So long EAA Witness P-Carry, hello Para Ord P12-45

Tomorrow is my first Para Ordnance carry day! The Good Lord sent me a buyer for my EAA Witness P-Compact .38 Super/.45 ACP at the gun show in Hickory over the weekend, attended by the other folks at the gun shop where I work. So far I've been able to get away with not spending my weekends at gun shows with the rest of the crew.

That enabled me to get my new-to-me Para Ordnance P12-45 out of hock at the gun shop today and bring her home for good. So tomorrow I'll be carrying the Para and 12+1 rds. of Winchester PDX1 230-gr. JHP Bonded Personal Protection loads, plus a couple of spare magazines of 12 and a backup piece.

I shot the Para P12-45 again this past Saturday at the range and she just loves those 230-grain loads with the sights dead-on at 15 yards. She has a Cylinder & Slide trigger job and some other custom touches, including ambi safeties which makes her perfect for a lefty like me.

I also got my Charter Arms Patriot .327 Magnum back from a gunsmith at the Hickory show, so that will be my backup tomorrow. The gunsmith tried unsuccessfully to install a lighter weight hammer/trigger spring, but said he couldn't find one that would also fire cartridges of any type. That's sorta essential for a firearm, that it actually fires, certainly more important than a lighter trigger pull.

Speaking of lighter trigger pull, I've been carrying my new-to-me Smith & Wesson Model 65-3 stainless .357 Magnum revolver lately, second photo. This little 3" barrel darling has a trigger job from the S&W Performance Center that has to be felt to be believed. Everybody who has tried that trigger has had a shocked expression and a mouth that falls open. It's that good. I guess one great trigger job is enough for the moment.

I got enough from the EAA sale to pay off the Para Ord and also make a down payment on my next acquisition, a Colt Cobra .38 Special 6-shot snubby, third photo.

The Cobra is the same frame size as the Smith 65-3, K-Frame for S&W and D-Frame for Colt. It's a dead ringer for the famed Colt Detective Special, the only difference being an alloy frame vs. the all-steel Dick Tracy snubby. I've got nothing against light carry pieces if they shoot good.

And the Colt Cobra shot just fine when I took her for a test run this past Saturday. She has a good trigger and she's a 6-shot vs. the usual 5-shot J-Frame Smith snubbies, plus the grip is also a bit bigger which works well for my large, long-fingered hands.

And the Colt Cobra trigger is pretty slick too, not as slick as the Smith 65-3 but definitely better than the Charter Patriot .327 Magnum. It's destined to be my everyday backup carry piece.

My only caveat at the range was the discovery that hot .38 Special loads banged the back of the trigger guard on the knuckle of my middle finger no matter how I tried to adjust my grip. I'm gonna find some of those grip fillers for the front of the grip frame that will fit a D-Frame Colt.