Well, I got this puppy in Friday after having bought it used over the Internet. What a sweet little gun - very light - 11 oz., and good looking, too. I shot it yesterday at the range with 70 rounds of S&W .32 Longs and 30 rounds .32 H&R Mags. Excellent accuracy. I am not a great shot and I was getting about 1" groups at seven yards, which is good for me. Recoil is definitely less than a .38 Sp, but still noticeable. Trigger in double-action was what you would expect in a J-frame - long and heavy, but still smooth. In single action, the trigger break was light and crisp. The sights are standard for this type of gun - front ramp, rear gutter-like sight. Adequate for a defensive gun. In terms of ammo, the .32 Longs had less recoil, but were junk and I will never buy them again. They were as expensive as the Federal .32 H&R Mags, but were unjacketed, and shot VERY dirty. In fact, when I fired the magnum rounds after the longs, the casings would not extract from the cylinder because the powder from the longs had gummed it up. I have ordered some full metal jacketed magnum rounds from Georgia Arms, so this problem should be alleviated in the future.
Overall, I like this gun a lot, and would recommend it (buy used if you can). I don't much care for the company that made this gun, but I have to admit they make a great product.
After shooting it, I did have a few questions for the more experienced among the TFL crowd:
- The model 331 comes with a standard exposed hammer. I probably would have purchased a 332 (internal hammer), but could not find one used. What are your feelings on having an exposed hammer on a carry gun? Should I think about having the hammer bobbed? I should mention that my wife will be carrying this gun.
- I was shooting with another individual at the range who advised that I get a trigger job done to reduce the pull in double-action. I myself carry a 638 J-frame with virtually the same trigger pull, and I have never really been bothered by it (I guess I tend to think that a heavy pull in double-action is actually good when carrying defensively, lest your adreneline rush cause you to fire prematurely). What are you opinions on this ?
- The .32 Longs I used left some powder marks on the titanium cylinder. These won't come off for nothing. I tried MPro7 and Gunscrubber and neither one madde a dent. The owners manual advices against using any abrasives on the titamium parts of the gun since it could ruin the finish. Any suggestions on getting rid of these marks?
Overall, I like this gun a lot, and would recommend it (buy used if you can). I don't much care for the company that made this gun, but I have to admit they make a great product.
After shooting it, I did have a few questions for the more experienced among the TFL crowd:
- The model 331 comes with a standard exposed hammer. I probably would have purchased a 332 (internal hammer), but could not find one used. What are your feelings on having an exposed hammer on a carry gun? Should I think about having the hammer bobbed? I should mention that my wife will be carrying this gun.
- I was shooting with another individual at the range who advised that I get a trigger job done to reduce the pull in double-action. I myself carry a 638 J-frame with virtually the same trigger pull, and I have never really been bothered by it (I guess I tend to think that a heavy pull in double-action is actually good when carrying defensively, lest your adreneline rush cause you to fire prematurely). What are you opinions on this ?
- The .32 Longs I used left some powder marks on the titanium cylinder. These won't come off for nothing. I tried MPro7 and Gunscrubber and neither one madde a dent. The owners manual advices against using any abrasives on the titamium parts of the gun since it could ruin the finish. Any suggestions on getting rid of these marks?