I recently purchased a cheap used Bulldog 44spcl (2016 build) and have spent enough time with the thing to find out how much I like it. There's just something about the little guy that is really enjoyable to shoot. The issue is the high cost of 44 spcl ammo, and the recoil of the thing, which can be a handful.

Either way, I've been kicking around the idea of getting a 9mm revolver for fun range shooting. I've seen there's some offerings from Ruger (SP101, LCR), S&W (929), Charter, Taurus.

Of all of them, I'm really only interested in the SP101 or the Pit Bull. The 929 is a fine firearm, but it carries a fine price tag and I already have a tricked out 627 if I want to go the full sized route.

Long story short, Only the Sp101 and the Charter seem like something I want...and the Charter new is $125 less than the Ruger.

Anyone have any experience with one of these?

My Taurus came back after 86 days getting a minor repair.

You might want to get one of the OTHER brands !!

Good luck.

I have a Mag Pug and it's had zero issues after running well over 1000 rounds through it. I would guess 60 percent of it was 38 special and the rest .357. The thing with CA is the fit and finish is not S&W but they are built good.

I live in CT about 20 miles from the CA factory. I bought my Mag Pug after visiting the factory and given a tour, including my wife, by the owner Nick. Not only did we get a tour we got to fire a Mag Pug, a Pink Lady, and Bull Dog. They are great folk. If you have any questions just call them they would have no problem talking with you.

Honestly though if you like revolvers you may want to look into reloading. I load .357 for around 7.50 per 50. Don't load 44 special as I don't own a revolver chambered for it but I will some day and when that day comes a set of loading dies will come with it.

"...revolver for 'fun' range shooting"

For me personally, a day of "fun" range shooting revolvers involves barrel lengths of 4" minimum. Based on your personal choices however, I'd go Ruger.

__________________
Ad Astra Per Aspera

I can see that...and I'm a big fan of a 4" barrel as well. I wasn't expecting that Bulldog to be as enjoyable as it was, that's why the thought of a smaller 9mm crossed my mind.

I have a couple of the Ruger SP101's in 357 mag. I can tell you they are very well built, I don't think you can tear them up if you tried. They handle full load 357s so I imagine the 9mm would be a breeze for them. Also have a Charter Arms 38 spec. Never had a problem with it either, shoots great but does have a kick to it.

I posted this a few years ago when this incident happened. One of my friends (actually a member here on the forum) bought a brand new Charter Arms 9mm Revolver. On the VERY FIRST SHOT using FACTORY AMMO, the top strap and cylinder blew apart!! I actually saw the pictures and talked to him after the incident and if he chooses to chime in - them so be it. He was shaken up a bit but thankfully not seriously injured.

Personally - I wold not go near a Charter Arms firearm (not even a vintage model) and this is not just because of this incident. I've handled and shot other CA's in different calibers and do not see them as quality firearms. Do not mean to insult any here who own them - that is just my opinion. Personally, it is worth saving up the extra coin to get the S&W version. Yes, I know it's expensive and vintage, however at least you will get a descent Revolver.

i have 3 charter arms revolvers. an off-duty 38, a 6 shot 38 police special and a 357 target bulldog. They are very well made, tough, reliable revolvers. Have had very good service from all of mine and i shoot plus p's out of all of them. I have quite a few handguns from other manufacturers as well. For the money they are the best value out there. Most all the reviews i've seen are overwhelmingly positive. Every manufacturer has a stinker once in awhile. Even smith and wesson. Read the reviews available about Charter Arms Service. Best out there. I base my comments on actually owning and shooting charter revolvers and i'm not repeating what "issues" someone or somebody else may or may not have had. I'm not saying they are "better" than S/W or any other brand, but they are good quality revolvers

Hello, I to have a 44 bulldog and it’s my favorite snub nose. I cast and reload so no problem with ammo. I carry mine more than my 69, 66 or any other revolvers. I to tried a friends 9mm CA, but found it harder to load than reload. I mean u had to insert and seat each round separately.
I didn’t care for it.
Good luck on your quest
Semper paratus

__________________
NRA Life Member
CPO

The new Charter Arms guns are better than ever. I suppose any manufacturer can turn out a lemon now and then, but CA has a well deserved good reputation. I had a Charter Arms .44 Spec Bulldog for a while, until one of my friends insisted I sell it to him. If I had to do it over again, I would have kept it.

If you cast your own bullets from scrounged lead, and hand load your own ammo, 44 Special costs the same as .22 LR.

Charter Arms makes throw of the dice guns in my experience. if you get a good one, you got a good one. if you get a lemon, brother there ain't enough sugar to make lemon aid with it.

__________________
I'm only allowed 30 characters

I just picked up a Pathfinder in 22LR 4.2" barrel. Although I only had 1 session so far due to winter sticking around way too long, It operated perfect. Smooth action and the accuracy was not bad out of the box. I still have to get the rest out to zero it in but I did a few bulls eyes at 25'. I did not fare so well in double action mode. I am not used to such a heavy trigger pull. I have heard that it will smooth out over time.
I chose the CA because I have heard horrible things about Ruger's 22lr revolvers trigger pull. And the S&W is just to pricey for my budget.
I can see I will be having a bit of fun with this new revolver this Spring.

I have owned and or fired Charter revolvers in .22 LR, .22 WMR, .32 S&WL, .327 Fed Mag, .38 S&W Spl,. 40 S&W, .44 S&W Spl,. 45 acp.

With the exception of a .327 Patriot which was beautiful and had the fit and finish of a S&W, all are or were fully functional. The Charters have a simpler design which requires less labor to finish, they are not IMHO works of art, they are tools.

