Taurus 856 Ultra Lite Vs Ria M206 Review
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In this day and age of polymer-framed striker-fired semiautos, does the old-fashioned revolver even have a identify? Many of you reading this may think not simply I beg to differ. There's something to be said for a carry weapon that just needs to be fatigued (or shot through the pocket, subconscious) and fired only by pulling the trigger. No safeties. No wondering if you remembered to load the chamber. As well, no worries about a mag not seated properly. Just pull-and-blindside. In other words, it can be a peachy no-fuss curtained bear revolver.
Ok, I oversimplify just you get the idea. To exist fair, there are many semiautos that part pretty much like revolvers… draw-aim-burn. All the same, the comments about the chamber being loaded and the magazine seated yet are valid. According to many shooters, there are more ways for a semiauto non to burn when you lot pull the trigger than a revolver. The country-of-the-fine art cocky-loader is remarkably reliable but there are still thousands of shooters out there who trust their life to a revolver. Call them former-fashioned or whatsoever, just a lot of folks only deport revolvers. I'm good either way. In this article, we'll accept a look at:
- Charter Artillery Bulldog: a archetype DAO revolver, uses 44 SPL as its main caliber.
- Kimber K6s: an expensive six-shot revolver, has a double and single trigger mechanism.
- Ruger LCR: the start carry revolver to have a polymer frame, can sleeping accommodation .357 Magnum rounds
- Ruger SP101: tin can use calibers like .38 Special, .22LR, .37 Federal Magnum, and .357 Magnum.
- Smith & Wesson 642: fires .38 Special rounds and is a perfect dorsum up revolver for your principal CCW.
Let's expect at some considerations, definitions, and other factors related to carrying a revolver, and then nosotros'll look at some guns.
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Definition Of A Concealed Conduct Revolver
What criteria will I use to ascertain a concealed comport revolver?
Information technology'due south pretty simple, actually. The carry revolver volition ordinarily have a four-inch or shorter butt. 2 other features that aid ascertain a acquit gun are the grip and frame. Virtually carry revolvers have a round-barrel, abbreviated grip, and a smaller frame that conceals well. Hogue-type condom grips tend to be common, although some of the more expensive custom guns may have grips made from exotic woods. Crimson Trace or other light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation sights are popular also. Most snubbies are chambered in .38 Special, with .357 Magnum and .44 Special made in lesser numbers. At that place are fifty-fifty guns chambered in 9mm and .45 ACP but these are not in the mainstream of snub nose revolver calibers due to the fact that these rimless cartridges need special consideration in a revolver cylinder to part properly.
Barrel Length, Cylinder Width and Concealability
I know that for a certain segment of shooters, a four-inch Smith and Wesson Model 19 or some similar gun in .357 Magnum or .38 Special is the preferred revolver carry choice. Guns with that barrel length, with their longer barrels' greater velocity and increased sight radius, can make excellent concealed carry guns. The problem is concealing it. A 4-inch barrel is harder to hide than a two-incher, especially inside the waistband.
The cylinder, being the widest part of a revolver, is ordinarily the hardest office of the gun to hibernate and this dimension usually is independent of barrel length. A 4-inch revolver's cylinder width is, past and large, the same width every bit that of a like-caliber 2-inch gun's cylinder. Most folks I know who carry a iv-inch revolver carry it outside the waistband nether a coat or garment. Inside the waistband comport is a little more difficult because of the cylinder width coupled with barrel length just information technology can be done. If y'all carry a larger revolver, great – I'm glad that it works for you.
However, for our purposes hither I volition limit the discussion to those guns that are commonly referred to equally snub-nosed revolvers. These are guns with a ii- to three-inch butt, give or take a petty, and a total width across the cylinder of around i.4 inches or less. That takes in many guns and models, only we will endeavor to narrow it down to ten specific guns. Another point I demand to mention: unlike my comparisons of semiauto pistols, I won't be list a specification table of length, width, capacity, etc. for each gun. I will mention of import facts about the guns but when nosotros wait at the overall classification of revolvers known every bit snub nose (or snubbies), dimensions tend to be pretty shut. I will bespeak out the differences, to be sure.
Cylinder Width Vs. Semiauto Width
We've settled on a cylinder width of around 1.four inches as part of our definition of a carry revolver. Just is in that location anything special well-nigh that number, when several very pop semiautos are the aforementioned width, thereabouts? What makes the snubby harder to conceal when both are close to the same width?
