Finally found a Saturday night special (I was willing to pay for.)

Judging from this you are definitely into African big game territory:





https://fromthetrenchesworldreport.com/bella-twin-little-woman-little-gun-big-bear-cold-front/200665

Neat, a real blast from the past.

I had a Beretta .25 Jetfire many years ago. It was similar to the FIE except the frame was aluminum I believe. Like the above article said it fired, but it wasn't a hoot to shoot at the range.

Looks like you got a great deal on the FIE, let us know how is shoots for you.

Stay safe.

Among the Saturday Night Specials there were also some really nice models that got banned.

My FN model 1906 ...


Colt also made the same gun and as the Colt Vest Pocket.

... and my Beretta 1919. This model eventually became the 318 then 418 and as the 418 was James Bond's first gun in the Novels.



In the movies though it is not a 418 shown but rather either a 1934 or 1935 which are the larger 380 and 32acp models.

Those Titans weren't terrible, made by Tanfoglio IIRC. I could be wrong, but I think that there might be older variations made in Italy that were steel.

The classic SNS was the Raven .25 ACP.

Raven Arms was a firearms manufacturer established in 1970 by firearms designer George Jennings. The Gun Control Act of 1968 prohibiting the importation of inexpensive handguns prompted Jennings to design the MP-25, a .25-caliber semi-automatic pistol, and enter the firearms business. Raven has been referred to as the original "Ring of Fire" company; the Ring of Fire companies were those known for producing inexpensive Saturday night special handguns.[1]

Raven kept manufacturing costs to a minimum by building their guns from injection-molded Zamak, a zinc alloy.

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If you can not afford better, yes the titan or the raven .25 acp pistol for backup. I opt for spending a little more.

That’s a cool little SNS. Enjoy man.

Barry loyd

Nice vintage F.I.E. Titan! Looks to be in decent shape too. I had my share of Raven 25s as that's all I could afford at the time in a pocket auto. Later graduated to the better built Beretta Jetfires as my Saturday Night Special of choice til I finally settled on a KelTec P3AT for my smallest CCW.

Knowing the racist origin of it, I absolutely despise the term SNS.

Cool little pistol, though.

I've kinda wanted one of those, too. Though I wouldn't likely carry it, having a hammer that can be cocked or set to rest makes it easier (to me, at least) to consider it for such purpose.

I can’t say that I like the white grips but otherwise it’s a good looking pistol. It’s easily worth what you paid for it, and if it scratches an itch then great. I have had a bunch of cheap guns, and I actually have been wanting to stumble across a FIE Titan in 25,32,.380 because they are visually appealing. Well bought.

I have the little astra cub 22 short and I love this little pistol now looking for the astra firecat 25acp as its the bigger brother to my astra cub 22 short

I’m with MedWheeler. I like those little cheapo pistols a lot, but I’d definitely choose something else for a carry piece.

They really remind me of being young and knowing guys (or in reality their parents) who had something like that and would bring them around once in a while. Exactly the kind of stuff I teach and warn my kids about nowadays.

I could be wrong, but I think that there might be older variations made in Italy that were steel.

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I recently examined one made in Italy that was all steel. For a cheap all steel .25 ACP look for "Galesi Rigarmi", an under rated well made little pistol, as are the Astra Cubs. It's real hard to find a .25 ACP pocket pistol that has decent sights.

A .25 to the gulliver is no joke.

It’ll work.

I like that little Titan .25. I bought a blue/black one years ago from a guy I worked with. It was a great little pistol and shot just fine.

About 35 years ago my late MIL used her Titan .25 to scare off a late night intruder who was trying to break into her house. My son owns it now.

That is certainly a cool little novelty piece but I would no sooner carry it than I would a brick.

YMMV...

HisSoldier said:

......... It's real hard to find a .25 ACP pocket pistol that has decent sights.

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H&R made no pretense. There are no sights on my H&R Self Loader in .25. Fun little pistol but I wouldn't carry it. Not reliable enough due to age and wear.

If you are interested in that type of pistol there is a web site dedicated to them. Go to Bryco, Jennings, Jinemez. That's where I found out how to field strip a Titan for cleaning. You can find the history of the Titan and variations of that model. I had one in all steel that was .22 short caliber. My .25s have steel slides, barrels, and internal parts with zamac frames. I think you will find it to be reliable and accurate enough. I don't recommend carrying .25s for defense, but I think having any gun is better than nothing.

Seeing the Raven 25acp , reminds me of a incident ...
My Dad , God bless his heart passed away 4 years ago .. after battling dementia for over a decade ..
My dad was a hoot before dementia stole his mind and then his life ..
After his diagnosis my brother and myself emptied his gun safe .. in fear that he may hurt himself or shoot someone...
My brother and our nephew was replacing a ceiling fan in the livingroom of our Dad & Moms house . At that time my Dad was still living at home .
Dad was watching my Brother and Nephew working ,
Dad left the room for a few minutes and back in the room and didn't recognize his Son and Grandson.. ,
Dad told them to get out !
And then told him he would kick their a$$'s ..
My brother sorta laughed and told Dad they were just about finished and they would be on their way ..
Dad then told'em to put up there hands or he would shoot !!!
My brother looked over and Dad had a little chrome pistol pointing at them . !!
My brother and nephew then put up there hands and went toward the front door .. Then when they reached it ,, they ran like H@ll .... !
In a few minutes my nephew rang the door bell and my Dad let him in and asked him were he had been !!!

Eventually he was able to talk dad out of his pistol a Raven 25acp , loaded and chambered ...
When Dad purchased that pistol ? , or where ? or how long he had it ? Is a mystery... My brother has it in his safe , he .. brings it out ever once in a while and has a laugh... My Dad was a hoot

Speaking of SNS's, your post reminded me back in the 70's a hardware store in town was selling a cheap .22lr pot metal revolver for $20 brand new. I bought one just for grins. The frame looked like it was cast out of zinc, had plastic handles and about a 1 inch barrel. The cylinder free spun when the hammer was forward and only locked when the hammer was cocked and the trigger pulled. It loaded and unloaded by pulling forward on the ejector rod to swing the cylinder out. Biggest piece of junk I'd ever seen but for $20 I had to get one

In the 70s these type pistols were the pinnacle of the moniker, jamomatics. Nonetheless, it seemed every gun guy could not resist the low price of the Sirens.

When I think Saturday Night Special I think cheap revolver..

Like a Taurus 85 .38 Snubbie.
Currently $175 New at my LGS.
Of course it's likely a better gun than most of those Pre-68 Imports.