I just picked up the Charter Arms South Paw Undercover.
As a lefty I cannot express my joy when I found a revolver made for the south paw. That thing is light, ergonomic and fits so sweet in a AIWB carry I cannot imagine not carrying it where ever I go. It seems to be the perfect last ditch if the M&P runs dry or I'm dressed for a day of fun in the sun.
Have any of you had any experience with Charter Arms? This is my first wheel gun since I sold my .38 Rossi ten years ago.
Does anybody know if S&W will be producing a lefty any time soon....or if ever? I'll run right out and buy one for my Wife if they do!!
Per things I have read Bill Grover of Texas longhorn Arms considered the standard single action to be designed for the southpaw. He built mirror image single actions and referred to them as being for rght handers.
I have one of his Keith #5 reproductions. A beautiful gun IMO.
I suspect that you would just have to convince S&W of the potential market for left hand double action revolvers being large enough to address. Be interesting to see if sales of the Charter Arms gun ar enough to keep it on the market.
The typical DA wheelgun is held in the right hand for loading and the left hand used to load and extract the cartridges. For most this makes it a right handers gun though the most involved work is done with the left hand. It remains in the master hand during the reloading process for a right hander.
Only disadvantage I could see for a mirror image DA revolver for our sinister friends is that if you have one then all of your DA revolvers should be so made. Otherwise in a high stress situation it would be possible to get confused about the reloading sequence I would think.
I am a lefty who shot revolvers for 15 years.To me loading it right handed is natural and I wouldn't want a lefty wheelgun because if the fertilizer hit the ventilator and I had to reload in a stress situation I want to drop that speedloader in the way muscle memory dictates without thought about which wheelgun I'm carrying.....God Bless....Mike
Posts: 377 | Location: Yonkers,New York | Registered: 29 May 2008
Some of you folks with a long memory here might recall me lamenting the fact that I ordered a Charter southpaw for my left handed Son for his last birthday, but had delivery troubles (10 week wait at the time). The idea was, he'd be up here (Seattle) from home (Salt Lake) and could take it with him. The gun was late, and so had to be FFL'd to his local shop. That aside, he took delivery and was pleased with it while getting acclimated using single action. The gun once used in D/A however, refused to make it through it's second cylinder full. On cylinder three, the D/A action locked up, necessitating a factory phone call. FWIW, he's one that always claimed inability to operate a wheel gun, due to cylinder swing. Odd thing is though, he has zero problems with the 1911' I gave him? Trips the slide release with his L/index finger, drops the mag with the same. In fact, the only adapting for his use, is an ambi thumb safety. It's a mystery to me, why the 1911 can be run, while the wheel gun can't? I think sometimes it's psychological, as much as ergonomic. Can't count the number of great rifle shooters I've seen running a R/H bolt gun. But it's real for him, so I guess that makes it real?
Posts: 4973 | Location: Left Coast | Registered: 25 August 2005
The only thing I can say is practice,practice and more practice.At first,as with all newly learned skills I was clumsy as hell operating a revolver built for the right handed world but after awile the adaptations you have to make become automatic.after 15 years I bought my first semi auto,a CS9,and the conversion was easy.Thanks S+W for your infinate wisdom to include a ambidexterous decocker/safety.Once again I am reminded that it is a righty world cause the brass is ejected at you as opposed to away from you.God Bless....Mike
quote:
Originally posted by Spotteddog: Some of you folks with a long memory here might recall me lamenting the fact that I ordered a Charter southpaw for my left handed Son for his last birthday, but had delivery troubles (10 week wait at the time). The idea was, he'd be up here (Seattle) from home (Salt Lake) and could take it with him. The gun was late, and so had to be FFL'd to his local shop. That aside, he took delivery and was pleased with it while getting acclimated using single action. The gun once used in D/A however, refused to make it through it's second cylinder full. On cylinder three, the D/A action locked up, necessitating a factory phone call. FWIW, he's one that always claimed inability to operate a wheel gun, due to cylinder swing. Odd thing is though, he has zero problems with the 1911' I gave him? Trips the slide release with his L/index finger, drops the mag with the same. In fact, the only adapting for his use, is an ambi thumb safety. It's a mystery to me, why the 1911 can be run, while the wheel gun can't? I think sometimes it's psychological, as much as ergonomic. Can't count the number of great rifle shooters I've seen running a R/H bolt gun. But it's real for him, so I guess that makes it real?
Posts: 377 | Location: Yonkers,New York | Registered: 29 May 2008
I'd be interested, I'm somewhat ambidextrious. I eat and write left handed and have adapted to everything else. I'm proud to be lefty, so I would take a chance on a right side loader.
Posts: 454 | Location: Western Pennsylvania | Registered: 03 April 2006
I'm right handed but very left eye dominant. I have to shoot long guns (and pool) left handed but switch back and forth with handguns. Now if I could just win the lottery and buy one of those old Randall left hand 1911's. Hey, Stag makes a left hand AR maybe someone will reintroduce the lefty 1911. Every manufacturer is jumping in the 1911 bandwagon, why not differentiate and make the left hand version? I know it wouldn't be profitable with so few left hand shooters but we can still hope.
I always thought DA revolvers were left handed. Being a cop for 36 years and a firearms instructor the only thing I ever needed was a ambi thumb safety for a 1911. I would not trade any of my 6 smith revolvers for a lefty. It would be too confusing for a simle mind like I have. There are ways to reload for lefties that are just as quick as for righties. Practice is better than something new.
Posts: 40 | Location: Deep East Texas | Registered: 01 October 2008
NZshooter: me, too. And I DID get a left-handed Stag AR and it IS now my favorite rifle (and I don't even like AR's due to the "boing, boing, boing").
Regarding left-handed revolver: As a range officer, I teach leftys to work a revolver all the time, and it seems to work pretty well for them. Just activate the cylinder release with your trigger finger, pop the cylinder open with your right thumb, rest the trigger guard into your right palm, wrap two (or more) fingers of your right hand around the cylinder, let go with your left hand. Now your holding the revolver open with your weak hand and have your strong hand free to unload empty cases and reload the chambers.
I dunno, but the current left-swinging cylinders seem to be very left-handed friendly to me.
I don't have problems, but I would be interested. My auto-loader is a Sig226. I've found it to be lefty-friendly too. I've shied away from 1911s a little though.
"Illegitimi non carborundum." --Don't let the bastards get you down.
Posts: 19 | Location: Cave Country, KY | Registered: 12 September 2008
