By Syd

Mission

The snubnose revolver is a close-quarters self-defense handgun. The design was a response to the need for a compact repeating handgun which could be presented rapidly and concealed easily.

Some Historical Background

The first compact revolvers were not the double action hand ejector revolvers we think of as snubnoses today. Colt, Smith & Wesson and others were building small revolvers from the 1850s on. Both Colt and Smith & Wesson introduced double action revolvers in 1877. The S&W guns were top break designs and the Colts were side-loaders. In 1894 Smith & Wesson introduced the hand ejector design, the cylinder mounted on a crane which swings out for loading and unloading, with the push rod and ejector star to eject the spent cases. With the development of hand ejector, the modern double-action snubnose footprint was pretty much established, leaving only the final touch, the sawed-off barrel to Colt. By 1927, Colt had produced its six-shot Detective Special based on their .38 Police Positive Special. Its entirely possible that the very first snubnose may have been a home-brew full sized revolver with its barrel sawed off. Well never know for sure.

In 1942 Smith & Wesson built a few Victory Model Military & Police revolvers with 2″ barrels. In 1946, they began commercial production of the pre-Model 10 (Military & Police) snubnose. In 1950, Smith & Wesson introduced the 5-shot J-frame Chiefs Special in .38 Special. It was much more compact than previous renditions of the snubnose, and it has become the archetype for compact revolvers. It remains in service and production to this day. Sadly, the Colt Detective Special and the Cobra (Detective Special with a Coltalloy frame) are no longer in production. The Model 10 snubnose is no longer in production either.

What we do know is that the snubnose emerged in the shadow of full sized service revolvers like the Colt Single Action Army, The Remington New Army, and the Smith & Wesson Schofield. These were large and powerful single action revolvers chambered in .44 or .45 with 4, 6 and 8 inch barrels. These large revolvers were replaced by equally large double action Colt New Service and the Smith & Wesson Military and Police revolvers. These guns had long barrels and full grips. With six and eight inch barrels, they produced respectable muzzle velocity and superb accuracy. So what would be the rationale for sawing off the barrel and grips, and thereby reducing the sight radius, muzzle velocity and general controllability of a handgun?

The Rationale of the Snubnose

We always talk about the conceal-ability of the snubnose how easy it is to carry and conceal in a pocket or purse, and this is true, but there is another reason for building a short barreled revolver, and that is speed. If you have ever actually strapped on a Colt Single Action Army six-shooter, drawn that gun and fired it, you will understand that this operation is not all that easy to do quickly. These guns are heavy and the long barrels have to be hoisted high to clear the leather. Now, I have seen guys like Bob Munden do amazing quick draw tricks with Colt SAAs, but even Bobs guns are 4 models, and Bob is a natural phenomenon. For the rest of us mere mortals, drawing a full sized revolver and getting its sights on target is a slow affair. Try it for yourself if you have the equipment: draw a 6 barreled revolver from a holster, and then put a snubnose in the same holster, and see how much faster and easier you clear the leather with the snubby. There’s just less distance to travel, and therefore, less time involved.
What exactly is a belly gun? It is just what the word implies? A kind of hardware you jam against the other man’s navel and trigger off a burst. It has to be done in a twinkling or else he is apt to take the gun away from you and that could be bad. Since the trick of the thing depends on speed, the pistol must be short and handy-short so that it comes out fast and lines up lethally and handy so that a man points it like he does his finger. Col. Charles Askins, Belly Guns, Guns Magazine, 1955

The second and perhaps most enduring glory of the snubnose is its ability to be easily concealed. When rendered with modern light weight metallurgy, you get a handgun that still ranks as one of the best combinations of reliability, power and comfort in carry of any handgun ever built.

The Art of Compromise

The snub-nose .38 Special is a study in trade-offs. The .38 Special is an excellent cartridge coming out of a 4″ barrel. Launched from a 2″ barrel, it can suffer velocity and expansion problems. On the other hand, a .38 with a 4″ barrel wont fit in your pocket. A snub-nose .38 can launch a bigger bullet than any other pistol of its size and weight, a 158 grain slug, but it can only launch five or six of them before you have to reload. Its small size and weight make it a dream to carry, but a pain to shoot. Modern .38 Special +p ammunition from Federal, Remington, Speer, Cor-Bon and Winchester has addressed the velocity and expansion issues fairly well. Nevertheless, when you select the snubby as a self-defense handgun, you have to come to grips with the compromises involved with them.

You trade ballistics, accuracy and shooting comfort for speed, conceal-ability, and carry comfort. That’s the deal. This is just simple physics. The issue is how to deal with it. What kinds of things do you need to do to compensate for the shortcomings of the snubby and accentuate its strengths? Here are my thoughts on this question:

1. Practice.

(Well, duh, I hear you say.) The fact of the matter is that most people don’t practice much with their carry guns. When we go to the range or matches, we engage our egos and shoot the big full-sized guns with their long barrels and superb triggers, but then, when we leave the range, the gun on our hip is some little compact revolver or auto. As Walt Rausch is fond of saying, We talk .45s, shoot 9mms and carry .38s. The big gun gets 300 rounds and the carry gun gets 10. This is really backwards. Shouldn’t the gun you bet your life on get the lions share of the practice? When was the last time that you actually did an IDPA match with a J-frame revolver? If you haven’t, you should. Its enlightening. Can you empty your snubnose into a pie plate at seven yards in five seconds? If you cant, you need to go back to the range and pop caps until you can. (And that’s five seconds drawing from realistic concealment) Can you do that while moving to cover? Can you hit anything with a snub gun weak hand only? I think you get my drift. Treat the carry gun realistically, because its the one that’s most likely to pull your bacon out of the fire.

2. Practice reloads.

Most times these days, when I go to a match, I’m running a Springfield XD-9 with 16 round magazines. I never have to reload unless I want to. Snubbies aren’t like that. My greatest complaint with the snubby is that it only loads five or six rounds. For the most part, you shoot 5 rounds and then have to reload. Can you reload your revolver under stress? Have you ever tried it? While it is true that most civilian self-defense encounters are resolved with 5 rounds or less, with my luck, Ill run into the four zombies from Hell, and if I survive the opening salvo, I will need to reload. Practice your reload until its smooth and fast. It can be done. I’ve watched Jerry Miculek shoot, and he can reload a revolver faster than most of us can reload an auto. (For that matter, Miculek can reload a revolver faster than most of us can do anything.) For the video of Jerry Miculek shooting the world record and reloading, click the play button on the player to the right.

