sixgunner455
Member
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2006
- Messages
- 3,052
I have a Jframe, a Detective Special, and a Makarov. I have carried each of them, and would carry any of them.
My wife likes the Makarov best. She can't stand shooting the revolvers, but finds the Makarov very nice to shoot.
I like shooting the DS, and carrying the airweight Jframe best.
Easy to live with means a lot more than you might think, and it means different things to different people. Not every aspect of your list has the same weight. A stainless, airweight Jframe, for me, is easy to live with. The others have more compromises on the day-to-day carry of the pistol. Risk of rust, and extra weight are common between my two other small guns. My wife doesn't carry on her person, but in her purse. It's the only way she will carry, so I got her a purse for it. Weight is still something of an issue, but the Mak isn't that heavy. Finish isn't as important, because it's protected from all sides and isn't exposed to sweat like my gun is.
Ammo availability -- this is huge, too. We have to think hard about my wife's Mak. She shoots it a few times a year, so the current reduced ammo availability is not that big a problem since she isn't consuming much, but if she decided to shoot it more, or if there just wasn't any more at a price we could afford, then we might have to pay to get her into a different gun, or go to the expense and hassle of changing her barrel to 9x17.
No such issues with .38 Special. I load most of what I shoot on the bench in my garage. I could load for her, too, but I don't have dies for it, and the bullets are an oddball caliber that I've never seen for sale, except a few online dealers. They aren't cheap, either.
Between those two, long term? .38 revolver wins, hands down, because you'll be able to keep shooting it long term, parts are available (Mak parts availability went down to very slim when makarov.com closed their doors), and if you have a S&W, the factory will fix it for you if you have a problem, or you can usually find a competent revolver mechanic to work on it.
If there aren't parts, then they have to be manufactured to replace broken ones. Makes the Mak start to look like a fun gun to have in a collection, but less viable than it used to be as a defensive firearm.
My wife likes the Makarov best. She can't stand shooting the revolvers, but finds the Makarov very nice to shoot.
I like shooting the DS, and carrying the airweight Jframe best.
Easy to live with means a lot more than you might think, and it means different things to different people. Not every aspect of your list has the same weight. A stainless, airweight Jframe, for me, is easy to live with. The others have more compromises on the day-to-day carry of the pistol. Risk of rust, and extra weight are common between my two other small guns. My wife doesn't carry on her person, but in her purse. It's the only way she will carry, so I got her a purse for it. Weight is still something of an issue, but the Mak isn't that heavy. Finish isn't as important, because it's protected from all sides and isn't exposed to sweat like my gun is.
Ammo availability -- this is huge, too. We have to think hard about my wife's Mak. She shoots it a few times a year, so the current reduced ammo availability is not that big a problem since she isn't consuming much, but if she decided to shoot it more, or if there just wasn't any more at a price we could afford, then we might have to pay to get her into a different gun, or go to the expense and hassle of changing her barrel to 9x17.
No such issues with .38 Special. I load most of what I shoot on the bench in my garage. I could load for her, too, but I don't have dies for it, and the bullets are an oddball caliber that I've never seen for sale, except a few online dealers. They aren't cheap, either.
Between those two, long term? .38 revolver wins, hands down, because you'll be able to keep shooting it long term, parts are available (Mak parts availability went down to very slim when makarov.com closed their doors), and if you have a S&W, the factory will fix it for you if you have a problem, or you can usually find a competent revolver mechanic to work on it.
If there aren't parts, then they have to be manufactured to replace broken ones. Makes the Mak start to look like a fun gun to have in a collection, but less viable than it used to be as a defensive firearm.