Concealed Lightweight(Airweight) 38s

[GunLvrNLearner]

I've looked around for lightweight 38s and I was curious if I was overlooking options the only 3s I see around 15oz or less are the S & W airweights and the Ruger LCR and it is the lightest I have seen

Does Rossi,Taurus or Charter or any others make 38s this light?

 

[Mad Chemist]

Taurus makes a lightweight .38, I think they call it an Ultralight or something like that. It looks like a j frame.

 

[WC145]

Does Rossi,Taurus or Charter or any others make 38s this light?

The Charter Off-Duty is around 12oz, I think Taurus has some light ones but the S&W and Ruger offerings are higher quality guns.

 

[ronto]

Stick with S&W or Ruger...Forget about Taurus, Rossi and Charter if your life may be on the line.

 

[1KPerDay]

The S&W 342 is 12 oz... Not fun to shoot. For me.

 

[Wolfeye]

All of the major brands I can think of have already been mentioned. S&W and Ruger are the only ones I'd depend on. Arguably, you could also look into derringers if you're concerned only about weight.

~15 oz is the lightest I'd recommend to anyone... personally, I think going lighter than that without the luxury of a full-sized rubber grip would make a gun unshootable.

 

[Guillermo]

the question is do you want a lightweight revolver.

to me, they are NOT fun to shoot

 

[NMGonzo]

Rent one, try it, decide for yourself.

I had a taurus 605 that I LOVED it.

It was on the heavier side but I did hit whatever I could see up to 25 yards.

 

[MedWheeler]

Stick with S&W or Ruger...Forget about Taurus, Rossi and Charter if your life may be on the line.

Another post chock-full of nothing..

 

[MMCSRET]

I recently found and purchased a nice Model 37 S&W, didn't particularly want it to carry, but I don't see them on the market very often. It shoots good for me and dates from 1970+/-.

 

[gbw]

the question is do you want a lightweight revolver.

to me, they are NOT fun to shoot

Correct. They are unpleasant to shoot, very much so in .357. But a joy to carry.

I don't own these to shoot, i.e. as in take them to the range for banging away.

I have them because the smaller and lighter it is, the likelier I'll have it when it's needed. I suspect this is true for most of us, and ever more so over time - carrying a gun is tiresome once the novelty wears off.

If I really need it, I'm way past caring about recoil (though it's really not terrible w/ std. 38s). I'll just be glad I didn't leave it home 'cause it's hot, or the gun's heavy or bulky.

Yes, competence is necessary. Very Light loads are perfectly fine for training, and fun to boot!

 

[Guillermo]

But a joy to carry

I concur

That said I prefer to carry something that I practice with and shoot well

your mileage may vary

 

[angel1216]

I'm way past caring about recoil

totally agree!
believe me, when adrenaline kicks in and everything is shaking including your eyelids!!
recoil,DAO and the loud bang is all out the window! now i carry a ruger sp101 with gold dot .357 135gr (short barrel).

 

[Gordon]

Currently pocket carry a 37 S&W air weight at 14 oz that is down from a slightly larger 15 oz and 6 shot Colt Agent. Yes the J frame Smith is noticeably more concealable in a Mika holster in front pants pocket. I shoot Remington LSWCHP .38 spl +P exclusively in all my snubs as that is about my limit and I can really make your day bad to 25 yards with it be ye beast or brute. One of the real tricks is to use smooth non rubber grips, I like Esmeralda's and Spegal's boot grip hardwoods.The Mika holster is far and away da bomb! I used horse hide custom leather and other for pocket carry and Mika is it. I can live with a hammer and don't dehorn the 36, 37 and Colt snubs anymore.The light single action trigger is what makes those 25 yard bunnies get hit!
When I carry a serious gun like an HP or 1911 or Glock the pocket holster is still there as "one is none and two is one"

 

[MachIVshooter]

I'm way past caring about recoil

totally agree!

now i carry a ruger sp101 with gold dot .357 135gr (short barrel).

There is a huge difference between a 26 ounce SP-101 and a 12 ounce 340 PD. The latter will cause pain.

Even my 14 ounce M37 ain't exactly fun with +P. Granted, it's still got the tiny factory wood grips, because they just look good.

 

[gbw]

There is no reason to carry .357s or .38 +Ps in these guns. We're hoping to end a confrontation, not make sushi. Standard .38s are plenty.

The idea is to have the gun, loaded with adequate ammunition.

That means the lighter the better. Everyone I know who carries a handgun has gravitated to lighter guns over time. If it's really needed recoil is irrelevant (for civilians - police are another matter as they are far more likely to need multiple shots and/or more power).

In my view, a civilian carrying a 26oz gun is lugging around at least 12 oz of unnecessary weight, to no purpose.

