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Charter arms?

2K views 11 replies 10 participants last post by  test drive 
#1 ·
#2 ·
Opinions will range from "give 'em a try" to "my old 70's/80's Charter was a decent little gun" to "don't bet your life on Charter Arms crap." Charter went out of business in the '90s and again in 2000 and re-organized/partnered with MKS a couple of years ago. During these up and down years the company periodically released some truly substandard guns, giving them a reputation best described as "hit or miss" for product quality. That being said, personally I believe Charter is on the upswing quality-wise in their latest incarnation. I took the gamble and went ahead and purchased a .44 special Bulldog this week and so far I'm very pleased with my purchase. Still, I'm a single data point and could just have gotten lucky.

But here's a suggestion for you. If you decide to purchase a Charter, get it through Davidson's at Gallery of Guns.com. That's what I did. Davidson's has an add-on warranty where if the gun purchased through them fails or has a problem, Davidson's will replace the weapon, not service it. I have no affiliation with this company, but their warranty offers a good way to buy a gun from a maker who may put out the occasional lemon. You can just keep sending in the gun until you get a good one!

yours/
peter.
 
#4 ·
I checked out a Southpaw not long ago. My impression of the gun was this:
It was light weight though felt a little thick in the grip (not sure if aftermarket grips are available for it or not).

It's not as polished as a Taurus or S&W, but it was clean (no noticeable rough spots on the metal)

Cylinder had good lock up.

Trigger pull felt a little gritty but I suspect it would get better quickly.

Sights seemed ok.

Over all I liked it, and if I had the money for it I would've bought it, but there was another gun I wanted first.

I do plan on picking one up in the future, and would also like one of the .44spl's as well.

As for the company itself, like K-31 mentioned, they've changed ownership a few times over the years. The original company (I believe it was the original) had a good rep, for an inexpensive, fairly well made, reliable gun. Later iterations weren't so good, with Charter 2000 probably being the worst of them. The current company is again better and building (or maybe I should say rebuilding) a rep for making an realitively inexpensive, well made, reliable gun, with decent customer service (though from what I hear, don't call on a mon or fri :tongue:) and if it is important to you they are American made.
 
#5 ·
My wife loved it when we stopped by the local range in Knoxville. I was a little iffy because I had no heard of the company before. It was only like 300. I almost bought it but it just didnt feel right to buy it until i got a lil more info on it and some reviews from people that have had experience with Charter
 
#8 ·
I think K-31 summed it up pretty well.

I've posted on my experiences with Charters recently; I have been pleasantly surprised with them and I was biased against them. Inexpensive, accurate and reliable. Durable? Won't know for a while.

YMMV
 
#9 ·
Bulldog 44

I owned a Charter Bulldog .44 in the 70's and really liked the little
thing. I sold it to an LEO friend. It was a real fine piece.

Now since my Walther turned out to be such a dud, I have ordered
a new Stainless Bulldog. I should have it this coming week if the
stars line up just right!

I can't wait! :smile:
 
#11 ·
I don't know the timeline for the different incarnations of Charter Arms.

I had a Blued Bulldog 44 spcl made around 1985 no Problems.

In the late 80's I traded it for a Stainless Bulldog Pug which I still have. No problems here either.

Nice round. Great little gun!!
 
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