3. Carry a reload.

Five rounds may not be enough, although it probably will be. I always carry a reload. Its usually a speedloader in my strong-hand pocket. Often I will carry a second speedloader in a pouch on my belt. When everything else is equal, more ammo is better than less. Work out the way you’re going to carry your reload and then practice actually using it. The chances are good that you will discover little screw-ups and problems with your reload procedure that only practice at speed will reveal. Ill share with you a big one: many of the grips that Smith & Wesson put on their J-frames are not properly relieved to handle speedloaders smoothly. Hogue Monogrips and Crimson Trace Laser Grips are relieved properly for speedloaders, but the default Uncle Mikes boot grips and Uncle Mikes Combat Grips are not relieved properly for speedloaders. If the reload defeats you, consider carrying a second gun. In gunfighter parlance, this is referred to as The New York Reload, and its faster than any other kind of reload.

4. Study and understand ammo performance in short barreled revolvers.

This is an important point. When a gun fires, the powder is not burned instantaneously. It continues to burn as long as the bullet is traveling down the barrel, and the longer it burns, the more pressure it develops. More pressure means greater muzzle velocity for the bullet. Greater velocity means better hollowpoint performance and terminal ballistics. The snubnose has a very short barrel so you need an ammo which burns its powder fast and develops some velocity. Know also that .38 Special revolvers are calibrated to 158 grain ammunition, and smaller faster loads will tend to shoot low because the bullet emerges from the barrel sooner in the recoil cycle of the gun. Some of our preferred loads include Remington Golden Saber +p, Speer 135 grain +p, and Cor-Bon 110 grain DPX. See also Snubby .38 Special Ballistics.

5. Practice point shooting.

I’m a Cooperite and I believe in aimed fire. At the same time, when you are threatened and drawing at close range, you probably will not have time to align the sights and fire that way. You will whip the gun up, looking over the top of the gun, maybe get the front sight on the target, and pull the trigger. One study I saw showed that most police officers tended to actually use the point shooting technique when under close-range attack. They aren’t trained that way; its just something we do under the stress of a close-in lethal assault. Also, once we cross the age of 50, few of us have the eyes of a 21-year-old fighter pilot. We may not have the visual acuity to see the sights in an emergency. Hence, while I believe that the sighted fire method is to be preferred, we may face self-defense situations which will preclude the use of it. Practice both.

What You Have Going For You

Speed and Simplicity

The snubnose indexes naturally, almost as if it were an extension of your hand. Being light, and compact, it draws easily and rapidly. I would hazard the guess that there are more snubnose .38 Special revolvers currently deployed for the purpose of self-defense than any other single type of firearm. They are simple and effective. They continue to work, so people continue to use them. The cartridge is powerful enough to be lethal when adequate hits are made, and the ammunition is readily available all over the world. Women and non-dedicated personnel like them. Better a .38 Special in your pocket than a 1911 .45 at home in a dresser drawer. The snubnose is simple and uncomplicated. There are no safeties to remember. There is no complex manual of arms to master and commit to muscle memory. Its point and click. I prefer revolvers for the home defense role because there is no confusion about them. I know that every member of the family has practiced with them, and there are no tricky safety sequences to explain.

Conceal-ability

I have more holsters for my snubnoses than any other firearm platform. I have more hours carrying the snubnose than any other gun. Why? Because they carry so well. An Airweight Smith & Wesson snubnose is the most comfortable gun to carry of any I have ever tried. They are light and ergonomic. A J-frame fits to the human body better than most autoloaders. Autoloaders tend to be blocky and square. The extra magazine also adds weight and bulk. The snubnose is a bit wider at the cylinder than a 1911, but everywhere else, it is thinner and more rounded. They’re just comfortable, and they’re light. An Airweight snub weighs about 15 ounces empty, whereas an empty Government Model M1911 weighs 39 ounces. The conceal-ability of the snubnose also contributes to its speed. You can carry the gun in the pocket of a jacket and have your hand on the grip without anyone noticing it. You can even fire the gun from inside a pocket if you have to, although I don’t recommend that technique. Even so, its a lot quicker than drawing from a holster.

Snubbies fit in purses, fanny packs, leg and shoulder holsters, pants pockets and belly bands. Don’t neglect conventional belt holsters and IWBs. A lightweight snub gun in a belt holster is a delight to carry.

Dependability

It is possible to jam a revolver. It is possible, but highly unlikely. I have been firing revolvers for going on 40 years, and I have yet to have one jam on me. (Generally, my autoloaders don’t jam on me either, but it has happened.) How can one jam a revolver? Mostly, it has to do with crud. If crud gets under the ejector star, it can cause the revolver to seize up when the cylinder is closed. Crud build-up on the front of the cylinder and rear of the barrel can cause the cylinder to stop turning. With very light-framed guns using lead bullet +p ammunition, the bullets can pull out of the cases during recoil and cause a jam (Always use jacketed hollowpoints in lightweight snubs), and last, the lock work in the gun can get messed up and cause the gun to fail to fire. All of these failures are very rare. Mostly, revolvers just work with almost monotonous reliability. If you can pull the trigger on a revolver, it will go off, regardless of whether you support it well or not. It doesn’t care about ammo much. It will fire and advance the next cartridge to the firing position. If you are weak or injured, the revolver will still work for you. The other learning at this point is the revolvers are not zero maintenance. They should be fired, cleaned and periodically checked out by a qualified gunsmith.

A Gun That Is Always With You

A gun writer whose name is regrettably lost in the crevasses of my faulty memory, once wrote an article about self defense handguns for hiking. He talked about the standard range of handguns from .22s to .44s, but the thing I remember about the article was that he related that on the two occasions in which he actually had to use a gun for self defense, the gun was a .38 Special snubnose. The reason? Because that’s what I had with me. The snubnose .38, and especially the lightweight models such as the S&W Airweight, remain, in my mind, the most comfortable guns to carry and the most versatile in carry modes. Since they are so easy to carry, you’re more likely to have one with you when you need it.

Far from being obsolete, the snubnose revolver remains one of the most important, versatile and utilitarian options for self-defense.

By Stephen A. Camp

Very common in gun shop discussions, shooting magazines and books, as well as on the Internet are incessant discussions on “which caliber is the best”. Also included will be questions and opinions on which load leads the pack for a given caliber. Some walk with extreme confidence as they have the latest version of this or that handgun and it’s loaded with “nuclear” ammunition. Besides, whatever “expert” they subscribe to has proclaimed that this combination is “best”, citing gelatin testing or whatever. Others look up “street stats” on how well or poorly a certain caliber/load has worked. Some simply trust the gun shop person’s decision on ammunition selection and walk out secure in the “fact” that they are now capable of protecting themselves with the “best’ ammunition money can buy.

