.380 ACP
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The .380 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol) pistol cartridge is a rimless, straight-walled pistol cartridge developed by firearms designer John Browning.
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Design
The .380 ACP cartridge was designed for early blowback pistols which lacked a barrel locking mechanism. The locking mechanism that is found on most other pistols is not necessary for the .380 because of the round's low breech pressure when fired; the guide spring is enough to buffer the energy displaced to the slide. This simplifies manufacture of pistols chambered for such a round, generally therby lowering the cost.
It was the favored pistol cartridge for police use in Europe for many years, but has since been replaced by the much more potent 9 mm Luger. The cartridge is similar to the slightly hotter 9x18mm (9mm Makarov) pistol cartridge developed by the Soviets.
Performance
The .380 ACP (also referred to as the "9mm short" or "9 mm kurz", German for short) is compact and light, but short ranged and having marginal stopping power. Even so, it remains a viable self defense cartridge for use in compact pistols, particularly for women or those who have a lower tolerance or ability to fire a pistol with a large amount of recoil. It it about as powerful as a standard-pressure .38 Special but lacks the range of bullet weights available to the .38 Special. Many consider the .380 ACP to be the minimum cartridge suitable for self defense, while others draw the line at .38 Special or at 32 ACP.
Ballistic Data
A 6.2 g (96 gr) bullet leaves a 10cm (4-inch) barrel at about 290 m/s (950 ft/s) for a muzzle energy of about 192 foot-pounds (260 joules) of energy.
Notes
The .380 ACP should not be confused with the semi-rimmed .38 Auto (.38 ACP) round which was later developed into the potent .38 Super.
Synonyms
- 9 x 17 mm
- 9 mm Kurz
- 9 mm Corto
- 9 mm Court
- 9 mm Short
- 9 mm Browning Short