There is a reason that the revolver might exist a little harder to conceal even if it is the aforementioned width as a semiauto. The revolver is only that broad at the cylinder…the rest of the gun is flat. This can make the gun impress easier, especially in a thin pocket holster. Some people volition see the cylinder's bulge and immediately "make" you as carrying a gun, because that'southward what guns look like, right? Those aforementioned people might encounter a apartment burl in your pocket and not think a affair virtually it and not recognize it as a semiauto hidden in that location in a pocket holster. The reason is that the semiauto is pretty much the aforementioned width all over, much like a cell phone. That is the departure between the two.
From my personal experience, when I carry my Smith & Wesson Model 638 J-frame snubby, I get the "cylinder burl" that I take to hide. When I deport a Ruger LCP-Max in its pocket holster, it looks like I accept a big cell phone at that place. Only yous tin make the decision whether to deport a revolver or not – everyone's unlike. One way that works for some people to carry a bike gun is to put it in a shoulder holster. If you are wearing a jacket or other cover garment, the shoulder holster may be a viable way to accept your gun with you, considering the cylinder "bulge" won't show.
Capacity and Reloading
Most compact or subcompact pistols concur anywhere from vi to fifteen or more rounds in a mag. To reload, you hit the magazine release push, the empty magazine falls free and y'all stick a fresh, full magazine in the gun and release the slide. You at present accept that many rounds at the gear up again.
The revolver is a bit different in the capacity and reloading section. Unless you are carrying a larger 7- or 8-shot revolver, most of the smaller, easily-concealed acquit guns will hold five or six rounds in the cylinder. Once you've fired all of them, you press the cylinder release button, swing the cylinder out, punch out the empty cases and refill the chambers.
There are speed loaders and speed strips that do help charge all chambers simultaneously or 2 at a fourth dimension, but (unless you've really dedicated a lot of training time to the chore of reloading) it's not going to be as fast as slapping in a fresh magazine. Please understand – I'm talking about the average Mr. or Ms. Curtained Carrier, not a competition shooter like Jerry Miculek. He tin can reload his bicycle gun faster than most of the states tin reload our semiauto. For the majority of u.s.a., a semiauto is going to be faster to reload.
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Allow's Balance It Out
OK…so we know that the revolver might be a lilliputian harder to muffle and maybe a affect slower to reload. Does information technology accept whatever advantages?
Information technology sure does. Put yourself in this imaginary scenario: y'all are waiting in line at the depository financial institution when an patently deranged shooter comes in and starts firing wildly at people. Y'all put your hand on your snubby in your jacket pocket simply as he turns toward you lot. No fourth dimension to draw! With a revolver, yous cease the threat by shooting through your jacket pocket without ever pulling the gun out (acquire more about concealed carry insurance). You just saved your ain and probably several others' lives.
This is a bit far-fetched but in that location have been occasions when a legally armed concealed carrier has had to shoot through a jacket, glaze, pocketbook, etc. A revolver tin can do that, especially those with an internal or shrouded hammer. You might get one shot off with a semiauto but chances are the slide will get hung up in recoil in your pocket/purse etc., rendering it useless if more one shot is needed.
Another reward that is not readily obvious is that the manual of arms tends to a footling less complicated for the revolver. I take discovered it is a fleck easier to innovate a shooter to the sport when I use one of my revolvers with reduced loads, or a .22. When I've handed them a semiauto get-go, some of them all but handed it dorsum maxim that it looked too complicated. Don't become me wrong – anyone tin can be taught to shoot anything, given plenty range fourth dimension and grooming. I make no judgment calls considering of this – I own and shoot many semiauto pistols – this is merely what I accept observed in my limited experience.
1 Caveat
Hither's where a longer-barreled revolver comes in handy because at that place is one caution virtually handing a snub nose revolver to a new shooter. Until a shooter attains a certain level of proficiency, a snubby is a very difficult gun to chief.
The snub nose should exist introduced to the new shooter but after he/she is familiar with the trigger, sight picture, and recoil generated by the longer-barreled gun. One time those are mastered, then hand him/her the snubby with standard- or target-force per unit area loads and permit them shoot, shoot, shoot. Gradually they will piece of work up to defence-level ammo. I specifically avoid any blazon of .357-level loads, even if the gun is made for them. Equally much as I have shot revolvers over the years (including a lot of total-bore .44 Magnum handloads), I hesitate to shoot .357 Magnum loads through a 2 or two-and-a-half inch-barreled snubby.
