A Beast Came Home

slowburninsteve

slowburninsteve

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This beast followed me home yesterday. I have wanted a Charter Arms old style Bulldog .44 Special for many years, and lucked into this mint condition, unfired one. I saw it at the local gun show a couple of weeks ago, and the owner was kind enough to hold it for me until I had the funds available to purchase it. I have already picked up a couple of HKS speed loaders for it, and have ordered a set of custom walnut grips. I am having a major problem finding a leather belt holster for it. A J frame S&W holster is too small, and a K frame S&W holster is too big. If anyone has suggestions on where to find a reasonably priced leather OWB holster please let me know. I intend to end this Bulldog's mint condition very soon with a trip to the range! With it's small size and light weight I'm sure it will be a Beast to shoot!!!!:eek:

Steve

bulldog1-1.jpg


bulldog2.jpg
 
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slowburninsteve said:
This beast followed me home yesterday. I have wanted a Charter Arms old style Bulldog .44 Special for many years, and lucked into this mint condition, unfired one. I saw it at the local gun show a couple of weeks ago, and the owner was kind enough to hold it for me until I had the funds available to purchase it. I have already picked up a couple of HKS speed loaders for it, and have ordered a set of custom walnut grips. I am having a major problem finding a leather belt holster for it. A J frame S&W holster is too small, and a K frame S&W holster is too big. If anyone has suggestions on where to find a reasonably priced leather OWB holster please let me know. I intend to end this Bulldog's mint condition very soon with a trip to the range! With it's small size and light weight I'm sure it will be a Beast to shoot!!!!:eek:

Steve

bulldog1-1.jpg


bulldog2.jpg
Click to expand...

Steve,

I had one about 20 years ago and loved it. As I used to do back then, I traded it for something else which took my fancy and regretted it soon afterward. I much prefer the older to the newer Charter Bulldog. I think you'll find that it's not too much of a handful, no worse as I remember than a J frame with +P rounds. Can't help on the holster offerings today, but I seem to remember it was an Uncle Mike's I used back then.

Have fun.

Bernie.
 
Shagrat123,

I have owned two of the older bulldog 44's in the 1980's and I liked them, but they were traded off or sold like so many guns over so many years. I purchased a new stainless steel bulldog in 2009 and was very disappointed with the quality. Looks like you made an excellent find. Let me know if you decide to part with it lol lol.

John
 
Nice gun. First belly gun I found that I could actually stick in my belt and have it stay there. That was with the original grips, of course, which I found plenty comfortable. Be careful with factory ammo - some is not crimped well enough, and the recoil can unseat the last bullet. I only carried heavily crimped reloads.
 
Don't get any ideas about Keith type reloads in it. You won't like it and the gun won't either. The old 246 grain RNL loads were bad enough, with the stock grips. I remember by buddy's Bulldog had bullets come unseated in it. We also shot some warm, but not excessive hand loads in it that were really nasty in the little gun, and it jammed up, but we got it back in working order. The modern 200 grain loads may be nice in it.
 
I have had good luck with mine shooting a 429215 215 gr cast bullet over 4 gr green dot. I also shoot 7 gr Unique over a 429421 250 gr cast but not very often. The Pachmeyer grips are the way to go when shooting these guns, wood just plain bounces too hard off my hands. Nice gun, I haven't seen a box for one in a long time.
 
Thanks guys. The last Charter Arms Bulldog I saw before this one was at a gun show about 5 years ago. It was an old style in stainless steel. I have kicked myself several times for not buying it. I intend to hang on to the Beast for a long time! I have some Glaser Blue Safety Slugs and some Winchester 200 grain Silvertips for it that I will use while carrying it and for it's speedloaders.

Steve
 
Bulldog 'beast'

Congratulations on a nice find. Mine is also an early one, and worked wonderfully til I decided to try some grizzly loads. Won't do that again.

Mine quite likes the 200 gr and 246 factory loads. 200 gr shoot better to point of aim for me.

Regards,

Dyson
 
My dad got one maybe 25 years ago that looked like yours. He would never use a holster, just tucking it in his belt.
One time it fell out and landed on the trigger guard, breaking it. It stayed that way until this spring and I ordered a new trigger guard/grip frame from Brownells. The only thing, they only had it available in stainless.

So now it's a two-tone Bulldog. Kinda neat looking!
 
without a doubt the worst recoiling revolver I have ever shot was a Bulldog with some of Elmer's memorial loads. it was ugly
 
I've always wanted a classic Charter .44 spl. These new ones just don't have the fit and finish that the old ones did. Very dissapointing- otherwise I'd have one by now. So, I have an Alaskan instead. Much more fun, and easy to hide. :D
 
Mines been carried in a Hunter 1100 B17 for 35 years and has done fine. They list several for 3" Charters. There are also a few different styles on then Charter website that aren't too expensive. I still have an old S&W upside down shoulder rig that works great.
 
The Glasser safety slugs will print about 18" low @ 25 yards in my gun vs a 240 gr @ 750 fps.
 
Man, finding a ready-made leather pancake holster to fit the Bulldog has become a mission. I've hit three local gun shops and surfed the web with no sucess. The three inch barrel is the hangup unless you want the barrel hanging out the bottom (which is one of my pet peaves). Guess I'll keep searching. If anyone has a leather pancake for it or knows where to find a reasonably priced, no wait, ready made one, please let me know. I really don't want to get into ordering a custom holster with a several week waiting period. I bought an el-cheapo Uncle Mikes belt holster for the time being.
Thanks!
Steve
 
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