Why Arent 9mm Revolvers More Popular?

My reasons for a Charter Arms 9mm Pitbull.

My wife is unable to operate the slide on any semi-auto we have tried.

No moon clips but a bit awkward to unload and load. Requires some practice. In reality my wife will probably not carry a reload. So the more reliable revolver wins. She would not be able to clear an auto.

Low mass makes the Pitbull a bit nastier on recoil. But not unusable.

9mm more effective than 38.

I carry 9mm. We can share.

It would be nice if they had shortened the gun from the 38/357 or 40 cal it is derived from.

'Cause you can beat it with a .327, shoot .32s for cheaper and not have to fart around with clips or special extraction systems.

I think they're great

You can shoot everything from shot shells / Glaser Safety Slugs / and 105gr Federal Gaurd Dog (which performs a lot like a 380 AUTO round) to the Underwood 147 +P+ GoldDots (man do those things mushroom out !)

Czechpoint is still sold out of their 9231 (3" Alfa Proj 9mm revolvers.)

And apparantly Charter Arms is only making four 9mm Pitbulls a year...

I really wanted one, I just didn't have the cash to get a Rorhbaugh R9 and the 9231 (I know someone is saying I could have purchased a Kel-Tec or a CM9 and had money left over to buy the revolver...)

Anyway they are sold out now

Instead of buying Glock 24 like I intended came home five-shot 9mm S&W revolver. The Glock which was in new condition was <$100 more. I deserve to be kicked in the head by a donkey.:banghead:
Took revenge yesterday by bringing home G20 with combat night sights, Surefire light and six magazines. Life is grand now.

My grandfather carried an Iever Johnson 38 S&W revolver 100 years ago in the Alaskan Gold rush.

That is a piece of junk revolver for hot rod loads [The latch loop will stretch], but there are very well built small 38S&W revolvers of that era that I have been loading to 9mm performance with .355" 115 gr JHP.

9mm is 1.169" OAL
38 S&W is 1.299" OAL
It is a little longer, so I run a little less pressure.

So while my grandfather was carrying black powder and an IJ
I am carrying a Unique and a Colt, which would have been available at the time, if he had the money and where with all.

weblance said:

Why do people buy 22 LR handguns when 357s are much more powerful? Maybe because they are cheap to shoot...? Brilliant! The 9mm standard load has power levels equal to .38+P. The cheapest .38+P I have found is Winchester White Box for $28 per box of 50. I can buy 9mm Federal for $10.50 per 50. Yes, I have to clip them into a moon clip. Oh, the horror! You guys can argue all you want about 357s being more powerful than 9mm. Yeah, I get that. No argument there. Can you buy 357 ammo for $10.50? Can you even buy lower performing standard .38 special ammo for $10.50? Not even close. For those of us who dont reload(again, Im sure the majority of shooters)and have to buy factory loaded ammo, the 9mm makes sense to me. The 9mm is the most popular centerfire handgun cartridge worldwide. Revolvers are reliable, popular, and accurate. Im not arguing revolver vs autoloader. Im also not a 9mm only snob. I own revolvers in .38 Special, 357 Magnum, and 44 Magnum. I enjoy all my centerfire revolvers, but when it comes to the bottom line, my 9mm revolver gives up nothing in performance, and financially, wins hands down.

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No it does not win financially, I am a gun nut on a starvation budget, I am well aware of the increasingly ugly economics of our hobby, The $500 price of entry on a 9mm revolver buys me using your numbers 2,380 rounds to shoot in the 9mm auto I already have. I would certainly take a 9mm revolver if you gave me one but it is not something i would spend my money on.

Using moon clips is not the end of the world, it is not horrible, but it is an extra step, extra things you have to buy, store, keep track of, remember to bring with you, and replace when lost or broken, they are just extra and unwanted, as is picking out each spent cartridge one by one with your fingernail, its just a less efficient a method to getting to the goal of sending lead downrange. the vast majority of the gun buying public agrees so they are not popular.

I do think a ultra light ultra compact LCR style 9mm revolver with a 9mm length cylinder and an ejection system that can reliably eject all the spent cases at once without using moon clips would have a wider appeal. it would have a real advantage over other revolvers, that is something that could replace the in moms and the the girlfriends purse. both of whom complain agout the weight of their .38 titanium revolvers. a 9mm could theoretically be lighter with a shorter cylinder and frame.

I have bought boxed one in top shape for $500. Do not buy them it's was big mistake for me. You get five or six shots which is not enough before having to reload. For about $50 more I could have bought Glock 24.

looking to sell it?

For about $50 more I could have bought Glock 24.

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If we all used that logic, none of us would have revolvers.

weblance said:

9 X 21..? Seriously? Why would they chamber this in 9x21? Thats very strange, unless its a missprint. 9 x 21 is not 9mm Luger. 9mm Luger is 9 x 19. I doubt they would sell any at all in 9x21.

