Please, I Really Need Some Adivce!! I Have Been Debating For Weeks Now!!!!!

S

Slyster

New member
I just finished my concealed weapons course and now I am faced with the decision of what gun to buy. I have a Ruger GP100 4" with the Target Grey finish (low glare stainless according to the website), but I won't be concealing that easily any time soon. I want a concealable revolver, .357 mag. I have read so many reviews it is not even funny. Here is my problem. I would really like a Blued revolver. I'm not sure why, other than the fact that I love how it looks!!! I realize that I am very limited in trying to meet that specification. I have narrowed my choice down to a Taurus 650 CIA, blued with a concealed hammer. I just love both the price and look of that gun, not to mention how it fits in my hand! However, upon reading the many reviews I have sifted through, I am concerned about the performance of a Taurus in general.

I have considered the SP101's mainly because I love my GP100. The only problem is that they don't make a blued SP101! I also do not particularily like the spurless hammer. If I understand correctly, the hammer is not totally concealed like the 650 CIA right? I guess the only option as far as a SP101 is concerned is the Target Grey model, which would practically be a twin to my GP100...not cool!

Smith and Wesson is just simply outta my price range right now and again, they don't carry a blued revolver.

So does anyone have any other suggestions??? Are there any other makes of revolvers that I should look into. It seems universal that when people rank revolvers, it is always: 1.) Smith & Wesson, 2.) Ruger, and finally 3.) Taurus.

A little bit about me and my shooting habits; I will probably be firing around 200-250 rounds outta this gun per month, with both .38's and .357's, using a variety of ammo. I take very good care of my firearms and miticulously clean each piece religiously after shooting.

Now comes my last question. I don't know why I'm so partial to a Blued gun, but I just am. I just really like the look of it. Should I be concerned about a blued carry gun? What are the chances for rust??? I will be carrying it primarily in a Galco leather shoulder holster or just simply in my pocket. Is rust inevitable or just an occurance due to neglected maintenance???

Sorry to talk everyones ear off, but as you can see, I have done a lot of reading/research and really need to make a decision!!! Please help and give me your suggestions!!! Thanks a million!!!!
 
I'd suggest you look into a CABO (brand name) holster and carry your GP100. You'll be surprised how easily and comfortably you can carry it concealed. It works well for my King Cobra.

If you a prefer a blue gun it's no big deal. It will require more maintenance (i.e., daily wipe-downs are probably essential with a good protecterant) than stainless steel will. I would caveat that to say a lot may depend on how much you sweat and your sweat (chemical composition)--a leather holster will tend to aggravate any rusting problem (leather doesn't protect the weapon from moisture and the salts used to cure leather can cause rust).

Frankly, the best thing you can do is stop worrying about looks, bobbed versus concealed hammers, etc., and start picking a weapon that is functionally reliable and carries well for you.
 
There are still a fair number of police trade-in S&W's out there, including some older Model 40's with concealed hammers. I saw four at a recent gun show, and they crop up in Shotgun News from time to time. Prices are very reasonable and generally the guns are near new internally.

Jim
 
Carry 357

If you like blue, fine, carry blue. The chemical composition of my sweat seems to literally attack blueing, so I generally carry stainless. A 357 even with a short barrel is a pretty good chunk to carry in a pocket. If you use that carry you probably want to use a pocket holster to avoid the visual printing, that tells everyone you are carrying a firearm. Even so the weight is likely to cause your pants to droop etc.

With a IWB or OWB holster you will need to wear some kind of outer garmet to conceal the gun. You will probably find you have to wear TALL size garments so they don't ride up exposing the gun when you reach up to get a can of soup in the grocery.

For the gun itself I'd start haunting several gunshops for trade-in snubby's. If you don't want to go with the stainless Rugers etc., S&W and Colt have been making snubs for years and some models came with or had hammer shields retrofitted. You might save yourself 2-300 dollars in the process. Might take some leg work but they are out there.

Good luck and hope you never need the gun.
 
So the Taurus option shouldn't be an option??? I guess everyone is saying that the Taurus should be a no go.
 
What's wrong with getting a target gray SP to be a 'twin' of your GP100? I almost bought a stainless 4" GP to go along with my SP and Redhawk. Still might actually.

Anyways, I have a spurless 2 1/4 SP. It's my primary ccw piece. I just got my permit, so I haven't gotten to carry it much yet. I recommend the SP because you have a GP, so you are already familiar with the gun, their internals are the same, the SP is just a bit smaller. Plus, the SP is heavy, but that heft makes shooting Magnum loads tolerable, and .38s are nothing. Get a decent holster and you won't notice it much. I wouldn't recommend pocket carry anyways, I don't see how one can draw from their pocket quickly anyhow.

Taurus seems to have a bad rep lately. I don't know about their snubbies, but I have a 10 year old or so 669 that is dead accurate and hasn't given me any trouble at all. Has a really nice trigger too, it even impressed a friend of mine that is a S&W trigger aficionado.
 
Slyster,

I think you will find that many people in this forum are Smith and Wesson fans and look down on Taurus products in general. There are a few of us who shoot and enjoy their products. I owned a Model 640 Smith in the past and I owned at the time and still own a blued model 85CH Taurus. I have had the opportunity to fire a used model 650 Taurus that came in the shop a few months ago. Having owned the gun that this model was copied after, I was curious how it would shoot. We test fire all of our used guns before selling them. I personally feel that accuracy was on par with the 640 Smith. I understand from Taurus that this gun is +P rated. I would suggest you carry +P .38's anyways.. few people keep .357's in their snubbies these days anyways. I currently have several Taurus handguns and am very happy with them all. As a point, I also have Smiths and Rugers too. Good luck, let us know what you get.

