1-1 Banger
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- Aug 26, 2012
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- 104
.38 Special Colt Cobra, was the old man's back up piece for the better part of 12 years in the Palm Beach Sheriffs Department. Given to me when I graduated high school, now serves as my back up gun
saturday night specials
- Thread starter gpwelding1
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I enjoy cheap guns alot, some of them have bad reputations mainly because of the Brady bunch. The media pushed alot of their BS right along into the mouths of gullible people and those people who watched all the biased news coverage unfortunately still repeat the same garbage today. This is the same media that blamed Brandon Maxfield's gunshot injuries on the Bryco .380 and not the babysitter who shot him in the face when she pulled the trigger with it pointed in his direction.
If a $100 Raven jams it is a POS that belongs in the trash. $1000 Kimber? It either is a magazine issue or needs more breaking in.
I have:
1. Raven MP25 (initially had issues but after I adjusted magazine lips the gun works perfectly)
2. Rohm RG23 with short barrel (works 100% with some ammo, light strikes with other)
3. Rohm RG23 with long barrel (works fine with any ammo)
4. Phoenix HP22a (cracked frame around 3,500 rounds, they sent me a new gun that works as good as the first one)
Will a zamak gun outlast a steel one with heavy use? No. They do work fine for infrequent range guns or hideaway guns. I've put quite a few rounds through my Raven and it still works great. Don't dry fire them. Almost everyone with a broken firing pin admits to dry firing the MP25.
If a $100 Raven jams it is a POS that belongs in the trash. $1000 Kimber? It either is a magazine issue or needs more breaking in.
I have:
1. Raven MP25 (initially had issues but after I adjusted magazine lips the gun works perfectly)
2. Rohm RG23 with short barrel (works 100% with some ammo, light strikes with other)
3. Rohm RG23 with long barrel (works fine with any ammo)
4. Phoenix HP22a (cracked frame around 3,500 rounds, they sent me a new gun that works as good as the first one)
Will a zamak gun outlast a steel one with heavy use? No. They do work fine for infrequent range guns or hideaway guns. I've put quite a few rounds through my Raven and it still works great. Don't dry fire them. Almost everyone with a broken firing pin admits to dry firing the MP25.
marv
Member
I won't say I collect them but I have accumulated 16 mouse/pocket guns.
Arkansas Paul
Member
Not only do I not collect them, I have no desire to own even one.
ApacheCoTodd
member
So why post?
While I don't feel I'm collecting them, just like with motorcycles - I'm drawn to bobbed and lobbed for simplicity and function's sake.
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Black Knight
Member
My mother had an RG 10 that I inherited in 2002. Her's had white plastic grips. I know there is lttle if any monetary value in it but it has plenty sentimental value to me. I don't carry it or use it for anything other than to look at.
MedWheeler
Member
26 May, 2000: Palm Beach County schoolteacher Barry Grunow was intentionally shot and killed by a student (Nathaniel Brazill), who was armed with a Davis .380. Grunow's survivors, and the local media to some degree, attempted to place blame on the weapon's manufacturer; the resulting civil suit against it was tossed. Not long after that, Florida passed a civil-immunity law designed to protect firearm manufacturers from such suits stemming from the criminal misuse of their products.
In fairness those Rohm RG10s are POS and deserve all the crap heaped upon them. The fact that the poor in this country had to use that for defense and hope it somehow worked and didnt have a malfunction is just depressing as hell. 
That said I do find things like that perversely fascinating in the same way I find iPad and iPhone knock offs fun (comes from doing iplaw). The fact that they even existing is sometimes as crazy as the "unique feature" of the guns themselves.
That said I do find things like that perversely fascinating in the same way I find iPad and iPhone knock offs fun (comes from doing iplaw). The fact that they even existing is sometimes as crazy as the "unique feature" of the guns themselves.
Arkansas Paul
Member
Because the entire point of the thread is to see whether or not people shared an affinity for these types of guns. I merely voiced that I do not. I said nothing derogatory or insulting.
SlowFuse
Member
Not a collector, but I have two that would fall into this category. One is an RG-38. No picture of it, I rarely take it out, and never shoot it. The one cylinder I did shoot out of it was about 3 feet high at 10 yards.
The other is a Cobra FS380. $100, 2 boxes of ammo and a holster. I have put about 1200 rounds through it, which in turn would buy like 3 of these pistols... I have replaced a broken firing pin and spring and also the recoil spring, twice. I like shooting this thing! I have heard about the frame cracking, so I always look it over good after every few magazines. It jams about once a magazine with steel cases, but has been somewhat reliable with brass cased ammo. Id say a jam every 3 or 4 magazines with brass.
