Charter Arms Durability

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Ive had my 357 CA (3.5" barrel) for over 40 years and the ejector rod had to use lock tite to keep it in place and the screw on the side plate comes loose after some magnum shooting so I have to tighten it down. Have never used lock tite on the side plate because I think it's important that that particular screw can be removed at some point in time.
Aside from those two issues the gun has been fine, it has a good SA and DA trigger and is accurate. However there's no question that S&W, Colt & Ruger build a higher quality product.
 
The transfer bar broke on my Charter Arms 9mm PITBULL four months after I'd purchased it. Charter Arms cut me an airway bill, I shipped it to them and got it back in 2 weeks. SO.. its not great that the transfer bar broke, but they handled it really well. They have good customer service.
 
I like Charter revolvers… Only Ruger 38spl revolver made on production now is a LCR .. fantastic design
I do like my 642 … and my 856UL .. I do believe my Charter Bulldog Police 6 shot 38spl is a step-up above my 856 …
I have and had quite a bit of real world experience with Charter over the past 35 to 40 years .. not what I read , not what I heard .. but I experienced ..
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RULE 3,

I said DESIGNED, not BUILT! I have owned a TAURUS model 85, which I bought for my Dad, but he preferred the trigger on my UNDERCOVER, which had been worked on by a gunsmith. What feature do you think is not well designed. I found that my UNDERCOVERS work well and much use or a trigger job, their triggers are acceptable to me. So disagree if you want.

Orange,

I can only go on my own experience. The triggers on EVERY CHARTER ARMS I have ever handled and NOT HAD WORK DONE ON THEM, were not that good. Some were worse than others. My older UNDERCOVER has a smooth, but not really light trigger. It was worked on back in the 1990's. My second one that I bought about 3 years ago, has a smooth trigger, but it is still heavy.

If CHARTER ARMS has worked on their triggers, it was in the last couple of years.
I have owned S&W's, COLT'S and RUGER'S. Some have needed work, others have not. My favorite range guns are a pair of S&W model 15's. They look like hell, because they were owned and issued by the FLORIDA Department of Corrections (read prison guard guns), but over the years, the constant pulling of the trigger has given them a smoother pull. I also have a RUGER Security Six which had a trigger job done and it is the best of any revolver I own.

Jim
 
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I have found …any of the seven of my Charters pictured and the dozen + I have owned in the past , have all had better triggers out of the box than any out of the box J frame or SP101 …. Just my 40 year observation
 
Fire in the Charter Arms factory. Fortunately, no one was injured. I hope it doesn’t negatively impact their products.
 
BUCKEYE63,

We can all go on our own experience. I have owned 5 CHARTER ARMS guns (one was an AR-7 rifle) and my family has owned at least 6 more and my opinions are based on my nearly 50 years of experience with them.
We will just have to agree to disagree.

Jim
 
BUCKEYE63,

We can all go on our own experience. I have owned 5 CHARTER ARMS guns (one was an AR-7 rifle) and my family has owned at least 6 more and my opinions are based on my nearly 50 years of experience with them.
We will just have to agree to disagree.

Jim

Agree 100 % …. Id say we agree on more than we disagree on :)
 
Well I’ll say this about charter arms... my brand new to me model 10 is going back (pos) and I’m buying another charter. At least I’ll have lifetime warranty and I do carry a lot shoot little so I’ll be fine
 
“Carried often and shot little” was ascribed to the Star PD compact and light .45 in the ‘70s. True, as the slide spring buffer broke after 2,000 rounds (great gun otherwise). As I have gotten into the .44 spl in the last 5 years, I have come to prefer this round defensively and have gotten 3 bulldog type revolvers (5 shot, 3”, large caliber, compact); a S&W 696, a Taurus 431 and a CA Bulldog. Love all three. The Bulldog is the smallest and lightest .44 revolver and can be carried in an ankle holster. CA advises not to shoot hot or Buffalo loads as the lighter frame is not designed for a steady hot diet and I think that is what has given some owners problems. I have had no issues with my Bulldog and now want to make it my CCW so trust it with my life. It was the carry gun of the Federal Sky Marshals for over a decade. I join others here that say the CA revolver is a good value and is reliable…if you don’t go hot loads.
 
I’ve got a .44 Bulldog that’s been lightly customized. It always fires, but I did have an issue with the cylinder latch, and while that was being fixed, I asked the gunsmith to give it the once over and tighten everything. Works great, and conceals like a J frame. That said, I’m not going to put thousands of rounds thru it.

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Design, or Built still do not agree.
Taurus has some nice semi auto "Designs" Charter well sure they look like a revolver

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Tell that to these guys! I think they are great designs and CA makes some guns that others simply do not. Sometimes they have some problems in execution, not unlike every maker but they are a simple affordable revolver. Nothing wrong with a Taurus either. The only gun I ever had to sell because it has an issue that could no be resolved was a S&W Model 65 3”, a very desirable piece that had a barrel from the factory that you could not group 12” at 7 yards with. All that being said, absolutely nothing wrong with the design of a Charter Arms, they can get sloppy on the build once in a while.
 

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Tell that to these guys! I think they are great designs and CA makes some guns that others simply do not. Sometimes they have some problems in execution, not unlike every maker but they are a simple affordable revolver. Nothing wrong with a Taurus either. The only gun I ever had to sell because it has an issue that could no be resolved was a S&W Model 65 3”, a very desirable piece that had a barrel from the factory that you could not group 12” at 7 yards with. All that being said, absolutely nothing wrong with the design of a Charter Arms, they can get sloppy on the build once in a while.




The OP was about durability

"Regarding the Charter Arms Undercover and other .38 Spl models... how do they hold up compared to a Smith, Ruger or "Other" round count and timing wise ???"

No way they compare to SW or Ruger in that dept.

This thread is a year old, the end.

 
The OP was about durability

"Regarding the Charter Arms Undercover and other .38 Spl models... how do they hold up compared to a Smith, Ruger or "Other" round count and timing wise ???"

No way they compare to SW or Ruger in that dept.

This thread is a year old, the end.
You saw the comments, some guys have them for decades. My Bulldog is 20 years old, gets shot and has never given a problem. The answer is it varies. The end!
 
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