Gratuitous Gun Pic: Pistol-Caliber Carbines

From deep inside Commie Blue America, Reader Brad R. writes:

I am faced with a dilemma. I need/want to buy a relatively inexpensive (<$400) pistol-caliber carbine. I also must take ownership of said carbine before June 13, 2018, because worthless, pointless recently approved LOCAL gun ban. While not an absolute requirement, I’d prefer a carbine in 9mm that is +P rated. I toss this in because (1) ammo common to gun(s) I already own and (2) lower cost than calibers such as .40 S&W, .45ACP, etc.
Last night, the Village of Deerfield – Board of Trustees (an unholy pox upon them) approved what they call an “assault weapon” ban. The ban was a response to the mass shooting at Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High. It applies to just about every conceivable semi auto rifle with a detachable mag which also has any one (1) of five cosmetic features. There is also an extensive laundry list of specifically named rifles. The ban also forbids possession of detachable magazines with capacity of more than ten (10) rounds and applies equally to rifle & pistol magazines, without a “grandfather” clause. There are a couple of exemptions to the ban, but I don’t qualify for them. If any of your readers are familiar with the ban in neighboring Highland Park, the Deerfield ban is pretty much a carbon copy.
To illustrate the depth of stupidity of the ban, a Ruger 10/22 in a conventional stock would be fine, but the same 10/22 in a “tactical” stock would be verboten.
The ban in question does not forbid ownership, it only bans possession, manufacture, sale, transfer of the forbidden fruit within the boundaries of The Village. I don’t have to worry about possession. A personal situation allows me to reside outside of the village, but for complicated reasons I need to keep Deerfield as my legal address.
Moving north to Wisconsin or to another part of Fee America is not an option at this time. So there you have it. What Would Kim Do??

I am somewhat confused by the “possession vs. ownership” distinction (the same thing, surely?) but I’ll leave that aside for now.

Here’s the nitty gritty of the question: unless you go with a cheap ‘n nasty carbine (e.g. Hi-Point) that you want to get for symbolic reasons only, you’ll have to forget the sub-$400 price point. And given that the Colt AR-style 9mm carbine requires your bank manager in attendance at the time of sale, there are only a couple I’d look at, and your choices are kinda dependent on which 9mm pistol you want to pair with the carbine.

If your handgun is in the Beretta 92 series, then there’s  the Beretta CX4 Storm, the most innocuous of the pistol-caliber carbines.

I’ve shot this little cutie before, and I loved it: accurate, reliable and lightweight. And yes, it handles +P ammo easily.

Another option would be the Tresna Defense JAG9G, which takes Glock magazines.

I will confess that I haven’t fired this carbine yet, but a few people whose opinions I trust have done so, and they like both its reliability and the AR-style action. It also looks scawwwy (always a Good Thing when it comes to matters like this).

But speaking of scawwwy-looking guns, I’m going to throw a wild card into the mix here, and suggest that you don’t bother pairing your carbine with a handgun. Why not stick it to these gun-fearing wussies, and go all-out?

What I mean is this:

Yes, it’s a Kalashnikov, to be specific the KR-9 SBR carbine, in 9mmP (with the added bonus of an eeeeevil folding stock), and Kalashnikov USA is shipping them out as we speak. Now demand is high so you may have to jump on it, and the price is over a grand — but I cannot think of a finer way to rub the gun-controllers’ noses in it than by getting one of these bad boys. This pic was taken at SHOT this past January, and the reps were beating people back with sticks.

There are some other choices for carbines (see here), but I don’t know anything about them, and the low price points on some of them make me a little nervous.

For all those folks in a similar situation to Reader Brad, feel free to start shopping around.

And as always, additional suggestions and personal experiences / recommendations are welcome in Comments.

17 comments

  1. I would assume they feel quite comfortable banning possession – i.e. you are holding the rifle or moving it about in some semi-public arena. They aren’t quite brave enough to ban ownership, which would require the heavy-booted gestapo to invade your private home and bust open the gun cabinet for a surprise inspection and confiscation. That little out right there might have been a concession to the local PD who absolutely does not want to enforce a confiscation law? Or maybe it was a lame attempt to appease the courts and avoid having the whole thing thrown out for violating the 2A? Theoretically, you could “legally” own the rifle but keep it locked up is some storage far outside that particular city.

    1. I would think that a “no possession” law would infringe upon the “and bear” part of the 2nd. Not that that’s ever stopped the little would-be tyrants before:-(.

      1. Oh, yeah. The whole thing violates the 2A. This just shows how comfortable they are in said violation. They are stopping just at the doorstep of outright home invasion and confiscation.

