Kel Tec P32 is a great little pistol for warm weather carry....just a really, really small round. I love mine and have carried it in a sock with no ankle holster or the pocket of gym shorts.
P32 is a great little pistol. I've had one for years.
They seem to do better with a lighter bullet. 71gr bullets seem to keyhole pretty bad even at 7 yards.
60gr bullets fly nice and straight, and punch perfect little round holes.
P3AT full o' Hydra-Shoks, here. I considered the P32 and carried a P11 for a couple of years when they first came out, but settled on the .380 as a happy medium. I was having terrible trouble with the near-nonexistant sights on the P3AT but ended up dotting the sights with my daughter's neon lemon-lime nail polish and the problem was solved. I don't think you'll go wrong with any of the Kel-Tec offerings.
Mine was used, but like new, for $225 back before the hysteria. It wouldn't feed much of anything aside from FMJ until I polished the feed ramp and tweaked the magazine. Now it will feed the Hydra-Shoks without a hiccup.
Nice little pistol, if you like to work on the pistols you purchase. Mine has been back to KT twice.
Once you get them to work, they are very easy to carry.
I can't hit anything farther away than 20' with mine, but of course that could just be me.
My best friend has a keltec 32 that he carrys on his side while he does service for a mobile home company. The custemers never notice he has it on so no crazy looks from them. It weights nothing so no draging your pants off like thugs,LOL. Works great for him, he also has a lazer aim on it.
I have one. It's basically only been carried a couple times when its just not convenient to carry something better. I bought it at a show several years ago on a whim. When I took my wife shooting a few weeks ago she shot the P32 and then a couple of small .40 cal that I had including a shield. The P32 was the only one she refused to shoot again because it hurt her hand.
Every once in a while I get the bug to sell it because I don't really have a use for it but it appears it isn't worth enough to sell to waste my time. Sorry, I just think its kind of cheap.
I once was driving a family members car while mine was in the shop. I flipped down to sun visor and a P32 fell in my lap. Apparently they forgot to remove it from the car before letting me drive it. Lol.
The point here being they are incredibly small, light, and concealable - almost too much so! It may be a tiny cartridge but .32 is still better than foul language.
I don't carry a keltec have not looked at them but my always gun is a .32ACP Colt 1903. If you go with the .32 look at Buffalo Bore https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=132 One of the guns used in the Boge was a Kel Tek, 2.5 inch bbl.
I've had a the P32 for years. It's for carry on hot days and I've got the extended mag in it. Granted it's not a 9mm, but it's next to impossible to carry one of those sometimes.
Goes w/o saying they are best suited to close in work when sights and punch are not much of and issue. Also, I can put the rounds exactly where I want them. So, unless the BG is also an idiot, the reality of a barrel pointed at his head should have the desired effect.
Recoil is a very personal thing. Some folks seem to feel it more than others. I've found the .380 to be uncomfortable, but the .32 does not register with me. Of course, I don't consider either of these to be range guns, and I'll wager under the circumstances these guns are made for, some folks might not even remember the recoil.
I've had both the P32 and the P3AT at the same time. The recoil from the P3AT was a little too harsh for my taste. I have a Sig 238 that I find a LOT more comfortable to shoot than the P3AT was. I decided to sell the P3AT and keep the P32. It rides in a cheapy DeSantis pocket holster, is dern near invisible to anyone who isn't specifically looking for it, and beats the heck out of a .45 at home in the sock drawer.
I own both a p32 and a P3at. Have shot both several times and both function 100%. you can probably buy a P32 a little cheaper used. New, I think they list for the same price.
One thing that I haven't seen mentioned yet is the threat of rim lock. The .32 acp is a unique cartridge and its design can cause a failure called rimlock. As I understand, the rim of the cartridges can get "stuck" within each other in the magazine. When this occurs, 2 rounds effectively seize the magazine causing a catastrophic failure. There are homemade remedies, but you'll have to do your own research on the topic:
With that being said, I have shot both the p3at and p32. The p32 does hold more ammo and is noticeably easier to shoot. The recoil is not bad at all compared to the .380. In my own opinion, I wouldn't feel comfortable with the stopping power of the .32 acp. .380 is the lowest I'll go. I would recommend you go for a .380 given the similar size and better stopping power. It might be harder to shoot but that is why you have to practice practice practice.