COLT'S DEEP COVER 9mm

American Handgunner, Nov-Dec, 1999 by Massad Ayoob

However, I experienced a couple of malfunctions with the combination of 1,300 fps velocity and wide mouth hollowpoints. Apparently the slide velocity is increased so much at this power level that the mechanism is less forgiving about feeding the next round.

I found if I dropped down a bit, to a 115 gr. JHP rated for 1,250 fps like the Black Hills EXP or the Pro-Load Tactical, the gun was back running 100 percent.

Deep Concealment

There are no sharp edges on this gun in places that bite you when you grasp it or where it contacts your body in concealment, even deep concealment. That's particularly important on a gun this flat and small, because the individuals empowered to carry it will find themselves wearing it tight to the body in pockets, belly bands and ankle rigs.

Except for possible intolerance for wide-mouth rounds at P velocity-- and that only happens a couple of times every hundred rounds-- I've found this pistol to be utterly reliable with everything else.

The Denver Police Department has been testing the Pocket Nine for approval as an off duty/backup weapon. Their duty load in this caliber is the 124 gr. CCI Gold Dot, and they report excellent reliability in feeding.

Interestingly, one associate had a different experience. He found his Pocket Nine to jam on that particular round, while it worked well with most everything else. It is always a smart thing to test your particular specimen of any given firearm to find out what ammo it likes and doesn't like.

My standard model Pocket Nine, only a few months old, has been in a lot of hands. Many shooters were sufficiently impressed that they purchased one. The chief deputy of a sheriff's department in a nearby county tried mine, and promptly ordered four: one for himself, one for his wife and one for each for his two grown sons.

I've lost track of how many rounds have been through this sample, but 2,000 is in the ballpark. Except as noted, reliability has been at 100 percent.

Enter The Tactical

Almost from the beginning, Cartabona envisioned a refined version of the Pocket Nine. It's now a reality, the Colt Tactical Model. The upgrade consists of a special finish on the slide called Mellonite. This is what you find on S&W's Sigmas, and it's been proven to hold up very well in the field.

Through a mix of labor-intensive parts honing and tweaking of the springs, the weight of the trigger has been reduced. The standard gun is supposed to have a DAO pull weight of 12 lbs., but a factory source says they can run as high as 15. Frankly, mine feels heavier than that.

The Tactical Model is supposed to be down in a range of 9 to 12 lbs. Mine feels like it's on the high side of that. But, without question, it is lighter than standard. (Right at our deadline, I got my hands on a second Tactical Model that was lighter, a true 9 lbs. out of the box.)

This is not insignificant. For someone who doesn't have strong hands, it can mean the difference between shootable and unshootable. I found myself feeling a definite element of trigger fatigue at around 40 shots with the standard Pocket Nine in training sessions, and this did not seem to occur with the Tactical Model.