Firearm Friday: Charter Arms .357 Magnum "Mag Pug"
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- Опубліковано 6 жов 2024
- When it came time to replace my carry gun, I wanted to go simple, classic, and still ballistically effective. The Charter Arms "Mag Pug" in .357 Magnum fit the bill perfectly.
Those are gorgeous grips on a beautiful gun.
Very thorough review. You touched on every point I wanted to know about and added new ideas such as hand grip options. Thanks!
I really enjoyed this no nonsense video. Lots of useful information.
Great job ........god bless the fine men and women that work at Charter arms ,Great American Company.
Theyre all mexican
@filthymcnastyazz😂😂😂😂😂
@billyp333😭😭😭😂😂😂😂
I have an old school k frame smith that I told myself was too big so I bought the black mag pug. I actually changed the grips on my smith to the combat grips, so charter giving the combat grips out the door makes me happy. That and the smoothness and accuracy are a combo I couldn't pass up. I carry all day on my property and fishing so it's loaded with two snake shots and 3 bad boy shots. Hope I never need the bad boy shots but I use the snake shot a lot here in Florida.
Personally I carry a Ruger LCR 327 federal. But I'm always in the market for another wheel gun. I have an old Charter 38spl revolver that I inherited from my grandfather. Wanted to see what Charter's quality looked like these days.
Nice seeing you still in the game, so to speak! I actually have a couple of 1970s vintage Charter Arms; the classic Bulldog in .44 Special and the Offduty in .38 Special. I have a real love for these less expensive alternatives to S&W or Ruger and have a lot of experience shooting them for training as back up guns and even primary carry guns. I love the classic lines of the models I have but will be buying the new .45 Colt "Bulldog" model, since I use that caliber for Cowboy Action and it is still very relevant in today's self defense uses as it was over 100 years ago when it was invented. Thanks for pointing out Altamont for grips, I had not thought of them and have been using a Pachmeyer on mine that is just too large. I will look into the Altamont but I am leaning more towards a Hip-Grip with a "T" grip in front of it to preserve the more classic lines, blame it on too many Mickey Spillane novels, hehe!
Is this "DB Customs" Dwayne Dees? If so, holy hell dude, blast from the past! Glad you're still around! I still have a prototype barrel of yours in my Echo 1/CAW M1014, haha.
Yep, guilty, LOL! Glad you like the barrel that much! Been out of the airsoft end of things for a long time now, actually work on real firearms again and as a concealed carry trainer when I can, and really enjoy it. I use airsoft to train people and have been still pushing the training end of things to new people and have gotten a lot of people interested in using airsoft for training so I guess I am not totally out of it but I am no longer a manufacturer (long story).
Not to pick at you, but I had to laugh at around 11:55 when you said "revolvers today are safer than revolvers tomorrow". I'm sure you meant "yesterday" but that's okay. Very good presentation regardless. Very nice revolver. I was considering a Ruger SP 101 but now I'm looking into Charter Arms options.
Nobody cares
From the research I've done Charter is the one who came up with the firing pin block. They revolutionized the revolver industry, even though they don't get the credit they deserve.
Awesome review, i am totally getting this revolver. It would be my first revolver.. thanks for your honest review.
First gun I ever bought was a Charter Arms Mag Pug. I love it!
I own a Charter Arms .357 mag Target Bulldog, with a 4.2” barrel. I’ve owned it for a couple months. It feels great in my hand with the OEM rubber grips. I did file the front sight down a bit so the rear adjustable sight doesn’t have to be adjusted up so high. It shoots precisely at 25’. I paid about $450 for it; new. I’d buy Charter Arms guns again without hesitation. 🤓
Is that the model with a 5-round capacity? Thank you.
@@johnmcsweeney4966 Yes 5 rounds
Anthony thank you for your honesty
The Mag Pug is my primary carry gun.
This 5 round revolver is my concealed carry piece. And I love it. Only modification I did was to paint irredescent red the front sight.
This is currently sitting in my pocket holster as I type this. Love using it as a carry gun.
