[eng23ine]

Which of the two would you choose and why?

[Moonclip]

Neither, poor qc with both models generally though a friend had a Rossi 38spl mod 68 that was ok and my 22lr pathfinder is ok also. I'd throw in a few extra bucks and get a Taurus 85, I've had 3 examples that are ok. You may find a deal on a decent j frame S&W 38spl but it would take longer.

[PointOneSeven]

For a 'throw in the desk drawer' revolver, Charter Arms has a hammerless that almost looks decent.

[EllisWyatt]

Second the Taurus.

Gun Tests did a Rossi / Taurus / Commanche .357 snubbie comparison back in November 2004. It's worth a read.

http://www.gun-tests.com/issues/16_11/features/5201-1.html

[symr00]

Neither. For the same price I'm sure you could get a decent Taurus or even a Ruger SP101.

[MatthewVanitas]

I picked up a Rossi 68 for $99, and pretty happy with it for that price. SA is great, DA is so-so. Sights aren't quite as nice as S&W (a little too blocky)

Main thing: toss the stock rubber grips into the parts bin. They're honkin-huge for carry, or for anyone without gorilla hands.

I solved the grip and holster issue simulanteously with a Barami Hip Grip. It's basically a Magna grip with a little "lip" on one side to tuck into your waistband. It's cheaper than most Magna-type grips would be for a Rossi anyway, so win-win.

Don't know much about Charter, but Barami makes a model for them too. Not sure how bad the original grips are.

-MV

[timothy75]

Charter because thir made in the US I think?

[oldcop1971]

My wife likes her Rossi m68 .38 snub, it's her bedside gun. I carry a Charter 2000 undercover 38 stainless as a BUG. No issues with either.

[duckjihad]

Get a S&W, Colt or Ruger SP 101. If you're betting your a$$ on it, and you are, buy quality. It doesn't cost that much more.

[TonyB]

fwiw..I have a Rossi 2" 357 that's excellent(after the break in period the trigger smoothed up.)cost $150..if it passes the revolver check out you're good to go.

[Radjxf]

I'd opt for a used Detective Special or any of the S&W pre-lock Bodyguards.

[MatthewVanitas]

I'd opt for a used Detective Special or any of the S&W pre-lock Bodyguards.

Depends how much cash the man has.

Charters and Rossis, on a good day, go for $100-150 if you're savvy.

I've never seen a S&W snub that wasn't destroyed for any under $225. Pre-Lock Bodyguards go for $300 and up (I know because I just bought a 649).

If the man only has $150, it's Taurus/Rossi/Charter for him.

I would also encourage him to spend a little more if he can, good S&W revos aren't exactly going down in value these days. But if he can't spend more, he can't.

A Rossi still throws lead.

-MV

[White Horseradish]

I have a stainless Charter Arms Undercover. It is accurate, and fit and finish is better than any Rossi I have seen in the same price range.

[Confederate]

I have a Rossi M88 .38 Special. It's a pretty good revolver, much better than Charter Arms. I've never seen a Charter Arms that could take many rounds of any type of ammunition--they're way too fragile. My Rossi is no beauty, but it is fully functional and acceptably accurate.

Both are good "drawer" guns, but if you plan to do much shooting, I agree with the above posts that recommend you get a top rate gun.

[mainmech48]

Maybe I'm not very "mainstream" in my thinking, but to me any snubbie revolver that I'm going to bet the safety of my Personal Favorite Behind on is going to get shot a lot. They are very difficult to learn to shoot well with, and the only way I know of to do that is to practice a bunch.

Personally, if this was something that was going to be a "drawer" gun, I'd vote none of the above. IMO, you'd be better served in that role with a clean used 4" S&W "K" or the like, and for very little, if any, additional investment.

[DonP]

I picked up a nice used CA Undercover in .38 Spl. for $120. A set of Pachmayr Compac grips for it were $10 in the bargain bin at a local shop.

Shoots all kinds of .38 Spl well and will handle +P loads just fine, albeit not as a regular diet.

If your budget allows buy a S&W J Frame by all means, if not a Charter Arms will do just fine for most folks.

There was a thread on here a couple of weeks ago on what's the best ammo for a snubbie as well as some good feedback on different models. The "Search" function should turn it up.

[ronto]

Neither of the brands you mentioned and not a 38 Special either.
Look into a Ruger SP101 .357 Magnum...you can shoot 38's from it... and you can always move up to .357 full house loads later if you wish.
IMHO, the SP101 is the strongest built gun of it's size on the market today...I love my little beast.

[MrBigStuff]

the quality between each specific gun tends to vary greatly for most inexpensive firearms manufactures. I have had many Charters, Taurus ( hope I don't offend anyone here) etc. and there is a lack of consistancy in quality between the individual guns. Currently, my " knock around gun" is a very reliable and solid Charter from the original factory in Stratford, CT. Great gun; trusted it in a couple of tense situations.

[VHinch]

I have had a couple of good Charters at different times, but I have also handled a couple of bad examples as well. The Rossis that I have seen recently (since they have been owned by Taurus) seem to be wel made guns at a pretty good price.

V

[joab]

Rossi snubs are made by Taurus

A cousin recently bought a .357 Rossi snub.
other than having a little better trigger than the older of my three my Taurus 85s I can't see any difference.

I can't speak for CA because I have never owned or shot one

[P. Plainsman]

Can't speak to Rossi; haven't seen or handled enough of them.

Current Charters I've seen (couple of .44 Bulldogs, couple of .38s) were all unacceptably rough. Seriously un-ergo actions. One of 'em was almost impossible to cock.

If you can afford to bump up to a Taurus 85, then choose that over a Charter. There are some rough Tauri out there, but there are also some excellent ones. The difference between the two brands: I have yet to see an excellent modern Charter. (I have handled one nice older Charter Arms .38.)

New 85s 'round here tend to run about $250 (blue steel) to $290 (stainless "Ultra Lite"). Check out a prospective Taurus 85 purchase carefully using the THR revolver checkout. Check lockup, cylinder gap, barrel-chamber alignment, all that jazz. Check the cut of the rear sight trough. Bring some .38 dummy ammo (repeat, dummy ammo -- show the store salesman first :)), load it up, and verify that the case rims have room to rotate freely when the gun's loaded. Check the quality of the action -- good modern snub Tauri come with decent triggers (better than S&Ws), and you should hold out for one of those.

If it passes the checkout, it's likely to be a fine little gun.

[Onmilo]

In years past I have owned three Charter arms revolvers, an Undercover .38, a .357 Tracker, and a Bulldog .44 Special and a Rossi 3" Model 68.

Of the four revolvers the Rossi was far and away the best gun.

[AlvinAmerica]

SP101

[byf43]

Back when I was first buying revolvers, I purchased a Charter Arms Undercover in 38 Spec.
I put Pachmayr grips on it.

It is very lightweight. NOT rated for +p ammo!!!!!!!!!
It is in the back of the gunsafe, somewhere.

Save, then spend the extra monies on a S&W Chief's Special in .38 Special or a Colt Detective Special. You won't regret it!

Or better yet. . . . buy either a S&W mdl 19 or mdl 66 w/ a 2-1/2" bbl!!!

[MCgunner]

I've owned bought and I kept a couple of Rossis. I still have a M68 and a M511 22 kit gun. I've owned and traded or sold a M88 and a M971 and had another M511 ripped off.

The Rossi is much better quality than the Charter IMHO, stouter gun. I fed that old M88 a steady diet of +P even though it wasn't so rated and it was still tight and in good shape when I sold it, probably about 2000 rounds total through it.

Taurus is a more refined gun, nice trigger, for not much more money. One of the reasons I sold that M88 was I bought a M85UL Taurus and have a good shooting M68 3" I wanted to keep, so didn't need it, really. The SA triggers on all my Rossis were/are great. The DA is okay, but not up to Taurus or Smith and Wesson for smooth. It beats a new Ruger SP101 I recently handled, though, but the Ruger is easily improved.

