Poll..."Is a 3 inch revolver barrel a snubnose?"

Seems to be a can of worms but here I go.
No matter what the barrel length is if it has a swing out cylinder and the gun has a shortened ejector throw I would call it a snub.
A 2 1/2 inch K frame has a shoetened ejector. So I would call it a snub.
A 3 inch 686 has a full ejector so it should not be.

Something else which we will most likely never know is that there are M 10 guns with 2,3,4,5 and 6 inch tubes. Why no 2 1/2 inch ones.Or was the 2 1/2 a .357 only invention. This is something I thought of after looking at a M 12 and wondering why not a 2 1/2 inch barrel?

I just found out there were 2 1/2 inch M 10 made for the FBI and over seas.
Plus thanks to dscampbell I see MI also. I have not seen one as of yet.
 
Last edited:
I just read through this whole thing.

I have three L-frames with 3" barrels. I don't like "stub" barreled revolvers (thanks Allen Frame for the name) so I guess a 3" L-frame is not a "stub" or at worst is on the cusp. (smile)

Dave
 
Seems to be a can of worms but here I go.
No matter what the barrel length is if it has a swing out cylinder and the gun has a shortened ejector throw I would call it a snub.
A 2 1/2 inch K frame has a shoetened ejector. So I would call it a snub.
A 3 inch 686 has a full ejector so it should not be.

Something else which we will most likely never know is that there are M 10 guns with 2,3,4,5 and 6 inch tubes. Why no 2 1/2 inch ones.Or was the 2 1/2 a .357 only invention. This is something I thought of after looking at a M 12 and wondering why not a 2 1/2 inch barrel?
Actually there a batch of 2 1/2 " model 10s made up for the FBI and the Michigan State Police



Wheel guns are still real guns too. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
My three inch model 36 was not a snub, but my Governor certainly is...when the cylinder is as long as or longer than the barrel...
 
It took to post 101 to get to what I was taught in armorer's school. If it has a full length ejector rod it is not.
 
3" A snub??? I say No.

2.5 or less = SNUB..3" = short barrel revolver..4" = more of a standard....anything over 4" = long barrel.
 
Last edited:
If you have a revolver, and it's hard to hit anything with it's a snub.

If you can pick it up for the first time and shoot it reasonably well without practice, it's not a snub.

By that standard, my M60 3" target sight model is not a snub, and my LCR is a snub.
 
Technically it should be called a STUB nose revolver.
If you were to cut off your finger would you call it a snub?
Or a stub.
Waay back when the definition of a stub nose revolver was one with a
1" barrel. That was done by a gunsmith for ones pocket carry.
Somewhere along the line, probably in the Leftist media,
someone got it wrong and coined the phrase snub-nose,
and it stuck.
Just as the media has coined the phrase "Gunned down"
everyone knows to "gun someone down" is to hit them with
the butt of your rifle and put them down, not SHOOT them.
(Thanks to Col. Jeff Cooper for this clarification)

My definition of a stubby is a J frame with a 1 7/8ths inch barrel,
or a K frame with a 2"barrel as in model 15.
Just look at a model 15 2" and it becomes apparent.

A 2.5" OR 3" J or K frame Smith is a short barreled revolver.
The 3" N frames don't even come into play in the stubby description
because of their sheer physical size.
BUT, if one were to cut an N frames barrel off to 1",
I would definitely consider it a stub-nosed revolver.


A snub is a rejection of sorts as in to SNUB ones advances.
" I gave her my best lines, and she snubbed me."

This follows the lines of how we describe a blood type today.
There is type A, Type B, and type ZERO, a blood with no
markers in it. Somewhere along the line it became type 'O' .

We do many things to *******ize the English language and
the situation is not getting any better.

Rant over, just my opinion and a couple of facts.

Feeling pretty old today.
Allen Frame

Whenever I take a test with multiple choice questions and I don't know the answer, I bet on the one that is "Too long to be wrong", so I'm going with this.

And considering the source, I'd like to double down:D

#2
 
Zombie thread from 2010, resurrected in 2011, and again in late 2013. Start a new one!
 
Whenever I take a test with multiple choice questions and I don't know the answer, I bet on the one that is "Too long to be wrong", so I'm going with this.

And considering the source, I'd like to double down:D

#2

I would like to Double down on this one as well...Who is holding the money....
 
To me, a "snub nose" revolver is specifically a J frame with the 1 7/8 inch barrel or equivalent Colt D frame with 2 inch barrel. I also regard the 2 inch K frame (such as Model 10, etc.) as a "snub nose" revolver.

I do not regard anything over 2 inch as a "snub nose." I do not really think of any L or N frame as a "snub nose," regardless of barrel length. Arbitrary distinction? Perhaps, but that is how I view it.
 
I think it depends on the frame size. A 3-inch on an N-frame is a snub, on a J-frame it's not.

Snowbandit nailed it:

Snub:
624-3.jpg


Not Snubs:
36-1.jpg

65-5.jpg


Snub wannabe:
696-1.jpg
 
Last edited:
I'm going the other way boys.

In my humble opinion (for what it's worth), anything under a 4 inch barrel is a "snub".

So, to me, a 3.5 inch M-27 is a snub. If you think not, look closely, to me, it appears to be a "snub", and not a "service" length barrel.

And also, the 3 inch K-frames are "snubs". They too appear to be too short for a "service" length barrel.

And lastly, the 3 inch J-frames are "snubs", If you think not, look at a 4 inch barrel J-frame. The 3 inch looks long compared to a 2 inch, but put that 4 inch barrel in there and compare.

Anyway, that's just my own personal thoughts on the matter, and you can use what ever standard that you prefer. It's your choice on what you want to call what.....

Heck, I forgot to vote......#1
 
Last edited:
Groo here
For you old farts, the original cop/mil revolver was a 5 or 6 inch.
That was when we used feet or horses to get around.
When the police car became common a shorter barrel became the norm
as a longer barrel poked holes in the seat and your ribs.
[usually n frame or big colts]
The first short 357 was a 3 1/2 in [with a short cylinder about the same as a modern 3 in]
I would say that if a full stroke of the ejector will not clear the case,
the gun is a snub. [ in a magnum case]
The barrel is too short for a full ejector.
This means that even in a j frame you need at least 3in to get full stroke.
The only exception would be 9mm,40,45acp guns as a short ejector is
normal , then I would go back to the "normal" length shells
and still say 3 in is a Normal length and shorter a snub.
PS. I believe that the 3 in [3 1/2in with a short cylinder]
is the correct "belt length" and the 5in the correct "long" barrel.
There is a big increase in speed at 3in and again at 5.
 
Back
Top