I've heard the sensation created past recoil is equated to getting 1'due south palm whacked with a 2X4. I hold. So, keep the loads on the depression side and you'll have a shooter for life. Stick with .38 Special loads for practice and +P loads for self-defense. Hither's where handloading is advantageous – y'all can tailor the load to the gun for practice, only just bear factory loads. The take-away for this is to non plow off a new shooter but to encourage them by them getting hits on targets and having fun. Later, they tin venture into .357 territory if they desire to practise so.
.357 Magnum In A Two-Inch Revolver?
To have the power of the .357 Magnum cartridge at your disposal in a gun that you lot could just about acquit in your pocket is tempting. Be brash, however, that shooting full-bore .357 loads in a 23-ounce snubby is not a fun experience unless you're the type of person who enjoys having the palm of your hand whacked with a baseball bat.
Most snubby .357 guns are carried with .38 Special +P ammo. Is information technology worth carrying .357 Magnums in a two-inch-barreled gun that can't accept advantage of magnum ballistics in such a short barrel?
It can exist, but don't exist nether the assumption that, just because it says ".357 Magnum" on the box of ammo, y'all are getting ballistics similar to those gotten from a longer barrel. Manifestly, it's non going to be the velocity you'd become if y'all shot the .357s out of a six-inch-barreled gun, but even a 100 fps proceeds is worthwhile. A lot of folks who comport short-barreled .357s practise with .38 Special ammo and save the palm-whacker .357 ammo for deport. That won't happen, simply you lot should find some gain. At that place are .357 loads for brusque barrels – bank check those out.
One practice method has the shooter at the range with both types of ammo. The majority of the rounds fired are lower-force per unit area Special ammo, with a cylinder or two of magnum loads touched off at the end of the session to know where they volition print on the target and to acclimate yourself to the recoil. As long every bit yous practice with your carry load at regular intervals (simply y'all can decide what constitutes "regular"), you should be OK. Here'due south a video I institute that explains actually well the difference betwixt .357 vs. .38 Spl. velocities in a snub-nosed gun.
Burn down It Single or Double Action?
This topic arises with whatsoever snub nose revolver that has an exposed hammer spur and is capable of single activity fire. Do y'all thumb-erect the hammer and fire the gun in single action style or merely pull the trigger and shoot it double activity-manner?
One of the snubbies I own is a laser-equipped S&W Model 638, which is a 1.87-inch-barreled, v-shot .38 Special with a shroud that covers all only the tip of the hammer spur and so I can erect the hammer for a low-cal single action shot if needed. Some think this gun to be the best of both worlds because y'all can fire it two ways. Y'all can describe the gun without fear that the hammer spur will snag on something, because the hammer is mostly covered. Double activeness shooting involves just pulling the trigger, and this is the method most trainers adopt. Or y'all tin can fire it as described higher up by thumbing the hammer spur back to cock it and then burn down it single activity with its attendant lighter trigger pull.
As only mentioned, most trainers who teach folks to use revolvers for defence force will only allow them to shoot double action with no manually cocking of the hammer. This has been accustomed practice for decades due to the rapidity with which the shooter can become the gun into action and score hits on the target by not having to pause to manually cock the hammer. In this way, one is trained to push button the gun through to the target, quickly line the sights upon the target, and and so pull the trigger smoothly to burn the gun.
Shooting At A Distance
The one question that inevitably arises involves shooting at a distance… what if you would have to take an aimed shot at a target more than a few anxiety away?
Hither is where a short, lite single-activity trigger pull is desirable. Unless you are trained to fire double action only, this is accomplished by cocking the hammer manually to allow for that lighter, smoother pull. Chances are this is not going to happen, merely some folks like to be prepared for near any eventuality.
Anyway, the best-selling snubby from S&W is the Model 642. This one has its hammer enclosed within the frame and can only be fired double-action past pulling the trigger. This tells the states that most buyers of these guns don't want the ability to manually cock the hammer. Some tend to "stage" the trigger pull by pulling it partially back until they feel a certain resistance. And then they hold the trigger equally they exercise a final sight alignment and only then pull it the rest of the fashion. This would only happen if they had time for a deliberate, aimed shot. And then, in that location is more one way to "cock" a double-activeness snubby. Either by manually pulling the hammer dorsum or past staging the trigger pull.
