In what way? Reloading? Accuracy? Rate of fire?Originally Posted by ST911
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In what way? Reloading? Accuracy? Rate of fire?
Senior Member
Heavy trigger, less than manageable recoil, and that first flash at night when you touch one off in the dark.
Why, oh why, fatasses behind a gun counter insist it is an ideal gun for women and girls vexes me to this day.
If you look up the lore of the Chiefs Special, you will find that it was assumed you had a lot of professional time behind a Police Revolver or that you only had so much real estate to work with (deep cover/piloting a jet) and that most of your shooting would be defensive and at kissing distance.
They were never meant to be a primary weapon.
It sorta became that way because they are indeed lightweight, and the sorta backhanded insult was they were “Chiefs Specials” because the Chief don’t shoot. So some older guy who basically never leaves the station could carry a gun without it digging in or weighing him down.
A LOT of people who wanted concealment didn’t want to forego capacity and got Snubbie Model 10s or Colt Detectives.
If a J frame locks up on you, it will be hell getting the cylinder open.
It’s one of those guns that the person carrying it either really knows what he is doing or he really doesn’t
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I have not carried one but it appeals to me for certain uses. It seems I'm in the latter category unfortunately. What would cause the J frame to lock up? Would the cylinder be frozen, unable to turn?
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Any number of things. Case bulge, locked hand. ItÂ’s rare but not unheard of.
Honestly the J frame shines in one area and that is a contact shot. Someone is on top of you and you need to fire. An auto can be taken out of battery.
A revolver works as long as cylinder turns.
They arenÂ’t bad at all. Neat little guns. You just have to know what you are getting into and how the margin of error diminishes with a J frame. They also get pretty warm. They simply are not first line combat pistols. They are tuckaways.
Me, personally, I push more towards the Model 36. I see merit in the hammerless but if you are wiped, fatigued, or injured then that heavy trigger will come back to haunt you. Having a single action option is worth it. You should still very much accept this will be used Double Action when it counts.
A lot of 3 yd and 7 yd clinic will help you get the most. Also load something sensible and try not to get an airweight. Every ounce lighter is more recoil. There is a noticeable difference between shooting 38 from a beefy L or even K frame vs a J frame. To light and you might as well just be holding up a little pipe and hitting the primer with a ballpeen hammer.
A classic Model 36 covers most of it. There are better people who are way older than me who carried Revolvers as duty weapons for their first police job when the Civil War was over who can definitely get more in depth.
My best advice is to rent/borrow one and see for yourself before you buy it.
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Yes! The Golden Sabre is a very good light-mag load. It really bridges the gap.
.38 +p can expand and penetrate from a 4 inch barrel fine. But a snub barrel really hurts the .38.
I've fired and chronoed a bunch of .38/.357 over the years.
I prefer the .327 / .32 mag now. Easier to shoot well, extra shot.
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I'm gonna preach .32 again...
The LCR .327 has a much lighter trigger than a J frame and .32 magnum and .32 Long / acp solves the recoil / blast issue. Plus you get six shots.
Wife loves hers.
Not a primary weapon? For service? No, I agree. Even the Chief should carry something better.
For Joe / Jane 6-pack its *probably* fine.
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Simpler operation for a non gun enthusiast.
And, There is nothing as smooth and fast for drawing from a pocket than the back of a shrouded hammer revolver with your hand already wrapped around it.
And, contact shots won't stop the revolver from working.
Also, no magazine to accidentally pop loose while in a pocket.
Another Is that many people can get all three fingers wrapped onto a small revolver grip. An auto that fits in your pocket will not have a grip long enough to get more than two fingers on it. If you value a smooth, consistent draw anyway.
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With respect, this myth needs to die.
A revolver is the WORST weapon you can give a non-shooter.
Reloading speedloaders under stress is harder, the trigger is heavier, and a mechanical failure far far too unforgiving.
You can, very easily, teach a novice to do a basic remedial action or a strip and rip than you can get someone into being coordinated enough to use speedloaders in the dark while fighting shakes.
Lining up 6 rounds for six holes is a helluva lot harder than jamming one mag into one larger hole.
Revolvers are super super niche and are essentially toys and curios at this point. You CAN do (one) contact shot with an auto but you WILL have to manually put it back in battery.
The only merit is hunting with larger or more boutique rounds.
It’s an autopistol world.
A female or a child can operate a Glock 19 much more competently than if you tossed a revolver at them and said “good luck”
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She had a G19. Would occasionally limp-wrist it. Wasnt reliable for her.
She also wasnt going to carry something that big consistently anyway.
Smaller auto's? Tried those too. More recoil, or grips too small and she felt she has less control of it. She also had a hard time working slides on smaller auto's.
I taught her the better techniques for running a slide. She made an interesting point one day.
She put her palm and fingers to mine. Her hand, wrist, and fingers have maybe half the muscle mass as mine. And shes not a petite woman. (Or fat) that spoke alot about how much less muscle woman often have to work with.
Then there was the time she was practicing with a S&W Bodyguard .380 and the slide slipped, clamping tender palm flesh in the ejection port. She could not release it and screamed in pain. I was in the next room and helped get it off her.
She said it hurt so bad it was hard to scream. It bled and bruised but didnt leave a scar.
Think she was interested in auto's much after that?
At the range, every revolver load is with a strip or speed loader to build memory. And she can shoot three times as much in a session with .32 vs .38 from a light gun. Basically as much as she wants. 100-150 rounds.
She likes firing it and other easy to shoot guns. But shes not a gun enthusiast.
A revolver works for her and she carries it. At home she can use a long gun.
Believe it or not revolvers are still the gun of choice for some people in 2020.
I'll also add that she doesn't find cleaning a revolver that big of a deal because you dont have to take anything apart. I wont always be around.
Last edited by Ron3; 09-24-20 at 20:01.
Senior Member
The niche seems clear. I would not bother with a reload. Thanks.
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