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Old December 26, 2012, 07:13 PM   #51
PetahW
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Charger Man

I see that the OP hasn't come back just yet...maybe this is his own answer?? LOL!
It looks like he's a "one & done"......................





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Old December 31, 2012, 10:26 AM   #52
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Hey, I'm up for a Charter forum.

I can't turn around without finding a Charter "orphan" at a good price (and of course, buying it).

Currently, I'm up to five Charters, but just put a vintage Bulldog on layaway. I needed a 6th one anyway.
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Old January 2, 2013, 05:25 PM   #53
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^^Yah, I, also.

I recently had a half-dozen, 3 Undercovers and 3 .44s (Bulldog SS, Bulldog, and Pug) all either Stratford or Bridgeport guns, but let my friend trade me out of one of the .38s and the Stainless Bulldog.

I've given away two or three of the Undercovers over the years.

I'm a big fan and have been for a long time.

Buckeye, are you the same on 24 hour? If so, I'm really pleased with the Redhawk!!

Best,

Will
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Old January 5, 2013, 12:09 AM   #54
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I tell you what I have 2 boards One for Bersa and one for America classic 1911's I have a revolver section on 1911 board . If I can get enough interest for you all I will ad a Charter Arms section on my 1911 board. If it goes and grows I might consider a 3rd board I added a KelTec years ago on the Bersa and it has some traffic

I have owned a couple of the 38's and at present have a older 44 special I like the pistols just never considered a board . By way these places can be a lot of work I spend several hours a day on mine . So If your really serious and interrested PM me here
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Old November 12, 2013, 03:41 PM   #55
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Pitbull 5" 40 S&W on the way

I have a Glock 22 I carry as a duty weapon and have another Glock 22 I use the lower on a Mechtech upper making it a carbine.
I reload for the 40 and wanted a revolver in 40 caliber.

I choose a Charter Arms Pitbull with the 5" barrel.
A call to Charter Arms and it was ordered, also a letter and some other stuff.

It should be here this week, here is a photo from the web.

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Old November 13, 2013, 10:31 AM   #56
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WOW! Never knew they made a 5 inch barrel!!! Looks great. How is recoil with that barrel? That is the only complaint I have with my Pitbull. Every dang round I have tried has had brutal recoil. I started with 180 grain, then 165 and then 155. All were real kickers. I have some Winchester Ranger in 135 grain FMJ/FP and hopefully that will be okay.
I've been trying to buy a Charter Undercover in .38 Special but no luck. Seems like all the wholesalers are out of them. I may have my LGS contact Charter direct and see if he can get one that way.
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Old November 13, 2013, 10:59 AM   #57
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Quote:
That is the only complaint I have with my Pitbull.
Every dang round I have tried has had brutal recoil.
Yep, that's my .44 Special Charter as well,,,
It's no surprise because it's essentially a J-frame,,,
That's an awfully big bullet for such a small framed handgun.

I don't like shooting .40 S&W in any platform,,,
In a revolver I'll bet it's punishing.

Aarond

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Old November 13, 2013, 12:04 PM   #58
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Actually, I have no problem shooting the .44 Special out of my Bulldog. I put on Pachmayr Compaq grips and they are much better than the factory neoprene grips. Definitely do NOT use any kind of +P or hot .44 Special in the Bulldog. For carry use Charter recommends Winchester Silvertip and I just shoot Remington LRN or Cowboy Action loads for practice. The main downside to .44 Special is the price of the ammo.
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Old November 13, 2013, 05:29 PM   #59
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I like my .44 Bulldog enough that last week I picked up an undercoverette in
.32 mag. Both are good lightweight guns for CCW here where it's usually HOT outside. Might even pick up a third in .357!

I too think they are good guns for the price and didn't realize how popular they were until I saw this thread.
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Old November 13, 2013, 07:23 PM   #60
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Got the Charter Arms in.
Shot 50 rounds of 180 grain reloads through it at steel targets.
200 grain bullets were a hair to long overall to fit in the chambers.
They would not seat all the way in.

No issues whatsoever with the revolver.
The 40 cal cases seat in the chamber and click in so no moon clips are required.
It shot low and to the right so I will need to bench rest and sight it in.

I shot metal plates and the gun functioned like a wheel gun should.

The single action is crisp at about 4 pounds, the double action is double action....

The stainless is a brushed finish. The fit was good from what I could tell and appears functional.

For the price, less than 400 bucks, I think it is a good value.

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Old November 13, 2013, 10:39 PM   #61
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I checked Charter's website and that long barrel is not listed. Must be a very special order.
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Old November 14, 2013, 04:02 PM   #62
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I just called Charter Arms and asked for it in a 5" barrel, model 74050. They said no problem, will take a few weeks to put through the assembly line. I think it was like 10 days. Since I'm LEO, I needed a letter from the agency for it to be shipped to the station. Got the letter on Dept. letterhead, scanned it, emailed it to Charter Arms.
I should have asked for target sights, this has a rear blade that is black with the brushed stainless front ramp sight. Not the best sight picture.

I'm under the impression you can call Charter Arms and ask for another barrel length on their revolvers if its only offered as a short barrel online.
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Old November 14, 2013, 05:21 PM   #63
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WOW! That's pretty cool!

Heck, no distributor has any Undercover .38 caliber guns available. Maybe I have to call them and see if me or the dealer can order direct from them?
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Old November 14, 2013, 10:14 PM   #64
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Heck, no distributor has any Undercover .38 caliber guns available. Maybe I have to call them and see if me or the dealer can order direct from them
Interesting. Back in the summer my preferred FFL had a bunch he was selling. I picked up a .38 Undercover at the time. It took a trip back to Shelton for intermittent misfires, came back working fine.