Awesome video thanks for the good info on the Charter arms Mag Pug 357!!!
Nice review and glad to see you explain what you changed and your reasons for doing so. Well thought out, too. Not exactly what my choice would be, but I can't fault your choices. Thanks.
Booligan, you may want to try a Sticky holster. I got one for my Taurus 605 and it is perfect for iwb and it does go anywhere!
I bought the Pitbull in .45acp for my primary carry (got tired of lugging around the 1911) and for a 22oz snubbie the recoil is surprisingly easy to manage, and accurate too. Very fun gun to shoot. I usually run out of ammo before I get tired of shooting it.
I got one. Great gun.
Look at the new Taurus 380 revolver in .380 ACP! 16oz. Only 16 oz. I carry this gun as a back up to my primary which is a Glock 43X. And the point of this gun is two reasons it’s in a place that I can grab it quickly with my offhand if I cannot reach around myself to get the back up and it gives me an option to have two guns in a fight or do you have a gun I can pass off to somebody might help me to get out of a bad situation. I think I paid $349.99. I have truly found it to be an awesome backup gun. It’s also an awesome primary carry gun if I’m not wearing much clothes. It weighs 16 ounces which is a pound. And I’m not telling you to get one but FOR THE LOVE OF GOD GET ONE!
@scubaguy007 That’s about same price for 357 magnum Taurus right now
My opinion is this gun shoots smooth even with good factory rounds it's a heavy little 357 which helps it shoot easily.
Thanks for the vid, informative and not boring... Good angles. Rare lol
Excellent, thanks.
I've got one, but the DAO version. I carry the same ammo. I use a DeSantis Gunhide Sof-Tuck that lists the Charter Arms Undercover 2" on the label. I carry appendix and have no desire to change the stock grips. I haven't noticed any significant muzzle flip with .357 rounds, the porting seems to do its job well. I have noticed that the front sight is overly tall and results in the muzzle angling down when lining the sights up normally, even as close as 3 yards. I have a theory on why that is that I haven't had a chance to test yet. I think that it's so that in a defensive gun use, if you bring the gun to eye level and line up the sights, aiming at the head or neck will put your shots in the aggressor's chest.
I have both the pug in 357 and Taurus 605 I'm not sorry to say I like my 605 better it just shoots more comfortable to me and fits in my front pocket better .
@thebamaboxer5403 Thanks for sharing I was trying to pick between the two. Even though I want the legendary Smith & Wesson instead
I went with a CA Police Undercover .38 Spl for my winter EDC. Same frame, but a six shot cylinder. 38 or 38+P will get the job done and I like having the extra wheel chamber.
That’s a very solid EDC choice!
@@booliganshootingsports Like how you modified the grips. The "as sold" rubber grips are really comfortable, but the length increases the chance of printing while carrying.
about how many rounds do u have thru this revolver. curious as to how it is holding up. considering getting one someday.
Nice review
I had one it was just deafeningly loud. Single action was nice, double wasn’t as nice as a smith but it was accurate and functional. Looking at one of their 45acp pitbull models.
maviskkilpatrick,
Almost All guns are " deafeningly loud".
Most with one shot, but even the lowly .22LR (mostly because they're fired multiply times). The damage is cumulative. A .22LR a hundred times may equal a .357 Man fired one. Grown Wise too late... ☆
I love the handle upgrade .. where did you get it ..
????
He said Altamont bruh
I ground the foresight down a bit, and installed Charter Arms' Compact (two finger) rubber grips. I'm very happy with it.
I have one of these and found 357 to be pretty easy to shoot. Even with full house 357. Just remember to get a solid grip on the gun and you will be good. After several hundred rounds at the range of 357 my hand isn't even sore and I'm not a big dude.
That’s good to know. I just bought one and was wondering if the middle finger got beat up when shooting .357 magnum loads. I had an SP101 that was painful to shoot full .357 loads
@@veevans01ify I haven't had any soreness with mine. The ports might keep the muzzle down enough to prevent finger soreness. Seems like a push instead of a snap.
@@tray22 thanks for the info.
