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View Full Version : Any small 9mm revolvers out there worth buying?



37th Mass
12-29-2011, 06:47 AM
I've been reading the 642 vs Bodyguard .38 thread, and getting an education J Frames, the Bodyguard and the LCR. I can see the appeal of a small revolver as a BUG.

Wouldn't it be nice to have a BUG in the same caliber as your primary pistol? I understand the difference between rimmed cartridges like the .38 Special and rimless cartridges like the 9mm, but haven't revolvers for rimless cartridges been done before? Even with moon clips, it would seem that a 9mm revolver could be useful.

When I search Gunbroker for 9mm revolvers, I see only a few Taurus, Astra, and Charter Arms models. I'm a little leery of them. Any thoughts?

jlw
12-29-2011, 08:19 AM
My boss has a S&W 940 in 9mm, and we both qualified with it as a backup gun. It's a neat little package, but the trigger on this one could use some work.

Tamara
12-29-2011, 09:25 AM
I'd not bother unless I could get a Smith. It will eat from moonclips.

I know that, for example, out of five Taurus 905IB's I sold in '05-'06, four had to go back to the factory. One came from the factory with so much endshake that the firing pin could not reliably reach the primer enough to more than faintly dimple it. An 80% defect rate does not fill me with confidence.

98z28
12-29-2011, 09:46 AM
The 9mm small frame revolver seems like a great back up, but I would try and shoot one first. Believe it or not, the recoil from a 9mm is pretty intense when it is launched from a small revolver. And I'm not all that recoil sensitive.

The Smith 940 was THE back up gun in 80's according to the salty guys at my department. It is a great option if you can find one. They still seem to be popular so you shouldn't have any problem getting your money back out of it if you decide it doesn't work for you.

FWIW, I wound up sticking with a Smith 640 (357 mag) over the 940 because of the recoil issue.

JHC
12-29-2011, 01:01 PM
Why hasn't the 940 re-appeared? Seems like a guaranteed winner? Especially now that S&W has developed the lightweight models to handle .357 pressure.

TGS
12-29-2011, 01:59 PM
Why hasn't the 940 re-appeared? Seems like a guaranteed winner? Especially now that S&W has developed the lightweight models to handle .357 pressure.

Because people associate 9mm with being weak, whereas .357 Magnum and .38 git-r-dun.

It then blows their mind when they find out a 9mm+p defensive load recoils the same as a light .357 defensive load, because imagine that...they're the same.

Tamara
12-29-2011, 09:17 PM
Because people associate 9mm with being weak, whereas .357 Magnum and .38 git-r-dun.

^This.^

Plus, auto cartridges and moonclips are a big turn-off to your average revolver buyer. Rimless revolvers are a niche market. (Which makes the fans of the 10mm Auto S&W 610 such figures of pity. If it's hard to find enough buyers of 9mm and .45 revos to justify the occasional production run, imagine the poor fans of the 10mm wheelgun, which are less common than left-handed Latvian Hindu jet pilots...)

37th Mass
12-30-2011, 11:11 AM
Thanks folks for the replies. I did see one 9mm Smith on Gunbroker, but the price was crazy high. It would be much cheaper to buy a new J Frame or LCR and several boxes of .38 SPL ammo.

NickA
12-30-2011, 11:20 AM
You can have a j-frame converted to 9mm for a few hundred bucks -
http://www.pinnacle-guns.com/revolver.asp

I have no personal experience with it though.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

gringop
12-30-2011, 05:42 PM
Because carrying somewhat easily bent moonclips in your pocket sucks when your life is on the line. All that fast reloading goes away when a bent clip means the cylinder won't close.

S+W has had a few production runs of 9mm J-frames they just don't sell for all the reasons that others have mentioned.

If only they had named them something like "The Magistrate"

Gringop

SmokeJumper
12-31-2011, 02:49 AM
One of my coworkers carries the S&W 940 as his BUG. Its not a bad little wheel gun and shoots well. It is a tad bit heavier than my lighter weight j-frames. I could see a market for them again if S&W made another run of them, granted it would most likely be a small niche market of end users for the reasons stated above. They do come up from time to time on the online auctions and in gun shops.

Tamara
12-31-2011, 07:13 AM
Because carrying somewhat easily bent moonclips in your pocket sucks when your life is on the line. All that fast reloading goes away when a bent clip means the cylinder won't close.
I've bent a factory S&W 625 moon before, getting the empties out, using an old 1911 barrel for a wrench. I've never bent one of the heavier-gauge Wilson ones, but then, I never tried.

I wonder if there's a certain level of force that will bend one of those in a pocket that won't, say, break an HKS speedloader? I dunno.