I do believe that certain calibers and loads offer some advantages over others, but don’t really think it will always be a visibly distinct advantage and not the difference between daylight and dark that some would have us assume. (I’m speaking here of calibers ranging from .38 Special from a 4″ barrel, 9mm, and up. These have sufficient power to offer both adequate penetration and expansion from what I’ve seen.)

Some have concerns about serious lack of penetration. Opinions vary as to how much is enough. Some subscribe to the “two holes is better than one” theory and go with the deepest penetrators they can find, often .45 ball. Others want expansion but at least (10, 12, 14″, pick a number) of penetration. Very heated debates occur over such differences of opinion.

Here are my thoughts on the matter and I claim zero status as any kind of “expert”. Neither am I a physician or pathologist. I am a shooter and a hunter. Take it for what it’s worth and then you decide if there’s any merit in what follows.

Over-Penetration:

It is a concern, but one that is overrated in my view. So many shots fired in gunfights completely miss the intended recipients that I believe getting the hits in the first place should take higher priority. With FMJ or non-expanding loads, there certainly is the possibility of a bullet creating a through-and-through wound and possessing enough residual velocity to injure or kill another person. With most JHP’s or expanding loads, should the target’s torso actually be completely penetrated, the expanded bullet will have lost considerable speed. It will probably be less dangerous, but the heavy magnums like .41 and .44 could be exceptions. It is not unusual for pathologists to find expanded bullets inside the clothing near the exit wound when preparing the body for autopsy.

In his book, Gunshot Wounds, Dr. Vincent J.M. Di Maio reports that a 38-caliber LRN bullet requires at least 191 ft/sec to penetrate skin. He finds that the same bullet needs an average velocity of 280 ft/sec to penetrate two layers of skin and 6″ of muscle as this is the average velocity lost when such penetration’s occurred during testing. It seems reasonable that if we’re firing a 9mm, .38, or .357 expanding bullet that doesn’t expand, but still has around 300 ft/sec or so upon exiting the felon’s torso, it is possible for it to injure an innocent bystander.

In the field, I witnessed a friend shooting a 35-lb. javelina with 230-gr. .45 ACP Ranger SXT from a 5″ 1911. At his shot, the animal collapsed and sand flew behind it. Another buddy and I found the fully expanded bullet lying on top of the sand. This animal was shot broadside and is not as thick as an average adult human male. I’ve no doubt that had the expanded forty-five smacked another person that it would have raised a whelp, but I do not believe it would have injured anyone.

An officer under my command was required to shoot a felon. He hit the bad guy in the heart with a 9mm 124-gr. Hydrashok +P+. The bullet did not exit the body. Another officer I know was shot with a .40 180-gr. JHP from a Glock 22. It remained in his torso until surgically removed. Yet another officer was hit from the side with a .380 ACP 95-gr. FMJ. This bullet precipitated a gunfight. The bullet penetrated an arm, entered and traversed the heart/lung region, exited between the ribs and fully penetrated his other arm!

Believe it or not, the bullet traveled along the inside of his ribcage and did not damage anything vital! At the scene neither he nor I knew that and it was a pretty tense time waiting on the ambulance! I have no idea what residual velocity the 95-gr. bullet retained, but I’ll bet it was not much. Upon being shot, he returned a shot from his 9mm Hi Power, but missed the felon! Which bullet was more dangerous to other folks in the area? Obviously, the round that missed its intended target was.

It certainly remains possible that over-penetration can occur, but with expanding ammo I’m not sure how likely it is to be capable of inflicting serious bodily injury. Again, the FMJ or solid bullets will almost certainly be the worst offenders in this regard. Gunscribe, Massad Ayoob, once wrote that about seven out of ten .45 ACP 230-gr. FMJ bullets exit the average adult male torso. I suspect that 9mm FMJ in 115 to 124-gr. exits more often.

If an expanding bullet fails to fully mushroom, it should be slowed down and present less threat of over- penetration. Di Maio notes that in penetrating two layers of skin and 6″ of muscle, the 158-gr. LRN bullet lost velocity in the range of 214 to 337 ft/sec. The same weight/caliber SJHP lost 264 to 335 ft/sec. (Gunshot Wounds. Di Maio. Elsevier Science Publishing Company. P215.) He attributes this to the blunter shape of the expanding bullet when expansion does not occur.

Unless our target is naked or not wearing a shirt, coat, etc, there remains a chance that a bullet that does fully penetrate his torso might be captured in his clothing. Again, I think misses are far greater threats than over-penetrating bullets in most instances.

If you use .41 or .44 Magnum, I do think the chance of dangerous over penetration exists as quite a few of the expanding bullets are designed for deeper penetration for hunting applications. I’d look at defense loads from Corbon or Winchester’s Silvertip JHP’s in these calibers. I understand that Speer has just introduced a Gold Dot hollow point for the forty-one, but have no information on how it penetrates.

Expanding ammunition in .38, .357, 9mm, .40, or .45 ACP is usually designed for either rapid or “controlled” expansion and geared toward defensive use rather than deeper penetration which is desirable in hunting rounds. Of these more commonly used calibers, the .357 does have some loads specifically tweaked to penetrate deeply as it is more frequently found in the hunting fields than 9mm, etc. I would avoid the use of JSP ammo in the defensive handgun for two reasons:

1. It frequently does not expand.
2. It will probably completely penetrate a human torso.

Adequate Penetration:

It has been said that we want expansion but we need penetration. I believe this. The rhubarb seems to be over what is “adequate.” At the same time, I do not believe that loads failing to achieve whatever is deemed adequate are necessarily inadequate or doomed to failure. Opinions range from 9 to 10″ to the more popular view of 12 to 14″. Some want no less than 16″.

Let’s take a look at this issue.

The mandate for deeper penetration stems from those believing that the only damage done by a handgun bullet comes from the permanent crush cavity. In other words, the bullet damages only that which it contacts. They cite that at velocities below about 2000 ft/sec, the temporary stretch cavity’s creation is neither violent nor large enough to cause any significant damage.

For the most part, I believe that this is true but do not immediately accept that the temporary cavity is meaningless. I believe that if two bullets penetrate the same distance and expand to the same diameters, the one producing the larger temporary cavity is probably more effective. The rounds may very well be equivalent if striking an area in which organs are elastic, but might have a bit of an edge if striking near an inelastic organ and cause some damage even without contacting it. The destruction from the temporary cavity would not compare with that from higher velocity rifle ammunition.

My personal preference is for ammunition that expands and penetrates approximately 12 to 14″ in 10% ballistic gelatin. Having used such ammunition in hunting, I’ve seen pretty consistent results and made clean one-shot kills. Certainly the shooting of various wild animals does not correlate exactly with defensive handgun use, but I believe there is some correlation. I do not believe that the mechanism of collapse in a living, non-homogeneous, organism can be entirely predicted in the laboratory using gelatin.

