Charter Arms Bulldog
- Thread starter ThomasT
- Start date
Lightning Ross
New member
I just picked one up 45 colt used $300 out the door. Had a box of 180 lead cast 452 diameter rnfp.Loaded 8 grains of unique. Alot more fun to shoot than full bore 250 grainers
Great find .... I would have been all over that also !!!!
The Winchester PDX1 45 Colt is a perfect SD load .. It is a standard pressure load that according to gel tests performed perfect
the Black Spot
New member
Good score on the 45 colt.
I use these for cc
https://www.mattsbullets.com/index....ducts_id=317&zenid=grb6558jarv9a9g15gr4mcaa91
I use these for cc
https://www.mattsbullets.com/index....ducts_id=317&zenid=grb6558jarv9a9g15gr4mcaa91
bamaranger
New member
bulldog
I had a .44 Bulldog back in the mid 80's, liked it a lot, shot it a fair amount with both reloads and what factory ammo( Fed LSWC and Win Silvertip) I could find. It was accurate and very portable, but it shot "out of time" in short order. My reloads were not all that hot, but did use the 250 gr Keith bullet. I cannot imagine a Charter .44 holding up to a career worth of training, qualifying and shooting for a sworn officer. I'll add that I had a .38 Undercover as well, and it went out of time too, with absolutely no hot loads at all.
Never heard of the Charter .44 intended for the Sky Marshals, nor the revolver approved by any agency in .38 or .44. I was in and out of FLETC on multiple occassions in the mid 80's and early 90's, never heard that discussed by other staff either.
Sounds very much like the documentary misinterpreted/poorly researched Thompson's comments on the revolver.
I had a .44 Bulldog back in the mid 80's, liked it a lot, shot it a fair amount with both reloads and what factory ammo( Fed LSWC and Win Silvertip) I could find. It was accurate and very portable, but it shot "out of time" in short order. My reloads were not all that hot, but did use the 250 gr Keith bullet. I cannot imagine a Charter .44 holding up to a career worth of training, qualifying and shooting for a sworn officer. I'll add that I had a .38 Undercover as well, and it went out of time too, with absolutely no hot loads at all.
Never heard of the Charter .44 intended for the Sky Marshals, nor the revolver approved by any agency in .38 or .44. I was in and out of FLETC on multiple occassions in the mid 80's and early 90's, never heard that discussed by other staff either.
Sounds very much like the documentary misinterpreted/poorly researched Thompson's comments on the revolver.
44spl ,357mag & 38Spl are my favorite revovler cartridges... I have two Charter Arms in 44spl one a 2.5 in h barrel other being a Boomer , Three 357mag revovlers , Ruger Security Six 4 inch barrel , Ruger LCR357 & a Charter Arms 4inch barrel 21.5 oz , three 38spl ,Charter aluminum framed 11.5 oz ,Charter Police Six 2.2 inch barrel 19oz & a S&W 36 3inch barrel ..Charter Arms may have rescued the .44 Special from obscurity, but its Bulldog made the gun a highly concealable, large caliber package that was highly desired for off-duty cops and for homeowners. The large gaping hole in the barrel also was a good psychological deterrent.
That said, when the folks at COMBAT HANDGUNS converted a Ruger Speed-Six from a .357 to a .44 Special, I felt it was more an act of a mutilation then anything else. I mean, why would anyone want to take a 6-shot flat-shooting powerhouse and turn it into a 5-shot .44 that had the trajectory of a bowling ball? I couldn't understand it. Since then, I've mellowed out somewhat, and I can see why someone might want to do this; however, if I had to choose one for defense, I'd still choose the .357. Even if limited to the use of .38 +P, I'd still rather have the extra shot. And if I could use the .357, I'd have more faith in stopping someone with that caliber then the .44 Special.
Ruger Speed-Six...6-shot .357 or 5-shot .44
Special. Which would you choose?
The .44 still is a powerhouse, and it doesn't suffer from over-penetration; and there's s still the psychological angle. A big hole looks intimidating.
I doubt I'd ever have a use for the .44 Special, and don't know how great the cartridge being rescued from obscurity really was. Like the .41 Magnum, I think the world would continue spinning just fine if it vanished from the earth entirely. Like that Ruger Speed-Six, would there be any advantage to having it in a .44 Special in today's world? The .38 Special has excellent stopping power and the .357 has astronomical stopping power. And there's the fact that it holds one less round. Finally, there's the issue of cleaning. Most .44 Special loads are lead hollowpoints. Shoot a box of those and there will be enough lead in your barrel to make cleaning a real chore (just like the. .38 Special +P FBI load).
Having a .44 Special is nice for those who want it. But there are probably better choices.
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I find them all versitile..357 mag being the most .. To me the 44spl gives you energy without muss or fuss ... Even in my small lightweight Charters ... I look at my Ruger LCR357 as a 38spl +P being that I have the smaller boot grips ... My Security Six is my full power 357 Mag revovler.. My small 11.5 oz Charter is loaded with Hornady 110gr FTX standard pressure ..
My 21.5 oz Charter 4inch barreled 357 most likely gonna be a 38spl +P Remington 38Spl +P 158gr LSWCHP .... If it shoots them well thats what my S&W 36 3inch barrel
But I agree with you 357mag is king , very powerful and versatile..especially with a 4inch barrel
Charter Arms 357mag Target 21.5 oz
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