Charter Arms Target Pathfinder .22

[fireman5069]

OK. I just purchased a Charter Arms Target Pathfinder in .22LR yesterday and went through the whole pre -shoot cleaning. Went to the range and immediately started having issues with rounds not wanting to seat in the chambers. It did this with multiple brands. Had to push some in to fully seat and after shooting the six rounds. it was a BEAR to eject. Cleaned it when I got home and shot it today. Same issue. Has anyone else had problems with this model or any other brand of firearm having tight chambers? If so, what was done about it. I know this is something that's not going to "work itself out" like a trigger can do sometimes. Awaiting a response from Charter from an email sent. This would be a great little shooter if not for this one issue.

 

[burley]

I'd polish the chambers. Maybe even use a SLOW turnig drill chucked with the cleaning rod. Make 'em nice and smooth. I had to do this on one of my Dad's old guns once.

 

[fireman5069]

But wouldn't that void my warranty? I just bought it yesterday. I think they're hanging up more than a polish will correct and don't want to do any damage.

 

[Deltaboy1984]

Take some JB's Bore polish and use a brass brush first then go to a cotton brush and work it till the chambers gleam like a new penny.

 

[bigfatdave]

Either get it fixed by the warranty or get to fixing it yourself ... you seem to have asked how to fix it yourself.

 

[Ron James]

The first time Charter failed it was because of quality problems with their guns, I mean a lot of problems. Gun Test Magazine made a blunt statement which I wont repeat here. Perhaps it's the same old Charter Arms.??, Don't know because having been burned once is enough, no more "Charters for me, ever.

 

[Fat Boy]

I recently handled a "new" Charter Arms revolver- I was mentally comparing it to a Charter Arms Pathfinder I had in the 1970's; no comparision in my opinion. The new gun was rough, lightweight (which isn't bad, in and of itself) and seemed like a very poorly finished firearm.

Too bad; the Pathfinder I owned years ago was light years ahead of this new gun in fit, finish, etc. If only I hadn't needed that Colt revolver and the only way to get there was to trade the Charter with some cash...

 

[fireman5069]

Charter sent me an online return tag today but I may just trade for something else. It seemed like a good one at the time but it does have a lot of sharp edges on it as if it wasn't smoothed out before shipping. I could live with that but if I'm already having to send it back right out of the box, maybe I should just cut my losses and move on.

 

[fireman5069]

Update on the Pathfinder. I took it back to the shop and they took it out back and shot 12 rounds through it and came back and told me that yes, the rounds were sticking and commenced to shoving a brush with Flitz on it in the chambers. Told them I hadn't planned on doing that but now if I have to send it in,the buff is probably going to be used against me. Decided at that point to let them have the gun back and had to haggle to get ALL my money back seeing as they had "worked" on my gun. Still looking for a good .22.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

commenced to shoving a brush with Flitz on it in the chambers.

Which is most likely what the factory would have done if you had sent it back. The question is did cases stick after they polished the chambers?

 

[fireman5069]

Yep! And they actually stuck WORSE after the polish. When they ran out of excuses to give me my money back, they gave me my money back.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

they actually stuck WORSE after the polish.

Hmmm....

 

[Dr_B]

I took mine out today and fed it about 300 rounds with no problems. I just bought the revolver and read this thread before taking it to the range. Was kind of worried until I actually tried it. Although it's not the highest quality gun I own, it worked out well.

 

[Dr_B]

I've put another 200-300 rounds through this gun and it's still pretty much working fine. Only one thing has happened: occasionally a round will fail to fire. When I eject the casings, the round that didn't fire will always have a firing pin mark on it. I guess the pin isn't striking the rounds consistently, or maybe it's just the ammo. It's happened with several brands of .22. It's a fun little gun. Sure does get dirty fast.

 

[Kernel]

Still looking for a good .22.

Time for a Ruger Single Six?

 

[bigfatdave]

When I eject the casings, the round that didn't fire will always have a firing pin mark on it. I guess the pin isn't striking the rounds consistently, or maybe it's just the ammo.

That would be an ammo problem, assuming the rim is as dented as the rims of the rounds that fires.

