Rule #1: avoid Charcos. Period.
Several of us, myself included, have had wonderful results with very early Undercovers. The best reports have been of guns with exposed ejector rods and case-hardened hammers. Mine has extremely tight lockup, perfect sight alignment with 158+P, zero cylinder play and other such niceties.
I thought it had been gunsmithed to a "T", but others report guns in the same state that are supposedly factory bone stock. The only thing that makes me think mine isn't is that the front sight appears to have been lightly "persuaded" a hair to the right
. You've got to look hard, but it really appears to have been slightly "bent over". I assumed this was a gunsmith's work but if everything else is stock, maybe the factory was actually hand-regulating each one.
No way of knowing.
I'll never part with mine, that's for sure. Despite the funky colors - the steel frame is "browned" like a hazelnut or something, while the aluminum bits are black anodized. Along with the case-hardened hammer, it's quite "festive".
HOWEVER: before looking for another, you'd best understand how to *thoroughly* check out a wheelgun, there's an old thread I did on that subject that's a starting point. Just before the first incarnation of Charter Arms died, quality reputedly suffered, you'll want to screen out any of those via personal inspection. Don't have one sent to your FFL by some guy on Gunbroker or whatever.
The other issue is that they're strange to work on, due to the lack of sideplates - don't buy a fixer-upper and expect to find a local gunsmith eager to give it a workover.
Still and all, mine was the best $186 I ever spend
.