Whats the deal with Judge

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If you have to give something a name like "Ranging Bull" or "Judge" to sell it then I really have to question the final product.

Recently I was speaking to a local NRA instructor who said that he carries a Judge into the mountains for defense against cougar and bear.

Seriously?

I asked him why he thought it was better than .357 or .44 magnum and he couldn't really tell me. :rolleyes:
 
Why don't the ammo companies work on getting .410 performance out of .45 Colt cases, and the gun people produce good .45 Colt revolvers?
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Vern,

Because only Neanderthals buy .45 Colt revolvers, and there ain't that many of us Neanderthals left.:D

Don
 
The purpose of the Judge is to keep an arms maker (Taurus) financially viable. We have to agree that this is a good thing. S&W has seen the writing on the wall and followed suit.

What would this sport be like without financially viable arms makers?
 
Shot one and think its really a fun gun to play with.:D

It would be a good defensive gun with the 00 loads at realistic defensive distances. Realistic being the key word.
 
I toyed with the idea of the Governor but after I saw the velocity on .45 ACP I called it quits. It has appeal for snakes and such, but for the price I'd rather get a Rock Island 1911 and a used Pawn Shop grade pump action shotgun.

At the end of the day though, get what you enjoy. To each one's own. I know people think I'm odd for enjoying my Ruger P90 after buying a few 1911s.
 
There are gun folks who buy them for fun. Sure - I have some impractical but fun guns.

However, they were advertised to newbies as guns that you didn't have to aim and had stopping power far in advance of conventional handguns if you used the 410 rounds. New folk bought into that. It would make great antihijack gun as if a 9mm at window distance wouldn't be. The commercials had a watermelon exploding. Wow. Also, in a reverse of that argument, some folks wanted the 410 as it wasn't so lethal and you could pepper a BG's face, blinding but not killing said BG. Just fire a cloud of BBs down the hall as a deterrent and not overpenetrate.

That's the story. It's a gun and shoots stuff - thus it will probably handle the average BG. Read Tom Given's evaluation in SWAT for a realistic investigation of the gun for SD. Not a positive view.
 
judge

You're forgetting the main purpose of this gun--to sell lots of guns to people that wouldn't normally buy a gun. Me? today I bought a 625 performance center at a gun show. I'll take a .45 ACP w/4 inch barrel over a Judge any day.
 
I wonder if there are any real-world accounts of .410 handguns being deployed in realistic self-defense situations that resulted in a fail? I've shot them both and am certain I called it right when I declined to play the watermelon role :)
 
I mean me and my friends are the same age-mid 20s- but when I try to tell them of the power of the .45LC and its hollow points or Keith style loads they call me crazy and living in the past.

AH...to only be 20 again and know all the answers before even knowing what the questions are.
 
I have one, not for SD but for pitching clay pigeons in the air with one hand and shooting at them with the other.

It is what it is... a fun gun.
 
cbuttre835 said:
I have one, not for SD but for pitching clay pigeons in the air with one hand and shooting at them with the other.

It is what it is... a fun gun.
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I bought one used pretty cheap and this is exactly what I use it for. I was in a hunt club a few years back and we had competitions doing the hand-tossed bird challenge!

Grown men acting like giddy teen-agers. For this purpose, the judge is great fun. For anything serious, there are much better choices.
 
However, they were advertised to newbies as guns that you didn't have to aim and had stopping power far in advance of conventional handguns if you used the 410 rounds. New folk bought into that. It would make great antihijack gun as if a 9mm at window distance wouldn't be. The commercials had a watermelon exploding. Wow. Also, in a reverse of that argument, some folks wanted the 410 as it wasn't so lethal and you could pepper a BG's face, blinding but not killing said BG. Just fire a cloud of BBs down the hall as a deterrent and not overpenetrate.
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Very fair point. I personally am one who does not like when something gets over-hyped beyond its capability. The watermelon exploding isn't the bad one. The bad one is using birdshot on a shoot-n-see target to make it look like you'd obliterate the target.

Still, at short range, you can put 3-5 9mm holes on the target. That's definitely going to make him think twice.

I asked him why he thought it was better than .357 or .44 magnum and he couldn't really tell me.
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Personally not a revolver guy (figure if I'm firing one slug at a time it might as well be from a double-stack magazine) but for defense against larger predators I would absolutely take a magnum revolver over a Judge any day of the week. Of course, I'd rather have a Glock 20 than either of the calibers you listed.
 
The problem with these revolving 'shotguns' is they're not really being purchased because they're a hoot to shoot, people are buying them primarily for self defense.
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You know this .... how?
 
You know this .... how?
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I think he's complaining about people who go "I got the Judge. It's a shotgun so it can kill a bear if you shoot it in the pinky toe with #12 birdshot."

Of course you have to be careful with the Judge, but especially with the S&W version. Saying "I want to shoot the Governor" on facebook might land you on certain watch lists...
 
I still wish folks wouldn't kill snakes!
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I love animals. That said, anything with poison or venom needs to stay away from me, or it's going to be feeding the soil pretty soon. That applies to spiders, bees, and snakes.
 
The large number of people who have posted on this forum and many others stating that they purchased a Judge primarily to carry for self defense, and the people I see at the range/CCW classes qualifying with them.
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Funny. Every Judge I've ever seen has been in the hands of someone hunting dangerous watermelons at about five yards. Sometimes pumpkins.
 
Nushif said:
Funny. Every Judge I've ever seen has been in the hands of someone hunting dangerous watermelons at about five yards. Sometimes pumpkins.
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My comment was pointed towards the reason people say they buy these guns, not what they're actually being used for day in and day out. I'm sure most people are firing them solely at the range, but that's true of the majority of handguns in this country. My Glock 26 has only ever punched holes in paper or rung some steel, but when I bought it my intent was to make it my EDC and it is.
 
My Glock 26 has only ever punched holes in paper or rung some steel, but when I bought it my intent was to make it my EDC and it is.
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But how do you know the two guys on top of Mary's Peak blowing up Watermelons bought them for self defense? Or the guy next to you at the range? Or the girl who painted it pink?

Did you talk to even a small percentile of Judge owners to make sure this assertion of yours is correct?
 
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