index.php?cPath=51&osCsid=6c7dd34780b44a799400d0a18271acc0

Have a peek at the Ruger LCP .380. 9ish ounces. So popular they sold a quarter million of the things the first week they were out. Still hard to find but worth waiting for.

I carry a Glock. I like it because it is so corrosion resistant. I used to carry a blued 44 magnum long barrel but it got some rust on it.

I use a waist pouch lsimilar to this gun:
http://www.copsplus.com/prodnum2125.php

Well, I "own" a Beretta Tomcat .32 stainless auto pistol. At least I used to own it but I've misplaced it around the house (unloaded W/ no magazine). "Oldtimer's Disease" strikes again.

Anyhow, it's OK for concealed carry in urban settings but usless as tits on a boar for anything but self defense against humans.

For griz, cougar & black bear defense I'd recommend a Tarus titanium .41 magnum.

Eric

Most threads like this here and on other forums always seem to boil down to the same equation. On one side you have size and weight and on the other side you have stopping power. When one side goes up the other side has to go up too.

One could argue that even a small gun is better than no gun at all. But I'm not going to carry a tent that just keeps me partially dry because it's lighter or a sleep pad that keeps me only partially comfortable because it's smaller. Personally, if I were to carry a gun into the woods at all I would want one that has the best chance of doing the job. IMO that rules out the smaller calibers.

Anyone who carries a weapon into the woods presumably does so because they believe their safety or maybe even their life may depend on it. Is this really a place to cut corners in order to save a few ounces or cubic inches?

"Rootball",

I found my Tomcat (in my closet under a pile of clothes).

Anyhow I'm trading it on a new Smith & Wesson/Walther PPS in .40 caliber.
It's thinner than the Beretta Tomcat and at 21.4 oz. it's lighter due to its polymer frame. It's no larger than James Bond's 9 mm. Walther PPK but more powerful, if uglier.

And then there's the .40 caliber round that is used by most law enforcement agencies in the nation. That's considered a "major caliber" round in pistol competition, whereas even a 9mm. is still a minor caliber round.

Price? $622. retail but about $580. at most dealers. Still, a chunk of change. But, hey, it fits in your pants' cargo pocket so easily and if ya need more than 8 rounds to "get the job done" yer in need of more range time.

Eric

Glock 30 23.9 oz 45 auto. I will carry the extra weight.

Well Podner, it ain't the bit of extra weight of the little Glock .45 auto or the heavier .45 cal. recoil, its the REALLY thin profile of the S&W/Walther PPS .40 cal.that draws me that-away. Great for concealed carry.

I'm also selling my Glock 17 to get a Glock in the same frame size (to fit my duty gear I have for the Glock 17) in .40 cal. so I'll have both duty and concealed carry pistols in the same caliber. And .40 cal. is what most security and armored car companies require these days.

Eric

Bingo. I think you hit the nail right on the head, don't think I could've said it any better.

If you're going to carry a firearm for your safety, make sure it will be powerful enough to get the job done. If saving ounces/pounds outweighs the importance of having a truly effective weapon at your disposal, then you probably shouldn't be carrying a firearm at all.

I am carrying the 357. I did not purchase another gun. The funny thing is that I did not think the 357 would fit in the hipbelt pocket on my Catalyst - I tried it with the pack laying in the floor and it seemed as thought the handle would stick out a little. But when I was wearing the pack I took the gun out of my pant pocket and slid it into the pack pocket and it fit. It fits just right as a matter of fact. I can't feel it, it comes out easily, and the bulge does not look like a gun. It was nice last weekend to have the gun. We passed two bears on the Bmt ridge near cherohala skyway and I felt better knowing that I had a chance. The funny thing is that when we were walking through blackberry thickets I was yelling 'hey bear' every once in a while and I think all it did was move them to brush at the side of the trail because when we got right beside them they took off crashing through the brush. It made my heart jump both times. The first one might have gotten shot if he had come at us - there was enough distance- but the second one was only yards away when it jumped and took off and I think it would have been too close for anything other than a scream.

In another month or so the hunters will be out moving around and I will face another challenge - the bears will be practicing avoidance, so I will not see them again until spring. But the hounds that chase the bears might be a threat to my dog. Many times I have been awakened by hounds in my camp at night. So I will have to worry that they might be agressive toward my dog. I sleep like a rock and he stays near me as far as I know - but he never barks at anything and he might go out to greet some hounds at night and get attacked. Just one more thing to worry about when taking a dog.

Thanks for all the input.

For those who don't know what a Safepacker is or how it looks:


It can easily be worn on your pack's belt.

This shows it as well:

Don't forget when you are carrying your handgun in one of these flap covered pouches it is considered a concealed weapon and therefore illegal..................unless you have a valid Concealed Weapons permit on your person.

Better to just carry it in an open holster.

Better to have a CPL than open carry.

Foolishness

Exactly. No open carry. I've stood talking to the police with a weapon conceiled and there was no suspicision. Why create a situation. If your not guilty of anything, you have nothing to fear. Forget the 32, I carry a 45 with hollow points.

Hmmm.............Open carry or hide your handgun in a pocket?

I believe you are missing the point here. If one does not have a valid Concealed Weapons Permit on their person, when carrying a concealed weapon on them then you're breaking the law i.e, it's illegal.

Unless one purchases their handgun from a private party or a small gunshow and thus gets around the loophole in the law bypassing having to do a background check then you're still illegally carrying a handgun whether it's concealed or open carry.

You are not creating a situation if you have in possession on your person a permit for your handgun. The Police have a right to ask. What are you afraid of? Do you have legal documents for handgun ownership?

Bottom line get a permit for open carry or get a Concealed Weapons Permit for pouch carry when hiking.

I'm not against guns nor ownership of firearms. I shoot at local gun ranges myself.

Your "loophole" does NOT exist in Wa in reference to gun shows. The major ones, while anyone can attend, only those who are a member or have a CPL can buy a gun and walk out with it that day. Otherwise, waiting periods apply as with anywhere else.
To be a member you have to have a CPL or have a background check (same thing) to even belong.

Yes, one can get around it with private sales. Hence why when we do private sales we do it through a shop, where everything is processed and paperwork is filed. This is also a safe way to buy online from gun forums - the gun is shipped into a valid shop and they handle everything for a fee. FedEx will ship overnight - you have to file paperwork, but it isn't hard.

As noted there is NOTHING wrong with using a Safepacker - they are one of the best ways to carry. Getting a CPL in most states is easy and doesn't cost a fortune - Wa state for example has to issue you one if you pay the fees and pass the FBI check. And have a limit on how long they can take. I know what states I can carry in legally - and keep up on it.

Why to NOT carry open? I have noticed that horse packers, who almost always carry openly, are often uncomfortable when they pass what they perceive to be 'city folk'. And frankly, I don't blame them. They get looked down on - and anyone can cry off to a Deputy or ranger that you are brandishing just by open carry.

No one sees it, no issues. As long as one carries their card with them, all is good.