The design is interesting. Quite a bit different from the S&W and Taurus revolvers I'm used to.

I contemplate doing a review of it.

I also contemplate getting their .44 snub.



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Old November 14, 2013, 10:44 PM   #65
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Actually, there are very few .38 Special snubs to be had (except for some foreign ones like Rossi and Taurus). I also tried getting one the the S&W Classic Model 36s and it was unavailable. I suspect everyone is clearing their inventory for end of the year reasons. I had a similar problem a few years ago. Seems like October-December and even early January it's hard to get some models of guns.
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Old November 15, 2013, 04:47 PM   #66
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I think this thread needs some more pictures.

Here's a nice old Undercover made at the Bridgeport factory in the late 60s. Was obviously a sock drawer gun.



Here's a really nice Bulldog .44spl from the Stratford factory that was made some time in the 80s.



Here's one I don't often see. It's a Police Bulldog .38spl and was made in the 80s at the Stratford factory. It is in excellent condition. The stocks need a little Tru-Oil, but that's it. It is a 6-shooter. Nowadays, Charter's 6-shooter .38 is called a "Police Undercover".



Here's my new-production Bulldog .44spl wearing old style NOS wood grips that I found on ebay. The wood grips are great for concealment.



Here's is a new-production Mag Pug .357 Mag. It conceals great, but I don't care for the ported barrel (spits debris back at my face), and the gun just doesn't group well. My problem child of the group. At least it always goes bang.



Here's a group pic. I have one more Undercover, but it looks the same as the other one, and didn't warrant a close up. The Mag Pug is wearing Pachmayr Compac grips in this pic.

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Old November 15, 2013, 04:53 PM   #67
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Beautiful pics!!!
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Old November 17, 2013, 01:31 AM   #68
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Charter arms bulldog

I baught a Bulldog and just got it out of Law-a-way last month and I could not find any .44 Spl ammo for it. But I found plenty of .44 S&W Russian from Black Hills. I have to admitt that the 44 Russian shoot alful good and very accurate in my Bulldog at least and a joy to shoot. Very controlable recoil with the 3 in. barrell.

V/R

J Budd
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Old November 17, 2013, 09:20 AM   #69
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I baught a Bulldog and just got it out of Law-a-way last month and I could not find any .44 Spl ammo for it. But I found plenty of .44 S&W Russian from Black Hills. I have to admitt that the 44 Russian shoot alful good and very accurate in my Bulldog at least and a joy to shoot. Very controlable recoil with the 3 in. barrell.
I think it's pretty much a given someone shooting .44 Special will be handloading for most of his shooting needs
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Old November 17, 2013, 09:47 AM   #70
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A note of caution to any of you who are staking their lives on a Charter, please be aware of the following:

(1) If you drop it, and it hits on the grip, you have a much better than average chance of cracking or breaking the aluminum grip. More than likely, if it is a complete break, the gun will be out of action.

(2) If you drop it and it hits somewhere else besides the grip, you have a chance of jarring the hammer strut out of its cup on the underside of the hammer. The strut will then lodge to the rearmost portion of the underside of the hammer. You won't realize it until you go to either cock the revolver or fire in DA; The hammer will travel part way back then stop cold.

(3) Always make sure the cylinder stop plunger is properly lubricated and moves freely, or the cylinder will "free wheel," possibly causing a misfire.

The first two problems are easy to fix, the plunger is a little more complicated, but it pays to be aware of the potential for it to happen.
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Old November 17, 2013, 10:05 AM   #71
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(1) If you drop it, and it hits on the grip, you have a much better than average chance of cracking or breaking the aluminum grip. More than likely, if it is a complete break, the gun will be out of action.
The grip frame is plastic these days.
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Old November 17, 2013, 10:16 AM   #72
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Good. Plastic will at least eliminate one of the hazards. The last time I worked on a Charter was in the 80s and early 90s.
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Old November 17, 2013, 02:20 PM   #73
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The only plastic grip frames are on the Undercover Lite. The Bulldog and Pitbull are aluminum frames. If you don't believe me, write to Charter. The owner or one of his family members will reply. They are very friendly folks.

Quality control as well as quality on the Charter guns has gone UP a great deal since the 80s and 90s. Be suspect of those talking about breakage.

And please, don't go around dropping guns. It's just not a good idea. If you have a severe case of dropsy, carry peppergas.
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Last edited by Deputy276; November 17, 2013 at 09:48 PM.
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Old November 17, 2013, 05:13 PM   #74
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Be suspect of those talking about breakage.
When I was working through the 80s, I had (if I recall) three with broken grip frames, all of which had been dropped. While I can't fault the gun directly for that, accidents can happen. Fortunately, it was an easy fix, and (again, if I recall) the grip frames weren't that expensive.

The main problem that concerned me was the dislodging of the hammer strut. I actually saw that probably half a dozen times. Again, it was an easy fix, but it was something that the owner wouldn't realize until he needed to use the gun.

The biggest PITA was the tiny spring loaded plunger that acted on the cylinder stop. It would either (A) corrode in the hole (dissimilar metals) or (B) the owner would use WD-40 and, when the WD-40 turned to varnish, it would stick in the hole.

(B) was also easy to fix, but (A) took a little doing.
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Old November 17, 2013, 05:15 PM   #75
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And please, don't go around dropping guns. It's just not a good idea. If you have a severe case of dropsy, carry peppergas.
If only that were true...

When I was working, I saw every travesty imaginable, which, although I am a very strong proponent of the 2nd Amendment, made me decide that there are some people who simply should not have a gun.
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