Any LCR fans?

[Rustin]

Greetings all.

I've been cruising this forum for quite some time and I've found it a great source for edc revolver information. However, it seems the overwhelming preference in small snubbies leans toward the Smith J frame series. I know the gun has been around for a while so it's got a track record to be envied, but in my own personal experience, I've found the LCR to be a wonderful, diminuitve package. The trigger was the real selling point to me but I've grown fond of it's size and shootability. I've got the .38 version but I hope to aquire the .357 version as a backup/belt gun.

With it's unloaded weight at 13 0z with the boot grips, and still under a pound fully loaded, I find myself carrying this little revolver everywhere I go. It's handy size combined with a reasonably potent cartridge and unfailing reliability makes it really hard for me to want to go back to the autos. I'd still like to get a j frame to the range but I'm content with my LCR as it is.

So, any LCR fans out there? Any stories or experiences you'd like to share? How do you carry and in what holster? Pics are very much welcomed.

[Dagga Boy]

The LCR is my favorite small revolver. I prefer it to the J frame Smiths. Mine is usually carried in a TT Gunleather pocket holster, I have a front appendix holster from Desbiens that is great, but I will probably sell because I really don't carry the LCR as a primary, and it gets thrown in lots of little bags as a back up or secondary (or third) pistol.

[Jay Cunningham]

I have an LCR and I like it just fine. You do need to be very conscious of allowing the trigger all the way out after you shoot because it can be easy to short-stroke it.

[ACP230]

The trigger on the LCR bugs me.
I have seen it described as "good" but to me that word does not apply to it.
So, have no plans to buy one.

[jc000]

I have been toying with the idea of picking up a .22 revolver for a cheap plinker. The LCR-22 looks interesting--I've handled one, but not been able to shoot it yet. I'm hoping it could be viable as a LEM trainer, mainly to work my rolling break. Anyway, the LCR series does look interesting. I wouldn't rule out one of the larger calibers as opposed to an S&W j-frame.

[jon volk]

I have been toying with the idea of picking up a .22 revolver for a cheap plinker. The LCR-22 looks interesting--I've handled one, but not been able to shoot it yet. I'm hoping it could be viable as a LEM trainer, mainly to work my rolling break. Anyway, the LCR series does look interesting. I wouldn't rule out one of the larger calibers as opposed to an S&W j-frame.

In that same mindset, I've been eyeing taurus pt22's. DAO semi auto 22's seem to be a rare breed.

[ares338]

I have the LCR 357 and I really like it. First of all, the trigger is great, it conceals easily in my front pocket, is accurate out to 15 yds (which for me is good) and although the recoil on stout magnum loads is troublesome for some I have no problem with it. For me the trigger pull feels better than any S&W I tried except for one that had a trigger job.

[Tamara]

The only thing I don't like about the LCR is the recoil. I think the factory trigger is better than the hot gritty mess you get with an out-of-the-box J-frame and, were I starting from scratch, Ruger's cylinder release makes more ergonomic sense than Smiths, but all the time learning to drive a Smith is pretty much sunk costs for me now.

I think the obsession with making flyweight revolver frames out of riboflavin is wrong-headed, though. You can't put enough .357 Magnum ammo for realistic practice through a 13-oz. wheelgun without fracturing small bones in your hand, and even +P .38 is almost prohibitively unpleasant when you get down into that weight class. Seriously, how much lighter than a 16oz J-frame Airweight do you need to get?

[TGS]

The only thing I don't like about the LCR is the recoil. I think the factory trigger is better than the hot gritty mess you get with an out-of-the-box J-frame and, were I starting from scratch, Ruger's cylinder release makes more ergonomic sense than Smiths, but all the time learning to drive a Smith is pretty much sunk costs for me now.

I think the obsession with making flyweight revolver frames out of riboflavin is wrong-headed, though. You can't put enough .357 Magnum ammo for realistic practice through a 13-oz. wheelgun without fracturing small bones in your hand, and even +P .38 is almost prohibitively unpleasant when you get down into that weight class. Seriously, how much lighter than a 16oz J-frame Airweight do you need to get?

Tam,

What grips was the LCR wearing that you fired?

I'm curious because the LCR I fired has the standard Hogue Tamer boot grip (not the smooth boot grip on the XS sight version) and it was exceedingly comfortable compared to any other snub I've owned or fired. Along with the trigger, the comfortable recoil is the biggest selling point of the LCR over an Airweight J-frame.

IIRC, the 357 is 17oz, not 13oz.

Rustin,

I much prefer the LCR over the J-frame. Given the ability to spend upwards of a thousand dollars I would rather have a J with custom sights, an Apex trigger and good grips comfortable grips that handle recoil, but for just over $400 you can get an LCR with XS sights, good grips and a decent trigger. Sure, not everyone's favorite sight, but it sure beats anything the J-frame offers at the same price.

The only reason I bought a 642 over the LCR is because the 642 can be had for dirt cheap on the 2nd hand market.

[Tamara]

Tam,

What grips was the LCR wearing that you fired?

Whatever the base model grips were from the factory, I think? I was at the range when Frank James came by with his T&E sample some years back and he let me run a few cylinders through it. It was a .38, and the only really distinctive thing I remember about it was that I just couldn't find a grip that didn't have the thing torquing in my hand annoyingly.