The Guns
OK…we've had enough theory and groundwork. At present let'south look at guns. I volition do this a bit differently than I accept done in the past. I volition list manufacturers and then look at specific guns made by them that fit our criteria.
We will look at guns from (in alphabetical order) Lease Arms, Filly, Kimber, Ruger, Smith & Wesson, and Taurus. All of these manufacturers make guns that are made to bear concealed. Here are the guns we will examine:
| Charter Arms | Secret/Bulldog |
| Colt | Cobra |
| Kimber | K6S |
| Stone Island Armory | M206 |
| Ruger | LCR/LCRx & SP101 |
| Smith & Wesson | M&P Bodyguard .38 & 638/642 J-Frame Revolvers |
| Taurus | Model 856 |
The Kimber and the Ruger SP101 are chambered in .357 Magnum just are every bit at home shooting .38 Specials, which are easier on both the gun and the shooting hand. Beneath are some of the more popular concealed carry revolvers. Whatever of them would suffice in a self-protection role. Nosotros'll wait at the companies listed above and then come across what they have to offer.
Charter Artillery Hush-hush and Bulldog
The Charter Arms visitor has been through some changes over the years. Some better than others, but now they are on solid footing and are putting out very decent guns at affordable prices. I take had experience with both of the revolvers mentioned here so I can recommend them without hesitation. Let's look at ii of the most popular snub-nosed revolvers they sell.
The Underground
This gun, chambered in .38 Special, is probably the best-selling gun Charter Arms makes. Information technology was their outset product, introduced in 1964. The gun's pattern was novel – information technology used no frame side plate, which in theory made it stronger. Produced in several calibers, the .38 is its almost popular chambering. The gun uses the fairly standard ii-inch barrel and comes in different finishes.
Nigh unremarkably attired in rubber Hogue-type finger-groove grips, the Hole-and-corner tin be had with or without a hammer spur, in stainless, in blue, in nitride…the choices are many. At last count, the Charter Arms website showed no fewer than 58 models in the Hush-hush line, ranging in price (MSRP) from $362. You lot tin get one with Erstwhile Glory emblazoned on information technology, or one with Crimson trace grips if desired. What this all boils downwards to is that, for a real-world price of a footling over $300, you tin take a undecayed carry .38. You tin't ask for much more than that.
The Bulldog
Now nosotros're talking – a .44 Special, 5-shot snubby. I owned ane of these dorsum in the 1970s. The gun itself made headlines beyond the state in 1976-1977 when David Berkowitz, a.k.a. the Son of Sam, killed eight people in New York with one chambered in .44 Special.
At that time, I just happened to ain the same model Bulldog that I carried a lot. It went with me when I rode my motorbike, subconscious on my belt and out of the way. The gun was eminently concealable. Charter Artillery still makes that 1970s blued version with the unshrouded ejector rod and wooden grips just I believe they sell more of the stainless models with the total-length ejector rod shroud and rubber grips. At that place are 11 models of .44 Bulldogs on Lease's website, ranging in price from $409 to $1595 for a commemorative Heller edition. Yous can become one with factory Crimson Trace grips for the MSRP of $690. However, most of the mainline blue or stainless Bulldogs tend to sell for effectually $400 at your local store, give or accept a little.
I shot the heck out of mine with my .44 Special reloads, and would not hesitate for a minute to bear one once again. Their 2.5″ barrels are enough long enough to give that big .44 bullet a practiced push, simply if you want more, get the 4-inch target version with adjustable rear sight for $475 (MSRP). That would make a peachy wood-walkin' gun, for sure! I loaded some plastic snake shot containers from Speer with #9 shot for mine; with a couple of those and three hard-striking cast apartment-nose bullets, you are ready for about anything in the woods. Check these guns out – you might similar the idea of a .44-caliber carry gun. There is an affluence of modernistic .44 Special defense loads out at present to back-trail your Bulldog.
Colt
Colt has recently gotten back into the double-action revolver game with its re-introduction of the Cobra, a half-dozen-shot .38 Special. Made from 1950 – 1981, the Cobra was based on the famous Detective Special snubby Colt start made in 1927.