 

[HiWayMan]

That would be an ammo problem, assuming the rim is as dented as the rims of the rounds that fires.

Unless it is happening on the same chamber everytime. Then it may be an ammo problem or a gun problem, but probably a gun problem.

 

[robert garner]

Time for a Ruger Single Six? or a K-22, either are prolly more accurate than most of us,
and give you something to leave future generations.
robert

 

[BCRider]

I've got or had two .22 revolvers that had snug chambers. I found that some brands and variety of ammo fit it and other stuff did not. Checking the ammo with a dial caliper it was clear that some of the forming dies for some brands or batches was getting worn as I found a .004 inch total difference across the range of ammo brands and types I have on hand. And the max size stuff was oversize to the specs I could find by .003. That much variation seems excessive but there you are. LIkely some proper size stuff would fit that new gun just fine as long as there isn't any burrs around the top edge of the chamber openings.

I'm not surprised that the rounds would stick worse if they honed them out with a more coarse product instead of a polish. The surface finish from a coarse hone or grinding compound is rather saw tooth like.

 

[rhoggman]

3 thousandths of an inch is an excessive variance in sized cases?

 

[cwl1862]

Wish I'd have read this article before purchasing my Pathfinder!! First time out to the range put 150 rounds thru it and the transfer bar broke! Snapped right off! Just got it back from charter and up for sale it goes! Gun breaks like that the first time out & it's gone. Charter just aint what they used to be! :-( Hopefully Ruger will re-introdue the SP-101 in 22 sooner rather than later! E-mailed the CEO and he said it would be later this year.

 

[22-rimfire]

Still looking for a good .22.

In new guns, S&W Model 617 or Model 63. You'll probably like the M63 better as it is on a smaller frame. In a single action, yeah, the Ruger Single Six mentioned above.

This is one of the first threads I have read that concerns newly produced Charter Arms Pathfinders. I appreciate those that have expressed their opinions pro on con. I have learned something and it boils down to Taurus = Charter Arms in terms of quality and it is about a 50/50 shot as to whether or not the gun functions for any length of time even if the heavy triggers are not problematic to you.

Sharp edges? Rugers have sharp edges too. It is one of the reasons that I am not crazy about the Super Redhawk.

I do hope Ruger comes out with a new DA 22 revolver. I think it would sell well if it is priced between the Taurus and S&W price point. That doesn't mean I particularily like the SP-101 in 22.

 

[Revolver fan]

I am going with the S&W Mod 63 for now, I did my homework on the path finder, taurus tracker/mod 94... Not geting those, POS guns. I heard ruger is coming back out with the sp 101 in 22lr by next year ????? I think. If they do I will buy that insted of the Mod 63 because it will be $100 cheaper or so..

 

[JFrame]

I am going with the S&W Mod 63 for now, I did my homework on the path finder, taurus tracker/mod 94... Not geting those, POS guns. I heard ruger is coming back out with the sp 101 in 22lr by next year ????? I think. If they do I will buy that insted of the Mod 63 because it will be $100 cheaper or so..

I can't speak to the current generation of Smith 63's, but a six-shot, 4" barreled 63 is the third handgun I've ever owned (bought used from a friend in 1981). It is still on my very short list of the "one handgun I would keep if I could only keep one" -- heaven forbid!!!


.

 

[Jim NE]

My two Charter Arms did EXACTLY the same thing that the original poster complained about - hard to eject spent cases. That was 25 years ago when I owned those guns. Needless to say, I own them no longer, and won't buy another one. One was a .38 and one was a .357 mag. The .38's cylinder wouldn't even swing open after you fired all the rounds.

I've always thought - maybe I should've sent the guns back to the factory so they could fix them. I'm not so sure about that now. Sounds like an endemic problem. If they couldn't get it right the first time, why would they get it right the second time?

That was a shame...it's not like the guns were junky in all respects. They could be very accurate, and although they weren't fancy, they didn't look all that bad either. I really WANTED to like Charter Arms, too. They were affordable and American made.

Really hard to believe they're still in business after so many years of so-so quality.