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how long will it last?

rangerange Member Posts: 554 ✭✭✭
edited October 2001 in Ask the Experts
Any body know how many rounds can be fired through a kel-tec 32 before it breaks? Which is a better gun the kel-tec 32 or the Beretta tom cat 32? many thanks for your answers
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Comments

  • gunnutgunnut Member Posts: 724 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    I asked a friend of mine who has owned both he prefers the kel-tec hope this helps
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  • badboybobbadboybob Member Posts: 1,658 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    range go to www.ktog.org. You'll find lots of info on Kel-Tecs. My P-32 functioned perfectly right out of the box. I carry it all the time in a pocket holster. It's so light (20 oz fully loaded) I hardly notice it in my pocket.
    So many guns to buy. So little money.
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  • dheffleydheffley Member Posts: 25,000 ✭
    edited November -1
    I've got a buddy who bought the Kel-Tec. He's one of those guys who attempts to wear out any new gun he gets. He has managed to do it to the Kel-Tec in about 1000 rounds. He has bought a replacement frame and changed it out. The gun is thinner and lighter than the Beretta Tomcat 3032 I own, but the Beretta is much better. If you go with the Beretta, spend th extra 20-30 bucks and get the deep blue steel frame. You'll love it, and it will last forever.
    Save, research, then buy the best.Join the NRA, NOW!Teach them young, teach them safe, teach them forever, but most of all, teach them to VOTE![This message has been edited by dheffley (edited 10-06-2001).]
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  • idsman75idsman75 Member Posts: 13,398 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    SWAT magazine did an article on the Kel-Tec P11 (9mm) about year ago and sang high praises for it's reliability. I wouldn't attempt to "wear out" any gun that I buy. Would you attempt to "wear out" a new car? The Kel Tec is a good gun but I wouldn't consider putting 1500 rounds through it in a day or even in a week. That is not what it was built for. The Beretta .32 is a damn fine gun as well and I love it's tip-up barrel design. I have owned both a Kel Tec (9mm) and a Beretta (.25 ACP) and loved both. My inventory changes every 6 - 12 months as my tastes change so I no longer own them but would recommend both to someone looking for compact .32.
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  • slidder12slidder12 Member Posts: 358 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    oct issue of gun tests picked the kel-tec p32hands down over the beretta ally cat and the walther pp32...reasons??walther was bigger and heavier,alot of glare on the top slide,trigger pull to heavy..16#beretta has a sharp trigger..sights not that great and may be to complicated a gun for some shooter's..they liked the kel-tec for price and it did everything they said it would good groups and never jammed once..several jams on walther and beretta...
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  • gunnutgunnut Member Posts: 724 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Neighbor bought a NIB alley cat last week, I just got thru talking with him, his is going back due to accuracy problems he has tried 3 different brands of ammo all of which is "quote horrible" not sure what this means other than he thinks for $300 it is an expensive trotline weight... WIll report back with further info as it become available
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  • JudgeColtJudgeColt Member Posts: 1,790 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Babboybob, what did you load in your Kel-Tec P32 to get it up to 20 ounces loaded? Mine weighs about 10 ounces loaded. My P11 weighs about 20 ounces loaded with eleven rounds of 9x19. Have you confused the two?dheffley, all Beretta Tomcats have alloy frames. The ones with blue finished slides cost more (about $30 more) than the matte finish ones, but they all have alloy frames. In regard to your friend wearing out a P32 and replacing the frame, how did he get a frame? That is the serial-numbered part and Kel-Tec would not sell it for consumer installation because it would require the gun to be sent in so the original frames could be swapped. Are you talking about the grip instead? That is a piece of plastic and would not wear out, but could be damaged by improper assembly or modification. Just what did your friend wear out?As a point of interest, the Tomcat is huge compared to the P32. It weighs as much as an Airweight J-frame and is almost as big. The Tomcat is a blow-back and therefore kicks harder than a P32, which has a locked breech.I have both and have never carried the Tomcat over the P32. Most Kel-Tecs are very reliable as reported by several posts. The Gun Week I just received yesterday has a test of the P11 in it, and it was flawless. I cannot believe that a gunwriter is just now discovering the wonderful P11, but I guess some just do not get the message. As the writer sort of admitted, the inexpensive price probably made him think the pistol was a piece of junk and he therefore dismissed it without trying it. Get a Kel-Tec P32 and never be "gunless" again (unless you are naked!).
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  • dheffleydheffley Member Posts: 25,000 ✭
    edited November -1
    Judge Colt,The frame was replaced by the shop that sold him the gun, Nix Shooting Supplies, Lewisville, Tx. I went with him when he picked up the gun, so I know he had the work done. The Tomcat I own is the matte finish, black alloy frame and matte black steel slide. When I bought the gun, I was offered a deep blue model that was represented as a steel frame and steel slide. I passed on that one to save the few bucks. I've only put around 500 rounds throught the Tomcat, but it is a fairly accurate gun, especially for the size. I am happy with my Beretta, and I'm not knocking the Kel-Tec. I don't know why the Kel-Tec David bought failed so soon, but I do know he is hard on firearms. I believe you must be mistaken on the Beretta frames unless they have a way to put a deep steel blue finish on alloy. I looked at one, and the salesman told me it was steel. I guess he could have lied to me, but I doubt it. The frame (not the colored plastic) was replaced on the gun. I don't know if they did the replacement at the shop, or sent it back for replacement. I do know it took about 30 days to get the parts or ship it. All I said was I know of a Kel-Tec that didn't last long. That's what the man asked. I also gave my opinion of the Tomcat judging from the one I have. I have seen some scratches on the frame of my Tomcat that would not have been there if I would have spent the extra money for the steel frame. That's why I made that recommendation. Evidently, I hit a nerve with you. Don't know why, but if I offended you with my opinions, I guess I'm sorry. I own 2 other Beretta's. One is an alloy and steel 92, the other is a stainless on stainless 96. Both are excellent guns. I own several S&W's, Colts, and Ruger's. All good guns. I have never owned a Kel-Tec, but I am not impressed by what I saw with David's.
