The argument whether a .380 has sufficient firepower to stop somebody will not be regurgitated here. If my option is having a gun, any gun, or having none at all, I'll take having a gun, any gun, even if it's a .22 or a .380. And whether you men out there will admit it or not, many of you believe that women can only handle a .22 revolver anyway. So a .380 semi-auto should be a step up for us women in your opinion. But don't get me started on that subject.
The fact that I carry a loaded gun with one in the chamber under my breast pointed at my heart should indicate my level of seriousness with firearms. I have ccw'd a Ruger LCP .380 for several years, and have longed for the day that I could replace it with something with a friendlier, gentler trigger pull. As a diehard Glock fan when I first heard rumors about the possibility of a Glock .380 last year I was beside myself with anticipation. When my husband texted me a photo of a G42 he had just unpacked from a small shipment of LE sales only G42's that had just arrived at the gunstore locally where he works last week before Shot Show, I couldn't drive over to the store fast enough to get one. Consequently I also had to get a custom holster made for it since the gun isn't even available for sale yet.
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| G42 (left) Ruger (right) |
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| Top: Kahr 9 mil Middle: Ruger LCP .380 Bottom: Glock G42 |
Size matters.
Clearly the Glock is still longer than the others. The Kahr is wider top to bottom. The Ruger is clearly the smallest overall. Side by side the Glock is not much wider than the Ruger. I preferred the grip on the Glock as the Ruger grip is very small and even with my small hands you can tend to "teacup". So if you want the smallest ccw gun of these 3, the Ruger wins hands down.
Glock vs. Glock
Comparing the G42 against the G26 the difference in length is easily visible as are the differences in sites. Although I still found the Glock 42 sites to be better than the Ruger. Side by side you can also clearly see the difference in width, which is something I get asked about frequently. The G42 is very friendly to a woman's smaller hands (although personally I have no complaint with the 9 mil).
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| G42 .380 (top) G26 9 mil (bottom) |
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| G26 (left); G42 (right) |
Shooting the G42.
When I did finally get to take her out of the case and shoot her, I was so excited all my skills flew out the window and I broke my wrist and made her jam 6 times in a row. Once I figured out it was me, the shooter, causing the error and that nothing was wrong with my new gun, I fixed it and she shot just fine. Any of you who has shot a Ruger LCP know how stinking horrible (technical term), long and hard that trigger pull is. The Glock's trigger pull is just as you would expect from any Glock, smooth and easy. I can probably have her tweaked just a little like my 9 mil trigger and it will be amazing. The trigger pull on the Glock out of the case is pleasurable in comparison to the Ruger. I know you diehard 1911 fans aren't always Glock fans, but I still convinced one of my 1911 fan girlfriends to buy the last G42 we had available down here last week after she shot mine. Put it this way, when I practice with my Ruger LCP, after shooting only 12 rounds I cannot sign my name. My hand hurts that badly. With the Glock, not an issue. Operating the slide of the Glock was just as expected, it moves easily and the slide lock works well. In comparison to the Ruger, the smallness sometimes makes manipulating the Ruger slide harder, and the slidelock on the Ruger is very small. The G42 comes with a magazine that holds 6 plus 1 in the chamber. I also definitely preferred the much more visible white sights of the Glock over the barely visible sights on the Ruger. To be fair, it's been a while since I shot the Kahr 9 mil, so I can't really compare the Glock to the Kahr, but the Ruger LCP is definitely my least favorite of the 3 to shoot. Glock wins.
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| G42 in Gunners Custom Holsters bra holster (top) Ruger LCP in a flashbang (bottom) https://www.facebook.com/GunnersCustomHolsters |
Concealing the new Glock .380 is another matter, one that I was not as fully satisfied with unfortunately and surprisingly. This was due mostly to the way I ccw. I ONLY ccw in a bra holster so I had to have a custom one made for the G42 since the gun's not even available yet. Gunners Custom Holsters (go find his Facebook page and like it) is a local manufacturer of custom kydex holsters and was able to do a rush job and make me a holster that same day I bought the gun. So he's already got holsters for the G42 ready to go soon as you buy yours!
[My girlfriends all jokingly said that the Glock gives better cleavage after seeing this photo.]
My complaints about concealing the G42 have nothing to do with the holster I had made but are only with the gun itself. The holster was perfectly made and held tightly around the gun. Gunner does use a firmer plastic strap in lieu of the suede strap that comes with the Flashbang brand bra holster. His strap held the holster up higher like I prefer, although the harder strap does "imprint" where the suede one doesn't. So I might switch out his strap for the suede. Another 2 important facts to note about bra holsters are that 1) I only wear and recommend wearing underwire bras with these holsters (and in general), and 2) I do not snap the bra holster the way the instructions tell you to. I snap it with the strap "upside down" with the button up top. I have found that this holds the holster up much higher and tighter than the "normal" or correct way and prevents the holster from slipping out from under the bra. It also reduces the chance of the gun "imprinting" or having its outline be easily visible on your clothing. I'll post a separate blog with my instructions for snapping a bra holster.
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| Top: Ruger LCP with flashbang Bottom: G42 with custom bra holster |
Final thoughts.
Long story short....am I satisfied with the G42? Yes! Do I love the trigger pull of the G42 compared to the Ruger LCP? HELL YES! Is the G42 as well concealed in a bra holster as the Ruger? Yes. Is the G42 as comfortable to wear in a bra holster as the Ruger? No. Will that last fact make me stop ccw'ing it in a bra holster? No. Why? Because I hate carrying a purse and I want my gun ON me. The bra holster is the fastest, best option for me for that. Should you run out and buy the G42 as soon as you can find one for sale? My opinion, yes! Or...wait for them to come out with the 9 mil in this size as rumor has it will be happening next.
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Nicolle Fedor Griffin is an NRA Certified Basic Pistol Instructor and Chapter Leader of the Well Armed Woman (TWAW) Yuma Arizona Chapter, the largest chapter of TWAW in the country with 160 members.____________________________________________________________________________
Special thanks to https://www.facebook.com/GunnersCustomHolsters for the 1 day turn around on the custom bra holster. Please visit and like his page and let him make your custom holster for your G42 too.
