Look what followed me home....S&W Bodyguard .38

[Budda]

Well it followed me home......I have been wanting another carry gun and this one followed me home. It was "used" and about $150 less than msrp, so I had to "pull the trigger"

......Wife wanted her .38 back that I have been packing, it is a Taurus 85 .38+p

This is the S&W Bodyguard .38+p with laser sight.....I can't wait to go shoot it!!!

these are not actual pictures of mine....but exact same thing.

[freebird72]

Looks nice, I have never seen a laser sight that high on a revolver before; makes it look all fancy.

[Technosavant]

Enjoy yours, I like mine.

Make sure it is shooting correctly; they had some where the barrel was installed incorrectly, causing it to shoot WAY to the left. Mine was one of those; the fix was a replacement gun, but the new one has worked great.

I find that while it doesn't have the same quality feel as the 637/638/642 brethren, it's a little easier to shoot so the guns end up being equally accurate in my hands (I also have a 642).

[Budda]

Ya, I looked at the Taurus poly and it looks like a fifth grader made it in art class while the teacher was not looking.....the Ruger LCR looked way better in quality than the Taurus, but the S&W looks even better,feels tight and had the best trigger of the three....the lazer is cool....but when it gets pulled It will be just a standard revolver as I will not be thinking about pushing the little button.

[sgms]

Give us a range report after you take it to the range, I've been looking at them and wondered how well they handle.

[Budda]

Now the Pictures......








I find it funny where the lawyer sticker says beware of the Laser on the end of a hand gun......

[Colorado Redneck]

I would guess the advisment concerns inadvertently shinning the laxer in someone's eyes while messing around. Had a numb nuts at work do that with a laser pointer one time, and my eyes didn't feel right for a couple of days. Just a guess. Not that any of us would ever do that.

[KyJim]

Congrats! I have one and find it very helpful with trigger control to dry fire it with the laser. The laser really shows how steady (or not) you can hold that gun while pulling the trigger.

[dab102999]

How easy do you find it to hit the laser in a draw situation???. My wife looked at one but didnt feel confident that she could activate the laser while drawing and get on target and finger down in position in time.

[Budda]

To me the laser is a novelty. I will use it to plink with but in a do or die, it is just a gun. Now if I have time to plan it out I could turn on the laser and do a hip shot to the ear hole!

[dab102999]

Ya I know what you mean. I have never been to fond of relying on the laser. And wife is on same page on that. Need to know how to shoot and get on target and not count on something with batteries. But of all the lasers out there the one on the LCP that has the activation button right at the end of the finger (like your finger should be until ready to fire) seemed the most user friendly to her and I. But I don't see my self ever adding one to a gun. If it is on there when I buy one is a different story but not going to look for a gun with one. And nice looking gun by the way. Wife was leaning towards one but then I found a 638 used for a heck of a price and got that for her and she loves shooting it. Put a Hoage grip on it for when she target shoots more then 50 rounds but switching grips back and forth makes no difference on her shot pattern.

[Whirlwind06]

Do these use the same speed loader as the J-frames?

[Technosavant]

How easy do you find it to hit the laser in a draw situation???

Not very. My thumb wants to press down on the elevation adjustment screw on the laser housing. They really didn't make it easy to find. That makes the laser useless in moments of extreme stress, which ironically is the situation where it would be most needed. If you have the extra second to activate the laser you can use the sights. IMO, that's the largest failing of this revolver- in trying to hit a price point they ended up trading away the one thing that would have made the laser useful- the "turn on as you grip it" feature you get with the Crimson Trace grips.

As for the speedloaders, IIRC it uses the same ones as the J frames.

[Budda]

15rds at one sec intervals@7yards two hand standing.


3rd group carful aim@7yards two hand standing.


Not bad for a DAO trigger nice smooth break...I need more trigger time for sure.

Recoil is noticable but my buddy's 12oz S&W .357 with a titainium cylinder is like slamming your hand in a car door, or giving a high five to a grizzly bear. The recoil with +p in my Bodyguard was about like a sp101 with hot .357. Not that bad but I would not want to shoot 200 in a sitting.

I can shoot better with the Taurus 85 in single action......but that is to be expected.

I am colorblind and can't see the laser in daylight. I will replace the front sight with a trijicon as well....other than that this lil .38 is EXACTLY what I was looking for.

I will update this as I shoot it more.

[KyJim]

How easy do you find it to hit the laser in a draw situation???. My wife looked at one but didnt feel confident that she could activate the laser while drawing and get on target and finger down in position in time.

I don't use the laser in that kind of situation. Too many years of using standard sights. I use them for more deliberate shooting and for training.

[blackamos]

How are you doing with the top cylinder release? I wish they would have left it alone.

[Sgt.Fathead]

I was ready to post it and blackamos beat me to it. I like the feel of this piece but after a lifetime of handling J frames, that cylinder latch at the top just doesn't feel instinctual to me!