Reflections on the Charter Arms .44 Special

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eldon519 said:
Merle, any idea how many rounds you've got through it?
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Between 500 and 1,000. I have read of some exceeding 2,000 rounds, and that is durable enough for my purposes. I bought it primarily for defense use, so I wasn't intending to put a high round count thru it. Several times I did shoot it in silhouette competition, clear out to 200 meters. I wasn't ashamed of the results. Mine is one of the first generation, however there have been several other "companies" building them, with varying success.

Short version; they are not built to put out thousands of rounds a year, such as a PPC gun. They are much too light for that purpose. Plus they aren't all that much fun to shoot with full power loads. I keep mine loaded with Federal 200 gr LSW-HP. They are made for personal protection, and mine has provided a lot of comfort on several occasions.
 
For anyone who's interested, I saw Bud's had some CA 4" Target .44's for just over 400 bucks. Looks kind of intriguing, if only for the novelty of a 5 shot .44 Special with 4 inch barrel that has a full lug.

I'm broke, so I won't be buying one. :D
 
Couldn't stand it any longer. Ordered a 2.5" stainless Bulldog .44 special from my LGS yesterday.

After all, I do have reloading dies and components for 44's. :eek:
 
Thanks...maybe mine won't be a lemon. :uhoh:

I've got two older CA revolvers, a .38 special Undercover and a .22 Pathfinder. They've been problem free. Hopefully the Bulldog will be well behaved.

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Mines a old 3" still has wood grips I carry some times .With the 200 gr gold dots or silvertips . I shoot every couple months 10 or 15 rounds. At least 5 from draw as fast as I can pull trigger . Not best group but that B-27 has all in chest area at 15'

I don't find recoil all that bad and I shoot better fast than my 36 with +P .
 
Picked up my ordered CA Bulldog at a LGS today. I switched the rubber grips out for some walnut CA grips I had. The finger grooves in the rubber didn't match up with my fingers very well.

Dabbed some orange fingernail polish on the front sight, shot a small amount of Breakfree CLP in the thirsty spots and made several cylinder rotations firing on snap caps.

I shot some 180 grain PMC JHP's, 200 grain Win. Silver Tips, and some 200 grain Ultramax cowboy loads. All shooting done at 10 paces. Seems to hit where I aim it at that distance.

Think I'm going to like it. I'll take some better pictures of it some time. :uhoh:

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Congrats C&L. I like the old style walnut grips you have on your BullDog. I run the same on my old Undercover. They do have a nice feel to them. Pretty sure I'm going to spring for a new Classic in the near future. Guess I'll have to look for another set.
 
Thanks rancher. The Bulldog takes on an entirely different look when the rubber grips come off and the walnut goes on.

Now to come up with some kind of holster. I read some folks saying S&W J-frame ones fit. Doesn't work for me...little too snug and I don't want to stretch them out. Others say K-frame holsters work...nope, too loose.

Then I read Ruger SP101 and Colt Detective Special work well. Might try that if I can find one that is not too short or too long for the BD's 2.5" barrel.
 
Cocked & Locked said:
Thanks rancher. The Bulldog takes on an entirely different look when the rubber grips come off and the walnut goes on.

Now to come up with some kind of holster. I read some folks saying S&W J-frame ones fit. Doesn't work for me...little too snug and I don't want to stretch them out. Others say K-frame holsters work...nope, too loose.

Then I read Ruger SP101 and Colt Detective Special work well. Might try that if I can find one that is not too short or too long for the BD's 2.5" barrel.
Click to expand...

I bought a holster intended for the 22/32 Kit Gun and it was a good fit for my 4" Target Bulldog. :what:
 
Interesting...hmmm. I've got two Galco Combat Master holsters for J-frames and they are too tight.

Here's one of them with a S&W 36...not a good fit. Bulldog will go in the holster with some pressure, BUT when I put the gun/holster on my belt (and tighten the belt) the gun is too hard to easily draw.

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Your M36 photo jogged my memory a bit. I bought a set of NOS Shooting Aces for my Undercover a few years ago, stuck them in a box and completely forgot about them until now. The search is on.
 
I like the Herrett's Shooting Ace grips! I've got three sets of J-frame ones. Haven't run across any Charter Arms specific ones.

But now I'm going to start looking. :uhoh:
 
I've had Herrett "Shooting Ace" grips on all of my Smith J-frames for the past several decades. They are my favorite grips by far for these little revolvers. I wonder if they still make them?

In terms of getting a holster to fit the CA Bulldog, I think it'd be worth trying a holster made for the Colt Detective Special/Cobra/Agent revolvers.
 
rdrancher Glad you found them. Those might be good on a Bulldog. If I run across some I'll attempt to get them.

I checked out the site for Sideguard holsters. Might have to try a Bulldog holster from them. I've got several pocket holsters from SG. If you look at his photo gallery the North American Arms .32 auto pictured with a pocket holster is mine. He made that holster and I sent him a couple of pics.

SwampWolf Shooting Ace grips are a natural for my hand on J-frames. I've had the ones on this 642 so long that I've worn the checkering down from using a speedloader.

I'll probably try a SP101 or Detective Special holster with the Bulldog. Thanks for your input!

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Grats on the Bulldog! I sure do love that caliber. I don't know how old mine is, or even if they make this kind anymore.

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Holsters for Colt D framed guns generally fit the Bulldog.I would look for some older designs from Safariland or Bianchi as they seem to have a little more "room" than say a custom fit boned holster.

If you have a older or classic (un-shrouded barrel) Bulldog.

http://unblinkingeye.com/Guns/EBCH/ebch.html
 
I have a 1991 stainless Charter Arms Bulldog 3" barrel

That wears Pachmyer Compac grips. It has since I bought it used for $175. It saved my life on December 25th, 2006. (I had a man pull a machete on me... never bring a knife to a gunfight)! I suvived and so did he. (I'll never sell my .44 Bulldog). ;)

I plan on buying a .45 ACP Pitbull later this summer. These are shooting revolvers not investing revolvers. They work and Nick Ecker will repair any CA revolver anytime, and will keep it in working order. They're good shooters and work when you need them.

What more do you need?
 
I bought one of the newer Bulldog "Back Packer". Limited run for Lew Horton. It is SS, ported and has wooden grips. Only have a couple 100 rounds down range and love how it shoots. I bought a holster from Wild Bill Concealment Holsters. I think they said it was the same holster that the Colt Detective uses.

I have a S&W 642 and 640 and thinking about putting the 642 back in the safe where the CA is sitting. Also, in the safe is a CA 38 undercover that has to be 30 years old. Took it out to the range a month or so ago and it is still tight. I do reload for the Bulldog, and have been shooting a 200 gn LSWC on top of 7.0 gn of Unique. For carry I have loaded some Speer Green Dot on top of 7.8 gn of Unique.

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