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9x21 is legal for use in many countries where 9x19 is considered "War Caliber" and illegal for civilian use.

Italy is one of those places.

PabloJ -
That S&W 940 will always be worth more than the Glock you wish you bought instead. If you're interested in getting rid of it send me some pics, if it looks good I might be persuaded to give you what you paid for it. Then you can go buy the Glock.

>>Everybody jumps up & down screaming they want to buy one.
But when the major firearms manufactures make them, nobody buys enough of them to pay for the tooling.<<

This pretty much sums it up. And to me, dealing with moon clips is a pain in the butt!

tiamat said:

looking to sell it?

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Had to sell few G20 mags to get Galco holster for the gun plus I bought new grip and bunch of moon clips from S&W. I traded my beloved Gen 3 G29 for new Gen 4 G20 so now the 9mm S&W is the only small handgun I own. Wish I could dump that thing, but I have too much effort and time spent to unload it. I advise you to get modern pistol like G26 instead of 9mm revolver.

Looking forward 2 the Charter Arms 9mm revolver. Whenever it comes out. & whenever I cn get my hands on 1.

If I was to get a revolver that required a moonclip, It would be a 10.., not a 9mm.

Moon clips can get bent in pockets. Slows your cylinder down terribly.

Moon clips OK!

I owned a S&W 940 , 9mm, SS, J frame revolver for a short while. Moon clips not a problem, gun was pretty , kicked hard, stuck itself together, and some guy offered me way more than I paid for it. I sold it. I also had a SS S&W 3" barrel 41 Mag. Nice gun , not much ammo variety available (did not reload 41), kicked like a mule with std Rem ammo and I was offered a lot more than I paid for it -the cylinder kept unscrewing itself from the yoke. I sold it. Guess what?? I wish I had them both back !! I kept my moon clips for the 9mm just in case.

I have a 6 1/4" S&W revolver in 10mm and a Niteguard in 10mm and I am keeping them. I can shoot .40 in them and that is close enough to 9mm until I can get a Charter. I also have a (1950 version) of a TR Smith in .45ACP and one in 44 Special (the one with the gold sign on it!) . I like revolvers and moon clips!
Buy what you like and shoot it!!

HiVel1 said:

I owned a S&W 940 , 9mm, SS, J frame revolver for a short while. Moon clips not a problem, gun was pretty , kicked hard, stuck itself together, and some guy offered me way more than I paid for it. I sold it. I also had a SS S&W 3" barrel 41 Mag. Nice gun , not much ammo variety available (did not reload 41), kicked like a mule with std Rem ammo and I was offered a lot more than I paid for it -the cylinder kept unscrewing itself from the yoke. I sold it. Guess what?? I wish I had them both back !! I kept my moon clips for the 9mm just in case.

I have a 6 1/4" S&W revolver in 10mm and a Niteguard in 10mm and I am keeping them. I can shoot .40 in them and that is close enough to 9mm until I can get a Charter. I also have a (1950 version) of a TR Smith in .45ACP and one in 44 Special (the one with the gold sign on it!) . I like revolvers and moon clips!
Buy what you like and shoot it!!

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The five shot 9mm is very easy to replace. The same exact gun in .38/357 is model 640. You should be able to get used one in top shape for about $400 to $450.

SharpsDressedMan said:

Moon clips can get bent in pockets. Slows your cylinder down terribly.

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That is why Michigan Highway Patrol nixed 940s as backup guns. Out of shape moon clips rendered them USELESS.

PabloJ said:

That is why Michigan Highway Patrol nixed 940s as backup guns. Out of shape moon clips rendered them USELESS.

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I think the whole reload-moon clip thing is really being overthought.

When I carried my 905 I carried it loaded with rounds on a clip.

HOWEVER my reload was five 9mm cartridges on a speed strip.

Think about it. Many folks only carry one reload anyways for revolvers. So just how critical is it to need to be able to eject that second cylinder of empties without another five to put in?




posted via that mobile app with the sig lines everyone complains about

If you had a revolver chambered in 9mm...

What would be the reason you couldn't shoot a .380 acp through it?

Wilbert said:

What would be the reason you couldn't shoot a .380 acp through it?

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380 is not just a short 9mm

9mm is tapered 380 is not

The pic below shows a 380 case in a 9mm chamber.



Supposedly if you use the right moon clip you can shoot 380 in a 38/357 chambered revolver




posted via that mobile app with the sig lines everyone complains about

Why aren't 9mm revolvers more popular?

...because no one can find 9mm ammo, right?

It's the same as a lot of other consumer goods: There is a portion of the gun-buying public that absolutely loves a certain product. The problem is, they assume that their fanfare is representative of the whole gun-buying public. Manufacturers will create a product based on perceived demand. If that demand doesn't materialize, they've got to slash prices on their inventory to move it. When they do that, they really don't want to continue taking a loss, so the product gets discontinued.

they aren't popular because they offer an answer to a non-existent problem...