    Save, research, then buy the best.Join the NRA, NOW!Teach them young, teach them safe, teach them forever, but most of all, teach them to VOTE!
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  • KadaverKadaver Member Posts: 333 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    keep in mind that the kel-tec isn't really designed as a high volume shooter.....
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  • badboybobbadboybob Member Posts: 1,658 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Judge Colt;Oops, I got the number wrong. It is 10 oz loaded with 8 Hydra Shocks.
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  • JudgeColtJudgeColt Member Posts: 1,790 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    deheffley:I am sorry if I seemed offended. I am not. Maybe I was just so astounded by the reference to a steel frame on a Tomcat that I over-stated my response. If a gunshop told you the blue Tomcat has a steel frame, the employee was probably just ignorant, not lying. (What would be gained by his/her lying?) Yes, the polished alloy finish on the blue Tomcat does match the blue steel slide very well, but it is still alloy. Your reference to scratches on your matte Tomcat is confusing. A scratch is a scratch is a scratch, whether on blue steel or matte alloy. Actually, I think what may be going with your matte finish that it tends to show scratches more easily than smooth finishes of any kind. A matte finish is microscopically rough and anything coming in contact with it will tend to smooth the spot of contact, resulting in a polished spot, which looks like (is) a scratch. The same minor contact with a smooth surface would not result in the polishing and therefore would not show as a scratch. A sharp object contacting a polished or matte surface will be a scratch in either case.Your explanation of the frame exchange on the Kel-Tec P32 makes it more clear what really happened. From your initial explanation, I thought you meant that Kel-Tec sent your friend a new frame. I would guess that the pistol was sent to Kel-Tec by the dealer for frame replacement, and then back to the dealer for delivery back to the owner. Did the serial number change? Did your friend have to fill out new paperwork to get the pistol back? You relate something else that caught my attention as well. You say, "One is an alloy and steel 92, the other is a stainless on stainless 96," in relating the Berettas you have. If I understand what you are saying, I think you are saying that your M96 has a stainless steel frame. To quote Ronald Reagan, there you go again! (That is a joke. I am not offended.) Like the M92, the M96 has an alloy frame, whether blue (actually matte black Bruniton finish) or Inox (stainless steel slide and clear anodizing on the alloy parts). It may closely resemble stainless steel in finish, but it is alloy just like the frames on all current Beretta pistols. Take a magnet and try it on the slide. It should be attracted. Then try it on the frame. If it is attracted, you have a one-of-a-kind M96. As far as I know, all recent Beretta pistols have alloy frames, even the M89 target pistol. badboybob: Glad to hear you have not found some sort of heavy atomic ammunition for your P32. (Well, maybe not. Such ammunition might make heavier armament unnecessary.) My fingers often hit the wrong key as well.I have evaluated all carry guns available, own many of all types, and have established a hierarchy of size and power governed by the size of the gun that may be carried under a particular set of circumstances. The P32 is my choice for its size/power slot.
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  • dheffleydheffley Member Posts: 25,000 ✭
    edited November -1
    JudgeColt,You are right on the 96. I was referring to the color combination, "stainless on stainless" rather than "blue on black" or "two tone" (do they even make two tone?). The frame is alloy. Only my Smith's and Colts have steel and stainless steel frames.I will be very disapointed if the salesman misinformed me, because I've been kicking my own butt for a year for not going with the steel framed Tomcat. I'm going back tomorrow after work to check it out. He was the assistant, not the owner, and I know he used the words "steel blue". Now I'm wondering if he meant color, and I heard material. I also said scratch, when I should have said ding. The aluminum was soft enough it dented, and I thought the steel would have been tougher. Now you're telling me I couldn't hve gotten steel anyway. Bummer!As far as David's gun, I don't know if the serial number changed or not. I didn't see him fill out a new yellow form, but I was slobbering over a new Remmington 700 which I came back and bought the next day. He has not been happy with the Kel-Tec, and has had some other problems. But as I say, nothing holds up well for him except an old Mauser military rifle he has. He hasn't been able to tear that one up yet.As far as the magnet test, most stainless are non-ferrus and therefor non magnetic. I know a few are, but I don't need to test it. I know it's alloy. I just wish the manufactures would use steel again. That is one of the reasons I bought the Smith's.Hope we're clear on each others statements. I enjoy reading your post and replies, and I'm glad I didn't offend you. We engineers sometimes get on a one way track and don't spend a lot of time clearifying what we are saying. We know what we mean, and we assume everyone else does too.
    Save, research, then buy the best.Join the NRA, NOW!Teach them young, teach them safe, teach them forever, but most of all, teach them to VOTE!
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