Springfield Armory did much to cause the current boom of microcompact pistols with the introduction of the Hellcat, and some lists still include Hellcat models on their “best of” lists.
But Smith & Wesson upped the game about twenty months ago (at the time of this writing) with the release of their Bodyguard 2.0, bringing .380 pistols back into mainstream consumer awareness.
And the Bodyguard 2.0 has been widely hailed as a great pistol even by people who haven’t been fans of .380s in the past.
Now, Springfield Armory may have released their answer to the Bodyguard 2.0, and it’s not exactly a head-to-head comparison. Why? Because they weren’t trying to make a smaller pistol for the masses. They decided to take their popular Hellcat OSP and make it accessible to people who, whether due to grip or strength challenges or just due to preference, prefer .380 over 9mm. Adam Borisenko gives us details:
The .380 Hellcat was designed to offer the same features and concealable size as the 9mm version, but in a more shootable, easier-to-control package. Like its bigger brother, the .380 ACP Hellcat has a 3-inch barrel, a slide cut for direct-mount Shield RMSc/SMSc-pattern optics and a capacity of 11+1 rounds with a flush-fit mag and 13+1 rounds with an extended mag. One of each magazine type is included and it ships with a soft pistol case as well. As for irons, the new Hellcat comes standard with a tritium front sight and Tactical Rack U-Notch rear sight.
Now, for those who want to argue that you should go with a smaller pistol if you’re going to go with .380 ammunition, there is an argument for having a slightly larger gun using that ammunition, and that is that a slightly larger size and more mass in the pistol helps to control recoil even more.
And that means getting back on target even quicker after each pull of the trigger.
TFB TV addresses this topic, along with showing range time with the Hellcat OSP .380, in the video below.
Is the Hellcat OSP .380 what you should purchase for your next handgun? Obviously, that’s up to you and will really depend on your purposes, your preferences, and other factors like your budget (the Hellcat OSP .380 is more expensive than the Bodyguard 2.0).
Oh, and the Hellcat OSP .380 has the option of adding an optic, which the Bodyguard 2.0 doesn’t currently offer.
So, if you’re interested in getting a pistol in .380, the Hellcat OSP .380 may be one to put on your list to consider.