The Detective Special was made with a steel frame and somewhen led to the Cobra (in a higher place). They created the Cobra with an aluminum lightweight frame. This was given a facelift in 1971, when a fully-shrouded ejector rod, a ramped front sight, and very squeamish wood target-style grips were added. Wishes wishes…I wish I had mine back. I had one of these aluminum-framed snazzy-looking snubbys and for some unknown reason traded information technology. They were the Cadillac of snub-nosed revolvers at that time. Information technology was i handsome gun, if such a affair could exist. Sleek, with that continual radiused sweep at the muzzle and a blue finish you could merely most use to meet to comb your pilus in — information technology was one heck of a gun. The new i is no exception.
The New Cobra
The new Cobra is, like its predecessor, a six-shot snubby with a two-inch barrel. Different the earlier Cobra, the new one is built from stainless steel, not aluminum. Colt uses a leafage spring instead of the coiled jump that Smith and Wesson (and others) uses. The LL2 (linear leaf) spring produces a double-activeness trigger pull of around seven-nine pounds. It also has a unmarried-activity weight of three-iv pounds without stacking.
That alone helps in the accuracy section considering y'all don't accept to "fight" the trigger, pulling the sights off target. Wearing a ruby fiber optic forepart sight and a deep muzzle crown, this new Cobra is a shooter. It weighs in at 25 ounces, which really helps soak up the recoil of the +P loads it is rated to shoot. Equipped with Colt-branded Hogue overmolded rubber grips with finger grooves, any recoil that is generated is soaked up pretty well.
Another feature that helps keep the Cobra from firing unless the trigger is pulled is the transfer bar. The hammer doesn't have a firing pin on its confront. Instead, the hammer face is apartment and it strikes another flat piece of metal that rises up when the trigger is pulled to transfer the hammer'southward strength to frame-mounted firing pin.
There is no way the hammer can touch the firing pin without the intermediary transfer "flag" in position. This lets the shooter take advantage of loading all six chambers and conveying the gun with conviction that it volition remain safe until the trigger is pulled.
Carrying 17 pct more ammo than a five-shot revolver has its advantages, to be sure. Very few snub nose revolvers are six-shooters since well-nigh of them take a capacity of v.
The MSRP of the new Cobra is $699 but I've seen them online around $675. That's not a huge discount merely 2 factors tend to keep the real-world price a little higher…first, information technology's a real Colt. The name is associated with well over a century of firearms history and quality construction. The 2d cistron is simply supply/demand. This is a newish model and it will take a while for production to satisfy need. At any charge per unit, I'm glad to run across Filly back in the wheel gun business organisation. Maybe it won't cease with just the Cobra. We tin hope…
The Kimber K6S
Kimber is a company known for making pinnacle-of-the-line 1911s and rifles. They fairly recently got into the revolver business with the introduction of a half dozen-shot snub nosed .357 Magnum.
They now testify several different snub nosed revolvers on their website ranging in toll from around $899 to almost $1200. There is fifty-fifty a custom-engraved version for over $1400. If you are the type who wants the best regardless of price, the Kimber might be for you. Expect a real-world price of effectually $700 for the brushed stainless K6S.
These are well-thought-out carry guns that are produced with one intention: to be the best brusk-barreled concealed deport .357 Magnum out in that location.
Options range from models with night sights, a blackened DLC or natural stainless cease, two- or three-inch barrels and fancy woods grips.
As well, the cylinder blueprint is different than nigh…flats are cut across it. This helps keep the weight and the overall width down a chip.
Speaking of weight, the K6S is the lightest pocket-size-frame .357 Magnum revolver going as of this writing. Half dozen pedal-to-the-metal rounds of .357 ammo in a 23-ounce package has a certain appeal to a lot of shooters. Only be enlightened that the recoil will exist fierce.
Rock Isle Armory
M206
The M206 is a gun that hopefully only near anyone could afford. With a total-blown MSRP of only $283 (which would translate to a real-globe price of effectually $200), this six-shooter could see service in a holster near you. I endemic 1 of these in one case upon a time and information technology did just what it was supposed to. It put bullets in the target where you aimed information technology every time you lot pulled the trigger.