Imma wait till fall to get one hopefully prices go back down
Hey I found a brand new one for 350$ gonna be my first .357 do you still recommend it?
@brandonUwanawich954 Return it now and go with the .380 C-9 or 45 Hi-point. You’ll hate me later ☺️👍
If you are on a budget and you want a decent revolver go with Charter Arms over Taurus.
Would be interested in seeing the grip before and after though.. you forgot! Their sites don't have pics of the things installed :(
Excellent video, well done.
Nicely done.
I picked up a Ruger 38 LCR-X and find it to be "to light in weight" for me. I can reload a 357 down to 38+P plus a little more so I like the 357 Caliber for this reason. In a short barrel you can never get the published velocity from the test equipment used by many factories.
The weight on this is really spot on. I pocket carry almost daily and it never feels heavy, but that 20+ oz weight cuts the recoil quite a bit.
Booligan, What an excellent video, well done sir. My EDC is the Charter Arms Police Undercover(73840). It is the same gun that you are holding, except it is chambered in .38special +P AND HOLDS SIX ROUNDS instead of five. Also, the HKS #10 speed loader works in mine, as it is the same as a K frame S&W. Therefore, there are a whole lot of accessories available for mine. But, I can see where the power of the .357 magnum could come in handy(hiking/backpacking). Also your revolver will go up to a 200 grain factory round(corbon hunter), where as mine will top out at 158 grain bullet. I use the Hornady 158 grain XTP hollow points in mine. But if one would be threatened by bear, mountain Lion or any other big critter, I certainly would want the heavier bullet. I like ALL of Charter Arms products, and they have a lifetime warranty. If anything is wrong, they will fix it. Great video, well done.
+Da StevieBEE the current company is doing a fantastic job with all of their product lines, that's for sure. I'd love to have a 6th round tucked in here, but I like the slimmer profile of the 5 shot too much! It disappears in a pocket with this holster. I almost picked up a Charter .38 used, but then I fell in love with this one.
I’ve been seriously looking at this revolver in .41 mag.
I got those same Altamont grips, they're pretty great. I'd like to also turn you on to Eagle Grips' "Secret Service" grips. They're truncated at the heel, so you can pocket-carry in a Barsony holster or something. Eagle has them listed for the Bulldog, but Charter uses a "one-size-fits-all" grip scheme.
predcon1 I saw those and almost bought them, but I liked the DIY aspect of these as well as the color. But I was VERY close to buying the Eagles, they’re a great grip.
@@booliganshootingsports Too right, $50 plus some work at home beats $90. And Altamont has the panel grips for even less ($28 for smooth, $38 for checkered). Not sure I'd want something that thin on a snubnose, but it's cheap enough to be worth trying.
@@predcon1 Yeah, panels are definitely a little thin when shooting full power .357 rounds out of this. The Altamont grips are meaty enough to make it comfortable without snapping into your palm too much. I honestly wish they'd do a short, kinda fat grip like this from the factory for the Charter guns, I bet they'd sell like hotcakes.
Great review. I just bought the Charter Arms Mag Pug 3” hi-polish.Altimont grips will be my first purchase. I wanted a Ruger SP101 but the price is just a little too much. How is it holding up?
It's holding up fantastically. Only real wear is a cylinder ring from firing.
Enjoyed your video. Keep up the good work!
good video
Must take issue with his dissing of Taurus revolvers. I O&Cd a Taurus 85 for years with nary a issue and it was dead accurate. Of course it was ported which helped accuracy and it was my only Taurus revolver so maybe I got lucky...
You definitely did get lucky. I comment on another question below about my personal experiences with Taurus revolvers. While they don't make a 100% bad product, I've had several personally fail on my in dangerous ways and can't recommend them based on my personal experiences.
Failure in their revolvers or semi autos?
Rudy Benitez both. I’ve had two different revolvers that constantly lost time and shaved lead and was unsafe. And I had a PT145 Pro that had constant feeding issues with all of the magazines it came with. I know that many people have had great experiences with Taurus, but my personal experience over several product lines and several years cannot allow me to recommend them in most cases.