At the same time, the collection of data on what has or has not “worked” is not the full answer, either. The reason is that we cannot ascertain how many of the “one shot stops” were for psychological vs. physical reasons. Did the bad guy stop because he had to or because he wanted to?

Ammunition penetrating less than 12″ is probably quite effective when shooting aggressors head-on and when no intermediate barriers exist. It might not be so effective if one’s required to shoot his opponent from the side where an arm is likely to be hit and more penetration’s required to get to vitals like the heart or aorta.

I settled on the 12 to 14″ range as I think this is the better compromise between a load that might penetrate too little vs. one that regularly punches 16″ and probably exit the average human torso. Were I extremely concerned with over-penetration issues, I’d pick a rapidly expanding JHP that does 9 to 11″ rather than some of the pre-fragmented bullets. Bullets penetrating 12 to 14″ should suffice in most scenarios whether shooting is face-to-face or from more oblique angles without excessive penetration. I am willing to accept a bit smaller expanded bullet diameter to achieve this.

Realistic Expectations:

I think this is where we go astray; we expect way too much from our handguns. Hunters have known that seemingly equivalent shots on similar animals can produce very differing results. One may instantly drop while the other runs, yet both received lethal hits to the heart/lung area. This is so often seen that’s it’s accepted. Deadly force scenarios for most of us are much rarer and there are folks interested in self-protection that have no experience in hunting; they have never seen anything shot. They have never seen a deer with a shredded heart run a hundred yards. They have seen shoot-em’-ups on television and movies. Many of us do not have the proper “respect” for what adrenaline can do and most have not witnessed the damage a person on PCP can withstand and just keep going!

If a 150 pound deer can be shot through the heart with a .30-06 180-gr. expanding bullet at 2700 ft/sec and keep moving, should we expect that a 200 pound human hit with a 180-gr. expanding forty-caliber bullet at 975 ft/sec to be instantly incapacitated?

I believe it’s an unrealistic expectation to assume that any defensive pistol cartridge will deck a human being as though struck by lightning. It will happen on some occasions, but not all and probably not the majority.

The high-velocity rifle bullet doesn’t always stop the game animal even with good hits, but normally the animal will not run as far before dying as when hit with an arrow. Even though hemorrhaging severely, they can go surprising distances if too quickly pursued. Adrenaline and the will to live push them beyond what many consider possible.

I submit that pistol bullet impact is more akin to the effect of the arrow than the centerfire rifle bullet.

In a life-and-death struggle, seconds seem like hours. The good guy has been forced to shoot the felon, but nothing happens despite a good hit. He shoots again and again and again and finally the bad guy drops. The actual time frame may have been but a few seconds, yet to our survivor, his handgun/load seemed not up to the job. None of them are in my opinion. Some are better than others, but none smite like the Hammer of Thor and it’s simply not realistic to expect it. It could also be dangerous. Expect a failure and be mentally prepared to deal with it. Expect that multiple shots may be necessary to actually stop a determined aggressor.

Increasing “Stopping Power”:

Easy to say, but harder to do under stress is getting the hits. The hunter doesn’t simply shoot at the animal’s body; he strikes at the vitals. I submit that we must do the same thing, but have very compressed time frames in which to do it! Some say this is not possible and is an unrealistic expectation. I say “it is what it is” and that placement is power. There are torso hits and there are good torso hits. A bullet through but a lung gives the aggressor a case of walking pneumonia and is not a sure stopper unless he is devastated mentally. I doubt that any of us want to count on that. A bullet that cuts the aorta or pierces the heart is quite something else. It may not instantly stop him, but the clock is ticking and his conscious time will usually be measured in seconds rather than minutes.

Pick the load/caliber/handgun you want, but without the ability to place your shots at speed, do not expect it to “stop” quickly. Even if you can make quick, accurate shots do not place too much faith in your gun, caliber, or load. You can do everything right and still not instantly stop your attacker. The handgun simply doesn’t have enough power. We use them because they are convenient and able to be with us when attack is not expected.

Firearm trainers have indicated that the long arm is much to be preferred to the handgun for defense. They’re not speaking only with regard to the ease of accuracy, but to the increase in power. Unless the brain or central nervous system’s damaged, we need the rifle to do what we expect the pistol to.

To increase your odds, I suggest the following:

1. Select a handgun in at least .38 Special or 9mm and base that selection on reliability and how well you personally shoot that weapon, be it revolver or semiauto. Use one that you are comfortable with. It doesn’t matter if it’s double-action S&W or a Browning single-action automatic. What matters is if you can get the hits with it and are comfortable using it.
2. Learn what you can from serious researchers in bullet performance and make your decision on a carry load, but be sure that it is reliable in your handgun.
3. Practice.
4. Practice.
5. Practice.

The “practice” part is too often neglected. Having the “best” gun and ammo is not nearly all of the solution. Competence with it is essential. Practice routinely and if necessary get training.

If you shoot a forty-five as well as a 9mm, go with the former, but do not expect it to be vastly superior to the nine. With equivalent hits, I doubt that much if any difference will be seen. If one does better with the 9mm, I’d cast my lot with it. Once you have a caliber capable of adequate penetration and expansion, placement is power.

Best.

By Syd

I have often asked myself why, after years of using autoloaders, I found myself drawn to the Smith & Wesson Airweight Chiefs Special revolver. There are some things about this that aren’t the most scientific reasons for selecting a handgun. I guess I’ve been fascinated by snub-noses since the first times I saw Humphrey Bogart and Jimmy Cagney waving them around in old gangster movies. It was the snub-nose which always appeared out of nowhere and changed the situation. The snub-nose has a mystique about it just as surely as the Luger, The Single Action Army Colt, the M1911A1, the PPK you know the list the guns which have become icons. Actually, Id like to own each of these someday, but some lack the utilitarian value to me of the snub-nose. So, while someday, I may own the Lone Rangers six-shooter, I picked up a Model 637 Chiefs Special Airweight in .38 caliber.

The Model 637 is the 5-shot J-frame built with a stainless steel barrel and cylinder and an aluminum alloy frame with an exposed hammer. It has black rubber Uncle Mikes Boot Grips. The two greatest strengths of this gun are its excellent accuracy and 13.5 ounce weight. Other strengths I would list are the rounded contours of the gun, ease of concealment, its simplicity of operation, and high production values in finish and fit. This particular model is the 637-1, the -1 indicating that it is rated to handle +p ammunition. When I selected the 637 I really struggled with the choice between the 637 and the 640, the Airweight Centennial which is double action only. I settled on the 637 because its exposed hammer allows me to cock it for single action fire which makes for greater accuracy. The 640 is snag free and would be the better choice for pocket carry.

