MachIVshooter
Member
It just might be, at least to me.
I finally made it out to shoot the little 2.5", 5-shot .44 Special I got a couple weeks back. Initially I wanted it just because, but carrying it quite a bit and finally getting some lead down range has made me think this might be one of the better $350 guns I've come into.
I'll start with what my initial impressions were. This is certainly no S&W; Fit and finish is definitely not as nice. It does, however, compare favorably to my 3" SP-101, except the little Charter has a much nicer trigger. It did have a noticeable hitch when cocking the hammer, but that has nearly disappeared with some dry firing and range time. It's about the same size and weight as my SP-101, but balances better. The Cylinder is slightly wider, but I did not find this problematic for concealment. Before I got it I had been looking at grip options, but after shooting it, I've abandoned that quest. Charter did a good job with the stocks; The'ye not bulky, but offer a comfortable and positive grip, even with my large hands. I only wish they had a little bit of a recurve at the top, as this thing wants to roll in the hand a little with warmer loads.
Due to the crane design, it has a little more cylinder wiggle than a S&W or Ruger, but this does not seem to affect function; it is a superbly accurate little snub. No, I didn't print any one-hole 25 yard groups. I didn't even have paper targets with me. What I did do was aim at reasonably sized targets at ranges out to 60 yards, and had no trouble hitting the ~15" ant hill at the full 60 or the 1-gallon paint cans at 35. This is a fixed-sight snub-nose revolver, so being able to hit such targets off-hand definitely satisfies my expectations. I'm sure it's mechanical accuracy in a machine rest is much better, but I don't really care. What matters to me is the ability to hit what I'm aiming at; The excellent balance, smooth trigger and simple but very functional sights on this little wheelgun proved very conducive to that.
Speedloaders (HKS CA-44) require a little finess and rotating the cylinder a bit, because they don't quite clear the grip. They will dump the rounds, though.
On to shooting, I started with some Magtech 200 Gr. LRNFP cowboy loads. There is recoil, but not much more than a .38 Snub. And holy cow are these loads wimpy; Average velocity: 520 FPS
Still, it's a good practice load, making rapid DA fire easy.
My handloads that are my carry load are a different story. A 210 gr. Remington semi-jacketed HP over 8.5 grains of Unique and CCI 350 primers, this load was only expected to yield ~850 FPS, as Sierra showed 950 out of a 6-1/2" S&W for that charge. Well, imagine my surprise when I got an average of 980 FPS (20 rounds, 13 FPS SD, 947 low/1,006 high) from the 2.5" Pug barrel! That's a pretty darn respectable load, producing 447 ft/lbs, which eclipses any .357 Magnum load I'm aware of when fired from a 2.5" gun. Recoil, however, was quite stiff in the 21 ounce Charter, on par with full power .44 Mag loads fired from my 3" 629. I don't find it bothersome, but it'll be too much for many shooters.
Summary? This little gun is affordable, reliable, good looking, carries easily, is quite accurate and packs a wallop on the muzzle end. It's not gonna displace my P3AT that'll drop into my pocket, regardless of attire. But I'll be carrying it whenever I can. I'd rate the value of this gun as excellent.
P.S. With a little dremeling, a cut-down SKS stripper clip makes a great speed strip for .44 spl/mag!
I finally made it out to shoot the little 2.5", 5-shot .44 Special I got a couple weeks back. Initially I wanted it just because, but carrying it quite a bit and finally getting some lead down range has made me think this might be one of the better $350 guns I've come into.
I'll start with what my initial impressions were. This is certainly no S&W; Fit and finish is definitely not as nice. It does, however, compare favorably to my 3" SP-101, except the little Charter has a much nicer trigger. It did have a noticeable hitch when cocking the hammer, but that has nearly disappeared with some dry firing and range time. It's about the same size and weight as my SP-101, but balances better. The Cylinder is slightly wider, but I did not find this problematic for concealment. Before I got it I had been looking at grip options, but after shooting it, I've abandoned that quest. Charter did a good job with the stocks; The'ye not bulky, but offer a comfortable and positive grip, even with my large hands. I only wish they had a little bit of a recurve at the top, as this thing wants to roll in the hand a little with warmer loads.
Due to the crane design, it has a little more cylinder wiggle than a S&W or Ruger, but this does not seem to affect function; it is a superbly accurate little snub. No, I didn't print any one-hole 25 yard groups. I didn't even have paper targets with me. What I did do was aim at reasonably sized targets at ranges out to 60 yards, and had no trouble hitting the ~15" ant hill at the full 60 or the 1-gallon paint cans at 35. This is a fixed-sight snub-nose revolver, so being able to hit such targets off-hand definitely satisfies my expectations. I'm sure it's mechanical accuracy in a machine rest is much better, but I don't really care. What matters to me is the ability to hit what I'm aiming at; The excellent balance, smooth trigger and simple but very functional sights on this little wheelgun proved very conducive to that.
Speedloaders (HKS CA-44) require a little finess and rotating the cylinder a bit, because they don't quite clear the grip. They will dump the rounds, though.
On to shooting, I started with some Magtech 200 Gr. LRNFP cowboy loads. There is recoil, but not much more than a .38 Snub. And holy cow are these loads wimpy; Average velocity: 520 FPS
Still, it's a good practice load, making rapid DA fire easy.My handloads that are my carry load are a different story. A 210 gr. Remington semi-jacketed HP over 8.5 grains of Unique and CCI 350 primers, this load was only expected to yield ~850 FPS, as Sierra showed 950 out of a 6-1/2" S&W for that charge. Well, imagine my surprise when I got an average of 980 FPS (20 rounds, 13 FPS SD, 947 low/1,006 high) from the 2.5" Pug barrel! That's a pretty darn respectable load, producing 447 ft/lbs, which eclipses any .357 Magnum load I'm aware of when fired from a 2.5" gun. Recoil, however, was quite stiff in the 21 ounce Charter, on par with full power .44 Mag loads fired from my 3" 629. I don't find it bothersome, but it'll be too much for many shooters.
Summary? This little gun is affordable, reliable, good looking, carries easily, is quite accurate and packs a wallop on the muzzle end. It's not gonna displace my P3AT that'll drop into my pocket, regardless of attire. But I'll be carrying it whenever I can. I'd rate the value of this gun as excellent.
P.S. With a little dremeling, a cut-down SKS stripper clip makes a great speed strip for .44 spl/mag!
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