  2. Kim – why not recommend the Hi-Point? Yes, it’s cheap (that’s a feature, not a bug). Yes, it’s hideously ugly. Yes, it has no panache to the snobs of the gun world.

    But it works. It’s reliable, it’s reasonably accurate, and it’s +P rated. And for another $100 or less, you can drop it in an ATI stock that looks much better – in fact, it looks very much like the Beretta. And it has a lifetime warranty, no matter who owns it – first, second, fifth owner, doesn’t matter. If it used Glock mags, it’d be damn near perfect.

    Had one and sold it (at a tidy profit, BTW); if I can pick up a used one for a decent price, gonna get one again. ‘Cause I can. And I’m in (relatively) free America.

    And yes, there is a difference between ownership and possession.

  3. The Hi-Point is by no means a horrible gun, though the single-stack magazine does limits it’s capacity rather harshly.

    I got on the PCC boat myself recently, and went a totally different way: I bought a CZ Scorpion Evo 3 S1 pistol, added the folding adapter & CZ cheekrest, then added a GearHead Works Tailhook Mod. 1 “arm brace”. It did require some time/parts/money to get it where I wanted it, but it’s a vicious little thing now. I can keep a 30 round mag of 9mm in a 2″ group at 50 feet with it, and it’s reliably eaten everything I’ve fed it. Mags are cheap (about $20) and readily available online.

    All that said, I dropped about $1200 on it, including the customization and a total of 12 mags (10 x 30 rounders, and 2 x 20 rounders).

    Gratuitous pic:

    https://kek.gg/i/59nMML.jpg

    1. I’ve got an Evo reserved, and it was sold with an SB brace for under $1000.
      Plan is to put a RDS on it this summer.

  4. Don”t overlook the Ruger Police Carbine. It comes with a conventional stock. You can use either 10 rd magazines or hi cap.

    1. Thks someone brought up this hot little honey. Hope you are referring to the NEW offering not the discontinued model. The Ruger Pistol Caliber Carbine is slowly coming on line. Check around. Just checked and Brownells has it at 484 dollars. Plus added bene of take down.

      BTW Kim…in the slave states, the possess and own language is common. It is the way the commies in charge play with folks. It is like being in the freakin Matrix. In New Yorkistan for instance take handguns. Without a valid NY handgun license you CAN NOT HOLD a pistol. Possess. That is meant to mean physical control (holding) a pistol. BUT get this ! You could OWN the very same pistol. Meant that you paid for it, have legal ownership of it. But again, without that license someone must have it under their physical control. An FFL, or someone with a license.

      Now they also play with the legal term “constructive possession”. Meaning if you have an AR without a muzzle break (you read it correctly, the legal eagles who put the SAFE Act together misspelled the descriptor) but have one in the house, then you COULD put it on the AR. Sooo…you are a felon.

  5. I have the JR carbine, shown in the list linked above. It runs like a clock and is very accurate. Takes Glock mags, and though not an AR, it uses AR parts such as trigger, stock, buffer tube, etc. I’m very happy with it.

  6. i have a Rossi that looks like an M 1 Carbine that i like. uses my beretea mags

    Course i have two more in the 38/357 caliber

    One auto, a bolt snd a lever so i should be safe from the worst of it

  7. For those lucky enough to possess an AutoMag in .30Carbine, you probably already have it mated to an M1-Carbine. For others there is the Ruger Blackhawk in .30Carbine.

  8. Buy an AR pistol lower that takes Glock mags. A quick look on Gunbroker shows they can be had for $150 or so. That “IS” the gun, so from a grandfather clause standpoint, you are done. Then get the upper and stock later at your convenience.

    I think the possession is having it inside the city limits. So you can own it, as long as you keep it somewhere else.

  9. I guess it’s just me, but when you say PCC, I’mna coming up with something in a .45 Colt lever action…

  10. Everyone,

    Thanks for all the suggestions. You’ve given me an awful lot to consider.

  11. I’m fortunate to have owned a Marlin Camp 45 carbine for many years; .45 ACP, uses 1911 magazines; the 9mm version used then common S&W pistol mags. Its a wonderful and fun gun but they bring pretty high prices now in either caliber.

    Another option. Mech-tech makes the CCU, Carbine Conversion Unit. It mounts on a Colt 1911 frame, single or Para-Ordnance style double stack, common Glocks, or most recently a Springfield XD type frame. If you already have one of these pistols, the CCU can attach, replacing the slide/barrel, then be removed to switch back to handgun. They are legal per BATFE, but who knows in Fearfield…

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