Matt C.
01-04-2012, 05:30 PM
You can have a j-frame converted to 9mm for a few hundred bucks -
http://www.pinnacle-guns.com/revolver.asp

I have no personal experience with it though.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

I do have personal experience with this conversion and am pleased with the outcome.

bwswanson
01-04-2012, 09:47 PM
I do have personal experience with this conversion and am pleased with the outcome.

Matt what revolver did you have converted?

Matt C.
01-05-2012, 01:55 PM
Matt what revolver did you have converted?

642

JonInWA
01-13-2012, 11:13 AM
I'm surprised that nobody else has mentioned this as of yet-the Ruger Speed-Six, which were also produced in several 9mm moonclip incarnations (2 3/4" {primarily} and 4" barrels. While out of production since 1988, they occasionally pop up on the horizon, and are well worth a perusal.

Best, Jon

DocGKR
01-13-2012, 02:17 PM
In this day and age, the best small 9 mm revolver or otherwise is something like a G19...

http://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?716-The-quot-new-quot-J-frame

JonInWA
01-15-2012, 09:42 AM
In this day and age, the best small 9 mm revolver or otherwise is something like a G19...

http://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?716-The-quot-new-quot-J-frame

I have to agree...but there's still something aesthetically pleasing (for lack of a better term) about using a revolver-perhaps as a tangible link to another time, another era, as a salute to the same...kinda like using a 1911...(and yes, that was definitely tongue-in-cheek).

Not discounting the viability of a revolver, but I agree that there are better options available for most (due to some of the inherent limitations of a revolver; i.e., very limited capacity {in most cases}, relative bulk, bulk of most speedloaders, and the significantly higher degree of skill necessary to utilize speedloaders under stress)-such as a Glock G19 or G26.

Best, Jon

Chuck Haggard
01-17-2012, 02:59 PM
My 940 had huge extraction issues, like get a mallet to get the rounds out type deal.

Two trips back to S&W did not cure the problem, they ended up sending me a 642 at my request when they couldn't un-fuck the 940.

Mine is far from the only 940 tale of woe.

farscott
01-24-2012, 06:14 PM
I have had decent luck with two samples of the 9x19 SP-101. The only issue is, as delivered, the trigger eats my finger. Some time with a stone to break the edges is mandatory. Better yet is one that visited with Jack Weigand or Marc Morganti. The Ruger sight picture benefits from an aftermarket front sight.

The S&W M547 also works well, but I never trusted the fingers in the extractor star.

JV_
01-24-2012, 06:41 PM
I had a custom sp101 by Marc, it was a work of art.

UpDok
01-24-2012, 07:07 PM
There are probably some practical functional reasons why 9X19 is rare as a revolver cartridge, and .38 special is rare as an autoloading pistol cartridge. The slightly tapered rimless 9mm was designed for autoloaders and the rimmed straight-walled .38 special was designed for revolvers. If you reverse that you will be asking for a temperamental sidearm. For example; does Glock or H&K offer a modern autoloading pistol in .38 special?
:o

If you really want a high-intensity ~.35 caliber revolver cartridge you'll probably find the .357 magnum to be a better fit and all-around more practical in a revolver. The 9mm belongs in an autoloader.

TGS
01-24-2012, 07:33 PM
Well, it's not a Glock or H&K......but.........

507

UpDok
01-25-2012, 02:17 PM
Well, it's not a Glock or H&K......but.........

507

Yes, but S&W no longer offers the model 52 .38 special (wadcutter only) target pistol. It turns out that S&W does not offer a 9mm revolver anymore either. Perhaps there is a pattern evolving here?
;)

Tinygnat219
02-15-2012, 12:36 PM
I have always been fascinated by these guns from a historical and commercial perspective. I have / had the following 9MM Revolvers in my collection: a S&W 940 in 9MM and a Ruger SP101 in 9MM. I've also had the Taurus 905 in 9MM as well as a Ruger Blackhawk Convertible with the 9MM Cylinder. It seems to me that most of the manufacturers have toyed around with the 9MM in a revolver at some time or another. S&W with the 940 and 547 (which I also want at some point in the future), Ruger with the SP101, and Security Six, Charter with the 9MM Federal (even creating a rimmed cartridge!), and Taurus with its on and off availability of the 905. The 9MM revolver idea in particular seems to be popular, but it never has taken off commercially even though the ballistics out of a J-Frame seem to be a nice fit for the cartridge and a nice filler between the .38 SPL and .357 Magnum.

