Budget-Friendly Finds: Affordable handguns with Exceptional Value
- Thread starter liv4spd
- Start date
I found one at a pawn shop that is a retired police gun ( I believe it was a Newark New Jersey issue) for a song and a dance. Great gun.
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Did you test them at full-lockup (trigger held all the way to the rear)? If you didn't that may be the source of the problem. Rock Island/Armscor revolvers use a modified version of the old Colt double-pawl lockwork (modified in that they replaced the Colt V-Spring with a coil mainspring and separate trigger return spring). This differs from the more common S&W, Ruger, Taurus, Rossi, and Charter Arms lockworks in that the Colt and RIA hands stay in contact with the ratchet throughout the trigger stroke (S&W and Ruger hands leave contact with the ratchet after the cylinder stop engages the cylinder). This is why, at full lockup, an older Colt revolver (and by extension, an RIA) should have no perceptible rotational play in the cylinder (sometimes called the Colt "bank vault" lockup) while many other brands like S&W, Ruger, Taurus, Rossi, and Charter: the Colt/RIA cylinder is being held in place by both the cylinder stop and pressure from the hand.
Because of how the double-pawl lockwork operates, there needs to be a bit of "wiggle room" in the cylinder when the hammer is cocked but the trigger not yet pulled because if there wasn't, the action would bind as the hand would still be trying to rotate the cylinder while the cylinder stop is preventing further rotation. I've seen several Colt revolvers that, if cocked slowly, didn't rotate far enough for the cylinder stop to drop into its recess in the cylinder but, once the trigger is pulled, the hand rotates the cylinder just that smidge further to lock into place properly.
1972RedNeck
New member
No mention of Hi Point? Ugly as sin but they go bang every time and are dirt cheap. And made in USA.
Prof Young
New member
38 Spl for less than $300 . . .
The local Buchheit has a 38 spl with rosewood handles for only $250. I'm tempted to get one due to the price. Can't recall the make, but it's not some weird off brand.
Life is good.
Prof Young
The local Buchheit has a 38 spl with rosewood handles for only $250. I'm tempted to get one due to the price. Can't recall the make, but it's not some weird off brand.
Life is good.
Prof Young
jetinteriorguy
New member
Interesting what you say about how Colts lock up. I’ve recently acquired one of the new model Pythons and I’ve noticed in DA how it doesn’t fully lock up until the very last bit of trigger movement, but in SA it locks up tight with the hammer fully cocked. And as you say both Smith’s and Rugers all lock up much earlier in the cycle. I’m guessing that the small amount of trigger travel after the sear is tripped finishes locking the Pythons cylinder before the hammer falls all the way. It’s kind of scary to observe when dry firing but works perfect every time.
Taurus G3C or even G2C are unbeatable in value, performance, concealability.
I would be interested to learn if anything has lower costs, *and* higher performance + concealability than G3C.
By performance I mean a composite of: round count in a mag, reliability, how easy it is rock the slide, and how well it groups (factory setup from a benchrest).
I would be interested to learn if anything has lower costs, *and* higher performance + concealability than G3C.
By performance I mean a composite of: round count in a mag, reliability, how easy it is rock the slide, and how well it groups (factory setup from a benchrest).
I'm not a semi-auto guy, but I gotta agree with you on the Taurus G3. I forget what I paid for mine, but it wasn't much. So far it has failed to do anything except send rounds downrange and make holes in the paper about where I expected them to show up. I don't shoot it a lot, I'm a revolver guy at heart, but it ain't bad.
Same for my Taurus 327 revolver. Six shot, 327 Federal Magnum, 3" barrel, bobbed hammer, night sights, decent trigger (It's not a Python, but it's not bad) for a J-frame size gun. Plus it's drilled and tapped, and has a mounting plate for an RDS from the factory. I guess I've got about 800 rounds through mine now, mostly 32 Long I admit but a fair number of both 327 Fed Mag, and 32 H&R Mag also. About $400 vs the almost $800 for a S&W UC in 32 (which I've never actually seen).
Same for my Taurus 327 revolver. Six shot, 327 Federal Magnum, 3" barrel, bobbed hammer, night sights, decent trigger (It's not a Python, but it's not bad) for a J-frame size gun. Plus it's drilled and tapped, and has a mounting plate for an RDS from the factory. I guess I've got about 800 rounds through mine now, mostly 32 Long I admit but a fair number of both 327 Fed Mag, and 32 H&R Mag also. About $400 vs the almost $800 for a S&W UC in 32 (which I've never actually seen).
stuckinthe60s
New member
an old high standard sentinal mk2. basically a dan Wesson remark.
In my experience, a lot of High Standard's guns are highly under-appreciated. My father and I once went in together to buy a used High Standard Sentinel Deluxe .22 revolver as a birthday gift for my grandfather and, IIRC, we paid $100 for it. While it had a lot of finish wear and wasn't much to look at, that gun is an excellent shooter (Dad still has it as Grandpa has since passed away). I also have an old High Standard K-120 Riot shotgun that I bought from a batch of police trade-ins for a very reasonably price ($185 IIRC) and it's one of the slickest, fastest-cycling pump shotguns I've ever fired.
micromontenegro
New member
I have one of those. A really really nice revolver at a bargain price
For a good quality compact 9mm single stack 7+1, this Kahr CW9 is hard to beat at $245.
https://grabagun.com/firearms/handg...ndguns/kahr-arms-cw9-9mm-blk-blk-3-5-7-1.html
https://grabagun.com/firearms/handg...ndguns/kahr-arms-cw9-9mm-blk-blk-3-5-7-1.html
Dfariswheel
New member
A serious contender for a current "Best Buy" is the Sarsilmaz SAR2000, available in both a black finish and stainless steel.
The slide and frame are forged steel, the barrel is mirror polished hammer forged.
It's a copy of a copy of the CZ-75.
It's an almost exact copy of the Tanfoglio/EAA Witness small frame in 9mm.
17 round magazines and perfectly smooth with no burrs or machine marks inside or out.......
Price range runs as low as sub $400 for stainless steel.
The slide and frame are forged steel, the barrel is mirror polished hammer forged.
It's a copy of a copy of the CZ-75.
It's an almost exact copy of the Tanfoglio/EAA Witness small frame in 9mm.
17 round magazines and perfectly smooth with no burrs or machine marks inside or out.......
Price range runs as low as sub $400 for stainless steel.
by shooting the clay shotgun games for over 50+ years i have gained a insight about what works and what don,t on the clay fields and the cheaper shotguns come and go and cheaper may hold out sometimes, but in the long run i found cry when you buy and laugh when it lasts. on my newest trap gun i bought 14 years ago used from a friend who quit because of failing eye sight a browning BT-100 and have fired over 40,000 shells thru it, and only replacing a fireing pin last month that cost 28.00 and that i installed myself.