 

[BOOM-BOOM]

Personaly I'm getting real tried of reading post that say if you value your life stay away from Taurus, Rossi ect ect

Or Ruger and S&W are the only quaility built guns.

If I'm not mistaken S&W use to own part of Taurus, and a lot of Taurus Revolvers are basically S&W clones......

I trust my life my wife's life and all my love ones with a taurus.

And who knows, one day somewhere you and I may be in the same place at the same time and YOUR LIFE may depend on my Taurus.....

 

[PHB]

New to the forum but not new to handguns I own a Taurus 85 air weight and have had no problems with it shoots well carries well although I am not real found of their autos the revolvers seen to be fine JMHO

Be safe

 

[armoredman]

I have a Taurus CIA Ultralight 38Spl, five shot hammerless. I can carry it in sweat pockets, but shooting it IS not nice. I can keep them all on the chest of a B-27 at 10 yards, either hand, but I would rather shoot something else.
Problem is, sometimes it is just so darn handy!
I did have to send it in for repair once, nice quick turnaround, works like a charm now.

 

[chicharrones]

I chose my 17 oz. .38 snubby for ease of carry. I even got rid of the factory rubber grip and put on a hard polymer Crimson Trace grip which aids in drawing from a pocket, among other things.

Firing it with +Ps is a hand stinging experience, but sometimes you got to look at it another way.

Firing it in self defense is a fight for your life. If you fight with your fists, those fists are gonna get beat up somewhat. With a light weight snubnose, throwing lead is like throwing punches. You're gonna feel something if you're fighting, whether with your hands or your gun.

 

[rswartsell]

First of all I don't carry 24/7, just don't see the need. So when I do carry I am not concerned with ultra light revolvers. I place a premium on what I can shoot well on a reliable basis with sufficient power to stop a fight. When I can't carry a 1911 I carry a 2" Colt Lawman that most here would find considerably overweight. I can shoot it reliably (and practice sufficient round counts) with short barrel formulated .357mag at either 135 or 158 gr. I do not necessarily believe that .38 spl. will always be enough.

Each to their own, but if you carry a gun, BE CERTAIN that you are familiar and practiced enough to be reliably effective and not dependent upon having a lucky day. All that comfort you have enjoyed means diddly if you cannot present and place fire on target under high stress with little margin of error.

 

[snooperman]

The lightest 38 special snubby...

I think, was the S&W 337PD at 10.7 oz. and, the S&W 342PD at 10.8 oz. They are not made anymore but I have seen them on sale on gunbroker.com. Also, Taurus has a new 6 shot made of Magnesium called the HIGHLITE (856). weight 13oz. However this Taurus is not meant for +P loads. That said, +P loads in any of these very light guns can be painful when shooting.

 

[snooperman]

rswartsell, I too have a Colt Lawman Mark 111...

snubby and love the gun. I can shoot heavy loads in it with ease. Mine weighs about 33 oz. and I have carried it when on my tractor and when working around the farm with a IWB holster. It is a fine old gun and easy to shoot well.

 

[MachIVshooter]

First of all I don't carry 24/7, just don't see the need

That's a personal decision, but IMO, not a very sound one. If we knew when and where we would need our weapon, we could just avoid that place at that time altogether. The whole idea behind CCW is that we never know when and where we may need to use deadly force to defend ourselves. People get attacked/raped/murdered in quiet little towns just as surely as they do in a bustling metropolis.

You may feel perfectly safe on that dirt road in the middle of Oklahoma with nary a stop-n-rob for 20 miles in any direction. But what happens when that rural, help-a-fellow-out mentality that compells you to stop and assist the guy with the hood up on his F-150 turns into a deadly situation of you against perhaps two or more individuals who set the motorist-in-distress trap?

Just my $0.02, coming from a guy who's father was murdered in the barely-on-a-map town of Big Fork, Montana.

 

[RatDrall]

That means the lighter the better. Everyone I know who carries a handgun has gravitated to lighter guns over time. If it's really needed recoil is irrelevant (for civilians - police are another matter as they are far more likely to need multiple shots and/or more power).

In my view, a civilian carrying a 26oz gun is lugging around at least 12 oz of unnecessary weight, to no purpose.

A civilian and a police officer, fighting the same criminal, will benefit equally from a more powerful, easier to shoot sidearm. In fact, the civilian will probably benefit more from the easier to shoot gun due to having spent zero time training to shoot a moving target, while moving themselves.

Personaly I'm getting real tried of reading post that say if you value your life stay away from Taurus, Rossi ect ect

Me too.

I believe that Taurus uses retired S&W machinery. Their guns are very similar, the only difference I see is in quality control. I've seen people get more lemons from Taurus than S&W, but once the bugs are worked out the Tauruses aren't that much different from the S&Ws.