.44mag
 
I guess nothing is wrong with getting a twin of my GP100. I just would like something a tad bit different. I will probably in fact get the SP101, but just not in Target Grey like my GP100, so I'd have to get stainless. I think you guys have pretty much talked me outta the Taurus 650. Although getting the Taurus would save me $100!
 
Hi Slyster,
Having owned several Taurus handguns( 441, 431, and a 66), I would suggest you go with a Ruger or a S&W. The ones I owned were perfectly fine and worked great. The only problem with Taurus products is resale value. If you ever decide to sell them, you won't get anywhere near what you paid for them. S&W and Rugers will re-sell at a higher value. At least that was my experience.

Good Luck.
Rob
 
Slyster,

Sounds like a good choice. Although I would point out again that there is nothing wrong with the Taurus. An SP101 will last well after you do. It will be accurate and reliable. Good luck with it.

.44mag
 
I think the ideal choice for a powerful and concealable .357 that can even be fired through a coat pocket is the S&W 640... nothing better in my view for that. But they cost a little more than some other options and they're not blue.

In blue, this is a bit bigger, but they're available new (for now anyway) and they're awesome little revos... I totally love mine. I lightened the hammer and rebound springs one grade and the action is superb and reliable. All the accuracy you need for defense use... and it's BLUE!

Ruger GP-100 3" Barrel, Blue Steel, Fixed sights, .357 magnum (GPF-331)
GPF331RtLrg.jpg


This is not a difficult gun to pack... weight or size wise. The grip is smaller than the full size GP-100 grip, even though they're styled identically.
 
There's nothing wrong with a blued gun. Sure they can rust but I doubt whether they'll ever rot so badly they won't work. And, in some situations they are less obvious than a stainless gun. I have a blued Model 10 as my 'always ready' gun. But for range use I prefer stainless.
As far as makers are concerned there is only one, Smith & Wesson. All the rest are second best. Look for yourself - who uses anything other than a Smith in competition shooting? There are some very competent revolvers out there, no doubt about it. But none of them, and I mean NONE of them comes close to the Smith. This is not just my opinion - it is the whole shooting Worlds opinion.
 
Blue guns for concealment don't "flash." That is if a blued or dark finished gun is momentarily exposed under circumstances it won't attract as much attention as a flash of silver. Now, given the current state of technology, those funny colored Kel-tecs look more and more logical. I don't think I'd do pink, but Orange and Brown camo during football season might be a good thing.

Geoff
Who has no fear of death, I'm a Browns fan, we die 16 times a year. :eek:
 
Slyster, you say that you want a .357 !

Are you out pursuing people escaping in cars or do you just want to stop somebody from inflicting harm to you?

If the latter is the case you need nothing more than a .22 LR shotshell. Fire a couple of those in the perp's face and he'll stop even if he's on acid.

A .22 pistol will fit in your jeans pocket, be with you at all times and will not bring you up on a manslaughter rap.
 
There are used S&W's you can find at gun shows that are good buys.

If you require a "hammerless" revolver, you're limiting your options to the Model 40/640 and 49/649 S&W's. If you stumble across a Colt with the screwed on hammer shroud at a good price it's probably worth more as a collector's item (I haven't seen many of these around).

I have to agree that a .357 in a 2" or 3" snubbie is somewhat a waste of money. The 5-shot snubbies are difficult to use when carried with 357's and the muzzle blast is horrendous. I wouldn't feel undergunned with a .38 carrying modern self defense ammo.

There's nothing wrong with the venerable Model 10 with a 2" barrel. It isn't fancy, but it gets the job done.

"Concealable" is a matter of proper clothing & holster.
 
blueing

slyster, you already have a weapon that you like . this only a suggestion that you`ll have to check out yourself. i`ve used it on an old slug barrel that had rust on it. taking off the rust , spraying , and not rusting for a year, could only tell on the rag. the weapon has to be clean. it is blueing in a spray can that is used to layout parts before machineing. it will mark up. but it will be taken off w/ blueing remover, w/ a wipe , will do nothing to your stainless weapon. i`m talking if you are worried about flash of the metal when drawing the weapon. practice on anything because it will run, lite coats are best. and a burning torch usually just changes the color , darker. maybe don`t spray the complete weapon, test it on the hot points of the cyl. why buy another gun, when you have one you like. i can`t wait to read the other replys. but i`ve tried this and it works. i got the idea when i had a remington bdl, 7 mag. that had a blued stainless barrel only. late 1960`s. they only made some. the blueing keep getting lighter w/ cleanings. wish i still had it, i wonder what it is worth now? so any machinist will know what i`m talking about, probably even get you the spray blueing and remover. rich
 
recoil

i agree w/ BillCA, the muzzel blast from a 2 " , 357, or 38 is hard. my friend bought his wife a tarus 38/ 2" barrel, she wouldn`t shoot it any more let alone carry it. i had to adjust my hold on this weapon almost every shot. but i only shot it once. rich
 
If the latter is the case you need nothing more than a .22 LR shotshell. Fire a couple of those in the perp's face and he'll stop even if he's on acid.
Click to expand...
Bergwork, I don't know where you're from, but you have a whole different class of criminal than those I have dealt with. Frankly, you're offering a prescription to wind up seriously hurt or dead.

As for your legal advice, your view is way, way oversimplistic.
 
JC it is the weapon that is with you that counts (you would know this if you have the experience that you imply) and it is highly questionable that Sly will carry his cannon 100% of the time.

How will he make sure that he doesn't need a gun when he is wearing shorts and a T-shirt and no place to hide the cannon?

As for who has the toughest perps I have yet to meet the one who keeps charging with his eyes full of BBs. This includes very large guys on acid.

The first two rounds are shotshells followed by 40 gr. CCI Velocitors.
 
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