I love snubbies, and have been eyeballing the Charter Bulldog .44 for some time to add to my ever-growing collection. However, I have a ton of .38s, like shooting .38/.357, and didn't want to get another caliber that happens to cost something like 35 bucks for a box of 50 target rounds. With that in mind, I dropped the Bulldog .44 from consideration.
I decided to get the .357 Mag Pug instead. It's made on the same frame, and has a 5-round capacity. It also has a ported barrel. I know that the reviews of Charters are all over the map, so I knew I was taking a chance with this one. No biggie. I also have a High Point C9, and a Rock Island 1911, so I guess I have a thing for "price point" guns.
Out of the box, the gun looked fine, and the lockup was nice and tight. Fit and finish was exactly what I expected from this gun. Not S&W, not Ruger, but passable, and no defects or burrs noted. The trigger definitely wasn't in the same league as my K-Frame Smiths, but I wasn't expecting it to be, either. The trigger turned out to be okay, with the DA pull being a bit gritty and some stacking at the end of the pull. I bought snap caps and dry fired the heck out it before going to the range. This smoothed it out quite a bit.
At the range, the gun was fed 150 rounds consisting of 50 S&B .38 148 grain wadcutters, 50 Bitterroot Valley .38 148 grain wadcutters (a LOT more powerful than the S&Bs), and 50 Bitterroot Valley .357 Mag 158 grain jhp.
The gun was a lot of fun to shoot, especially with the .357s. Shooting .357 always brings a smile to my face. The lightweight gun was lively with the magnums, but it definitely wasn't punishing to shoot.
Okay, now for the criticism. The gun shot low...WAY low. I was at an indoor range, and the gun was about 5 inches low at 14 feet, and probably 8 inches low at 21 feet. :blink: I'm probably gonna end up filing down the front sight vs sending it to the factory to fix. I'll have to take about a millimeter off of the big honkin' front sight to get it shooting correctly. With the .38s, and compensating for the low POI, I was able to get decent groups with the gun. However, the .357s didn't group nearly as well. Funny, because I read another review of the Mag Pug where it was just the opposite.
On a good note, everything stayed nice and tight on this gun. I know that Charters have a reputation for loosening up, and my 1965-vintage Charter Undercover will loosen up its its crane screw during extended shooting.
I have a set of Pachmayr Compac grips on the way for the gun because I like they way the Pugs look with them. The stock grips were fine for shooting, though. I also plan to get a simple holster like a JIT Slide for periodic carry of the Pug. Don Hume doesn't make a JIT for the Charter, but I've read that the ones for both the Colt Detective Special and the Ruger SP101 fit fine.
I decided to get the .357 Mag Pug instead. It's made on the same frame, and has a 5-round capacity. It also has a ported barrel. I know that the reviews of Charters are all over the map, so I knew I was taking a chance with this one. No biggie. I also have a High Point C9, and a Rock Island 1911, so I guess I have a thing for "price point" guns.
Out of the box, the gun looked fine, and the lockup was nice and tight. Fit and finish was exactly what I expected from this gun. Not S&W, not Ruger, but passable, and no defects or burrs noted. The trigger definitely wasn't in the same league as my K-Frame Smiths, but I wasn't expecting it to be, either. The trigger turned out to be okay, with the DA pull being a bit gritty and some stacking at the end of the pull. I bought snap caps and dry fired the heck out it before going to the range. This smoothed it out quite a bit.
At the range, the gun was fed 150 rounds consisting of 50 S&B .38 148 grain wadcutters, 50 Bitterroot Valley .38 148 grain wadcutters (a LOT more powerful than the S&Bs), and 50 Bitterroot Valley .357 Mag 158 grain jhp.
The gun was a lot of fun to shoot, especially with the .357s. Shooting .357 always brings a smile to my face. The lightweight gun was lively with the magnums, but it definitely wasn't punishing to shoot.
Okay, now for the criticism. The gun shot low...WAY low. I was at an indoor range, and the gun was about 5 inches low at 14 feet, and probably 8 inches low at 21 feet. :blink: I'm probably gonna end up filing down the front sight vs sending it to the factory to fix. I'll have to take about a millimeter off of the big honkin' front sight to get it shooting correctly. With the .38s, and compensating for the low POI, I was able to get decent groups with the gun. However, the .357s didn't group nearly as well. Funny, because I read another review of the Mag Pug where it was just the opposite.
On a good note, everything stayed nice and tight on this gun. I know that Charters have a reputation for loosening up, and my 1965-vintage Charter Undercover will loosen up its its crane screw during extended shooting.
I have a set of Pachmayr Compac grips on the way for the gun because I like they way the Pugs look with them. The stock grips were fine for shooting, though. I also plan to get a simple holster like a JIT Slide for periodic carry of the Pug. Don Hume doesn't make a JIT for the Charter, but I've read that the ones for both the Colt Detective Special and the Ruger SP101 fit fine.