Hellcat .380 Experiences

[whgraham]

Hello Folks,

Hoping that this is an appropriate forum for personal experience accounts of firearms, I thought I'd share my experiences with the I.O. Inc. Hellcat .380.

Like many perhaps, I waffle a bit on what to carry, when, and how. I've tried several pocket .380's, and certainly have a favorite, but what I like best is not generally well suited for my budget. Gun money levels have been very low of late, and dipped into the negative thanks to cars, kids, HVAC, etc). Nonetheless, I have the desire, right, and license to carry, so I need to have something. The most recent pistol I've been using, and still use (albeit with some nervousness) is the Hellcat .380 from I.O. Inc. Here's the story.

I bought the Hellcat for a handful of reasons:

1. I like the trigger. It's smoother and more consistent than I found the other DAO .380's to have.
2. I like the depth of the frame, and the shape. It is both deeper, and more squared off than the others. I also like the feel of the material used for the frame (more LCP-ish than Kel-Tec-ish).
3. The front sight is more prominent than the others.
4. Made in America.
5. Made in N.C. where I live.
6. Lifetime warranty.
7. You can get them new for under $200.

My experience with the gun has not initially been good. My experience with the accountability of the company and service they provide has been superb. Customer service won't make a poor design better, nor will it save my hide if the product fails, but it does matter a great deal to me regardless.

I have experienced 3 broken extractors in less than 200 rounds. I understand that they have sold a big bunch of these, and early on there were issues reported about the extractors, but nothing specific as to the cause, just that there was an "issue". When the first one broke at 50 rounds, my dealer acquired a replacement extractor. I put it in, and 16 rounds later the hook was shorn off again. Back to the factory. Shipping costs were handled by I.O., they were apologetic, courteous, and they quickly sent me out the gun with a new slide and extractor. Back to the range. The first session since getting the gun back was great. It's comfortable for my hand, the front sight is pretty good (for what it is), the trigger feels great, and no problems with extraction or feeding. We back for a second session a few days later, and extractor #3 is liberated of its hook.

I'd like to say enough is enough, but I can't afford the P238 I want. I do sincerely applaud the company for their customer service, and I want to be supportive of a US made product from a N.C. company, but .........

So, I've been thinking about it. What would cause this? I don't know if the hooks are being shorn off from forward movement, or rearward movement. Since the Kel-Tec is so similar, I thought I might try a PF9 extractor (same part as the P32 and P3AT) in this gun, thinking it could be the manufacturing of that specific part as being the culprit (I believe it's a MIM part). But what I've surmised is that the extractor is a bit too long and needs some relief. The extractor and the notch in the barrel where it fits don't have enough room to peacefully co-exist: they're just slamming into each other to the point where breakage occurs. Somebody has to yield, and it's not going to be the barrel. I'm not officially a gunsmith, but with a magnifying glass and some consultation with a real gunsmith, this seems likely to be the cause.

To conclude, I'm not unhappy with I.O., nor am I unhappy with the Hellcat. I think it's a fine gun for what it is. Some like models are not much more money, but most are. If I can end up maintaining my budget and have some left over for practice ammo, then that's the way to go for me. I just thought I would share my experience, not to scare anyone off from this gun, but to call out good customer service and also to help educate anyone with a Hellcat on a possible issue. I expect that the extractor issue that the company solved is the one is discovered, but I ended up with some old school extractors. A bad one comes around from even the best and most experienced makers. It doesn't bother me when I end up experiencing one first hand, as long as it gets resolved, and I think it has been.

I've got extractor #4 in their now, and I'll be shaving a little of the end tonight and then start testing it again. If I'm proved right or wrong about this issues, I'll post an update if anyone is interested.

Best New Years wishes to you and yours.

[Phillip Gain]

One can only polish a turd so much.

My advice: Take it back to where you bought it, and insist on a refund. Then take the money, and go buy something used that is more reliable.

Just a quick example off the top of my head would be a used Charter Arms .38 Special. You can find those in the high 100s or low 200s all day long. I'd rather have a gun that fired 5 for 5 than a gun that fired ? for 8.

One can take the "It's not all that bad" attitude with pizza, beer, and sometimes cars...but NEVER with a gun to which you entrust your life.

"A good guy rarely needs a gun. But when he does, he needs it BADLY." -- Clint Eastwood

[localgirl]

If you can get your money back, do.

There are two .380s in my house--a Bersa Thunder and Walther PK. The first was new and right around $250, the second was barely used and about the same. I didn't like the action on the Bersa, so my husband carries it. The Walther is an absolute dream and I don't know how I lived without it.

I have no doubt you could find a really good weapon even on such a limited budget.

[fnsmoak]

This sounds like a situation where misery loves company, or someone is getting compensated for saying something nice about a product regardless of the facts.

If I'm carrying concealed (hint: ALWAYS), the product is tried, tested, verified that I'll NOT be making excuses for it at the end of a fire-fight.

This piece reads more like a cover-up than a review.

No matter how much you polish that turd..... IT'S STILL A TURD. Regardless how "reasonable" you find the price.

GUNSMOAK.com

[whgraham]

This sounds like a situation where misery loves company, or someone is getting compensated for saying something nice about a product regardless of the facts.

Regardless of how you think it sounds, it's neither. I'm not miserable about this, and I don't need anyone elses company in the matter. I'm now more educated about the workings of a particular firearm, which is similar to others, and can share the experience with others. I'm being transparent about my experience, so that others with the same gun, who may have the same problem someday, will then know the cause is in a shorter amount of time than I had to spend to figure it out. That was the purposeful and sole intent of the post. I come to forums like this to learn from others experiences and to find information I need, or may need in the future. Now I've shared some, which is a purpose of an online community.

This piece reads more like a cover-up than a review.

That's a pessamistic perception. This is simply a post about a problem, and a solution. Other solutions would be to dump the gun, have it destroyed, etc. I'm not going to pass on something this unreliable to another person. I will replace it when I can, but regardless, I now know more than I did before about what can go wrong with extractors.

[whgraham]

My advice: Take it back to where you bought it, and insist on a refund. Then take the money, and go buy something used that is more reliable.

Made attempts to return it. The distributor wouldn't take it back, so neither would the shop I bought it from.

There is an early production Charter Undercover nearby, but it's overpriced. I'm not getting any money back on this gun, and I wouldn't sell it anyone out of good conscience either. So I'll try and haggle on the price, and scrape what I can together for the Charter.

[Phillip Gain]

Skip the distributor. Contact the manufacturer, and give em hell til they give your money back. If they dig in their heels, call the BBB, don't stop til you get satisfaction. They sold you a defective product.