The snub-nose .38 Special is a study in trade-offs. The .38 Special is an excellent cartridge coming out of a 4″ barrel. Launched from a 2″ barrel, it can suffer velocity and expansion problems. On the other hand, a .38 with a 4″ barrel wont fit in your pocket. A snub-nose .38 can launch a bigger bullet than any other pistol of its size and weight, a 158 grain slug, but it can only launch five of them before you have to reload. Its small size and weight make it a dream to carry, but a pain to shoot. Modern .38 Special +p ammunition from Federal, Remington, and Winchester has addressed the velocity and expansion issues fairly well, but the recoil of +p in an Airweight is brisk indeed.

Shooting the snubby: I have medium large hands and the small grip and fast muzzle flip makes the snubby uncomfortable for me to shoot. One time I ran 150 rounds through it in a single session and came away with a blister on the bottom of my trigger finger from the trigger guard snapping up and hitting it. The trigger pull on the snubby is relatively heavy which doesn’t make for pinpoint accuracy, but provides a margin of safety for a gun that gets carried in pockets, purses, fanny packs and all sorts of holsters. Since the barrel is so short, the sight radius does not lend itself to tack-driving accuracy either. However, if you do take the time to get a good sight picture and have good trigger control, the inherent accuracy of the little wheel gun will surprise you.

“Of all handguns probably none of them are harder to master than the belly model. To begin with, it is short and it is light. This coupled with a walloping big caliber spells a punishing recoil. Only a plentitude of firing will accustom the user to the buck and rear of the sawed-off.

A hard-kicking gun can be controlled in only one way: it must he gripped with a powerful hand pressure. Practice a grip on the belly gun that will crush granite. Such a heavy hand will bring the weapon under control and keep it there. Practice on man targets and do not fire at them more than 30 feet. Do not fire single shots, trigger off bursts of 2 or 3. Extend the arm full length in the beginning and simply look over the barrel. Later on commence to break the elbow and hold the gun below eye level. Shots come faster. Accuracy is just as good from this lower position it is just a matter of practice.” Col. Charles Askins, GUNS MAGAZINE, May, 1955 [Editor’s note: I don’t necessarily subscribe to this style of shooting, but Col. Askins was one of the most experienced and successful gunfighters of all time and his methods are worth considering.]

The snub-nose .38 Special competes against guns like the Beretta Tomcat .32, the KelTec P-32, the SIG 230 .380 and the baby Glocks. Each of these have attributes which commend them, and I wouldn’t hesitate to use any of them (well, except maybe for the Glocks sorry, I just don’t like them.). The case for the snub-nose includes cheap ammo, big bullets, simplicity of operation, and excellent reliability.

A while back, I had the opportunity to test one of the S&W titanium 337s which weighs in at a mere 11.9 oz. In my opinion, the weight difference between the 637 and the 337 is not significant enough to justify the $150 price difference between the two guns (or the $250 difference you pay for the scandium versions). The stainless and aluminum alloy versions seem to be much better values to me. I also think the stainless steel of the 637 is better looking than the flat gun metal gray of the titanium parts of the 337. The two guns shoot about the same with brisk recoil and muzzle flip.

My favorite loads for the snubby include the 125g +p Remington Golden Saber, The Cor-Bon DPX, the 110g Hydra-Shok which is a very soft-shooting load, The Speer 135 grain +p and the 129g +p Hydra-Shok. Favorite holsters include the Galco Concealable, Galco Pocket Holster, Galco Ankle Glove, and Galco Classic Lite Shoulder Holster.

Conceptual Issues With the Little Wheel Gun

Criticisms

Its always entertaining to me to read the noise that gets passed off as gun wisdom on the Internet, and no subject seems to collect more ill-considered pseudo-truths than the snub-nose revolver. With the disclaimer that if I were forced to choose one pistol for my life, it wouldn’t be a snub-nose .38 Special, I want to address some of the issues and criticisms often leveled at the snub-nose. The big one, of course, is that it only holds five rounds, and I admit that this is my biggest negative with the gun. But think about it a minute unless you are a soldier or a guy who kicks down doors for a living, how often have you actually been in a situation (outside of an IDPA match) in which there was a high likelihood of needing to fire 16-30 rounds? I have read the gun news almost every day for years and the instances in which an armed civilian has been called upon to shoot it out with a gang of heavily armed adversaries are exceedingly rare. And further, the sad fact is that if you have to go up against a half dozen armed people your odds of winning aren’t very good even with a gun that holds 15 rounds. Generally, violent crime is a matter of 1, 2 or 3 against 1 according to Justice Department statistics. The overwhelming majority of people who commit violent crimes against strangers are trying to steal something or commit a sexual assault. These people are looking for a score, not a gunfight. A .38 Special revolver with five or six rounds is quite adequate to dissuade, or if need be, stop this kind of predator, assuming of course that you can put the rounds somewhere that they will incapacitate the attacker. Also, with practice, a revolver can be reloaded as fast, or nearly so, as an auto using speed loaders.

I don’t mean this as an admonition to play the averages. I don’t believe in averages and statistics when it comes to self defense. Murphy is alive and well, and its the thing you don’t plan for that sandbags you. At the same time, real life is not like IPDA stages in which a dozen assailants stand still and let you shoot them. Groups of people, armed or otherwise, don’t behave that way. They scatter, dive for cover, shoot back, or something, but they don’t stand still. This gives you, the tactically-minded survivor, an opportunity to run the other way or take cover and reload. And again, these situations are rare, although not unheard of. Also, if you frequently find yourself in the position of being alone in a gunfight trying to hold off a half dozen armed adversaries, it might be worthwhile to stay at home tomorrow night to reflect upon your life style and social skills. The point Im trying to make is that the snub-nose is enough gun for most civilian self defense needs when it is deployed effectively. Nevertheless, if your threat assessment tells you that you may be facing multiple determined attackers, you should consider a higher capacity firearm. For more discussion on this, see “Why Carry a Revolver?”

(My personal choices of armament for a gunfight include a belt-fed M-60, a company of Marines at my back and close air support, but it’s kind of tedious to get all of that together for a trip to the grocery store. If it sounds like I’m talking out of both sides of my mouth, its because I am. The snubby is an acceptable solution to the problem. Its a whole lot better than throwing rocks, but it is not an optimal solution. A lightweight snubby is a trade-off of firepower for light weight, ease of carry, and conceal-ability.)