The S&W 940 was picked up with the original box and 5 moonclips. I took it to the range and I am very pleased with this gun. It's easier to shoot than .357 Magnum out of my 640, and about as stout to shoot as 38 SPL +P. Muzzle flash is also MUCH lesser and with the short barrel 9MM ammo currently being offered by manufacturers such as Speer. The gun is accurate, easy to shoot (did I mention that already, yup I did), and ammunition is easily available all over the place. Much more so than is typical for .38 SPL nowadays and typically cheaper with a better bullet selection. I carry it with the Hornady 115 Grain XTP bullets and it handles nicely. This will probably replace my 640 as my main Back Up Gun.

The Ruger SP101 is my most recent acquisition in this category. It's a little bigger than a standard J-Frame, which means I'll need another holster type to carry it. It's also different than the 940 as it's a standard TDA revolver so I can cock it single-handed if I want to. I've only taken it to the range a handful of times and it's decent enough to shoot. Kind of pleasant really with the old style Ruger grips (before they went to the Hogue grips on their revolvers). I don't have pictures up for this yet, but I will soon.

The Ruger Blackhawk Convertible .357 / 9MM was kind of an oddball. I bought this revolver as a potential Cowboy Action Gun. It worked just fine and the 9MM cylinder was actually used more than the .357 cylinder simply due to ammo cost and availability. I sold it as I didn't really seem that I'd go back into CAS and it's something that I'm still kind of stuck to.

I will put a disclaimer in here: I AM NOT A TAURUS FAN so PLEASE take what I say here with a grain of salt as others have had better experience with this gun. I bought the Taurus 905 because at the time it was the only one still in production, and less than HALF the cost of the 940s and SP101s going on Gunbroker.com. The Taurus 905 I picked up was a lemon. The cylinder was binding on me and after taking the sideplate off, I found metal shavings in the action that seemed to be the cause of the binding. I cleaned it out with compressed air and tweezers (GOD that was a PITA) and it improved for a bit, and then started to bind again. I cracked open the sideplate again and I found new shavings. I sent it off to Taurus for repair and it came back fixed 4-6 weeks later but since I had lost confidence in the gun I promptly sold it at a loss. At the shop, we ordered a 940 for a customer. The customer handled it by pushing on the extractor which promptly popped the cylinder and the gas ring onto one of our countertops. Also looking at the gun from a slight angle, the barrel wasn't put on straight, but at an angle. We returned the gun.

I feel that the 9MM revolver market is a niche one at best, but it's been one that I have enjoyed getting into. Now, if I can find a 646 chambered in .40 S&W, I'll be a really happy camper (only 300 were ever made!)

http://www.firearmsforum.com/I29686.jpg
Taurus 905

http://www.firearmsforum.com/I41608.jpg
Smith & Wesson 940 with Moonclip and Hornady 115 Grain XTP ammo on moonclip.

Tamara
02-15-2012, 02:29 PM
I will put a disclaimer in here: I AM NOT A TAURUS FAN so PLEASE take what I say here with a grain of salt as others have had better experience with this gun. I bought the Taurus 905 because at the time it was the only one still in production, and less than HALF the cost of the 940s and SP101s going on Gunbroker.com. The Taurus 905 I picked up was a lemon. The cylinder was binding on me and after taking the sideplate off, I found metal shavings in the action that seemed to be the cause of the binding. I cleaned it out with compressed air and tweezers (GOD that was a PITA) and it improved for a bit, and then started to bind again. I cracked open the sideplate again and I found new shavings. I sent it off to Taurus for repair and it came back fixed 4-6 weeks later but since I had lost confidence in the gun I promptly sold it at a loss.

Oh, I believe you (http://pistol-forum.com/showthread.php?2597-Any-small-9mm-revolvers-out-there-worth-buying&p=42436&viewfull=1#post42436).


Now, if I can find a 646 chambered in .40 S&W, I'll be a really happy camper (only 300 were ever made!)

Actually, they did two different runs; the original run of PC guns, and a later one in which they used up a bunch of New-Old-Stock no-lock L-frames (http://cosmolineandrust.blogspot.com/2008/03/sunday-smith-39-model-646-2003.html). Be aware that, due to variations in rim thickness on .40 S&W ammo, they ship with two sets of moonclips. Also, in my example, extraction was a beast. Sticky cases seem to be a common complaint.

Al T.
02-15-2012, 04:21 PM
115 Grain XTP ammo

Your Hornady XTP bears a striking resemblance to "Critical Defense" ammo. :p

Tinygnat219
02-16-2012, 11:13 AM
Your Hornady XTP bears a striking resemblance to "Critical Defense" ammo. :p

That would be correct. Thank you for catching that.... :eek: