Body guard in 38 special-any good?

Flyingfool · May 12, 2017

What's the opinion of rhis revolver?

Wife has the airweight model 642, dad has the ruger LCR.

My 22 year old daughter is graduating college and a revolver is what she woild like for graduation gift. Something she can ise to protect herself when she moves out. She is also a CCW holder but hasn't got a lot of shooting experience.

She likes the weight of the 642 but the trigger of the LCR. When at the LGS, the bodyguard in 38 was in the used rack. Seemed like a lighter trigger pull than the 642, but was the same weight as the 642. The skinnier and lomger grip she liked better than the standard 642 grip.

I don't know much about the bodyguard revolver. So I thought I would ask here!

What say you all? Is the bodyguard worh it? The price was $430 and barely seen turn line and looked almost new. The store had the new one for $500.

Rpg · May 12, 2017

If you are referring to the Tupperware bodyguard, you should know that it's not well thought of in knowledgeable circles.

The action is used only in the Tupperware model and is buggy: easy to freeze things up. This is a design defect Smith won't address. The controls are oddly placed. This thing isn't a J frame. A search here will yield more info on this thing: little of which is favorable.

If you are referring to the old Bodyguard: the M 38, you have hit on the best pocket pistol ever made IMHO. The modern version is the M638. These are both J frames, and dead reliable. They can benefit from trigger work.

You should know that these small revolvers require some effort to learn to shoot well.

Flyingfool · May 12, 2017

I was talkimg about the new polymer bodyguard revolver.

Tell me more about the "defect".

Cal44 · May 12, 2017

This kind of 38 Special Bodyguard is good:

M49

moonpup · May 12, 2017

I'd avoid the BG .38 and go with the Ruger LCR. In my opinion the BG line (including the .380) is simply junk. I went with the LCR in .357 for the added weight to help with recoil when shooting.38's. If she's not recoil sensitive, the .38 +p model is a solid choice!

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Flyingfool · May 12, 2017

Please answer the question I asked.

Is the new polymer 38 bodyguard revolver any good, or should I stay away?

My daughter is not a purist. So she coild give a damn about the non traditional cylinder release, or really much care about metal versus plastic as long as it is reliable.

Rpg · May 12, 2017

The Tupperware bodyguard will freeze up if you pull the trigger part way through then relax the tension on the trigger then try again to pull the trigger. The action will often freeze so you can't shoot the gun. Firearms intended for self defense must work every time, not just sometimes.

Sometimes the cylinder won't rotate when the trigger is pulled.

There are other problems you'll see mentioned if you search this forum.

Stay away from this thing.

Flyingfool · May 12, 2017

Thanks. That's what I needed to know.

I just forwarded the info to my wife as she may go to buy a revolver today!

jeeps · May 12, 2017

My M38 1969 made is a great bodyguard coined that in 1955 till 1988. Great snubby!! This is the real Body Guard !

STCM(SW) · May 12, 2017

M 638 would be a good choice.

jpg images certificity.com

trailmix · May 12, 2017

I wonder how many of the people claiming that the new BG38 will freeze up have ever even fired one. Every time I read one of these threads, I try to duplicate the problem with mine and it never seems to lock up. I own 6 or 7 different small revolvers and while the BG38 isn't my favorite of the bunch I don't believe that it is defective either.

typetwelve · May 12, 2017

I'll chime in on this one...

I actually owned one from 2010 through 2015. Never once did it give me a bit of grief. It handled regular and +P loads well.

In the end, it wasn't my cup of tea, I traded it off on a 642 spring of 2015.

My beefs with the thing?
-The cylinder release was weird and the laser was darn near useless with the way you had to turn it on (it was an early model with an insight laser).
-I never really liked the plastic frame, or the cheap feeling trigger guard.
-I'm really picky about grips and the ones it came with were odd feeling.

With that said, it never failed me, once.

CAJUNLAWYER · May 12, 2017

trailmix said:
I wonder how many of the people claiming that the new BG38 will freeze up have ever even fired one. Every time I read one of these threads, I try to duplicate the problem with mine and it never seems to lock up. I own 6 or 7 different small revolvers and while the BG38 isn't my favorite of the bunch I don't believe that it is defective either.