One pseudo-truth I hear a lot is that snub-nose J-frames are the best choice for women, beginners and people who don’t want to practice with their handguns. Why? Loading and firing a Kahr or Glock is not exactly rocket science. A 1911 is only slightly more complicated. Are women and newbies too stupid to learn to operate an autoloader? How do they manage to operate their cars and food processors? I would argue the other way: let the newbies get a nice medium size autoloader with a deep magazine and a full size grip so they can miss a lot and not destroy their hands learning to fire the gun. A larger revolver is also a good choice for a newbie. A snub-nose 5-banger actually requires more skill to use effectively. With only five rounds in the gun, there is a smaller margin for error you cant afford to miss. The heavy trigger and short sight radius require more skill rather than less to achieve accuracy. You have to practice with these guns. Actually, you have to practice with any handgun, but that’s another rant. Especially with the lightweight revolvers, practice can be unpleasant because of the brisk recoil and muzzle flip, so why saddle newbies with little pocket cannons that are going to discourage practice? The only rational reason to put a newbie into a revolver is that they like it better. There is a certain wonderful trustworthiness about a wheel gun. Autos are mysterious with a lot of strange parts and such. Revolvers are simple and obvious. If the newbie has confidence that the revolver is going to work for them when the chips are down, that’s the gun they should get. Then they should buy a case of ammo (and maybe some shooting gloves) and learn how to use it.

Another criticism of the snub-nose is that its underpowered the short barrel doesn’t give the powder enough time to burn to develop adequate velocity. While the short barrel certainly costs you some muzzle velocity, I believe that this is a criticism based largely on yesterdays ammo, and it should be revisited. With modern +p loads, the snub-nose can kick out a 125g bullet at 850 900 fps. It can spit out the 158g at around 800 850 fps. At 900 fps a 125g bullet can shoot clean through a normal sized human being. While the .38 Special lacks the terminal ballistics of the .45 ACP and the velocity of the 9mm, its power to weight ratio is actually pretty good with the right ammunition. It is capable of doing the job. The power factor of the .38 Special revolver is the main reason I prefer it to a small auto like a .32 or .380 (and yes, I’ve read the Marshall & Sanow stats and I don’t believe a word of it.). The snubby is still the only handgun I know of that weighs 13 ounces and can launch a 158g bullet. For more on snubby ballistics, click here.

The last of the frequent criticisms of the snub-nose is that it isn’t very accurate. This isn’t really true, but I know why people think it. The snub-nose is not a gun that is easy to shoot accurately, but it is capable of surprising accuracy. On an episode of American Shooter hosted by Jim Scoutten, I saw trick shooter Bob Munden (see http://www.bobmunden.com/ ) hit a balloon the size of a saucer at 150 yards with a snub-nose .38. I think he had to fire twice, once to get the range and then the second shot hit. I have proven it to myself by consistently knocking down the small 18 tall x 6 wide pepper poppers at 25 yards. Now, to do this, I have to really take my time, aim carefully and fire single action, but I have established to my own satisfaction that the snubby can actually hit things at long range when I do the things I should.

The Good Stuff

I’m an auto guy. With the exception of firing a few old .38’s when I was a kid, I cut my teeth on autoloaders particularly the M1911 and various 9mms. For serious business and matches, I still prefer autoloaders. I like their speed in firing and reloading. I have never found a gun that I shoot better than the M1911. With that said, I’m not blind to the appeal of wheel guns. There is a certain solid dependability about a wheel gun. It is simple and intuitive, and in its own way, perfect. To my way of thinking, the auto is faster and has better firepower, but there’s no squirrelly jazz about a revolver. It’s pretty obvious that it’s loaded, and there’s no safety or de-cocking levers to worry about. There are no magazines to fail, no research project to find out which ammo runs reliably, no carefully tuned mechanism to transfer cartridges to the chamber from the magazine in short, the revolver is a simple and dependable mechanism. While it is technically possible for a revolver to jam, it is a rare event usually brought about by a failure of ammunition to hold together under the recoil cycle of the gun or crud build-up under the ejector star. I have managed to jam almost every autoloader I own but I have never jammed a revolver. I have seen every variety of autoloader jam and fail in match and training settings. I can tell you particular models of autoloaders that have never failed on me, but the possibility of a jam or magazine failure is always in the back of my mind and we have to train for malfunction recovery. It’s just part of the course for training people on autos. With a wheel gun, we don’t worry so much about malfunctions. We worry about learning to reload fast enough to survive a fight. We worry about finding ammo that will achieve the necessary velocity and expansion, but malfunction recovery just isn’t high on the list of worries when it comes to wheel guns. A lot of people like these characteristics of revolvers.

Recently, I suffered a pair of painful back injuries one was the result of moving a load of drywall, and then a serious exacerbation of the injury happened in a fall on a set of stairs. I could scarcely tighten my belt enough to keep my pants up, much less endure a two pound gun and spare magazines riding on my belt and pressing against my lower back. In this sad state of disrepair, I was suddenly seeing my Airweight 637 in a whole new light. At 13.5 ounces and endowed with a really simple manual of arms, the snub-nose was a viable solution. I ordered a Galco Classic Lite shoulder holster so I wouldn’t have to endure a chunk of metal in my belt, and I had a rig that I could wear without discomfort.

The small snub-noses have ergonomics that even the smallest auto of comparable caliber fail to achieve. I have talked to police officers who have actually traded their baby Glock backups for J-frame revolvers because the small Glocks just don’t conceal or carry as well. The snub-nose remains to me the most concealable of guns of significant caliber. The rounded grip and small front end allows the gun to blend itself into the natural curves of the human body, making it an extremely easy gun to make disappear. It is comfortable to wear because it lacks the corners and levers which can dig into your body, and its light.

Tying the Threads Together

The snub-nose .38 revolver is probably the most under-appreciated and overly criticized personal defense handgun ever. I suspect that in our haste to justify our lust for the latest whiz-bang autoloader, the snubby has taken a critical pounding that would leave the casual observer with the impression that the gun couldn’t stop a rampaging grasshopper and is as slow to reload as a Brown Bess musket. Much of this is undeserved. Its days as a primary sidearm for law enforcement are surely over, but it remains very popular among peace officers in the backup and off-duty carry roles. A non-scientific survey of gun shop display cases revealed to me that that compact revolvers remain very popular with the public. Their prices have gone up in recent years, and few deals can be found on nice used specimens, especially on the lightweight +p rated models.

A lot of misinformation goes around about the snubbies, particularly that they are the ideal gun for beginners and non-dedicated personnel (meaning folks that don’t want to practice). I would argue that the snub-nose is not the best first gun. It is actually more demanding of the operator in the tactical context. The snub-nose is capable of significant accuracy and is possessed of adequate stopping power to perform the self defense role. For the person who adopts the .38 snub-nose as their personal self defense tool, extensive practice at rapid shot placement and reloading is encouraged in the strongest terms. Firepower (meaning the art of putting a lot of lead in the air quickly) is this guns weakness. One might even consider carrying a pair of snubbies so that an emergency reload is less likely.

