9mm snubbies

[smalls]

Let me first say that I'm not a revolver guy, and my use of them is fairly limited. But I'm thinking of buying one for carry.

Now, I'm sure a lot of people like .38 special, and that's ok. But I would like a little more oomph, but not as much as a .357. Plus, all my auto loaders are 9mm. And a while ago I discovered that a few companies produce revos in 9mm. Sounds perfect for me.

I got very excited about the Charter Arms Pitbull and it's design. Seems very cool, but the reviews are terrible. Have they sorted out their mess?

Then I discovered the S&W 940. Then found out they are out of production. Finding a used one for a decent price may prove difficult.

The reviews of the Taurus 905 look promising, but I've heard horror stories of their CS, should I need it. I have read a few accounts that their CS has gotten better recently, though.

Am I missing anything else? Can you guys shed done light on these? And if you have any one of these I'd be grateful if you could share street prices with me.

 

[kp]

Ruger made a 9mm SP101 but has since been discontinued. They are around but like the 940, very pricey.

 

[smalls]

I did see that, as well. I left it out because any prices I've seen have been more than my budget. I included the 940 because I had no prices to go off.

 

[CZ9shooter]

This doent answer you question, but food for thought:

There are .38 +P loads available that offer more oomph than a 9mm. Buffalo Bore makes a 158gr LSWC that does 1000 fps from a two inch barrel. I have yet to aquire any myself to test (debating on wether it may be too much for my airweight) but I have read many first hand accounts of BB's claims being true. I like that they use real guns for their tests too, not some test barrel.

https://www.buffalobore.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=108

 

[smalls]

Yeah, I know that there are some good loads out there for .38 special. But if I don't get a 9mm revolver, I think if rather opt for .357, and find some lighter loads.

And I think it's a huge plus to have all my carry guns in one caliber for the time being.

 

[stiab]

I've owned both the SP101 and S&W 940-1, was dissatisfied with both and sold them. You will need to replace the front sight on the SP101, as it is the same sight used for the .38 Special models, which will not shoot to POA with 9mm. That can be done since it is pinned, but I thought it very poor original Ruger engineering to not put on a sight with the correct dimensions. If you find the S&W, I personally would only go with the -1 model, not the no dash due to well documented problems. And it will not fit all of your other J frame holsters due to larger diameter barrel.

After having found both of these and carried both, the cool factor wore off and I realized my best J frame carry option was a .38 Special and the best 9mm option was any of several bottom feeders that I own. Good luck, hope you find what you are looking for!

 

[TennJed]

I understand wanting to keep your caliber universal, but I bet you find yourself liking revolvers and wouldn't be surprised if you pick up another one down the road. Then you will be stuck with a 9mm revolver and a 357 (or 44 or 45). Go ahead and get a 357 or 38. It will make it easier to justify buying a second revolver one day. Never can have too many reasons to buy another gun

 

[smalls]

Thanks for the insight stiab, but I'm thinking even if I can find either of those, they'll be out of my price range, anyway.

TennJed, I agree. I'll probably buy more down the road. But for now, I think I'd like to at least try and find something in 9mm. If I can't find something local and possibly used, I think I'll get my hands on a .357.

 

[David E]

Let me first say that I'm not a revolver guy, and my use of them is fairly limited.

Then, I wonder, on what basis you so quickly dismiss the good advice you've been given thus far by people that ARE revolver guys and whose use of them is NOT limited.

But I'm thinking of buying one for carry.

Ummmm..........ok.......

 

[Eb1]

You'll be better served with a .44 Special in a 2" or 3" revolver IMO. Although they are larger in size. Is this for CCW?


You can IWB a Charter Bulldog .44 SPC. I IWB a .44 SPC Rossi M720 hammerless with a 3" barrel. It is a 5 shot, but aren't most 9mm and .38/.357 stubbies?
.357 in a stub nose will not produce the .357 125 HP performance as you read about from a 4" barrel. Although you could go .38 +P in a .357 cylinder just fine, and have less loss of performance and less bang and flash. I'd still go big bore for my first revolver.
Although I do carry a .32 H&R Magnum 6 shot J Frame, and I really lover that revolver. I now shoot .32 S&W Long 98 grain HPs from it as they are more accurate than the 100 grain XTP .32 H&R Magnums from the gun.
Have you thought about a .32 H&R Magnum or .327 Federal Magnum?