The finish, every bit the proverb goes, ain't nothin' to write home nigh, but the gun works. Loosely based on older Filly snub-nosed revolvers (sort of a cantankerous between the old versions of the Detective Special and the Cobra), this gun is really well-built for its toll point. Utilizing a shroud for the ejector rod (which was something the Detective Special didn't accept — the lack of such a shroud was the cause for more than one ejector rod being bent when the possessor of the gun used it as a sap), the typical Colt pull-to-the-rear cylinder release, a nicely-ramped front sight and a decent trigger, this gun looks like information technology ought to toll more.
Mine was accurate and held steady on target, which partially was due to its weight of 25 ounces. It also carries that important (to some shooters) 6th circular. For those of us out at that place on a budget, hither you get – this gun works. Information technology is made by Rock Isle Arsenal, one of the world's largest makers of 1911 pistols. Their customer service is excellent…it'south a win-win. For most the price of a pellet gun, you can go a well-fabricated .38 Spl. snubby that will give you years of service and that you wouldn't feel bad sticking in your tackle box or truck for that quick trip to the lake. They have your dorsum. Â
Ruger
We will look at two Ruger snub-nosed revolvers – the LCR/LCRx and the SP101.
The LCR/LCRx
By way of clarification, if I refer to the LCRx, that's the model that has the exposed hammer spur that you can cock to burn in unmarried action mode.
The LCR's hammer is internal; this model fires double action only.
The guns are the aforementioned except for the difference in the frame required to adapt an exposed hammer spur versus 1 that totally encloses the hammer.
Both guns use a polymer frame with stainless steel making upward the of import, stressed parts like the cylinder, butt, etc.
The use of polymer in snub nosed revolvers is still fairly limited. The but other manufacturer that makes a polymer-framed bicycle gun is Taurus that I know nearly. Why a polymer-framed revolver? Considering they can make the gun ridiculously lightweight and even so still have all the forcefulness that they need.
The LCR weighs in under fourteen ounces, with its poly frame and drastically fluted cylinder. If you are a pocket carrier like me, you appreciate the low-cal weight. The merely time information technology works confronting you is when you fire the gun, especially with +P loads. Just, if you tin take the recoil, the LCR makes a great carry gun.
If y'all like the idea of the LCR but wish it came in .357, it does. It is constructed of stainless steel and polymer and weighs effectually 17 ounces. So, no matter which cartridge (.38 or .357) yous wish to shoot in your lightweight LCR, Ruger has y'all covered. Expect to discover the LCR for effectually $430-$450 at your local gun store.
The SP101
The SP101 is Ruger's mini-tank disguised as a revolver. This thing is tough. When you lot buy an SP101 you become one of the grandsons of the original Security Six .357 introduced in 1972. (The other grandson is the GP-100).
The Security Vi was congenital to be carried by police, security guards or civilians. The gun was a no-nonsense stainless or blued .357 with a short barrel (usually either 2.5 or four inches although longer tubes were available). Having an adaptable rear sight, the gun was at home in a bullseye competition simply had a unlike purpose: to defend whoever was carrying it from any was going down. Production halted in 1988.
The SP101, introduced in 1989 as a smaller-framed companion to the GP-100, is built a lot similar the older model only with newer metals and structure methods. It did go from a six-shot cylinder to one that holds 5 rounds. Also, the snubby-length guns have fixed sights but other than that, the guns are pretty much alike except for the grips. The bottom-expensive SP101 utilizes a plastic grip in place of the wooden grips on the older gun. You can, however, get grips made out of fancy forest. Another selection is the hybrid rubber-woods grip that Ruger makes.
The SP101, as mentioned, is 1 tough hombre. Being chambered in .22LR, 327 Federal Magnum, .38 Special, or .357 Magnum, there is 1 for just about every shooter's preference. With either a 2.25- , 3- or a 4.2-inch barrel and optional cobweb optic forepart sight, the SP101 is a exercise-all blazon of revolver. It shines in the curtained acquit part. This is because it is on the small-scale side for a gun of such power and hides well on your person. Five rounds of .357 Magnum would definitely inspire confidence in the carrier when he or she must venture into the less-desirable parts of town. MSRP starts at $719 for the fixed-sight 2.25 or 3-inch barreled gun.
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Smith & Wesson
Smith and Wesson has been in the snub-nosed revolver business since 1880. The company truly understands what constitutes a quality curtained carry revolver. Today, co-ordinate to their website, they offer no less than 51 different J-frame models.
