Risk to frame of replacing a 1982 Bulldog .44 Barrel

[RaySendero]

Yeah, I've really come to appreciate fixed slight pistols
when they shoot to POA from the get-go.

If your curious, I can figure the necessary sight adjustment for your revolver.
All I need is the measurement from the rear sight to tip of front sight.

 

[Grizzly2]

Thanks. I probably won't get it back until late this week or next.

I loved my wife's old pinned barrel 3" model 36. It shot straight right out of the box. Just had to remember that light +P rounds hit low. I would have never traded it off in the 90's for a hunting handgun if I'd ever dreamed Illinois would someday allow concealed carry.

Instead, I kept the pinned K38 6" that my wife shot much better.

 

[JERRYS.]

First, it is at Charter Arms for Warranty work. Being an older gun, from an earlier Company, they have never been obligated to work on them. But, for a $49.95 fee they will. They have done a number of things to it already and have also tried filing the sights.

I'm not really sure that bending a thicker 3" revolver barrel is a recommended repair, but I'm not a Gun Smith. I've heard of it with thin walled shotgun barrels, but never with revolvers.

It was already at Charter Arms for other repairs. I'd asked them to move poi to the right and they have already tried filing the front sight twice, with little effect. A new barrel seems to be the obvious repair. It doesn't appear to be screwed in too far or not enough and it also does not seem to veer off to the left, as another snub I owned did.

I'm very thankful that for only $49.95 they offer to work on Charter Arms firearms that were made by another company long ago. So far they have been very friendly and helpful and willing to go out of their way to make a customer happy.

well, you are also paying shipping both ways are you not? and the new company is owned by the son of the old company, so its the son fixing his father's gun.... new company is a play on words but I understand what you meant. I'm looking forward to how it looks on return and how it shoots.

 

[Grizzly2]

I'm paying shipping one way the first time it went in. I sent a list of repairs and they completed all of them except Poi was still off after they filed the front sight. So I called and was sent a free return shipping label. they also included a set of rubber grips, a new front redesigned frame pin and a few nylon? washers they now put under the cylinder crane screw. They also replaced a few damaged parts in the ejector rod and worked the action a bit. The seller had shot it loose without realizing it. Some of those parts were peened from the recoil.

The 2nd time in they adjusted the sights again. We agreed that if we opened them up much more, we might go too far. There was talk of looking for an older barrel to replace it with, but they sent it back on their shipping again along with a wood Classic grip that needed a small touch up with my old barrel.

I called after checking the sights and they said they'd have to replace the barrel, but wouldn't pay shipping to them. They'd made an exception to their rules about older guns when they sent me the mailer. OK., so I sent it in. The tech called me saying he'd look around for an older barrel, as new ones are not interchangeable. I said, keep it a week or so. If you find a 6 shot .38 cylinder and barrel, do that. We were all patient and friendly with each other, and I still had hopes they would get it shooting straight. Then the tech told me he found an older barrel from the 90's and would polish and reblue it. I asked if he could do a few other things while it was all apart and he said he would if he could.

They will pay return shipping for the third time along with paying for me to return it once. I too am hoping the blue matches and this barrel will blow the X out of my first target at a reasonable range.

I can see the awkward situation concerning his Father's company, but the real problem would be all those years of poor quality while another company was in charge. I imagine they run into some real issues with those.


The real moral of this whole story is buy from friends or fellow shooters who will let you see exactly how the firearm performs. There will be fewer surprises that way. Auctions are for gamblers. As to on line purchases - especially new revolvers, I recommend Davidson's with their return policy if anything is wrong. They will refund or replace. I've had to do that twice with a S&W performance center 642 I tried buying.

 

[JERRYS.]

I'm paying shipping one way the first time it went in. I sent a list of repairs and they completed all of them except Poi was still off after they filed the front sight. So I called and was sent a free return shipping label. they also included a set of rubber grips, a new front redesigned frame pin and a few nylon? washers they now put under the cylinder crane screw. They also replaced a few damaged parts in the ejector rod and worked the action a bit. The seller had shot it loose without realizing it. Some of those parts were peened from the recoil.

The 2nd time in they adjusted the sights again. We agreed that if we opened them up much more, we might go too far. There was talk of looking for an older barrel to replace it with, but they sent it back on their shipping again along with a wood Classic grip that needed a small touch up with my old barrel.

I called after checking the sights and they said they'd have to replace the barrel, but wouldn't pay shipping to them. They'd made an exception to their rules about older guns when they sent me the mailer. OK., so I sent it in. The tech called me saying he'd look around for an older barrel, as new ones are not interchangeable. I said, keep it a week or so. If you find a 6 shot .38 cylinder and barrel, do that. We were all patient and friendly with each other, and I still had hopes they would get it shooting straight. Then the tech told me he found an older barrel from the 90's and would polish and reblue it. I asked if he could do a few other things while it was all apart and he said he would if he could.

They will pay return shipping for the third time along with paying for me to return it once. I too am hoping the blue matches and this barrel will blow the X out of my first target at a reasonable range.

I can see the awkward situation concerning his Father's company, but the real problem would be all those years of poor quality while another company was in charge. I imagine they run into some real issues with those.


The real moral of this whole story is buy from friends or fellow shooters who will let you see exactly how the firearm performs. There will be fewer surprises that way. Auctions are for gamblers. As to on line purchases - especially new revolvers, I recommend Davidson's with their return policy if anything is wrong. They will refund or replace. I've had to do that twice with a S&W performance center 642 I tried buying.

aside from the shipping, it sounds like with the initial price you paid and all the additional work you're having done, it would have been better to just take a chance on one of their new guns.