charter arms bulldog

[ANGUSLINCOLN]

It would be nice to see comparasin photos of the Charters to that of comparable models made by S&W, Ruger, Colt and Taurus. The details George is referring to would be very clear and even more obvious than Georges picture reveals.If your prepared to drop $250-$300 on a snubby, why not go with a second hand brand that cares enough to back up their reputation with a little quality of workmanship? It might also be interesting to see a picture of an older Charter model alongside of a current model Charter. Perhaps the ol' gray snubbie ain't what she used to be?

 

[MICHAEL T]

least their no lock on them

 

[Jeff Timm]

You can get the base model S&W 2" snubby for $350 at a "S&W Factory Sale" at the local gun dealers here in FL.

I've seen Charters at $299. I think I'd get the S&W even if I had to wait.

Geoff
Who has an old 1970's S&W, bought new, traveling companion for a long time.

 

[mnw42]

I'll stick with my Cobra....

 

[gcrookston]

My experience with charter is very limited. I picked up a new one to examine at a store, and upon cocking it, it would not index, after a second try, the clockwork was completely jammed. The owner of the store stated there had been some complaints and he'd stopped stocking them and was eliminating his current inventory. A very nice thread from a former employee can be found on warrifles.com. He'd worked for the father and the son, the son seeming to be of a different temperament than the original owner.

 

[GaryP]

gcrookston said:

A very nice thread from a former employee can be found on warrifles.com. He'd worked for the father and the son, the son seeming to be of a different temperament than the original owner.

I have followed Charter Arms History off and on since the early 1970's and would like to read this story. Which category on Warrifles can I find this thread?

Thanks.

 

[Scratchy]

I love my old school Undercover. It is very accurate for the non-existent barrel.
I am very glad that so many people dislike Charter Arms I will continue to find and use well built snubbies for cheap while so many others buy names.

[/IMG]

 

[Scratchy]

 

[Constantine-p89]

Scratchy your picture didnt work?

 

[Scratchy]

 

[Constantine-p89]

Cool, hey I have a problem with mine, the trigger wont pull past half way back every other pull(10 or so). What could be wrong with it?

 

[Sunray]

"...a little much to shoot..." 19 ounces for the original 'Bulldog', 20 oz for the newer models. Pachmayr makes a good grip that isn't too small and tames the felt recoil.

 

[32 Magnum]

CA Bulldog

"It would be nice to see comparasin photos of the Charters to that of comparable models made by S&W, Ruger, Colt and Taurus."

Here's links to a couple pics for comparison.
http://links.pictures.aol.com/pic/68f0zs-tD1Y2z*0MZfh5wn6uG1pSvpt0iC2fv4xQp5Fd3Ig=_l.jpg
http://links.pictures.aol.com/pic/68f0zs-tD1Y2z*0MZfh5wn6uGycuX4TyL3vqv4xQp5Fd3Ig=_l.jpg
http://links.pictures.aol.com/pic/68f0zs-tD1Y2z*0MZfh5wn6uG2jF-pxUG9eCv4xQp5Fd3Ig=_l.jpg

Here's links to pics of various Charter Arms revolvers:
http://links.pictures.aol.com/pic/68f0zs-tD1Y2z*0MZfh5wn6uG0A6edYlboJtv4xQp5Fd3Ig=_l.jpg
http://links.pictures.aol.com/pic/68f0zs-tD1Y2z*0MZfh5wn6uG2gLoI635GZhv4xQp5Fd3Ig=_l.jpg
http://links.pictures.aol.com/pic/68f0zs-tD1Y2z*0MZfh5wn6uG50flyN4dNTPv4xQp5Fd3Ig=_l.jpg
http://links.pictures.aol.com/pic/68f0zs-tD1Y2z*0MZfh5wn6uG6klveJA-AsYv4xQp5Fd3Ig=_l.jpg
http://links.pictures.aol.com/pic/68f0zs-tD1Y2z*0MZfh5wn6uG6Odgz*bgNoOv4xQp5Fd3Ig=_l.jpg

 

[rdrancher]

The following (in italics) is my summary of an article that I read today concerning the test of two new Charter Arms, an Undercover and Off Duty.

