Charter Arms Undercover

[jwdeeming]

I bought a used CA Bulldog Pug. Found out why it was for sale after shooting it. The front sight is badly off. However, I am very pleased with the .44spcl - my wife can shoot it quite comfortably and after installing a Crimson Trace grip it is plenty accurate for it's purpose. She moved on and got a Springfield XDS .45 (yay!) so the pug is becoming a safe queen.

Would not buy another - as recommended above, spend a couple hundred more and get a much better firearm.

[c3006]

I would like to have a dollar for every time charter has been in and out of business. Lots better out there for not to much more money!

[Quick Draw]

Have had a Charter Arms .38 Undercover with Bulldog grips since about 1970. It has never given me any problems and is my wife's nightstand and handbag gun. Having said that I would recommend a small S&W. I have a Smith 642 in my carry rotation especially when it is hot and humid which is about 6 months of the year here.

My CA was one of the originals and I have reservations about the durability of later models. In fact I have reservations about mine if it saw heavy use which will not happen for me and likely not for your wife.

[decodeddiesel]

S&W K/L frame. A .357 Nightguard would be ideal in this role.

[COONDOG]

I carry one of the 2 good revolvers made by this company and own one of each. For your wife at home or for carry ile me go with the "off-duty" aluminum hammerless .38 and use 125 grain HP's. I use a heavier load but the 125 will be more than enough for her tastes.
I also had to own the Son of Sam being from the area it all went down in during my younger years. The revolver is all quality, just like their .38's (most popular in sales.)
As for the rest of their revolvers and calibers go to NAF for a .22 palm and taurus/rossi have long surpassed S&W in quality for price for any other revolver.

[glockmpw]

Agreed! If size is a consideration, the J-frame or the Ruger are good options. The Colt D-frame was possibly the best overall ideal size for a compact revolver, but prices have gone thru the roof since they are discontinued. The thing to remember about small revolvers is that they're not that easy to shoot for a variety of reasons, and must be practiced with, at least with a regular dry fire regiment often to maintain a decent level of proficiency. It would be good for her to take a couple of classes - one basic gun handling, and the other covering practical use of such a gun for defensive purposes. She may come away with sore hands and blistered fingers after a day of class. I have run revolver transitions with my employer and seen similar results.

Also consider getting her a fairly secure way of storing a home defense gun for when she is away from home. I had to deal with a family member who stored her J- frame, unloaded in her underwear drawer years ago. The apartment staff let the cable guy in to fix the box that didn't need repair while she was on vacation and she noticed the gun gone five months later. I pressed her to make a report anyway, and she discovered it had been recovered two weeks earlier after a gang shooting. Took forever to get it back. Not that this situation applies to yours, but something for everyone to consider. Have the serial number recorded for such situations.

Also remember that speed loaders are really good to have, along with a small LED tac light.

Charter has had some good ideas over the years, but the examples I've handled are not overly robust. For durability, I don't know if they're any better than an alloy J-frame, but I'd put my money on the J.

My wife loves her older 3" Heavy Barreled Model 60 with adjustable sights. The SP101 will say .357 Magnum if that bothers her, even though you can shoot Specials in it. Make sure you let her try the action, both of these have stiff triggers especially new. I have had several students who were able to pull the Smith but not the Ruger trigger so try before she buys is an important consideration.

[Scotter260]

Used 4" S&W Model 64 would be my choice if my wife would even consider a "cowboy gun". A .38 K-frame will likely hold up better than a Charter while being more pleasant to shoot than a j-frame sized revolver.

http://www.jgsales.com/smith-wesson-....-p-67405.html

[jyo]

I was young and needed a small handgun while running a retail business---bought a Charter Arms Undercover 38 for $65. brand new at a Kmart (a very long time ago)---it fired, but that was about it---spit lead EVERYWHERE upon firing---probably the worst gun I ever owned. A short time later, during the East L.A. riots (1971 or so), I was protecting my business along with two other guys who were guarding their businesses (one with a hunting pump 20 ga. shotgun, the other with a bolt-action 22lr rifle.). We were approached by a group of guys who informed us that they were going to loot and burn our stores---we in turn produced our firearms and suggested that they go elsewhere---they decided this was a great idea…
I remember two things in particular---it was good to be armed and you know, you only got five rounds and no other ammo---bad planning---this was NOT repeated for the next riot that came along...

[MStarmer]

My wife's safety doesn't get trusted to anything that says Charter Arms, Rossi or Taurus. Not to say that there isn't good examples of both manufacturers out there but Charter Arms really shouldn't be on your list for a HD gun. If you want one for nostalgic reasons as a range toy then fine, when it comes to the wife buy her a LCR or J-frame (LCR's have a better trigger in my opinion) and be done. Get lots of ammo and practice DA alot!

I've had two Charter guns and both were problematic, an undercover that I thought was absolutely fantastic looking, condition, trigger etc. Couldn't get thru a whole cylinder without a light strike. 5 different types of ammo and a full spring replacement and nada, same thing. Buyer took it back. Second was a pug in .44 spec. This gun damn near shot sideways, it must have been bent or something and was about a foot off center at 10 yds.