Hamburg NY Gun Show and Bulldog question

[Grimjaws]

So did the big local Hamburg NY show. They should rename it the Knife and Bayonet show as I can’t remember the last time I saw so many knives for sale

No good deals besides a left hand S&W holster for a k frame for $10 - basket weave and in fantastic shape and just the thing for my dual 19-3 belt and right hand holster.

Ammo was priced OK. One table had .38 for $24 a box of 50 and .45 for $26 both FMJ
Saw some decent priced Colt New Police and 38 S&W Long too

I think we may be sitting on some gold mines as the S&W older revolvers where WAY overpriced
12-3 2” was $700 - $800
37 not sure of dash square butt in box was $750
36 no dash was $750
Beat up 64 was $650

I did see a nice 19-3 4” with wood grips was $695

Next table had a 19-3 with some serious bluing loss and Pachmayr for $750

Only gun that peaked my interest was a Charter Arms Bulldog in .44 Special in box with a speedloader - looked unfired for $550
Owner and I talked about the Son of Sam and it was his fathers who bought it but never fired it
Made in Stanford

Two questions
- what were the best years and places of production for Charter Arms again
- if anyone owns one can you tell me what the recoil is like as I imagine it must have been a beast with such small stocks

 

[Dave Baird]

I remember being told only buy them marked Stanford or Bridgeport. The earlier, the better. JMO.

 

[Bald1]

I have nothing to offer on Bulldog other than there are 2 Charter Arms snubbies at Cabelas right now. Don’t know model or caliber. I didn’t go to Hamburg show. It has stunk the last three times I went ( three shows per yr). Young guys selling plastic and old guys wanting to talk about their rifles because they are not priced to sell. Same guys same overpriced ammo. Even the Amish leather guy let me down last time. He quit making dog collars.

 

[Baxter6551]

Charter Arms started in Bridgeport CT and moved to Stratford Ct. Guns from those years are the best in my opinion. They fell on hard times and became CHARCO in Shelton Ct. Not good years from what I understand. Now Charter Arms in Shelton and a good company with a good President. Their current product is very good. My .38 is a Bridgeport gun 1964 and my stainless .44 is a Stratford Gun from the mid 80s. The.44 recoil is very manageable with either the factory wood grips (great design) or rubber.

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

Another vote for the Bulldog with the original wooden grips. With a very firm grip, the recoil was simply not a problem, except that with factory ammo, the bullet in the fifth cartridge would back out of the case and could not be rotated into alignment with the barrel. Started reloading and crimping heavily - end of problem.

 

[dsf]

Two guns I've seen only once in CA in about 35 years are the Smith 520 and the original Charter Arms Bulldog. Missed out on the 520 years back ($450.00 - waaay too much ... ) but got this Bulldog a few years ago.



I reload, recoil is pretty stout with the defensive stuff. For thse into CCW and self punishment, the Undercover grips with a J frame grip adapter will fit.

 

[Brian Parrish]

Here's Mine.

Mine was $420 tax tag title out the door.

I wanted a large caliber pocket gun hence this "On Duty" model.
I have reloading supplies for 44.

You should know that the stock rubber grips will not do with HKS speed loaders.
You should know that when ejecting spent cases, sometimes, rather often, a case will hang on the rubber grip. I usually just twist the cylinder a little with my thumb and it drops away.
You should know I had to smooth surfaces and remove burrs to get it to work. I had been warned about this with Charter Arms so I was not surprised. It now runs great. Yours sounds like old stock so probably a lot better out of the box than mine.

Really does well with Silvertips. The Hornady rounds have a little red point that really helps reloading from Bianchi speed strips.

I maybe won't help with your recoil question, but it recoils exactly like a 44 special. I actually cannot relate to what others say about all that. I guess I do not mind the feeling of a gun going off. I do remember years ago the feeling of flinching, but I trained that out of myself, ...I think

Kind Regards!
BrianD

 

[DWalt]

The early and most desirable Charter Arms .44 Bulldogs have the Bridgeport stamping. And they are also the best made. The Son of Sam gun was also a Bridgeport. It is difficult to give a precise date by SN as the early .44 Bulldogs were serial numbered along with all the other Charter revolvers. There is some information available that provides approximate dating by SN, as factory production records no longer exist. Original wood grips on the Bridgeport Bulldogs suck when it comes to taming recoil., especially full loads. I handload .44s fairly lightly for my Bulldog for that reason. It is a good idea to get a pair of the oversized Pachmayr Presentation rubber grips. They make recoil control much easier.

Opening the cylinder with the thumbpiece can be a little problematic but that can be fixed with a dab of Super Glue. It is pretty simple to do. Or do as I do - pull forward on the extractor rod instead of using the thumbpiece. One other item. The frame pins tend to walk under recoil. A little Super Glue will fix that also.