For the money, you will not regret the Rossi. I can't say as much for a Charter. It was quite flimsy feeling. It worked, but I was afraid to put much round count through it. I sold it. It was an old Charter, though. I had the feeling it wouldn't hold up to much shooting, but I didn't keep it long enough to find out.

Every Rossi I've owned has been at least acceptably accurate and the two I've kept are outstanding, especially the .22, but the M68 outshoots my Taurus (as you'd expect with a longer sight radius). My Taurus will group about 3" at 25 yards, the Rossi around 2" and with several different loads, not just wadcutter.

[SJshooter]

Do yourself a favor and get a S&W or at least a Ruger so you have something dependable that will last. If you can afford the cheap gun, but not the expensive gun, then how are you going to afford ammo, cleaning supplies, range time, etc. etc.

[joab]

I have one Taurus CH85 that I bought used ten years ago.
It has been shot thousands of times without a hiccup since then and hits the target everytime.
How much more dependability do you need

Since Rossi is being manufactured by Taurus now the quality should be the same

[Jkwas]

The Rossi is not just a taurus with a Rossi name on the side. They actually bought the tooling and are producing alongside the Taurus line. The biggest difference I see is the use of a hammer block instead of a transfer bar, which I personally prefer. I have taurus guns and like them a lot, and I'm sure the Rossi will be improved by better quality control. The only downside to the Rossi is Holster availability. Hopefully this will improve.

[MCgunner]

Holster availability? I never had a problem with that. It's pretty much a S&W clone. If it fits a Smith, it fits a Rossi. Want a holster for your M88? Get one for a S&W M60.

I've owned and do own Rossi and Taurus revolvers as well as Smiths (well, pre-lock Smiths) and Rugers. I often carry a Taurus or a Rossi. They work and they're not the junk the snobs who've 9 time out of ten never even fired one would have you believe. They are quality firearms, quality enough for me anyway. And, that Taurus M85UL has a far better out of the box DA trigger than I've felt on any Smith. It's an accurate little buggar, too.

[TonyB]

As far as quality control....I did send my Rossi back because the trigger sucked..BUT,I also sent my smith 642 back after 400 rounds because the timing was off.The Smith did however come back in 4 days,the Rossi took almost a month...so it's hit and miss w/ any manufacturer I guess.

[dogngun]

Of the two choices you listed, I'd go with the Rossi. I have owned guns by both, although neither was a .38 special...The Rossi was a .357 magnum, the Charter an old .44 Special Bulldog. The Rossi I owned was the better gun by far. I have handled .38 snubs by both makers, and I would go with the Rossi as the better made, more solid gun.

Mark

[Ala Dan]

We have a Rossi 2" bbl stainless square butt model 88 (wife's gun) that has been 100%, right of of the box (Oct. '94). Not nary a problem, and pretty
darn accurate for a snub~!:cool: :D

[ojibweindian]

I'm a bit late into this...

Anyway, I've a Rossi M88 and I pretty happy with it. I feed it a steady diet of 158 gr LSWC and have found it to be pretty accurate, once I learned to deal with the rather heavy DA trigger pull.

I carry it during the hotter months in Alabama. Small, comparatively light weight (with regards to a 4" no-dash 586), and accurate at realistic engagement distances.

[Nicky Santoro]

I've had a Rossi M68 for about 20 years that I shoot a little bit. Fine so far. I also have an acquaintance who is now a captain in an area PD and who has used the same Charter Arms snub as his off duty and back-up gun since he started as a patrolman over 30 years ago. Fine so far.
YMMV

[Kymasabe]

I bought a Rossi last year, the .38 special with the 4" vent rib barrel, had high-viz front sight, adjustable rear sight and fingr groove grips. Said "Madie in Brazil by Taurus" stamped on the side and honestly, it's a great gun. Timing is perfect, trigger gets better and better with use, is +P rated, the bluing looks great, fit and finish are excellent. It works great and is really accurate. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another.