hello everyone. i had a little time b4 work this saturday and thought i would finally hit the range and try out my chiappa rhino 4" .357 and post a range report, as promised many moons ago. ( just so busy with work and running the kids to and fro, etc.) anyhoo, here we go.
Overall i really like the gun. With anything, it has its pros/cons. i feel the pros outweigh the cons, but im going to give as honest an assessment as possible. even before shooting the gun i liked the way it felt in my hand, and now having shot it, that feeling has not changed. You DO however have to use a very specific grip on the gun so as not to burn your thumbs due to the location of the barrel being alligned with the bottom cylinder and not the top. ( if you are considering a rhino and have not heard of this, you might want to investigate further on the net.) i had no problems whatsoever with it.
On to the shooting itself. the gun is very accurate. for me, and i by no means got to put as many rounds through her as i wanted due to time constraints, i was really starting to get into a groove toward the end of my half hour session. i found that, perhaps due to the fact the sights and the barrel are farther apart than on most revolvers, i was using a slightly higher sight picture than i normally would. instead of alligning my sights to the BOTTOM of the bullseye i was putting my sights toward the TOP of the bullseye, and that seemed to work just fine at the 7 to 10 yd range i was shooting at. ( any other rhino owners feel/experienced the same? )
the recoil is probably what draws most people to the gun. the gun by no means reduces recoil, as some might be lead to believe.( only a compensator/porting can do that.) what it does do is redirect it. thats the best way i can describe it. muzzle flip is greatly reduced, i had no trouble keeping sight allignment and making quick follow up shots. the best way i can describe what the design does is putting recoil straight back through the line of your arm, starting with a kind of SMACK/SLAP to the palm, then a drive back through the dominant arm. it is a very pleasant gun to shoot. the design definitely does what it claims to do. muzzle flip is virtually eliminated.
now for the cons. the cocking mechanism for single action ( the gun's hammer is internal) is VERY hard to cock. when using a two handed grip, which i mostly do, i use the thumb of my weak supporting hand to send my revolvers into single action. this was very hard to do with the rhino, and i felt it threw off my grip and my hold on my sight picture. i actually fired the gun much more accurately in double action. this is something i hope improves with time and use and i hope the cocking lever loosens up some.
here's something i found completely weird. i had fully intended to, after starting with some .38 130 grain target loads, to use two of my favorite self defense .357 loads. one being 145 grain winchester silvertip
.357 ammo, the other remington golden saber 125 grain jhp .357 ammo. i started with the silvertip, no problems. when i tried the golden sabers, they wouldnt go into the cylinder! ( i almost had to have a hammer to get them into the cylinder! ) the larger grain silvertips were just fine, but i could not safely chamber, let alone fire the smaller grain golden sabers!! i guess i'll reserve the sabers for my other .357's but i just don't get it. anyone have any thoughts/ideas? any rhino owners experienced anything similar?
another con( for some, not me) is her looks. doesnt have the beauty of a single action or a python, but i kind of like her different, futuristic looks. others may or may not feel the same. but hey, beauty is in the eye of the beholder/shooter!!
finally, the lack of a quality holster out there is just frustrating. the 2" models come with one but finding ones for the longer barrel models is difficult. fortunately, in going thru my old holster box, i found an old uncle mikes iwb holster that will work for now. i am sure the near future will yield more of a selection of good holsters for these guns. by the way, another unique feature of the gun is the flat/hexagonal cylinder. another major selling point for these guns. conceals like a semi auto. that will get better also with a better holster. something to consider if you're someone out there contemplating/purchasing a rhino and like to carry iwb like me.
well, that's it until next time i make the range. thanks and god bless.
Overall i really like the gun. With anything, it has its pros/cons. i feel the pros outweigh the cons, but im going to give as honest an assessment as possible. even before shooting the gun i liked the way it felt in my hand, and now having shot it, that feeling has not changed. You DO however have to use a very specific grip on the gun so as not to burn your thumbs due to the location of the barrel being alligned with the bottom cylinder and not the top. ( if you are considering a rhino and have not heard of this, you might want to investigate further on the net.) i had no problems whatsoever with it.
On to the shooting itself. the gun is very accurate. for me, and i by no means got to put as many rounds through her as i wanted due to time constraints, i was really starting to get into a groove toward the end of my half hour session. i found that, perhaps due to the fact the sights and the barrel are farther apart than on most revolvers, i was using a slightly higher sight picture than i normally would. instead of alligning my sights to the BOTTOM of the bullseye i was putting my sights toward the TOP of the bullseye, and that seemed to work just fine at the 7 to 10 yd range i was shooting at. ( any other rhino owners feel/experienced the same? )
the recoil is probably what draws most people to the gun. the gun by no means reduces recoil, as some might be lead to believe.( only a compensator/porting can do that.) what it does do is redirect it. thats the best way i can describe it. muzzle flip is greatly reduced, i had no trouble keeping sight allignment and making quick follow up shots. the best way i can describe what the design does is putting recoil straight back through the line of your arm, starting with a kind of SMACK/SLAP to the palm, then a drive back through the dominant arm. it is a very pleasant gun to shoot. the design definitely does what it claims to do. muzzle flip is virtually eliminated.
now for the cons. the cocking mechanism for single action ( the gun's hammer is internal) is VERY hard to cock. when using a two handed grip, which i mostly do, i use the thumb of my weak supporting hand to send my revolvers into single action. this was very hard to do with the rhino, and i felt it threw off my grip and my hold on my sight picture. i actually fired the gun much more accurately in double action. this is something i hope improves with time and use and i hope the cocking lever loosens up some.
here's something i found completely weird. i had fully intended to, after starting with some .38 130 grain target loads, to use two of my favorite self defense .357 loads. one being 145 grain winchester silvertip
.357 ammo, the other remington golden saber 125 grain jhp .357 ammo. i started with the silvertip, no problems. when i tried the golden sabers, they wouldnt go into the cylinder! ( i almost had to have a hammer to get them into the cylinder! ) the larger grain silvertips were just fine, but i could not safely chamber, let alone fire the smaller grain golden sabers!! i guess i'll reserve the sabers for my other .357's but i just don't get it. anyone have any thoughts/ideas? any rhino owners experienced anything similar?another con( for some, not me) is her looks. doesnt have the beauty of a single action or a python, but i kind of like her different, futuristic looks. others may or may not feel the same. but hey, beauty is in the eye of the beholder/shooter!!
finally, the lack of a quality holster out there is just frustrating. the 2" models come with one but finding ones for the longer barrel models is difficult. fortunately, in going thru my old holster box, i found an old uncle mikes iwb holster that will work for now. i am sure the near future will yield more of a selection of good holsters for these guns. by the way, another unique feature of the gun is the flat/hexagonal cylinder. another major selling point for these guns. conceals like a semi auto. that will get better also with a better holster. something to consider if you're someone out there contemplating/purchasing a rhino and like to carry iwb like me.
well, that's it until next time i make the range. thanks and god bless.