The people at Taurus really stepped out of the box with The Curve – one of the things folks get all head scratchy about when it gets to the “Bruce – can you help me figure out which gun to buy?” thing is the simple fact that’s just where it starts – they have decided on the pistol so now – which holster? – mounted light? – laser? – night sights? – People just don’t realize they have just started spending money with the purchase of a pistol . . .

And Furthermore – It’s raspberry – NOT pink!!

My blushing bride and I were perusing the internet one day and ran across The Curve in this color . . .

Comes with a belt/pants clip – no holster needed . . .

We were like – Damn – that’s so ugly it’s cute – let’s buy it! – so we did . . .

Hides pretty good under the Sig . . .

Sig P232 ain’t hiding behind it – that’s for sure!

Now you see why it’s called “The Curve” – Taurus curved the grip of the pistol as far as they could and still get a straight magazine in it – the curve snugs against you and the pistol just disappears against your hip when it is inside your waist band – no sights to snag – the “hash marks” on the back of the slide intersect with the center line of the barrel and work pretty good out to about 7 yards – the grip texture gives you really good purchase on the pistol . . .

And it comes with a laser/light combo and a trigger guard holster that covers the trigger and has a lanyard that you can thread through a belt loop or safety pin it to your jogging shorts – pretty complete package – all you need to add is ammo and practice . . .

I didn’t realize how washed out the laser dot was in this pic until I got it posted up here – and no I’m not digging it out of the lock box to retake the pic – the laser is adjustable – up / down / left / right – this laser is set up so the magic hole lands on the dot at 21 feet . . .

Small – lightweight – easily concealable firearms are out there in just about any flavor you desire these days – you see what I did there – The Sig P232 is like a Bentley or a Rolls Royce – most of the “little” pistols now don’t compare well to it but the Sig is no longer in production and unless you are willing to do the Gun Broker thing or something similar – or find one someone is willing to part with – your looking at something that is in current production – and there are a lot of choices out there . . .

I am already working on the next “Compared to” post – I wonder which one it will be? Let me give you a hint . . .

It’s frustrating to me when a manufacturer comes so close . . .

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

We’ll look at one more pistol in about the same size as the P232 that’s not in .380. The Radom P64 is a decent copy of the Walther PPK – not anywhere close to the finish of the PPK that was the pattern Radom used – chambered in 9×18 Makarov – which is just about ALL you want power wise in a direct blow back without going to a locked breach/tilt barrel arrangement – the only other way around it is something along the lines of a Hi Point where slide mass is used to mitigate recoil . . .

The P64’s were a great deal at the peak of the import bump – eg – they start with a dribble /pricey – then they come in by the boatload and they are cheap – then the supply dries up and they become pricey again . . .

The P64 started at about $300 bucks – dropped to about $200 bucks – and could be found for less – now they are $500 bucks and up if you can find them . . .

Here it is hiding under the Sig . . .

And on top of the P232 – just about the same size . . .

I’m not going into the gory details on the P64 simply because it’s just not readily available anymore – you can find a lot out about the P64 on various forums – again not going into a lot of detail here – except – if you run across one DO NOT DRY FIRE IT! – the P64 has a propensity to break firing pins when dry fired – use snap caps! – Mr. Snap Cap is your friend . . . ( 9×18 Makarov snap caps are out there – just hard to find )

Right after this will be a post with two videos from Paul Harrell – one on several different firearms chambered in 380 and one on different types of 380 ammunition . . .

The next 6 firearms we look at are all roughly the same footprint as the P232 and are chambered in 380 – 4 are readily available current production – one is long gone but it’s cute as Hell – and one – the Taurus Curve – is still available but Taurus is scaling production back to make other models – the next “P232 Compared to . . .” video will pick up with the Taurus Curve ( and it’s raspberry not pink! – LMAO ) . . .

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!

If – and it is a big if – you can find a Sig P230 or P232 at a decent price – which in today’s market puts you in at about $800 bucks entry level ( and they go up from there! ) are they worth it??

They are smooth shooting – easy to conceal – and good looking pieces – They are FUN to shoot so you will tend to practice more with it than with an itsy bitsy teenie weenie .380 – for instance – KelTec P3AT – great little pistol – however it beats the snot out of your hand . . . You will tend to not practice with it – and accuracy with a marginal round such as the .380 is a necessity – you really need to put the rounds where they need to go – and that ability to do that consistently comes with – wait for it – PRACTICE – Damn Bruce! – There you go with that P word again!!

For the most part we are going to look at pistols ( and a revolver or two ) that are about the same “footprint” as the Sig – caliber wise until the later posts in this mess I will stay in the 380/9mm/.38 area . . .

And for no other reason than I had these pics ready – I’ll start with the Smith & Wesson 642 . . .

If the entirety of this was a beauty contest – the P232 just won best of show . . .

Size differences are minimal – the 642 is a little thicker due to the cylinder . . .

The P232 can almost hide behind the 642 – and yes I know the 642 is loaded – the rule – “Treat every gun as if it is loaded” – is true around here – because if they are “out” – they ARE loaded – and no – we have no children around here – the last time any were brought over it took about 20 minutes to get all the firearms gathered up and secured – then the parents had to sign the waiver – “Any children left unattended will be sold to the circus” – and then the children were allowed in . . .

And the 642 can just about hide behind the P232 – Damn that Sig is a good looker!

Caliber wise?? – the .38 Special walks away with the giant stuffed panda bear – compared to a .380 – there is really no comparison – But Bruce – I have 95 Grain Super Duper Elephant Killer rounds in my .380 – Why they are coming out at a blistering 1000 feet per second!! – The 642 with the Ergo Grips comfortably shoots the old FBI loads – 158 Grain Semi Wad Cutter Gas Check hollow points at 946 fps ( that’s averaged with a chrono on a 25 shot string ) – but we are comparing kiwi fruit and pears – the firearms themselves – P232 – 7 rounds in the magazine + 1 in the chamber is 8 rounds – much quicker reload with a magazine – better sights – smoother shooter – dare I say an elegant looking pistol – and of course I make it look better. . . LMAO!

The 642 carries better in my pocket – YOUR actual mileage may vary – but for me the 642 just “fits” correctly in my pocket – and the 642 can be fired from inside a jacket pocket – and no – I don’t recommend you doing that without a LOT of practice – ( the Goodwill store is your friend – LOL ) and the part I found interesting in the linked video is that he managed to empty the magazine on the semi-auto from inside the jacket pocket – I have never managed to get more than 3 rounds down range without an auto loading pistol malfunctioning!

I started with the 642 simply because I had the pictures already taken for a different purpose – someone wanted to see the size difference . . .

I will get into the lock boxes and get pics this weekend and give you folks a look at the P232 compared to some other .380’s – now enough of this internet crap – get your happy ass to the range and PRACTICE! – tell your boss you have to leave work early to go shooting and I said that it’s OK!

Have Fun! – Run the Gun! – and remember – Fish Heads are Cheap!!