Its days as the detectives best friend may be over, but the snub-nose .38 Special remains a dependable, effective handgun, a delight to carry, and a classic realization of the fighting handgun. And besides, its the only handgun my girlfriend ever called sexy. (I still haven’t figured out what she meant by that, but far be it from me to look a gift horse in the mouth.)

Additional Reading:

Why Carry a Revolver?

Making the J-Frame .38 Snub Work

The .38 Snub Old Fashioned Or Old Faithful?

Self-Defense loads for the 2-inch .38 Special

Is A .38 Snub Enough

Snubby Ballistics

The Theory of the Snubnose

S&W Model 637 Airweight (.38 Special+P) – by Kim Du Toit

By Syd

I have an abiding mistrust of battery-operated gee-gaws that are supposed to make my guns work better. My basement is a veritable graveyard of electronic gadgets that suddenly and mysteriously quit working, never to come to life again. Being a dedicated adherent to Murphy’s Law, I have observed that the tool with the fewest parts tends to be the one still functional at the end of the day. I have sent any number of mowers to lawnmower heaven, but Granny’s garden hoe still works. So, is there any room in my Luddite self-defense universe for a 21st Century laser aiming device?

Maybe so, and besides, they’re really cool.

The Crimson Trace Lasergrip is a creative concept which integrates a laser aiming device into the right grip panel of the gun. The grips are sculpted to nearly the same shape as the original grips so that all of your holsters still work. There is only a small hump at the top of the right panel under which the laser is mounted and the activation switch midway down the front of the grip. The grips are made of a sturdy black polymer plastic material (or combat rubber depending on which model you buy) that is tough and feels good in your hand. Lasergrips are installed by simply replacing the factory grips. In the case of the snubnose, this mean one screw and you’re done. No other modifications need to be done to the gun. It is adjusted for windage and elevation with two of the tiniest Allen wrenches I have ever seen. It is powered by two wafer-style 2032 lithium batteries.

So, what can Lasergrips do for you?

1. Aid in training.
2. Enable target acquisition in low light situations
3. Provide rapid and positive sight indexing on the target
4. Make possible easier target acquisition from weird positions and from behind cover
5. Facilitate visual communication and muzzle awareness
6. Threat de-escalation

Training Aid

The first thing that got my attention with the Lasergrips was their capacity to give instant visual feedback for what I was doing with the gun. The little red dot will quickly show you if you are milking the trigger, flinching, or pulling your shots to one side or the other. People with “mixed dominance” vision (right-handers with left-dominant eyes and vice-versa) can get a clear sense of the tricks their eyes may be playing with their sight picture. While it’s a controversial technique, point shooting can be dramatically improved by watching the dot when you draw. At twenty five yards, I found it easy to keep all the shot in the A-zone while holding the gun at approximately chest level and putting the red dot on the target without ever looking through the sights. I have pretty good eyes, so Im speculating, but I have a hunch that people with impaired vision would be helped in getting onto the target by the laser, and I think they would find it much easer to get good hits with the laser than by trying to use iron sights. Instructors could be assisted in diagnosing problems by watching the student and observing the behavior of the laser on the target.

Target Acquisition in Low Light Situations

I never have been overwhelmed with Tritium night sights. They’re better than no illumination at all, but not by a whole lot. The laser sight is much quicker and more positive in low light conditions. Its not a flashlight, although it does splash a little bit of light around. If you’re going into a pitch-black darkness, you still need a flashlight, but if there is any ambient light at all, the laser will get you on target quickly and in a very positive way without having to force your vision through those dim Tritium notches and posts. The advantage that the Tritium does have over the laser is that they don’t give away your position like a laser beam can.

Rapid and Positive Target Acquisition:

Crimson Trace Lasergrips are no replacement for iron sights, and if I had to make a very precise shot, I would still rely on the iron sights as long as I could see them. At the same time, getting the red dot on the target is very quick and bypasses the need to align the rear notch, the front post and the target. It is a medical fact that as we age, the eyeballs become less flexible. The eyes adjust their focal point by flexing, becoming slightly longer or shorter to focus at different points in the distance. Older eyes, being less flexible, do not adjust as quickly or at all to different focal points. Some people have difficulty getting a sight picture even under optimum conditions. For those with less than perfect vision, getting a sight picture can be slow, and they may not even be able to get just the front sight in focus well enough to make the shot. In these situations, Lasergrips can be a real help in getting on the target quickly. With relatively good vision, corrected with glasses, I found that getting the dot on target quickly in a match setting was easy. I have always had a tendency to drop my shots just a bit, and when you’re shooting Pepper poppers at a distance, dropping the shot can cause the popper not to drop by hitting it too low. Using the laser sight, my percentage of quality hits definitely improved on the poppers at longer distance. At closer distance, I think the laser may have actually slowed me down just a bit because I was looking for the red dot rather than just shooting the target with front sight press. One situation did completely defeat the Lasergrips. A popper had been painted fluorescent orange and the red dot simply disappeared in the orange paint. I had to revert to iron sights on that one.

With the relatively poor sights found on most snubnose revolvers, the CT grips are really helpful. I have done the experiment of taking people to the range and letting them shoot with similar guns, but with one equipped with a laser sight and one not so equipped. The result is always the same. People shoot tighter patterns quicker using the lasers.

Easier Target Acquisition from Weird Positions and From Behind Cover:

When using iron sights, you must place at least part of your head behind the gun, and expose the gun and some of your face and head to hostile fire. With the Lasergrips, if you can see the target you can aim the pistol without exposing as much of your head. Under certain circumstances, this could be a distinct tactical advantage. Additionally, an officer who was down and wounded could still aim his pistol even if his wounds prevented him from aiming the pistol in the normal way.

Visual Communication and Muzzle Awareness

In a team context, the laser sight could be used as a pointer to indicate the position of a hostile or to signal potential paths of movement without making any sound. In a team training setting, the laser can be used to increase muzzle awareness and allow instructors to see clearly who is covering who.

“Threat De-escalation”

I love euphemisms like this. “Threat de-escalation” simply means making the little red dot dance on the chest of a potential evil-doer and producing a rapid change of heart in said evil doer by giving him a clear visualization of where the hole is going to go if he decides to pursue his current course of action. Of all the benefits of the Lasergrips, this one is the most problematic for me. Why? Well, there’s no assurance that the aggressor is going to see the dot and make the right decision about it in the desired time frame. Second, this capability could tempt a person to draw and point their gun at a person in order to control them, but this could leave the user open to a charge of brandishing or even assault with a deadly weapon. Put another way, pointing a gun at another person has serious legal ramifications, and should only be done in circumstances that justify the use of deadly force. Nevertheless, a goodly number of police officers and soldiers have reported successful “de-escalations” in violent aggressive subjects with the use of the laser, and if the laser legally applied prevents a shooting, that’s a plus.

