6 years ago, I had sold my S&W 640 revolver. It was an all-steel J-frame revolver, chambered in the .357 magnum, and surprisingly, a comfortable shooter, even with Remington's 125 grain medium velocity .357 magnum load (125 grain, 1150 fps). I hated to sell it, but I was in the process of moving, and postdoctoral fellows don't make that much money.
Now that my "stimulus money" finally came in, I decided to celebrate this by going to my favorite gun store, and looking for a replacement J-frame revolver.
Initially, I was looking at another S&W 640, but a smaller, sleeker, and sexier offering caught my eye.
So, instead of coming home with another 640, I ended up grabbing a S&W 442, which is chambered in the .38 Special, and uses an aluminum alloy.
She weighs 15 ounces, unloaded, and that's only 3 ounces heavier than her more expensive cousin, the Scandium 340. To me, those 3 ounces are a Godsend, since firing .38 Special +P from that light of a gun (12 ounce 340) is very unpleasant. From the 442, it's actually almost comfortable, and I didn't have any shakes in the hand after sending 50 rounds down range.
Trigger pull is a standard Double Action Only, since this lady has no exposed hammer. Despite the heavier DAO trigger, it's a fairly smooth pull, and the breaking point is very consistent and predictable.
Accuracy is quite good, even at 15 yards. Using my own handloads (Vihtavuori N320, 125 grain plated flat point), I can keep everything in a 6 inch circle, no bench rest.
Shooting Speer's .38 Special 130 grain +P Gold Dot JHP load designed for short barreled guns (SB line) had a bit more kick, but it was, to me, less overall kick than firing the above mentioned Remington 125 grain medium velocity JHP (.357 magnum) from the all-steel 640.
Rest assured, she's a keeper, and fits beautifully in my Uncle Mike's pocket holster. Yes, I know that I normally abhor nylon holsters, but for a pocket holster, it does the job very nicely, and doesn't move around in the pocket.
The gun + holster disappears in the front pocket of a pair of relaxed fit cargo shorts, and anyone who somehow does manage to see the ever so slight bulge, will think it's a wallet. Unless someone stares for a long, extended period of time, they're not going to know that it's a firearm in my pocket.
Besides, if anyone does stare that intently, I can always accuse that person of being a pervert.
Anyways, I've attached some gun porn for y'all.
Now that my "stimulus money" finally came in, I decided to celebrate this by going to my favorite gun store, and looking for a replacement J-frame revolver.
Initially, I was looking at another S&W 640, but a smaller, sleeker, and sexier offering caught my eye.
So, instead of coming home with another 640, I ended up grabbing a S&W 442, which is chambered in the .38 Special, and uses an aluminum alloy.
She weighs 15 ounces, unloaded, and that's only 3 ounces heavier than her more expensive cousin, the Scandium 340. To me, those 3 ounces are a Godsend, since firing .38 Special +P from that light of a gun (12 ounce 340) is very unpleasant. From the 442, it's actually almost comfortable, and I didn't have any shakes in the hand after sending 50 rounds down range.
Trigger pull is a standard Double Action Only, since this lady has no exposed hammer. Despite the heavier DAO trigger, it's a fairly smooth pull, and the breaking point is very consistent and predictable.
Accuracy is quite good, even at 15 yards. Using my own handloads (Vihtavuori N320, 125 grain plated flat point), I can keep everything in a 6 inch circle, no bench rest.
Shooting Speer's .38 Special 130 grain +P Gold Dot JHP load designed for short barreled guns (SB line) had a bit more kick, but it was, to me, less overall kick than firing the above mentioned Remington 125 grain medium velocity JHP (.357 magnum) from the all-steel 640.
Rest assured, she's a keeper, and fits beautifully in my Uncle Mike's pocket holster. Yes, I know that I normally abhor nylon holsters, but for a pocket holster, it does the job very nicely, and doesn't move around in the pocket.
The gun + holster disappears in the front pocket of a pair of relaxed fit cargo shorts, and anyone who somehow does manage to see the ever so slight bulge, will think it's a wallet. Unless someone stares for a long, extended period of time, they're not going to know that it's a firearm in my pocket.
Besides, if anyone does stare that intently, I can always accuse that person of being a pervert.
Anyways, I've attached some gun porn for y'all.
