Charter Arms UnderCover

[Lupinus]

So gun shop visit and theres a Charter Arms .38 snub nose, an older Undercover but looks to be well kept and in good shape. Felt good and thinking of getting it, comes with a holster but is really nothing beyond a nice extra. Price was (I believe) 189 or 169 I believe, thought about getting it but never really heard a ton about them I've bothered to pay attention to so figured I'd come by and ask and the worst that can happen was it wouldn't be there when I go back if I go for it. Have heard good things about the bulldogs, just never the undercover that I paid attention to.


Yay or nay? Something I actually have the money for lol

 

[VHinch]

Quality is hit or miss on the Charter revolvers. If you get a good one, they can be a decent little gun, but if you get a bad one, they can be really bad. The older Charters have the better reputation. If it passes Jim March's revolver checkout, I'd offer them $150, but I'd probaby put $180 in it if it looked good.

V

 

[Lupinus]

looked good and trigger was good, fet my hand nicely and though Im not a revolver guy a nice snub nose .38 is always welcome. And it was certianly older but well kept.

 

[Jim March]

A good one can be very good, a bad one is...well, not good.

You better be REAL confident with the "checkout".

Now. I personally have a good one. It's approximately late 1970s production, free-standing ejector rod ("unenclosed"), hammer and trigger are case hardened (and it's real, not fake). The primary frame is steel and has turned brown (or started that way), the grip frame and triggerguard is black anodized aluminum, the barrel is steel core, aluminum exterior, same black anodized finish as the grip frame.

I am NOT saying all like that are gems. Hell no. But if I saw another one like it, I would personally scope it out in detail and if it's as rock-solid as mine (perfect timing/alignment, zero free play at full lockup, good trigger feel with a bit of end-of-DA-travel stacking), snap it up and test-fire it. If it THEN turns out to be very accurate, it's a keeper like mine .

But. Understand: the design of the Undercover is excellent but execution varied. The Charco-era guns ranged from "barely acceptable" to "ghastly" - I recommend a complete avoid.

I don't know enough about the latest "Charter 2000" series to comment.

 

[Biker]

I have an old Charter Off Duty .38 snubbie that I really like. Stainless/alloy constuction makes it that much nicer. After I bobbed the hammer, it makes for a great pocket gun.
At that price, I'd pick the gun up if I was you.

Biker

 

[Ala Dan]

Like my friend Biker, I had an old Charter "Off Duty" .38 Special that
was a nice weapon; that I bought 'round 1980. It proved to be every bit
equal [except finish], to the S&W's of that era. These small frame revolvers
ARE NOT recommended for use with +P or +P+ ammo~! I gave $125
for this firearm NIB; gave it to my dad, who later gave it to one of his long
time friends.

 

[LWC]

I have one that I believe is from the late 60's - serial #12xxx
that I carry on a regular basis.

 

[Jim March]

LWC's gun looks a lot like mine. We even use the same grips. My primary frame is brown instead of blue, and my ejector rod end is a wee bit different.

With these open-ejector Charters you can swing the cylinder out by pulling the rod end forward and then sideways, no thumb contact on the rear release needed. Kinda neat. The ejector rod backs into a cutout in the frame and you get VERY tight lockup at the crane, even tighter than Ruger's crane-lock lever system

The design is awesome, that's why it kept coming back even as the companies making 'em died one by one.

 

[VA27]

I've got an Off Duty and 2 3" Pathfinders, all older guns with the exposed ejector rod. I've owned a 6" 22 Magnum Pathfinder (I was dumb to sell it, 'cause I've never seen another one!), 3 44 Bulldogs, 2 blue and one stainless, also older guns. I like Charter's, the older one's anyway. I'd say $150-$170 is a good price range for a clean one in good shape.

 

[Confederate]

I had way too many bad ones. A stainless Bulldog I might consider, but not an Undercover. If you buy it, load it and leave it in a dresser drawer. I found that mine all started to bind after awhile.

Nay!

 

[tbeb]

If you're buying it to use for self defense, then I'd pass. I've owned 2 Undercover .38's, and they both were made in the early 70's. Each developed problems. On one the cylinder would sometimes "freeze". The other misfired 3 of 5 rounds. When I got it back from the factory, it still misfired 2 of 5. I like them because their size and weight is about right for a pocket gun. However, I wouldn't trust my life to one. (Smith & Wesson's cost more, but in my opinion they're worth every penny.)

 

[Lupinus]

well I went back yesterday figuring what the heck why not, alas, it had already sold lol.

Probably just as well.

 

[bannockburn]

Good thing. I had one from the mid-seventies; looked pretty much like LWC's, even with the Pachmayr grips. After one box of Federal match 148 wadcutters; the cylinder crane assembly nearly came off the gun because the screw that held it in place had backed out; and two of the pins that held the grip to the frame had also worked their way out of one side of the gun. I didn't think that revolvers needed the warning that, "...some assembly is required", especially while you're shooting it.

 

[I'm3rd]

I have read several favorable reports and no unfavorable reports on other gun forums about the latest model Charter guns made by the newest owners of the company. The 12 ounce Off Duty alloy .38 snubbie is especially intriguing to me for a summer weather carry gun, but I have heard so may bad things from other sources about Charter's products in it's various rebirths under several different ownerships that I'm just a little too leery of them to plop down the $335 that my local gunship is asking for one. If it's reliable and durable I can't think of a much better hot weather carry gun except maybe the Keltec semiautos, but I hear much worse from Keltec owners about their reliability problems than I have ever heard about Charter.

I'm tired of lugging around a 1-3/4 pound stainless Taurus .357 snubbie and trying to conceal it under summer clothes, but it's been a very reliable and accurate gun (for a snubbie) and has never had a single problem since I bought it in the mid 1990s.

I guess I'll soldier on with it until some company builds a S&W quality ultralightweight small frame .38 +P+ rated snubbie that doubles as an ipod-C-phone-GPS combo and sells for under $400. I suspect I will be waiting for that one for a loooong, long time.

 

[tekarra]

Undercover left hand

Has anyone fondled and shot the Undercover left hand?
Would like to hear about it.

 

[KINGMAX]

I have an old one, shiny nickel chrome, shoots pretty good, very loud, I shoot only 38 spl, nothing stronger. NO PLUS P's