Thanks for taking the time to reply! Appreciate your input and your video!
Love it
Most of your grip strength comes from your pinky. And there's nothing wrong with 38 special. 38 will dump all its energy into the target, 357 mag runs a higher risk of over penetration.
Where did you get those grips and do you have a video of you trimming off the bottom of them?
Grips are from altamont. I didn’t take video of the customization. I cut the bottom off and reshaped it with a sander, not much to it.
hi I am looking at a Charter Arms Mag Pug 357 RemMag 2" 5rd Rubber Grip SS.
Can someone please tell me what they mean by RimMag?
scoffing at taurus and rossi while rocking a charter arms is absolutely insane. this is what someone who has learned all their firearm knowledge from reddit looks like.
Charter, depending on the year made, is better than Taurus. That’s not really debatable. Old Charter and new Charter is good. Middle time period Charter is pretty rough. This Charter is new production (at the time) and is therefore good.
My firearm knowledge comes from my decades of firearm experience. My two separate Taurus revolvers from different generations and product lines that lost time in short order and started spraying lead and jacket material into my arm. Material that’s still there, lol. And the terrible CS that I had to deal with to try and get them repaired/replaced before ditching them to people as gunsmith specials.
Taurus is improving these days. The last 2-3 years have shown improvement in the guns I’ve worked on. But this is a 6 year old video commenting on my 6 year ago firsthand experiences on guns I owned in the preceding 2-4 years.
I’ve been inside more different revolvers in my decades doing this than most people know exist, lol.
@@booliganshootingsports u know what ? fair. on me pal
Thanks for the video. Have you experimented with the actual charter brand g10 grips? You have fabricated a much more "proportionally' appealing product... And I am very curious about the improved proportion of a few of the charter brand grips on their site, that are not shown on a pistol, so it's hard to tell... Trying to figure out where I could find user submitted pics of the "g10 classic grip" on their site.
I haven’t tried them out unfortunately
Does it have a pug face on it?
not really but the barrel is ported
Nice gun. One year later....let me ask, how's the 357 working out for you? When looking at the Charter arms series, did you consider the 44 special, and if so, why did you give it a pass?
It's running great! I went with the .357 because it would be inexpensive and not too punishing to shoot at the range using .38spl, which is what I shoot through it 90% of the time. It still locks up super tight, nothing bad to report. More often than not, this gun is riding in a pocket holster on my person loaded up with a cylinder full of .357mag.
Where did I get that grip what brand is it it’s nice
Excellent in-depth review.
Do you feel you could sucessfully use this small revolver for defense purposes if necessary for instance while Hiking, Camping against Black Bears or Wild Boar?
Normally a 357 can be sufficient for that task.
Can you shoot full power loades of 357 occasionally out of that Charter Arms 357?
This 357 revolver is on my mind, as well as the 9mm, 40 S&W, 45 ACP,45 LC and 41 Mag.
I have the 44 Special Bulldog and ammunition is a problem to obtain
for the 44 Special Bulldog as it can only take lesser powered 44 Special Loades which not many stores carry.
So Stopping power, ease of logistics for avsilability of Ammunition are considerations.
Today's Charter Arms revolvers are the best they ever have been made using C& C Machinery good steel and Heat Treatment.
Kaido Ojamaa full power hard cast bullet loads would probably be a good option for situations like that. Less than ideal, obviously, but I’d sleep well in the woods with this loaded like that on my hip.
Lol. Check yourself dude. Taurus and Rossi make excellent revolvers. Always have.
My personal experiences contradict that. They had a decade and a half of terrible QC. I had multiple guns dangerously go out of time within 1-2 cylinders and couldn’t be fixed by their shop and warranty.
They’ve since improved and generally are solid guns in the 7 years since I made this video. I have multiple Taurus projects currently.
But then? They were not consistently good or safe.
For home defense should I go with snub nose or 4" target model? Enjoyed your presentation.
Longer model. Much easier to aim and fire accurately when you’re not worrying about concealment.
Charter makes a rubber boot grip.
