Here is a pic from the auction, and it is even nicer in real life:
See that rust on the edge of the frame there? That's dark oil/grease.
This counts as my Buy A Gun Day, gun (that website is goin a little overboard... more than it needs to). And is one more that I wanted to buy in a year, but... why not.
Nothing pressing on the Master List now. Watch, now a Chiappa Rhino will fall into my lap and will have a PERFECT feeling trigger...
And we'll see if this gun is too heavy for me. Golly, I hope not. I'd really rather not go down the Elsie Pee route.
I might get a stripped AR lower receiver, just to have for later. It's easy to store. The things are practically a fungible commodity. I've talked about this too much recently.
Oooo, I maybe want to think about replacement grips.
And some Gold Dot ammo, or similar, designed for snubbies. Traditional is SWCHP lead.
Best part is, I have a CCW pistol that is small, and summer appropriate. It's not the ideal round with only +p .38 (it can take .357, but I doubt I will use that) but it's certainly no slouch. The alternative gun in theis class for me is a .380, and .38 is better than that. I can carry this around the homestead, for when the doorbell rings at 2AM or what have you.
And it came is much better condition than I deserve. I've been lucky with the quality/condition of my used guns.
It came with a high quality holster. For right handers. But the gunstore owner admired it, and is right handed, AND has his own j-frame... so I traded the holster in for store credit.
Oh, and I read in the latest American Rifleman, that the Chiappa Rhino I was so interested in has an aluminum frame. One of my requirements was all steel, so it's probably best I didn't wait around for a Rhino.
Update:
Carrying it in my loosest pants pocket. It is noticeable, weight wise, but not as bad as I feared. My trousers ain't pulled down. I got it in an Uncle Mikes pocket holster, as that was what RobertaX recommended, and it was cheap. I have 6 spare cartridges on Bianchi speed strip in the other pocket because that is what JayG recommended. As you can see it has that sticky-ish black rubber grip, and I can see why people will go to smaller grips as it peeks out of that pocket a bit in these pants. You can tell I have something in my pocket, but not that it's a gun. "Is that a pistol in your pocket or.... " "NEVERMIND!"
I'm pleased. And had no buyers remorse with this one.
15 comments:
Sweet! Congratulations. I'm setting the wheels in motion on my own BAG Day purchase today, if all goes well.
Nice! if you are every Houston way, check out Collector's Firearms - one of the largest shops in the country. I plan on making a visit there soon.
I carry a snubbie everyday---a M442. Might I suggest a Bianchi pocket holster and Buffalo Bore's 158gr., LSWCHP, +P .38Spl ammo. Mine chronos 986fps from my 2" snubbie. Buffalo bore says it should be 1000fps for the +P version. The non +P is around 850fps.
Buffalo Bore? That's kind of difficult. I'll see what I can do about locating some.
That sure is purty, T-bolt.
Shoot her in good health, and may you never need to use it for its intended purpose.
I initially ordered my Buffalo Bore .38 ammo directly from their website. Now it's available from my local Cabelas.
Here's the website.
http://www.buffalobore.com/
I can't order ammo online. Easily. See tomorrow's post.
NJT,
1st of all, get those Uncle Mikes'/S&W Combat Grips off of there (but don't get rid of them you will want them if you ever take a class with this revolver) and get a set of the much smaller Uncle Mikes'/S&W Boot Grips which have one less finger groove and expose the back strap and the butt of the revolver.
Then get you some Federal 158 gr. Hydra Shok HP .357 Mag and go for it.
My bonafides? I own the same gun, and a Model 60 .357 Mag. with the same barrel on it.
The M640 wears the boot grips, the M60 wears the combat grips you have in your picture.
The .357 Mag is not all that bad out of these steel framed guns and the Hydra-Shok load has almost NO flash and gets up to 1250 fps, at least in the batch I have, out of the 2 1/8" barrel.
I pocket carry mine in the same Uncle Mikes' Pocket Holster you speak of. It works fine and I don't have to worry about all those lugs and lobes that are supposed to keep it in the pocket on the fancier (and more expensive) pocket holsters.
More often, though, I carry it OWB behind my right hip (I am a dexter type, not one of you sinister types) in an Uncle Mikes Kydex Paddle holster. Little, good tight carry on a good belt. people seldom notice it, even when ONLY covered by the tail of a Fruit of the Loom colored T-shirt.
I don't like the Speed Strips, never have, even back when they were invented to speed up a drop pouch reload.
I use the HKS 36a speedloaders. You can carry two in a pocket and they will stack nicely, the knob of the lower one up inside the ammo of the one above it. They only let go once in my pocket, and that was when I was at the range and dumped half a pocket full of cases in on top of them.
BTW, did you ever get that Chinese wood off of your M14s? They look much better with a good American Walnut or red stained American Beech stock on them that with that funky Chinese wood!
Buckshot
I don't think that is Chinese wood on my M1A, And I know it isn't on the Garand. It's definitely black walnut on both.
I go the M1A from Futlon Arms. I don't think they like Chinese components there...
I picked up a Mika holster for my Cenntenials and they work fine. You can reholster in the pocket one handed. A very nice feature. Much more durable than the Uncle Mike pockets I used before.
NJT,
I was speaking of the wood on the rifle in the picture at the top of the blog. It looks EXACTLY like the wood that came on my M14s.
In a box somewhere, since replaced by a nice black walnut surplus stock with back-ups of standard and early synthetic surplus stocks, all from Fred's back in the day.
Didn't mean to ruffle feathers.
Buckshot
No worries Buckshot. The picture might be bad, making it look like some other species, but that is indeed Fulton Armory supplied stocks, and it is American Black Walnut.
If I had to guess, it wasn't air dried, but steamed and kilned, but they do that with most commercial walnut these days. If i could get vintage wood, I'd be afraid to mount it, not wanting to mess up history any more than I have to.
And i do have hydroshoks in the snubbie right not. +P instead of .357 tho. WOW what a muzzle flash with the .357. Range report upcoming.
Congrats! An identical 640-1 is my near-constant companion. I like a DeSantis nemesis holster and front pocket carry in the Levi's, especially for quick trips out past the moat. Speer Gold-Dot short-barrel .357's are my preferred choice, and with a little practice you might agree. They really knock down the flash and they seem to have the numbers (990fps 135gr at the muzzle vs. 880 for the .38+p at the same weight) where it counts. (http://www.speer-ammo.com/ballistics/ammo.aspx)
buffalo Bore advertises 1000fps out of a 2" snubbie for their 158gr LSWCHP .38Spl +P. Says so right on the box that I'm looking at. That's what I carry in my S&W M442. It's low-flash as well. I chrono'd some last summer and got an average of 990fps from my M442.
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