From what I hear they have a decent warranty. I haven't had anything major happen that I can't fix yet, but am somewhat looking forward to it to see if that is true.
The other is a Cobra FS380. $100, 2 boxes of ammo and a holster. I have put about 1200 rounds through it, which in turn would buy like 3 of these pistols... I have replaced a broken firing pin and spring and also the recoil spring, twice. I like shooting this thing! I have heard about the frame cracking, so I always look it over good after every few magazines. It jams about once a magazine with steel cases, but has been somewhat reliable with brass cased ammo. Id say a jam every 3 or 4 magazines with brass.
From what I hear they have a decent warranty. I haven't had anything major happen that I can't fix yet, but am somewhat looking forward to it to see if that is true.
jackblack86
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- Jun 21, 2011
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- 125
amen brother !!!!!!!!!!
pockets
Member
I don't really 'collect' them specifically, but I do have an interest in inexpensive pocket guns....'Ring-Of-Fire' manufacturers in particular. I don't own many, but looking at my spreadsheet I count 26 hand guns in my possession which would be considered 'SNS' made by;
RG, Sedco, Davis, Raven, Jennings/Bryco, Lorcin, Sundance, Reck, FIE, EIG, QFI, HA, IJ, Intratec, Bauer, Excam, US Revolver, and Phoenix.
No, I normally do not use any of these as my carry gun....I own them for fun. However, the majority of them are surprisingly reliable (contrary to the internet standard wisdom of, 'a friend of a friend of my second cousin's mother's son-in-law looked at one once and it blew up.......') .
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RG, Sedco, Davis, Raven, Jennings/Bryco, Lorcin, Sundance, Reck, FIE, EIG, QFI, HA, IJ, Intratec, Bauer, Excam, US Revolver, and Phoenix.
No, I normally do not use any of these as my carry gun....I own them for fun. However, the majority of them are surprisingly reliable (contrary to the internet standard wisdom of, 'a friend of a friend of my second cousin's mother's son-in-law looked at one once and it blew up.......') .
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Sorry but you're wrong on this one, I have done plenty of research. Any small concealable pistol made from zamak alloy is considered a Saturday Night Special. The phrase was used extremely frequently during the 80's when referring to the Raven MP25 and various other cheap firearm manufacturers mainly associated with the "Ring of Fire".
Edited for link to a Wikipedia article that adequately explains it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturday_night_special
silversport
Member
Saturday Night Special IS a term from the 1960s that phrase was used to outlaw so many small firearms back then...the term was just revived to include all those later cheap firearms...
Please don't call you Dad's Colt Cobra a Saturday Night Special...
Bill
Please don't call you Dad's Colt Cobra a Saturday Night Special...
Bill
ApacheCoTodd
member
Jeeze guys, get over your locked in stone opinions on this one. SNS is just a catch all grouping phrase that evolves with generations, much like the use (misuse?) of; "muscle car", SUV, "special forces" and the like.
Dallas Jack
Member
I once had a 25 acp Raven just like the one "larryh1108" has. Same grips and everything. I took it to Galveston with us one year. I had a 9mm TA90 at the hotel room but carried the Raven since I could hide it in my swim trunks.
I looked down the beach and saw two salty characters following my wife and mother-inlaw step for step.I fell in behind and increased the pace. Once they saw be behind them they made a bee line to the right and left the area. I never showed the gun but approched in a determined way. Good thing for me, I would hated to use that Raven. No confidence in the .25 ACP for me but it was better than a sharp stick.
That was my first experience with a SNS. I did later own a RG in 38 special. It fired with no issues but still got a vote of no confidence from me.
Both are gone now and good riddence.
Dallas Jack
I looked down the beach and saw two salty characters following my wife and mother-inlaw step for step.I fell in behind and increased the pace. Once they saw be behind them they made a bee line to the right and left the area. I never showed the gun but approched in a determined way. Good thing for me, I would hated to use that Raven. No confidence in the .25 ACP for me but it was better than a sharp stick.
That was my first experience with a SNS. I did later own a RG in 38 special. It fired with no issues but still got a vote of no confidence from me.
Both are gone now and good riddence.
Dallas Jack
Yup. Don't forget the fact that the media thinks any hi capacity rifle is an AR15 or an AK47 and doesn't know the difference between semi automatic rifles and fully automatic rifles.
Gladius
Member
Actually, those cheap guns are as valid collectors' items as any other guns, but they are still junk. The mistake would be to believe that a collection of such guns will be a good investment. There is interest in the way those guns were made, and how they managed to make any gun that could sell at retail for under $10 even in the 1950's. The problem is that allowing for inflation, those guns are worth less today than they were back then; not exactly an investment to put your kids through college or provide for a comfortable retirement.
Jim
Jim
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