A Few Things That Lasergrips Aren’t:

They aren’t a replacement for your iron sights. They aren’t a shortcut to practice and good marksmanship. They aren’t a flash light, and most of all, they aren’t a cool toy with which to intimidate and mess with people’s heads. A couple of years ago a cadet in our local police department got into a verbal confrontation with a patron at a bar. The cadet was in uniform and, while tempers apparently got heated, the mouthy bar patron finally backed down and left. But as he walked away, the cadet drew her service pistol which was equipped with a laser sight and put the dot between the patron’s shoulder blades. This moment of indiscretion resulted in the cadet losing her job and the possibility of ever working as a police officer. Had she been a civilian, she probably would have been charged with a felony. The moral of that story is, don’t put the little red dot anywhere that it wouldn’t be appropriate to put a bullet.

Testimonial on Toughness and Water Resistance:

A SWAT Team Captain and Instructor writes:

“I teach basic to advanced building search classes and SWAT tactics. I have been using the Crimson Trace laser on my Glock 17 for almost five years now. [We will forgive the captain for his poor taste in guns for now] I use my weapon each time I instruct to demonstrate the use of white light as well as the tactical advantage a laser sight has in a CQB/building search environment.

I carry my weapon on a daily basis while on and off duty, subjecting it to the daily ‘wear and tear’ of being jostled about and bumped around while getting in and out of a unit, etc. It has never failed to function properly when I needed it.

More importantly, I also work the major holidays on the Colorado River for our Department’s Boating under the Influence (BUI) Program. This duty requires being on the water in a patrol boat 10 to 12 hours a day. It is not uncommon to respond to emergencies that require entering the water to assist someone.

When this occurs there is no time to remove your weapon or other gear. The first time I went in the water with my weapon on I didn’t give a thought to the fact that I subjected the laser system and its electrical components to complete emersion in water.

Later, after I got off duty, I was in the process of getting ready to clean my weapon when it dawned on me that I had probably destroyed the laser system by going in the water with it. I hit the pressure switch, and quite honestly, to my amazement IT WORKED!

I can’t tell you the amount of times I have been in and out of the water with my weapon on, but each time I go in so does Crimson Trace’s Laser System. It has never failed to work when I need it, even after being completely immersed in water on numerous occasions. This is quite a testament to the reliability and durability of your product.

I thought it important for you to know this and be able to tell other users of the reliability of your system and the type of abuse it can be subject to and still operate.

Although I can’t state the agency I am employed by, you may use my personal experiences, confidence and endorsement of Crimson Trace and your Laser System.”

— Captain James D. Stalnaker

Testimonial on Toughness and Threat De-escalation:

My name is SSG Sieler. I am currently deployed in Tikrit Northern Iraq in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom with B Company 2-4 Aviation Regiment 4th Infantry Division.

I purchased one of your outstanding sighting systems to go with my Aviation Life Support Equipment. I use it everyday and must say that it is one of the best combat multipliers I have in this combat theater. I must honestly say it has saved lives over here. Not only those of U.S. services members but also the lives of Iraqis.

Often we are faced with tense situations where the “little red dot” makes the difference between the use of deadly force or the power of intimidation. Even with the language barrier the little red dot speaks volumes for us.

I’m sure you have had soldiers here try to contact you to purchase ones for themselves, as everyone I run into loves mine. The environment here is extremely inhospitable and my M-9 takes a beating on a daily basis. The OPTEMPO in Army Aviation here is staggering and all the aircrews carry the Berretta 9mm. Many soldiers here have bolt-on personal sighting devices but none are as transparent in use, (your grips fit just like the original equipment and never hinder operations as others do) or nearly as durable. Mine has outlasted all the others.

Once again I would like to thank you for an outstanding product. It has made my job that much easier. I have no idea how I ever got along without it.

— SSG SIELER

Nits to pick:

They run on batteries. I will never completely trust anything that runs on batteries. I feel compelled to test the laser every time I put the gun on which runs the batteries down.

Ergonomics:

The grips shown above are the Model LG 305 which are the larger of the two models made for S&W J-frames. Crimson Trace also makes a smaller version, the Model LG 405 which are closer to the size of boot grips. The Model LG 305 grips are longer and a bit wider than boot grips. The increased size of these grips improves comfort and control when firing without giving up too much in terms of conceal-ability. For a person who prefers pocket carry, the more compact Model LG 405 would probably be better. One drawback on the Model LG 305 is that holsters which use a thumb-break around the backstrap of the grip such as Galco shoulder holsters, will no longer fit when the 305’s are installed.

Lasers and the Snubnose

While the snubnose may point very naturally, its small grip, short sight radius and heavy trigger make it a difficult handgun to shoot accurately. Additionally, the sights on most snubbies are nominal and often hard to see, especially in low light and for people who may not have good eyesight. Lasergrips make a quick index on the target in poor visual conditions easy. The question has been raised that looking for the red dot might actually slow down the shooter in an emergency. This is an issue which should be considered. If you are already fast and practiced enough that you can snap off a shot in the twinkling of an eye and get a good hit, the Lasergrips might not be an asset in a speed shooting situation. I have been practicing for fast shots much longer than Lasergrips have been around, and I retain a certain mistrust of electronic gadgets. In a spitting-distance slug fest, I might not worry about the red dot or take time to look for it. However, in bad light conditions and when the target is somewhat further away, like 10-20 yards, the Lasergrips really speed up your target acquisition. In the “putting your money where your mouth is” column, I have two sets of CT grips, one for J-frame and one set on my Commander. Additionally, I have an Insight X2 light/laser sight combo on my Springfield XD-9. I like the laser sights.

Summary:

Crimson Trace Lasergrips are an innovative concept that can provide a number of training and tactical advantages. I wouldn’t consider them something I couldn’t live without, but many tactical situations and circumstances come to mind in which the Lasegrips could be a significant asset. They are a meaningful assist in aiming the snubnose revolver.

Specs:

Dot Size: Approximately 0.5″ diameter at 50 feet.

Beam Intensity: 5mw peak, 633nm, class IIIa laser. Maximum output that federal law and technology allow. Also available in infrared for law enforcement and military only.

Power Source: Two #2032 lithium batteries (included). Provide over four hours on on-time use and have a five-year shelf life.

Activation: Integrated momentary pressure switch(s) (all models) and a master on/off switch (most models).

Adjustment: Fully adjustable for windage and elevation with Crimson Trace’s precise sight-lock calibration screws.

Warranty: Full three-year no hassle warranty on all parts and labor.