 

[bdb benzino]

I'm a S&W guy, I have 8 revolvers and 7 are S&W. I also heard the horror stories about Taurus and even had a late 90's 9mm auto I could never get to run 100%.
However I read up on some of their small frame revolvers, and they seem to get better reviews than their autos. So I figured if I followed the revolver check out to a tee, it may be worth a shot.

I have had my blued Taurus 905 9mm revolver now for a couple years and love it. I bought it some nice Houge grips, 50 moon clips from Ranch Products, and a "loaded moonclip carrier" from Matt Delfatti Leather so I can carry a reload without bending clips or having a round pop out. All together it has been a great carry set up, and is ideal for back up for a 9mm auto. I also found that old medication bottles hold a coulple reloads nicely too!
So far its been great, and 9mm out of a snub is a good power level for me from a snub without big flash and boom.

If you check them out good and take time to find a well made one, (which we should do with all brands anyway) I don't see how a guy could loose if he were looking for a 9mm revolver.
Good luck either way you go!

 

[smalls]

Then, I wonder, on what basis you so quickly dismiss the good advice you've been given thus far by people that ARE revolver guys and whose use of them is NOT limited.

I'm not dismissing it, it's great advice. But it's not what I'm looking for. I'd really like this to not become a caliber war. If you have advice on a 9mm revolver, I'd love to hear it. If not, then please find another thread to jack.

9mm is cheap, readily available (in "normal times"), and offers more power than a .38, yet less flash and recoil than a .357. This is why I'm interested in it. And at the moment, with finding ammo, and my finances, adding another caliber doesn't make sense.

You'll be better served with a .44 Special in a 2" or 3" revolver IMO. Although they are larger in size. Is this for CCW?

Yeah, it'll be for carry.

Have you thought about a .32 H&R Magnum or .327 Federal Magnum?

I had thought about the .327 federal, but ammo costs and availability have steered me away. Costs have steered me away from .44.



Benzino, thanks for the insight, what'd you pay for yours? How small is the Taurus? Pocket carry small?

 

[gym]

That 44 is a good idea

 

[MikeJackmin]

My usual advice with Taurus is that they can be fine, so long as you give them a careful examination before purchase. If you can find one at a local gun shop, follow the revolver checkout procedure listed in the sticky and make sure that it is right. If it passes the checkout OK, it's exactly what you want.

If you can't find the 9mm you like, then a .357 is a fine choice. You may decide to only shoot .38s in it, but you will still have a strong reliable gun that will eat anything you feed it and will probably never wear out. Nothing wrong with that.

 

[David E]

I'm not dismissing it, it's great advice. But it's not what I'm looking for.

You acknowledge you don't know much about revolvers and have limited experience with them. You come here asking for advice from folks that do. You get great advice.....but "it's not what you're looking for.".......even tho your stated concerns are directly addressed. I find that odd.

I'd really like this to not become a caliber war.

From my perspective, it's about getting the most you can out of the snubby platform, so calibers and loads definitely matter. If you had any experience with snubbies, you'd know that.

If you have advice on a 9mm revolver,

As you noted, finding a 940 isn't easy or cheap to do. Essentially the only current viable choice is the Taurus. CDNN had some for a good price recently. But the big problem is carrying the reload. Sure, you can buy a holder for it, but its pretty bulky for holding only 5 rds. And if you ever wanted to do a tac-load, forget it. But this wouldn't be a problem with a .38/.357 and slim, easy to carry speed strips.

Speaking of .357, have you ever fired a Corbon 125 grain JHP out of a scandium S&W J-frame? If not, you're in for a treat! Tell us how many of the 5 rds you fire off. I stopped at one.

My snubbies are loaded with 158 grain LSWCHP+P's, which is the old proven Treasury load and still easy to find.

On a side note, I've won our State Snub nose Championship 3 yrs in a row using my 642, beating out all the moon clip guys in the process. I also hold the dept record on the 50 yd course fired by a snub nose more than 20 yrs after posting that score.

Good luck in your quest. You can learn from the experience of others, or you can spend the time and money learning the experience first hand.

 

[critter]

I had a Taurus 905 once upon a time. I liked it very much and it shot quite well. Never had a problem. Kinda hate I sold it.

 

[smalls]

Speaking of .357, have you ever fired a Corbon 125 grain JHP out of a scandium S&W J-frame? If not, you're in for a treat! Tell us how many of the 5 rds you fire off. I stopped at one.

