This thread kinda piggybacks off the Big Bore Snubbie one from a couple of days ago, but it's just different enough I thought it might be worth a short discussion.
By "Chunky Snubbie" I mean a revolver less than 3" (or maybe equal to, as I find that a bit debatable but I'm not a hardliner on it. Being 3" may even make it "chunky" by definition) that goes against the grain and philosophy of what a snub nose excels at. Basically, being packable and concealable.
There are a few different ways they may do this. Maybe they shoehorn another round above what is normal for their frame size. Maybe the are chambered in a cartridge that just isn't usually married to a gun that compact. They, in theory, trade off the convenience of what a J frame offers and neuter the performance of a longer barrel. They are, as the title implies, neither fish nor fowl.
But dang it...I kinda adore them.
I see them as a compromise, as a gun with the corners cut enough that I will actually pack one around. I have had well over a dozen 4-4+" barreled revolvers and nearly all of them are gone. I dont keep range toys. If I will not carry a gun either in the streets or on the trail then it goes to the chopping block. I simply won't dress around 4" of barrel.
Conversely, my snub nose collection has grown with each purchase. Three Charter Arms, a couple of NAA minis as back ups, I think I still have a j frame airweight somewhere in the collection. However, my eye is drawn toward the unique, the disproportionate, the gargantuan for its class. Where it would be reasonable to concede that the trade offs are greater than the benefits, I see an advantage over the j frame worth the effort, be it energy or magnitude of firepower as I rarely pocket carry a revolver making the size of a j frame mostly moot on a belt.
The prime examples in my collection are my Charter Arms Pitbull in .45 acp that holds 5 rounds without the need of a moon clip and sports a 2.5" barrel. My other example is the 686+ I picked up yesterday. Nearly identical in dimensions to the Pitbull but holds 7 rounds of .357 and weighs nearly twice as much. I have also said that if I ever saw a .45 colt Bulldog XL in the wild, I would be all over it. I just really gravitate toward stubby guns.
As for the new 686+, it's kind of funny. I stopped in the LGS the other day to unload a couple of guns that I hadn't shot in a couple of years. I ended up getting a better trade on them than I was expecting. I was thinking about another Charter Undercover. However with my trade in value, I got the itch to replace my 4" 686 i sold off foolishly 10 years ago, and almost pulled the trigger on the one they had under the glass. Then i saw the 2.5" 686+ sitting next to it. They had it on special, so I opted to take a look at it. If felt identical to the 4" but just seemed to hang in my hand like an old friend. I dunno if it is the bigger cylinder and shorter barrel but it felt much more neutral than the 4" 686 or 66 I was eyeing.
So, an inch an a half shorter makes it so that it doesn't stick out under my shirt and it carries that "sneaky" 7th shot. Thumbing back the hammer or dry firing double action makes it feel just like my old lost friend. I had to take it home.
Group shot of the two big snubbies with my "always carry" Black Widow. New grips for the 686+ are coming tomorrow. I'm holster shopping today.
I have come to the conclusion that I AM a snubbie guy. I don't hunt. I dont shoot from a bench at 50 yards. I carry and I shoot at combat distances at the range. I walk in the woods in a part of the country where the extra oomph out of a longer barrel isn't needed. The convenience of a shorter barrel outweighs the lack of performance compared to its longer brethren. As long as they are heavy steel, I shoot a 2" snubbie just as well as a 4" at 10-15 yards.
So, what say you all? What is your stance on the Chunky Snubbie? Be it .357, .44, or some flavor of .45.
By "Chunky Snubbie" I mean a revolver less than 3" (or maybe equal to, as I find that a bit debatable but I'm not a hardliner on it. Being 3" may even make it "chunky" by definition) that goes against the grain and philosophy of what a snub nose excels at. Basically, being packable and concealable.
There are a few different ways they may do this. Maybe they shoehorn another round above what is normal for their frame size. Maybe the are chambered in a cartridge that just isn't usually married to a gun that compact. They, in theory, trade off the convenience of what a J frame offers and neuter the performance of a longer barrel. They are, as the title implies, neither fish nor fowl.
But dang it...I kinda adore them.
I see them as a compromise, as a gun with the corners cut enough that I will actually pack one around. I have had well over a dozen 4-4+" barreled revolvers and nearly all of them are gone. I dont keep range toys. If I will not carry a gun either in the streets or on the trail then it goes to the chopping block. I simply won't dress around 4" of barrel.
Conversely, my snub nose collection has grown with each purchase. Three Charter Arms, a couple of NAA minis as back ups, I think I still have a j frame airweight somewhere in the collection. However, my eye is drawn toward the unique, the disproportionate, the gargantuan for its class. Where it would be reasonable to concede that the trade offs are greater than the benefits, I see an advantage over the j frame worth the effort, be it energy or magnitude of firepower as I rarely pocket carry a revolver making the size of a j frame mostly moot on a belt.
The prime examples in my collection are my Charter Arms Pitbull in .45 acp that holds 5 rounds without the need of a moon clip and sports a 2.5" barrel. My other example is the 686+ I picked up yesterday. Nearly identical in dimensions to the Pitbull but holds 7 rounds of .357 and weighs nearly twice as much. I have also said that if I ever saw a .45 colt Bulldog XL in the wild, I would be all over it. I just really gravitate toward stubby guns.
As for the new 686+, it's kind of funny. I stopped in the LGS the other day to unload a couple of guns that I hadn't shot in a couple of years. I ended up getting a better trade on them than I was expecting. I was thinking about another Charter Undercover. However with my trade in value, I got the itch to replace my 4" 686 i sold off foolishly 10 years ago, and almost pulled the trigger on the one they had under the glass. Then i saw the 2.5" 686+ sitting next to it. They had it on special, so I opted to take a look at it. If felt identical to the 4" but just seemed to hang in my hand like an old friend. I dunno if it is the bigger cylinder and shorter barrel but it felt much more neutral than the 4" 686 or 66 I was eyeing.
So, an inch an a half shorter makes it so that it doesn't stick out under my shirt and it carries that "sneaky" 7th shot. Thumbing back the hammer or dry firing double action makes it feel just like my old lost friend. I had to take it home.
Group shot of the two big snubbies with my "always carry" Black Widow. New grips for the 686+ are coming tomorrow. I'm holster shopping today.
I have come to the conclusion that I AM a snubbie guy. I don't hunt. I dont shoot from a bench at 50 yards. I carry and I shoot at combat distances at the range. I walk in the woods in a part of the country where the extra oomph out of a longer barrel isn't needed. The convenience of a shorter barrel outweighs the lack of performance compared to its longer brethren. As long as they are heavy steel, I shoot a 2" snubbie just as well as a 4" at 10-15 yards.
So, what say you all? What is your stance on the Chunky Snubbie? Be it .357, .44, or some flavor of .45.