You might look at this: http://smith-wessonforum.com/firear...ldog-first-serial.html?highlight=Charter+arms

Without doubt, all Bridgeport .44 BDs were made only in 1973-74 and have definitely been established as being found within at least the SN range of 193xxx to 300xxx. It is possible that the Bridgeport SN range inclusive of .44 BDs could be as wide as 175xxx to 340xxx. The number of Bridgeport-manufactured .44 BDs is unknown and cannot be estimated as the 1973-74 SN range includes other Charter Arms revolvers made during that period, and no factory .44 BD production records exist.

 

[muzzlestuffer2012]

So did the big local Hamburg NY show. They should rename it the Knife and Bayonet show as I can’t remember the last time I saw so many knives for sale

No good deals besides a left hand S&W holster for a k frame for $10 - basket weave and in fantastic shape and just the thing for my dual 19-3 belt and right hand holster.

Ammo was priced OK. One table had .38 for $24 a box of 50 and .45 for $26 both FMJ
Saw some decent priced Colt New Police and 38 S&W Long too

I think we may be sitting on some gold mines as the S&W older revolvers where WAY overpriced
12-3 2” was $700 - $800
37 not sure of dash square butt in box was $750
36 no dash was $750
Beat up 64 was $650

I did see a nice 19-3 4” with wood grips was $695

Next table had a 19-3 with some serious bluing loss and Pachmayr for $750

Only gun that peaked my interest was a Charter Arms Bulldog in .44 Special in box with a speedloader - looked unfired for $550
Owner and I talked about the Son of Sam and it was his fathers who bought it but never fired it
Made in Stanford

Two questions
- what were the best years and places of production for Charter Arms again
- if anyone owns one can you tell me what the recoil is like as I imagine it must have been a beast with such small stocks

That's a bummer their used to be good gun shows there and around Buffalo what a shame what happened to my old home town a real shame !

 

[LittleAugieMo]

As made "famous" in the movie Manhunter"

 

[Grimjaws]

That's a bummer their used to be good gun shows there and around Buffalo what a shame what happened to my old home town a real shame !

While this one was disappointing all is not lost - about 2 years ago got a 19-3 with Herrett Troopers for $375

Summer show last year got another set of Herrett’s and wood I Frame colt grips both in great shape. $100 total
Wanted the wood grips for my Colt Commando as it had the original factory plastic grips and didn’t want to risk them at the range.

One show I missed three 547 HKS speedloaders NIB for $3 each
I still kick myself over that one.

I’ll go again in the Spring

Cause you never know

 

[2152hq]

I missed it this time, but I've had pretty good luck there in the past.
I never focus on any one thing, so it's a wide open market for me.
I'm liable to come home with most anything though I'm trying not to buy any more projects. I'll likely never finish what I have now.

There used to be a show or shows every weekend starting in the fall and running through spring in western and central NY. But in the last few yrs they've dwindled down to a very few. Just like the GunShops,,wonder why...?!
..and yes the shows that remain are becoming more and more non-gun trinket & knife shows.
I really don't need to pay to walk in the door to see non-stick fry pans or llama jerky

 

[Ameshawki]

As others have mentioned, the Bridgeport and Stratford guns are good to go. I've owned a number of Charters over the years, I kind of like the brand.

Bulldog. Yes, it can be stout. Reload, kept them reasonably mild, and a good crimp and it can be a somewhat pleasant experience.

 

[pasound]

I bought a 1970's vintage Bulldog 3" back in the early 80's at a pawnshop. Looked unfired after five rounds. After my first time with it at a range, I understood why. Impossible to keep it pointed at anything after the recoil in that small frame with those grips. My LGS found a set of rubber grips, Pachmayr, I think. Shooting got easier then. I kept it several years while I was out on the road. Sometimes in an upside-down 3" j-frame shoulder holster. Hid easily under a vest in the three-piece suits my job demanded. I wish I still had it.

 

[GypsmJim]

I went and absolutely loved the show.

I saw an old milsurp for $1100 that I had bought years ago for $19. Made me feel good.

At Noon the girlie sang the National anthem (just as I was doing a NICS, and of course we all stood at attention. My NICS timed out and i had to do it over but I was proud nevertheless.

I had an item in mind and I actually saw 4 of them, priced at 50% to 100% above my price point. But then found another that was only a couplabucks above, and we negotiated just fine. I told him I still had the 1911 that I bought from him eons ago and he was now ready to deal.

The wife bought a pair of 1911 earrings that were cool.

All-in-all a fine day, after a wonderful buffet brunch at The Pegasus.