Will the Chiappa rhino design take over the revolver market?

Like others, I don't think it will take over.
Nice concept, glad to see someone made one, but the lockwork in it
Is far to complex for the supposed problems it solves for me.

I'll stick to a j,k,l,n frame.

For those that have them and like them, I'm happy for you, but it is not for me.
 
The Rhino is an interesting idea, but it came out over 5 years ago and hasn't "taken over" yet, so I don't expect it to.
Click to expand...

"Taken over"? It has yet to "take off" ..... and I doubt it ever will, for all the reasons mentioned above.

I saw a few when they first came out .... none since.
 
Im sure that the old design will continue to dominate for many years to come. But we need to embrace changes in the industry
Click to expand...
But not at the expense of a much more complicated design with more potential for problems.

Kinda like this:
Ford later claimed to have performed more than adequate, if not superior, product development and market research work in the planning and design of the new vehicle. Particularly Ford assured its investors, and the Detroit automotive press, that the Edsel was not only a superior product (as compared to its Oldsmobile/Buick competition), but the details of its styling and specifications were the result of a sophisticated market analysis and research and development effort that would essentially guarantee its broad acceptance by the buying public when the car was introduced.
Click to expand...
 
Nothing new about under barrel revolvers. There was a custom shop in the 1980's making / selling them. Have a Guns & Ammo Article from back in the day with them.
 
I have one. I bought the first one I saw. It's a relatively low serial number.

To address the often mentioned complicated design will equal problems, what do you guys think a good revolver of (insert brand here) should go? How many rounds? Mine went about 10,000 of 357 before a failure. In my opinion it was a major failure but it wasn't a failure of the "clockwork" mechanism. In my case the breach shield cracked right in half.

I tend to agree with Magnum Wheel Man, it suits the role of a snubbie great. That's where this pistol shines. This gun can shoot hot 357 loads fast and accurately.

I'm not sure where all the complaints of poor triggers are coming from but then again I've only handled mine. I have seen and fired much, much worse DA guns. The DA on this gun is actually quite nice.

It's already been mentioned but revolver owners tend to be traditionalists. The Rhino is newer and funky looking, that really kept it from taking off. The assumed potential problems with the complicated internals didn't help either. I think, atleast for me, the two biggest things holdings it back are the cost and the customer service. I was really disappointed with the customer service especially considering the price point.
 
350px-Chiappa_Rhino_chrome_20DS_current.jpg


Is it going to revolutionize the revolver world? I doubt it. I find them to be interesting, and a welcome change to the revolver world, myself... I have an issue of "The Complete Book Of Handguns" by Massad Ayoob, 2011, Harris Outdoor Group, Mas does a thorough review on it.

The only thing about this revolver that really raises my eyebrows in skepticism, is the way you would have to hold it and reach the trigger. If you will notice in the above pic, the crotch of your hand would ride dramatically higher than your trigger finger. Compare this to other handguns such as a 1911 or a traditional revolver with a security grip, where your trigger finger extends straight forward from the crotch of your firing hand.

... or is it just me?

I want one FWIW, just puzzled with the hold and reach to the trigger...
 
It's not just you, it is a different type of grip. I had a tendency to shoot high at first trying to shoot it with a traditional revolver type grip. Then I figured out you have to break your wrist forward with this gun. There's a video out there where Jerry M. Does a review and he explains the same thing.

The rubber grip is pretty slender and I think that was by design, to accommodate for the trigger reach with the non-traditional hand grip style. I have pretty average size hands and don't find the trigger reach to be too much.
 
I bought one of the early 200D models. The hammer is bobbed, no spur. It was a safe queen for quite a while. Then my wife decided to accompany me to the range. She likes the revolver concept, and has real trouble racking a semi-auto slide - not because of "feminine weakness" but because she broke her left arm and has a plate stretching from her elbow to her shoulder. So, my K and N frames don't fit her hand well, and the J frames (I have a couple of airweight snubbies) were too snappy - especially for a beginner.

When I was digging around in the safe for an alternative, there was the Rhino in its case. When she picked it up, it was like it had been custom made for her. Where she had been putting maybe one or two rounds out of 25 or so in the target, now she started putting most of them in the black. Suddenly she's excited about shooting with me. Thank you Chiappa - I owe you a big one.
BTW, I think there were Chiappa Rhinos in Divergent as well as Covert Affairs.
 
Quote:
No revolver you are likely to see in ANY gun shop will have a design that dates back 200 years.
If you're going to quote someone, at least read the post first.
Click to expand...

I was actually focused a bit more on the "design" aspect. Fixed barrel,
rotating cylinder etc. Didn't even consider actually SEEING the one existing
1597 revolver in a gunshop near me.:)
 
I think the Rhino is in the same category as the Gyrojet, Dardick and the Kimball .30 carbine pistol.
Click to expand...

The Gyrojet and the Dardick used proprietary ammo. When you use a round that no one else does, you have a tough time surviving, even in a niche market. Particularly when the round isn't even conventional ammunition.

The Kimball, I think was simply a matter of it being too far ahead of its time for market success. Several other decent, or even good guns have gone down as commercial failures simply because the buying public wasn't ready to accept them, yet.

Underbarrel designs have been done before, the concept has some merit, but to date, no design has been widely accepted. What interests me (slightly) with the Rhino is the cylinder not being round. Not enough to buy one, however...

US revolver designs essentially begin with the Colt Patterson model (1836) being I believe the first production revolver in the US. Colt's patent for a "revolving pistol" in almost 200 years old now. I suppose you could consider all modern revolvers as evolving from that, but if so, you could also consider all vehicles as evolving from the Egyptian chariot (or something older I don't know about), because they also use the wheel.
 
I got one rather cheap, used, and not fired much.
After a couple hundred rounds it froze up, something broke internally.
I sent it back and according to the invoice they "changed internal parts"
The gun is a 200DS and was a couple of years old, after getting it back the trigger was noticeably better, it staged well and broke very clean.
I am so far, kinda impressed, time will tell.
 
Yes the grip angle is interesting. I actually really liked it. Felt very ergonomic to me. I wish more handguns had grip angles like that rather than the more traditional perpendicular grip. At first I shot high but after a cylinder or two I was shooting accurately and comfortably. My only complaints were the gritty trigger and the fact that it is butt-ugly.
 
The way you grip it isn't excessively strange. The best way I can relate it is when you see a depiction of some cheesey gang guy holding the pistol sideways, high and angling his wrist downwards. Obviously it's not sideways and it's not high, but the physical sensation is slightly that downward wrist angle. It feels slightly weird only because it's different than with my PPS or my Sig. It feels kind of like you're pointing downwards relative to other pistols.
 
I think the Rhino is in the same category as the Gyrojet, Dardick and the Kimball .30 carbine pistol.
Click to expand...

The comparison was intended to mean that new oddball things are generally a flash in the pan for whatever reason, be it proprietary cartridges, unsound or bizarre concepts or what have you I don't see the Rhino having any better future than the other guns I mentioned.

As always, YMMV.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top