Anyone here own a Colt Vest Pocket 25?

[GaryED50]

Thinking of getting one. What are they like? I have large hands would it be hard to control for me?

[Ed4032]

I have one but have not shot it in many years. Just a fun toy at the range.

[RetiredMajor]

GaryED50, I own one that is over 100 years old. As you know, in order to fire the gun you have to pull the trigger AND depress the grip safety at the same time. Having large hands makes this difficult because the grip safety is pretty small and is snuggled pretty far under the frame. I have a son-in-law with large hands and he struggles to fire the gun at all, because of this. I have small hands and have no problem. Controlling the gun isn't the problem for you. If possible, get your hands (literally) on one before you decide to buy, I think you'll see what I mean. Best of luck, Major

[4V50 Gary]

NIB along with Baby Browning.

[jar]

I have one and either it or the slightly older FN Browning Vest Pocket are almost always in my pocket. I would say I have average hands and have no issue with using it. Remember that these are designed to be used at BBD and generally held close to your body and pointed rather than aimed.

[RickB]

I have long fingers, not necessarily "big", and I have spent a little time trying to figure out how I could shoot my, .25.
Holding the gun in the WEAK hand, with the index finger around the trigger guard, and my strong hand wrapped around the weak, actually seems to work pretty well; the strong hand has something to hold on to, the reach to the trigger is pretty normal, and I can use my usual "trigger finger".
No experience actually shooting that way.

[44 AMP]

Not sure what you call large hands. I wear s size 8.5-9 glove, depending on the maker...

Had one of those ages ago, got rid of it as I"m not into .25s and for me it was a "two finger pistol" and a small one, at that.

THe trigger was heavy, there are about no sights, there is almost nothing to hang on to, and very little to hold to operate the slide. Plus the spring is kind of stiff. AND you have to hold it in just the right way or it won't work, due to the grip safety.

Its a finely executed example of what I consider a poor idea, and I wouldn't want to bet my life on one. if you're a collector, you ought to have one, just as an example of the type.

[4V50 Gary]

Those vest pistols are strictly point (at opponent's) and squeeze. Banker's or lady's companion/muff pistol?

[FITASC]

Got the one my FIL carried when he was Vegas PD in the 50s; my hands are wide but not really long fingers; it is a 2 finger grip at best

[John D]

Yes, I have one. Thought it would be a great pocket gun but have problems getting it to feed reliability. Very cool to handle, however!

Personally think my Beretta 21A Bobcat is a better alternative.

[GaryED50]

Thanks guys I hope to get one soon

Gary

[GaryED50]

I've always liked it. It looks like the end result of 2 1911's having to much to drink one night and 9 months later!! Tada!!

[Ibmikey]

What’s to control? Just wrap yer paw around it and let go with a round or two. I fire mine every so often but mainly it is in a drawer in a safe, just too puny a caliber for self defense.

[Screwball]

I had one… it was nice, but really didn’t like it. Zero use. Sold it.

Still have a .25… a Raven. Main reason, my dad had one. I can still remember him shoving it in his boot when we went into the city. Zero need for it, but something I like to have to remember that from way back when.

[Prof Young]

Take a look at the Kel tek P3AT in 380. It's a touch bigger but comes close to vest pocket size.

Prof Young

[cjwils]

I had one. It was not reliable. Frequent failures to feed. I tried different magazines, but that did not fix it. I tried adjusting the magazine lips, but that did not fix it. I talked to a local gun smith, but he said he would not work on it, because in his experience, no 25 autos are reliable. I might agree with that, because I also had other 25 autos that were not reliable. If you want a reliable tiny pocket pistol, there are some 380's that are only a little bit bigger and are much more reliable.

[Bill DeShivs]

Most .25s are reliable. That's why they were in production for 120 years.

[FrankenMauser]

.25s are fine for anyone that can get the booger hooker into the trigger guard - even if only a "one-finger" gun.

I have average hands, but my Schmeisser .25 is still a one-finger grip.

[Groundhog34]

I have one. It is a safe queen only. Why? Not reliable, inaccurate, ineffective caliber, not really safe to carry. A Glock 42 is not much larger a Rohbraugh smaller.

[RickB]

If you removed the barrel and mag from your Glock 42, I think you could store your .25 inside it?
The Glock and Rohrbaugh are both considerably larger than a Colt Vest Pocket.

[FrankenMauser]

Since he has provided no information, I must assume that Groundhog's "I have one" means 'a .25 auto' -- something like a Beretta Jetfire, or Cobra/Raven/Phoenix or Jennings.
They are all notably bigger than the Vest Pocket or Schmeisser patent guns - usually all less reliable, as well - but the unexposed and unaware often lump everything together.
-A bit like people that see mention of a Colt Mustang .380 and chime in with their diatribe on why it sucks so much, based solely on their time spent shooting a Hi-Point or Beretta BB (obviously a different class of pistol).

But, there are plenty of Vest Pockets floating around that have been abused, beaten, modified, and Bubba-smiffed into unreliability.

[HisSoldier]

I talked to a local gun smith, but he said he would not work on it, because in his experience, no 25 autos are reliable.

Perhaps you should find a better gunsmith. I have many many reliable .25 ACP pistols.
As a machinist if I turned away a customer because I didn't like the type of part he'd brought me to fix I'd have been out of business long ago, it's the customer's choice as to what he likes.
To me there are many kinds of gunsmiths, a lot of them stay mostly with rifles, some like revolvers and a few don't like automatics because they don't know how to make them run. I think smiths who enjoy tuning autos are rare, they are the one's to take a jammomatic to.

[unit 900]

Originally Posted by FrankenMauser

Since he has provided no information, I must assume that Groundhog's "I have one" means 'a .25 auto' -- something like a Beretta Jetfire, or Cobra/Raven/Phoenix or Jennings.
They are all notably bigger than the Vest Pocket or Schmeisser patent guns - usually all less reliable, as well - but the unexposed and unaware often lump everything together.
-A bit like people that see mention of a Colt Mustang .380 and chime in with their diatribe on why it sucks so much, based solely on their time spent shooting a Hi-Point or Beretta BB (obviously a different class of pistol).

But, there are plenty of Vest Pockets floating around that have been abused, beaten, modified, and Bubba-smiffed into unreliability.

I frankly think lumping a Beretta Jetfire with a Raven/Jennings is a poor call. I have had all three and found the Beretta to run very well with ball ammo. The Jennings was a POS and the Raven not at all bad for a pot metal firearm. The Beretta is a major cut above those two.

[jar]

I had a failure New Years Day with my Coly Vest Pocket. I was at my sisters for lunch and my Brother-in-law was interested in the little jewel. I unloaded it and field stripped it and the firing pin broke.

Best possible handgun failure imaginable.

New firing pin on the way from Numrick and in the mean-time I'm carrying the slightly older FN version. My Colt VP was made in 1919 while the FN was made in 1913 or 1914.

[FrankenMauser]

I frankly think lumping a Beretta Jetfire with a Raven/Jennings is a poor call. I have had all three and found the Beretta to run very well with ball ammo. The Jennings was a POS and the Raven not at all bad for a pot metal firearm. The Beretta is a major cut above those two.

Indeed.
I was referring mostly to their larger size with that statement. But I did thrown in lesser reliability, because I believe the Berettas to be a bit more finicky than the Colts and Schmeisser patents.