Well close. I bought a Ruger LCR in.22 years ago and it froze up on me immediately while I was doing my "Open the box as soon as I got it and dryfire it" drill. Scared the snot out of me as I could repeat the freeze up and it happened whenever one pulled the trigger fast. Sent it back Ruger fixed it(replaced the hand/pawl and something else) and I got rid of it immediately. For that reason I will not trust these new revolvers. I see no reason to forsake the airweight J frames when searching for a lightweight carry weapon as they have decades of proven service from a proven lockwork. If I want to shoot anything more powerful than .38 I'll go with my 25 year old SP101.
As far as weight advantage over the 638, according to the factory specks the Bodygurd 38 weighs 14,4 oz and my 638 weighs in at an ounce less. I'll take the proven J frame anyday

ParadiseRoad · May 12, 2017

...get her a Chic Lady...I know...blasphemy...

trailmix · May 12, 2017

typetwelve said:
I'll chime in on this one...

I actually owned one from 2010 through 2015. Never once did it give me a bit of grief. It handled regular and +P loads well.

In the end, it wasn't my cup of tea, I traded it off on a 642 spring of 2015.

My beefs with the thing?
-The cylinder release was weird and the laser was darn near useless with the way you had to turn it on (it was an early model with an insight laser).
-I never really liked the plastic frame, or the cheap feeling trigger guard.
-I'm really picky about grips and the ones it came with were odd feeling.

With that said, it never failed me, once.

I would say this is a very accurate assessment of the BG38. I also think the laser is useless and the grips are very weird but the cylinder latch doesn't really bother me. In fact, I will probably end up giving it to my mother who loves the cylinder latch because she is left handed.

trailmix · May 12, 2017

STCM(SW) said:
M 638 would be a good choice.
jpg images certificity.com

Totally agree, I carry my 638 more than any other gun I own.

Tyrod · May 12, 2017

If you haven't figured it out by now, let's just say that many members of this forum are traditionalists. They just tend to resist change. I don't own nor have ever owned a polymer bodyguard so I can't express any experience with the polymer bodyguard. I will say this, I would avoid a used polymer bodyguard. I know there was some measure of growing pains with this gun. I'm sure S&W has sorted out these problems by now. Brand new polymer bodyguards are probably just fine. However, if I were looking for a new small frame S&W, I'd have to consider a new model 442 or model 642 which have very attractive price points at this time. You can even get them in "no lock" versions, if you're concerned about such things.

Looks like right now a new polymer bodyguard BG38 is going for approx $400 with laser at my favorite on-line retailer. The Model 438, the more traditional Bodyguard model made of aluminum & steel runs about $350 without laser. The Model 442 goes for as little as $330 without laser. As I said earlier, I would avoid a used BG38 because it may have problems that are unresolved. Also, a brand new, in the box, J frame S&W for $330 to $350 is phenomenal IMHO.

Rpg · May 12, 2017

trailmix said:
I wonder how many of the people claiming that the new BG38 will freeze up have ever even fired one. Every time I read one of these threads, I try to duplicate the problem with mine and it never seems to lock up. I own 6 or 7 different small revolvers and while the BG38 isn't my favorite of the bunch I don't believe that it is defective either.

I've only fired 3 of these things: all owned by other folks. Each exhibited these problems.

GeoJelly · May 12, 2017

moonpup said:
I'd avoid the BG .38 and go with the Ruger LCR. In my opinion the BG line (including the .380) is simply junk. I went with the LCR in .357 for the added weight to help with recoil when shooting.38's. If she's not recoil sensitive, the .38 +p model is a solid choice!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What he says ^ ^ ^ - if you must have uber-light, which means some polymer in the construction - then you can't go wrong with an LCR. Yes, I know it's awful to say this on SWF. I have (only) handled two BG .38's - I found the actions to be sloppy, and I doubt it would come back any better if you sent one back to S&W. If anything goes wrong with a recent Ruger, Ruger will fix it ...

Mister X · May 12, 2017

I've read frequent complaints about the bodyguard, so I'd avoid it. The Ruger LCR is prone to short-stroking the trigger in rapid fire so it's no-go IMO for use as a defensive firearm. The S&W centennial models would be my recommendation with the 642/442 offering the best bang for the buck.

Body guard in 38 special-any good?

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