raven .25 auto

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hatchetbearer

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have the oppurtunity to pick one up in decent shape for 80 bucks. i know they are made in a roundabout way as the same company as the jennings .22 my question is will they explode like the jennings does? (watched a guy shoot one, went full auto and the slide came off on the last round). typing that should be reason enough to shy away, just something about mouseguns, and their ability to be hidden. if they ever did a mass gun roundup, id rather have a crappy gun than none at all.
 
They are pretty crappy guns. I don't like to be critical of any gun, but they are usuallly a couple of shots away from being a paperweight.
 
You didn't pay much for it, so enjoy it...Look it over, fieldstrip-clean-lube it, make sure it's "all there" and give us a range report.
You might have that "diamond-in-the-rough"....:)
 
I think $80 is way too high. $99 will get you a Hungarian PA63 from J&G Sales in 9x18 caliber. .25ACP ammo is generally more expensive than 9x18.

Raven's generally worked, but they also have developed a reputation for firing when dropped.

--wally.
 
go for it. there's a gun "subculture" for mouseguns, and raven's are a must have for any collection. they're reliable enough for a last ditch gun, and parts for it are easy enough to come by, if need be.
 
Ravens were cheap, but they worked with relatively limited use. The things were never intended to be fired a lot, they're not range toys.
$80 seems high, but the only thing that matters there is how much you want it.
Denis
 
I've had a Raven for decades. I haven't shot it much, but every time I pull the trigger, she goes *bang*.

Biker
 
I've had a Raven for about 15 yrs. Don't shoot it much but whenever I took it
out it went bang every time. I believe I paid $ 50.
 
I remember the dealer price on Ravens from 1996, $34.95, blue with walnut grips or chrome with white ivorlite grips.
You got hosed.
 
I'd pay twenty bucks for one, just to have another gun.

I wouldn't pay more than that.

I would never trust it.

My Jennings J22 was the WORST gun I've ever owned, and it was made by the same outfit.
 
I've had a half dozen of these little giuns over the years, and they always worked superbly. I'm always suspicious about such guns sold on consignment, because who knows whether they work or not?

I have a .22LR Jennings that shoots with the utmost reliability for the first five mags full, then it begins to jam. If I give it a quick cleaning on the range, it becomes reliable again.

In short, the gun isn't meant to be a shooter, it's just a second class self defense piece. They're underrated, in my opinion, but frankly I think there are more reliable, better guns. The Beretta .25ACP was a great little gun, but the Model 21A .22LR I bought would frequently jam the first and/or second magazine full.
 
Bought one many years ago for around 50 bucks. "You get what you pay for" was never truer in the case of that little gun. Without a doubt the biggest POS I ever owned. It fired when you pulled the trigger (most of the time), but if you were shooting at something two feet away, you would probably not hit it. :D I finally gave it away.
 
The Raven was a pretty strong gun and shouldn't go ka-boom with factory ammo however the safety on it tends to disengage and being a single action, it wouldn't be safe to carry it with one in the pipe -- sort of like carrying a cocked and unlocked 1911 with the grip safety taped down.
 
I had one too when i was younger. I never had any trouble with mine. I didnt shoot it much but it worked everytime.
 
got mine for 50 bucks some years ago in my late teens. i had the ultra rare chrome with wood grips. me and a friend both got one at the same time and really thought we had arrived. mine would hit a six foot target (somewhere) at six feet, ya never knew. my buddy's however wasn't half bad, he shot a visious dog in the head with it at about 15 feet and the thing just yelped and went on home. the .25 acp doesn't have a lot of ummpf. that dog was still harassing fisherman three years later. yes they go bang untill dirty, but i would NOT advise carring it just to dangerous
 
They used to keep NIB Ravens' at the pawn shop down the street from me in stock, blue and nickel with different colored mother-of-toilet-seat grip panels in pink, white, blue, black...$40 all day long. So not too expensive no, but I'd say that at $80 you're getting jacked. I've seen (in person) a drunk guy take the whole clip from a .25 at point-blank range, including a shot that hit his forehead and litrerally ricocheted off. He then beat the shooter half to death and walked away.
 
I bought mine in 1999 for $60 brand new including tax. I love that little sucker. It is reliable and incredibly accurate. They almost seem to be collector's items now, only because some people collect SNS's. You will like it although $80 might be a tad high. Does it have simulated pearl grips and chrome plating?
 
I've seen (in person) a drunk guy take the whole clip from a .25 at point-blank range, including a shot that hit his forehead and litrerally ricocheted off. He then beat the shooter half to death and walked away.
Click to expand...
Holy smokes that is one seriously tough guy.:what:
 
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I've seen (in person) a drunk guy take the whole clip from a .25 at point-blank range, including a shot that hit his forehead and litrerally ricocheted off. He then beat the shooter half to death and walked away.
Click to expand...

Yep and Superman takes hits from a 38 and flys away.
BS Post a news story or a Police report . I know happened a long time ago and you don't remember the date. 25 auto has put a lot of people including Police in the ground,
Not the best round for SD but 16" in jell test is no joke. As for the head many calibers 22 38 44 45 auto all have been reported to doing that . It a matter of luck. But to take a whole clip(mag) from a .25 and beat the guy up and then just walk away I don't really belive that.
 
I have two ravens the "ultra rare" versions with the wood grips and chrome finish. Cheapy guns but they seem to work fine.
 
I have a very good friend six feet under because one .25 acp bullet of six fired at him hit the mark.
Cut his aorta and he bled out before help could arrive.
Granted he didn't immediately fall down out of action but he died none the less.

I am glad you bought the Savage over the Raven.
 
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