What does the "J" stand for? Small frame.
Southward&West letters their frames according to size: J for small, Grand/L for medium, N for large, X for extra-large, and the .410-firing Governor has its own designation, the Z frame.
Equally long as we are defining S&Westward's guns, let'southward also mention that if a gun's model number starts with anything only a "six" it is a blued end. The vi-prefix denotes stainless steel. An case of this would be the Model 442. This is a blued Airweight enclosed-hammer J-frame, with its stainless analogue'southward model number being 642.
Model 642
The 642, equally referenced to a higher place, is the best-selling snubby S&Due west makes. I believe people like it because there is no hammer spur to perchance go snagged on something as you draw the gun. That is the just departure that I can see. My Model 638 is identical to the 642 in all regards except the shrouded hammer on mine is different than the enclosed hammer of the 642. My 638 has been likened to a humpback whale, what with the rounded hammer shroud prominently displayed at the rear of the frame just I accept that sobriquet in footstep in trade for the ability to cock the hammer manually if needed. They both weigh virtually 14 ounces, are 5-shot, .38 +P capable, and come standard with a safety grip.
The rear sight is a square trough cutting into the peak strap, leading to the front sight blade. Shooting this gun well does accept practice. I shoot target-to-mid-range .38 loads in mine for practice and carry Hornady Critical Defense force ammo for other purposes. These guns all fit in a pocket holster easily. If you lot tin can hide the i.four-inch-wide cylinder, yous're good to go. (A lot of guys mutter near that "wide" cylinder just have no qualms about carrying a semiauto that'southward at to the lowest degree that wide all over. Methinks they doth protestation too much).
You lot can become the 642 from the factory with Crimson Trace laser and no internal lock for an MSRP of $724. If you desire the no-laser version, that runs $469. Real-earth prices tend to hover around $497 for the plain version and correspondingly more than for the laser model. Of course, Due south&Due west sells Performance Center models with exotic wood grips, etc. that will set you back more. Now, for a gun-that-goes-bang-every-time, the elementary, production models work very well. I speak from experience that these guns are tough and accept no problem at all with .38 Special +P self-defense force ammo. They work well for their intended purpose and have for many decades.
G&P Babysitter
The S&W Yard&P Bodyguard .38 is a mod design that utilizes a polymer grip, aluminum blend frame, and stainless steel butt and cylinder. There are three factors almost this gun that really grabbed me when I picked information technology up. First, the cylinder release. Being a lefty, the press-forward S&W cylinder release has always been on the incorrect side of the gun for me. The Babysitter solves that problem by making it truly ambidextrous. The printing-forward latch has been moved to the pinnacle of the frame, but behind and nether the rear sight. Simply slide the lever forward with either thumb and press the cylinder open. I'g non certain why it'south taken this long for this blazon of release to become popular, but I'm glad it has.
Secondly, the front sight is pinned so you lot can replace it with a luminous or night-type blade if desired. Third, what got me was the toll. The full-diddled MSRP on the not-laser-equipped gun is but $414, with the Ruby-red Trace-equipped model going for $539. A real-world toll on the non-laser model tends to exist around $375. The light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation model is sold for around $475.
The Bodyguard is a 642-fashion, enclosed hammer model that weighs just over 14 ounces. It is a 5-shot .38 +P J-frame with its i.87-inch butt and abbreviated, curved grip.
If you are looking for a snubby that has a cylinder that's easier to open than the standard versions (I'grand talking to all my swain left-handers), and then this is the gun for yous.
A Bonus – The Model 640
The Model 640 is non on my list to a higher place, but I thought I'd throw it in, anyway. Hither is a 22-ounce, 5-shot, chunky little J-frame that fires the .357 Magnum (and, of course, the .38 Special) cartridges. The barrel is 2.125 inches. It is congenital along the lines of the 642 except it is all stainless steel (no aluminum alloy frame) and sports a blackness ramped front end sight blade with a white insert.
Information technology lists for $755, merely yous should see them for around $650 locally. If you are looking for a dual-caliber hideout gun, this is the one for you. Just exist enlightened that you will want to practice with .38 or lower-pressure level .357 loads and reserve the heavy artillery for serious duty. Recall my illustration about getting whacked with a baseball bat from above – that enters in here. It may well exist worth it, though, to accept the extra velocity and energy of the .357, notwithstanding marginal they may be, at your side in a fourth dimension of demand. Only you tin can brand that call.