They didn't when I put this together, but looking at them, they look nice. I just worry about rubber grips snagging/dragging on a pocket holster draw. It's one reason why I like the wood ones, because the shape allows me to keep a great grip on the gun while the smooth wood finish along the edges don't hinder my draw from concealment.
Just got mine. What speed loader works best for the mag pug?
Landry Perrin the 5 Star J1 is a solid option.
@@booliganshootingsports thanks. I'll have to pick up a few.
What's the model number on the Gould & Goodrich holster?
Did you consider the bulldog 44 ? Both these are on my radar
I also have a vintage bulldog .44. Both are very good options, I just prefer carrying .357/.38 as it’s easier to acquire ammo to train with.
Try the same handgun in .44 Spl
Already have one , Doesn't shoot worth a crap
What are the issues you have with yours?
@booliganshootingsports shoots way left and low, The father from your target , The worse it gets, Worst gun I own
@@johnmetz1158 odd issue, usually low left shooting is a shooter issue and not a mechanical issue, but stranger things have happened! Maybe a crown issue.
Luckily mine shot exactly where intended once I filed the front sight slightly to match point of aim at 7 yards.
@booliganshootingsports Don't have any problem with any other gun , Buddy of mine has one just like mine, And just like mine he has the same problem, Think they just junk
Do the grips that you put on from Altamont help absorb recoil, or are they just standard wooden grips that you like the look of?
The grip shape does help with recoil management
I'll be honest man, I judged the shit out of you based on your looks but you sound like you know what you're talking about. I appreciate the review video - good information to think about.
Does the firearm shoot low?
Mine did. I filed the front sight a bit to be closer to true point of aim at range.
Nice friendship bracelets.
I see this is a few years ago. How’s it holding up?
It held up great, and ultimately I sold it.
@@booliganshootingsports how come you sold it ? Didn’t like it?
@@jcools734 I just realized that I hadn’t shot it in a while and wanted a different gun.
Why to choose this one in 357 over the less recoiling 44 version?
How it is lasting today?
Ammo availability, more reliable expansion of .357 JHP rounds from a short barrel, the ability to shoot .38 spl, etc. Other than a louder report when firing, the .357 is pretty much superior in every way compared to .44 spl. And it's lasting great!
@@booliganshootingsports I just bought one but haven’t shot it yet. Does it beat up the middle finger when shooting magnum loads?
Where did u get your grip at its nice
Carl Freeman they’re from Altamont grips, but I modified them to be shorter.
I hate California 😢
Stop saying this guy
I also have a "Pug" just like yours, but with the original grips. In addition I have two Taurus wheel guns and as a former gunsmith I'll take the quality of build of a Taurus over Charter Arms any-day hands down. The "Pug" is a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10 but Taurus is a solid 8. Perhaps you've never torn into the guts of these guns enough to make an intelligent comment one versus the other. In conclusion, the Pug will serve one well for its intended use...a self defense reliable gun, but as a daily or weekly shooter, the guns quality will soon be evident.
I'll copy/paste this response I previously made about my Taurus experience: "I've had multiple Taurus models including a 605 and an 85 that both lost timing at about 50 rounds which caused shaved lead to the point of causing burns and cuts on me while shooting. Bought the 605 after having the retailer take back the 85, only to have it do the exact same thing. After returning that one to the factory to have timing fixed, it started doing the same thing shortly after, maybe 40-50 rounds later. Sold that to someone who wanted to learn how to fix revolvers, and I imagine it kept them busy.
I also had a PT145 that worked great, for 100 rounds, then would fail to eject with all ammo I tried and failed to feed from one of the mags. I've spent enough money and blood on Taurus guns, I'm not wasting any more of either."
I do respect other's opinions though, and I fully believe that people have had great trouble free experiences with Taurus. But I bought 3 different ones and had them all fail in one way or another at very low round counts, and I honestly can't recommend them based on my personal experiences.
Nerd
president excellent pistol fantastic great alot of fun shooting there great excited everyshoot perfict fantastic have nice day karon ^^****
Very in accurate relvor