-The author didn't feel that guns were asthetically pleasing. The author did say that they were carry guns that should be with you all of the time, and that they work. In essence the author made me feel that when the SHTF, the fact that these guns were with you and worked was all that mattered. -

From what I read, they didn't sound like

two total chunks of crap

but possibly two different guns that in fact, work?

Maybe I'm missing something George?

BTW Scratchy, I'm digging that far out purple!

rd

 

[stevereno1]

as a crow once said- KA KA. or crap. as the crow flies.

 

[stevereno1]

Scratchy,what kind of finish is that on your revolver? are those wadcutters that you show for defense, or range shooting?

 

[shooter429]

Don't waste your money

If you think they are good, check this out http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=332342

There are plenty of high-quality .44s out there these days. I'd suggest sticking with Either Ruger (if you don't mind the size) or S&W which makes some very nice, portable well-crafted .44s

Just my opinion.

Shooter429

 

[TonyB]

well I guess I got lucky....

 

[ANGUSLINCOLN]

Judging from the pictures that .32Magnum linked to, it looks like Charter arms made a decent quality revolver. The pictures were not close ups to really see the details in workmanship. Can anyone post a comparasin picture of a recent Charter alongside of a model that is 15 or 20 years old? I'm guessing there's a considerable difference between the two. Even Smith and Wesson cut back on manufacturing costs over the years, but not so much as to diminish it's reputation to a level that would initiate threads like this.
Regarding the newer model Charter arms, I think it is a valid point to make that $50 is not a lot of money when spending for extra reliability and quality on a tool that may have to save a life someday.

 

[Shawnee]

When the "Bulldog" was first introduced I wanted one but before I could get one my neighbor and his brother-in-law both bought one - same store, same day. Those two guns both turned out to be clunkers so I wrote the "Bulldog" and the company off.
But since then - the reputations of both the "Bulldog" and the Charter Arms company have fluctuated up and down between "terrible" to "decent". The bottom line to Charter Arms (for me, at least) is that fluctuation - their history of "on-again/off-again" quality makes me satisfied to simply not buy their products even though I know some of the guns they have out there are perfectly fine.
FWIW... the idea of a relatively "pocket-sized" .44 Special is as intriguing as ever.

 

[fastbolt]

I can't remember how many times I've posted in threads about my personal experiences with a couple of .44 Spl Bulldogs.

Suffice to say I will never own another one.

 

[MrBill120]

FWIW... the idea of a relatively "pocket-sized" .44 Special is as intriguing as ever.


Well what about a Ruger SRH Alaskan in 44mag...would that be pocket sized? ...just load it w/ 44 spl...

 

[Seven For Sure]

I've got one of the new ones. SS 44special. 100 rds. through it, so far so good. Two things I was very impressed with was how tight it locks up and how accurate it is. A disappointment is the overall rough finish on it. It shot dead on with 246's but a couple inches low with 200's. Not a big deal. I figured it out right away and can shoot it well now.

 

[The_Shootist]

Just wondering...

...if there was a demand for a pocket/compact .44spl 5 shot revolver why didn't S&W or Ruger bring one out? The civilian CCW market in theory would provide some demand, but instead Ruger brought out the Alaskan and upgraded the Redhawk (neither of which are pocket pistols ) .

Even Taurus discontinued their .44 spl line of snubbies (hopefully there are some used ones out there). Maybe it just is a "niche" market - and a small one at that.

 

[SouthpawShootr]

Well, I think there is a demand, just not enough to sustain continuous production. I wanted a Taurus .44 spl. and by the time I got out to look for them, Taurus had discontinued them. Haven't run across one in a while. Maybe if they make a production run every 2-4 years, it might ease up the market a little. Many, many people, including myself, want a .44 spl in a CCW size revolver, but don't want to risk the Charter Arms experiences posted in threads like these. So, the lone offering appears to be a gun in production that most of us don't want.