When I see a S&W Model 642 clone that has an even half-tolerable trigger (cough Taurus cough), I pay attention. When I see a $360 MSRP price tag, I don’t even mind that it comes in more colors than Crayola. Needless to say, we’re angling for a tester as we speak.

But wait! There’s more!

The Patriot is a DAO polymer-frame .45 ACP with a 6+1 magazine and a vibe that positively screams ‘Kel-Tec.’ With a street price in the low $400s (or less) we’re curious to see what it’s got that a Springfield XD Compact doesn’t. We do like the second-strike ability and the fact that it has a slick slide and NO manual safety.

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9 COMMENTS

  2. It looks like the similar featured Springfield XDS will be stealing a lot of the Patriot’s thunder, although there’s room in that market for some competition.

    The single stack .45 mini is not my cup-o-tea. I’d rather Kel-Tec didn’t try that. I’d actually prefer that Kel-Tec try harder to crack the nut of a double stack .22 LR magazine. That’s a difficult task, but with their CNC and injection molding capabilities, they’re just the company to do it. Then, we could have a .22 LR version of their 30 round .22 WMR standard sized PMR-30 pistol.

    Heck, I’d be happy if they made a tiny and ultralight single stack 8-10 round micro pocket pistol that was reliable with a couple of types of .22 LR ammo.

  3. Both of these products have been around. The revolvers for at least the last couple years and the .45 auto for at least a half dozen years (it originally was produced by a different company). I’ve never read a truly critical review of the revolver so I would love to see that. The general consensus of the .45 is that it works, but the trigger is worse than a P11.

  4. I’ve had a Patriot .45 from the original manufacturer since 2002. It sits by the bed for if I need it. I bought it then for $220.

    The gun is so lightweight that it’s a killer on my arthritic hands, but it shoots well. You have to learn the balance between a loose grip (which will certainly cause a misfire for the next round) and a too tight grip which will distort the plastic and cause the mag to bind.

    I’ve never tried it out past 30 feet but up to that it keeps on target. It’s not really a gun to take to the range for a day of fun. The trigger is loooong and heavy but with a little polish it smoothed out fairly well. I’ve put about 400 rounds through it overall. Ball ammo works, of course, but in the beginning I had some problems with some hollow points. A little polish seems to have cleared that up since the last few times I’ve shot hollow points there was no problem. I keep it loaded with ball anyway.

    For a “car gun” or somewhere that you need an inexpensive, but well made gun it is a deal. (I am not familiar with the current product). The muzzle is flared out to about .60 and looking into the front end of it will cause a bad guy to reconsider his actions.

  5. Chris, who and what is “Cobra?” Are they a US company? Polymer or steel frame?

    I’m a die-hard S&W bigot but I wouldn’t mind seeing a little more competition in the DA revolver market. Right now S&W and Ruger seem to have the lion’s share with Charter Arms and Taurus playing to the cheap seats (seems like it’s easier to make a cheap semi-auto that is of decent quality than it is to make a cheap revolver that doesn’t suck donkey haunches.)

    Just hoping that Cobra is not a new name for the abysmal cheapo revolver companies of old (RG and Rossi come to mind…)

  6. Cobra was originally out in California, and was bought out by a company in Idaho, or Iowa. Somewhere in that part of the country. 100 percent American made.

  7. It does indeed look like a 642 clone, albeit from steel (vs. the 642’s alloy frame.)

    I guess “belly guns” are where the money is in terms of new revolvers, but I would love to see more mid-sized revolvers. I guess the rub there is that the pricing of any decent (new) revolver puts it out of the mainstream of gun buyers’ reach, so the solution is either make them small and cheap for the
    masses, or make them big and expensive for the carriage trade.

    BTW, I’m a little surprised that Colt hasn’t sued them for trademark infringement, since for many years Colt sold a revolver called the “Cobra.” Perhaps because Colt no longer makes or sells DA revolvers (to my knowledge) they can’t credibly make a “market confusion” claim. Still seems a little underhanded since Colt has had the “revolver-named-after-a-deadly-snake” theme for several decades (Python, Cobra, Diamondback, right off the top of my head.)

  8. Got my Patriot 45 this time last year. It did not work as you posted. Finally got it back one YEAR later after monthly + phone calls. Customer service good however tech services are questionable, 1 YEAR. STILL HAVE NOT SHOT IT..KINDA AFRAID AS if I HAVE TO SEND IT BACK TILL 2017? ALL THE TIME THEY SAID IT WAS THE FIRING PIN WHICH THEY HAD A HARD OUT TIME SOURCING. NO MENTION OF REPLACEMET

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