(Annotation: If the S&W 640 is priced a petty higher up your price range, a decent, similar-type .357 snubby is the Taurus 605 in blue or stainless. They typically sell for a real-globe price of around $350. You may want to check that out).
Taurus 856
Speaking of Taurus, we end our little stroll down Snub Nose Lane with a wait at one of their virtually popular models, the 85… or, more accurately, the 856. Taurus has had a winner for decades with their 5-shot model 85 — I own 1 and reviewed information technology. Mine is the Ultra-Lite version, but it came in a heavier format as well. With all the emphasis being placed on concealed carry guns nowadays, Taurus decided to up their game where their .38 snubby was concerned…they made it a half-dozen-shooter. The new version is called, appropriately enough, the 856. Except for a very modest difference in weight and cylinder diameter (and I do mean minor), the guns are the aforementioned. (The 85'southward cylinder diameter is i.346 inches while the 856'due south is 1.41 inches). They fifty-fifty come in steel and Ultralight versions.
This popular little snubby rides in many pockets or other holsters. Well-made, affordable, lifetime warranty – this gun has a lot to offer. Here either a sixteen- or 22-ounce 6-shot +P snubby (depending on steel or Ultra-Lite frame) with a 2-inch barrel. The 856 has a lot going for it. With an MSRP of $358, it's non a bad purchase but it becomes absolutely golden at a discount toll of around $215-$295. At that price, you might call back most one for each front pocket.
OK, i volition do only…will it shoot? The curt answer is, aye.
One main cistron that makes some snubbies hard to hit annihilation with past a few yards is their weight (or lack of it, to be more precise). A gun that doesn't even weigh one pound tends to be snappier when fired than 1 that weighs more – that's simple physics. This gun, at the same weight as the in a higher place-mentioned S&W 640 .357, is easier to shoot well than a lighter gun. Another factor that aids in shooting this little gun is the grip module. Information technology is a wrap-around, safety number that really allows you to get a skillful grip on the gun and as well helps with recoil. I put some pretty heavy-duty loads through my gun with little effect in terms of recoil. They also make enclosed-hammer guns similar to the Southward&W 642 (for instance, their Model 650 in either .357 or .38 Special).
The Defender 856
I merely described Taurus'due south mainline snub-nosed seller, the 856, but I would exist doing the reader a disservice if I didn't at least mention their newer iteration of the snubby .38 – the Defender 856.
This gun features a three-inch butt and a tritium front nighttime sight with an orange (daylight) ring. In terms of grips, you can get the standard safety or everything from fancy laminated wood to VZ grips. This gun fills the demand that some accept for an easily concealed revolver with a three-inch barrel that has sights that are very usable.
Depending on your needs, one of these revolvers might fill the bill.
In terms of variety, I counted no fewer than 27 856 and 856 Defender models on the Taurus website. MSRP prices ranged from $342 to $500 for variations that include blue or stainless finish, spurred or spurless hammer, different grip materials (including Viridian laser), and sights. There should exist something hither for just about anybody.
I have had practiced luck with Taurus revolvers, and really liked the Defender 856 I reviewed. You might desire to at least accept a look at one at your local gun store. Yous might be pleasantly surprised at what you notice.
Conclusions
And then, what practice we take away from all this? My first purpose in writing this commodity was to emphasize that revolvers aren't dead. They are still viable deport guns. Obviously, some pretty heavy-hitters in the gun manufacturing industry recall so, every bit well. Ruger, Smith and Wesson, Colt, Kimber, and Taurus (among others) have all introduced new short-barreled revolver designs in recent years. They would not practice so if the guns did not sell.
The other reason I write this is to hopefully make the reader more enlightened of what'due south out at that place in terms of curt-barreled curtained carry revolvers. At no time in our history take at that place been more options for handgun shooters than now. (Semiautos included, as well). The side by side fourth dimension y'all're at your local gun shop, why not check out a couple of revolvers? With i of them in your pocket or on your belt, you have some great protection at hand. Another plus is y'all don't have to pick up contumely! I wish you expert shooting – be condom!
Source: https://www.snipercountry.com/best-concealed-carry-revolver/
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