__________________
Certified Curmudgeon

One of my friends has one in 9mm.He's been shooting it for more than 1 year now and that on a regular basis.So far so good;not a glitch.I've tried it and while I hadn't set my expectations to high,I must say that I liked the little thing.Well built and it looks like it will last long.
A M929 it ain't but it doesn't pretend to be it either.The little beast is light but still,for it's size quite confortable to shoot(I must say that 125gr of lead is not a very heavy chunk of lead to put on its trajectory though).
If I would have to choose a cc firearm,the Charter does deserve a good consideration...although I'd prefer mine in .44Spl.

^^^ Yes, definitely .44 Special. If limited to 5 shots, why tote a .22/9mm/.38/.357 when it can just as easily be a .44? With only a small amount of (enjoyable) effort on your part, they cost the same to shoot.

The Pug .357 by Charter is ported and shooting .357 is manageable but more pleasant with .38 It Feels solid and well built no issues.

Attached Images

DF196ECF-1D03-49EE-8B94-C4C244F274A6.jpg (29.2 KB, 324 views)

Apply rubber oversized grips to your CA .44 spl. This will help tame the recoil and do not exceed standard factory ammo loads. (246 grain LRN)

9mm revolvers can have a problem with "Crimp Jumping"

This could make the cost of ammo savings evaporate quickly since Hornady has good marks for resisting.

Rubber Grips on a .44 Charter, tended to erase my fingerprints, back in the day.

Geoff
Who puts rims in cylinders, I'm old fashioned (like the first half of the last century, when I was fashioned.)

It seems to me that a person owns a 9mm revolver because (1) They want one of everything (2) They want a backup in the same caliber as thier primary (3) They buy factory ammo and 9x19 is consistently cheaper than .38 and .357.

Unlike bullet setback in a semi, creep only occurs when the gun is fired, if the cylinder holds six, the taper crimp only has to resist five firings.

If you are at the range fire entire cylinders, no problem. If you used less than a cylinder in a SD situation, reload anyway for safety. The authorities will be taking your ammo as evidence anyway.

I have fired tons of .32acp, .380acp, 9x19, and .40S&W in five and six shot revolvers, some .45acp as well. With factory FMJ (which would be practice ammo), or LRNFP reloads I have not experienced any appreciable creep in four or five firings.

As for the SD ammo that came apart, I would not use it in a semi either. The others are good for a cylinder.

If you handload 9x19 specifically for the revolver, you can roll crimp it. That is what I do (125 grain Badman LRNFP, 6.0 grains Unique, crimped into groove).

Auto spell check says FMJ is FLU, might be onto something.

__________________
Certified Curmudgeon

I just picked up a used 9mm Pitbull Friday from my LGS. I stopped at the range on the way home and shot 50 rounds with it. My knock down percentage on the plate rack at 50 feet was not very good; I need another range session to see where it shoots on a target. Recoil is stiff (maybe why it turned up as a used gun), but not punishing like the recoil of my LCR with .327 federal magnum loads. The neoprene grips help soften the recoil.
I will not be carrying this gun for self defense and had an interest in it mostly because of its rimless cartridge extractor assembly system, which functioned just fine. Loading rounds takes a little practice, but it was still fun to shoot.
The pit bull is stainless and I need to do something to make the front sight blade more visible to my old eyes in broad daylight. I've used a bright red/orange nail polish application on a few of my other revolvers with black sights, but think I'll need a darker color to contrast with the SS frame.

Big brother: 40 S&W. (With Badman 180gr .38/40 LRNFPs over 4.8gr CSB-1, CiG.)

Attached Images

20180402_194429.jpg (54.1 KB, 27 views)

__________________
Certified Curmudgeon

typetwelve, Of the two, my experience has been with the SP-101. I've owned my example for years. I've shot all kinds of ammo in it with never an issue.

BTW, you may find that the "little" 9MM in a small revolver exhibits more recoil and muzzle blast than some might imagine. Not as much as a .357 certainly, but noticeably more than any .38 +P ammo I've used in a small revolver....

__________________
NRA Life, COTEP 640

Reminds me of a time I was lusting for a S&W 63, couldn't find one, but along comes a Pathfinder. I bought it, shot it a lot, sweet trigger, handled very nicely, but then the 63s became available, so I sold it to put the cash toward the 63. Big mistake, that 63 was terrible, horrible trigger pull, and as soon as it heated up, you couldn't eject the empties. Regret giving up that Pathfinder!

__________________
Tony

I have a Charter Arms Bulldog Pug .44 Special I bought about 6 years ago, and am pretty happy with it.
As someone else has said here, they are " roll of the dice " guns. I went thru three different ones to get the one I have now, and it's a good one.
The innnards are somewhat loose and rattley, action a little rough, but it shoots to point of aim with the sights, and shoots every time. It is very accurate with a couple of loads, not so much with others.
For someone wanting the biggest caliber in the smallest, lightest package, the CA Bulldog/Pug is the only game in town as near as I can tell.

Unless you have a ton of 9mm shoot up, I see no reason to buy a 9mm revolver.
In that general bore diameter range ( .355"/.357" ), the .38 Special is a MUCH more versatile and useful cartridge, with the .357 Magnum even more so.
Plus, with the .38 and .357 there are some good speedloaders available.
The Safariland speedloaders are vastly superior to the HKS speedloaders, but for some reason almost everybody uses the HKS brand. I guess because they are a tiny bit cheaper and more widely stocked by sporting goods stores that know little about speedloaders.