I have not had the misfortune

of shooting a .357 scandium frame. While I'm not recoil sensitive, I'm also not a glutton for punishment, either. I've fired other .357 snubbies, though. My experience has been that they're not "fun" plinkers, I've done alright managing the recoil. Some practice would be in order, but I think I could handle it.

But this wouldn't be a problem with a .38/.357 and slim, easy to carry speed strips.

This is what I liked about the pitbull. I was kind of hoping a few people chimed in telling me they had worked out the problems, but after reading even more reviews today, I don't think that's going to happen.

Kinda hate I sold it

Any specific reason for doing so?

My usual advice with Taurus is that they can be fine, so long as you give them a careful examination before purchase

Will certainly check out the sticky, and do some learnin before pickin one up, thank you!

 

[WC145]

Snubbies in any caliber are great guns, and 9mm snubbies are tops. The 9mm is a very efficient cartridge and works well with the short barrel, when I've chronoed them they they easily out perform .38spl +P and without the muzzle blast and recoil of a .357mag. The main issue I have with them is that they all weigh too much for their size, the Taurus 905 and the S&W 940 are both around 22oz and the SP101 is slighty heavier than that. Too heavy for a pocket gun or BUG, IMO. I've owned S&Ws and a Taurus, the Taurus had issues, I'd avoid them.

I have a S&W 360J that has been converted to 9mm by Pinnacle. Great little gun, weighs only 13oz, superfast reloads, and it's a heck of a shooter. Some folks might not want to spend the money for something like that, but I wanted a lightweight 9mm snubby and that was the only way to get it. I've also got snubbies in .38, .357, .44spl, and .22lr but it is the 9mm that gets carried, almost every day for going on 4 years now.

 

[Eb1]

I will vouch for my Taurus 731UL .32 H&R magnum, and my 3" InterArms Rossi M720 .44 Special.
Not a hijack here, but I will say a near pure lead .44 special at 800 feat per second will out penetrate and expand more than any 9mm from a snubbie. One it is already .430" in dia. Two they cost less than SD 9mm per 20 rounds.

Good luck with your quest on the 9mm stub nose. Don't hesitate from looking at Taurus just review how to check out a revolver before handing over money.

 

[X-Rap]

While the moon clips certainly load faster I don't think I would carry spares in my pocket like I do speed strips so for me a 9mm make the least sense of any revolver to carry.

 

[David E]

I have not had the misfortune of shooting a .357 scandium frame.

I knew that from your posts.

I've fired other .357 snubbies, though. My experience has been that they're not "fun" plinkers, I've done alright managing the recoil. Some practice would be in order, but I think I could handle it.

Not likely. Maybe in an all steel gun, but not the scandium.

If you end up getting a .357 scandium, consider some milder rounds for it, like a 110 grain JHP

I like the 642/342 style with open back grips to allow the hand to ride extra high on the blackstrap. This minimizes muzzle flip and helps accuracy in rapid fire.

 

[smalls]

Not likely. Maybe in an all steel gun, but not the scandium.

I think you've misunderstood. Never intended on picking up a scandium J frame. The trade off of ditching a couple ounces isn't worth it to me. I currently carry a 1911 and the weight doesn't really bother me, so the thought of such a light gun never really crossed my mind. But I'll keep this in mind should it ever.

 

[heyjoe]

i have a smith and wesson model 940-1 I bought in 1993. I carried it for many years as my off duty gun. i find it very accurate, the moon clips are a very quick reload. i am able to carry two moon clips inside of each other in the watch pocket of dungarees. the recoil to me is snappier than the 640 with 38+p which is the same design and weight as the 940. Right before the latest panic the 940 had come down in price and i saw a few at around $500-550. Now they are $750-1100. I wouldnt buy any used gun right now unless i got a decent deal . the prices are currently ridiculous. wait a while and you should be able to get a 940 for a decent price. they are worth it.

 

[tekarra]

I have a 940 no dash that has never given a problem. Apparently the cylinder bores on some were rough which caused extraction problems, but after honing, the problems went away.

 

[smalls]

If I can find a 940 for $500 it'll be sitting in my safe the same day, guaranteed!

Also heard about the rough cylinder bores, but a couple passes with some steel wool seemed to fix every problem with that I saw.