By John Taffin

Bellygun is a term you don’t hear much any more, but from the time of the Civil War up to very recently, that’s what short-barreled revolvers were called. Some people in the gun business tried to gloss over the genre of small, concealable handguns, but the snubnosed bellygun is the most important type of all firearms because it is made for self-defense.

Bellyguns were first offered in the seven-shot single-action .22 rimfire by Smith & Wesson in the 1850s. It was favored as a hideout weapon on both sides of the Civil War. In the first half of the 20th century, every little store had a punchboard with one of the main prizes being a nickel-plated pocket pistol. No forms to fill out, no instant check, no waiting period. You hit the board, you won a gun.

Even in my family, which was certainly not part of the gun culture, I found such a little pocket pistol, an Iver Johnson, among my grandfather’s effects after his death. Today the media has picked up on what was originally a racist term of derision, Saturday Night Special. There are no such guns. Saturday Night Specials are certain people with a certain mindset, not an inanimate object such as a life-savin’ bellygun.

Smith & Wesson’s first double-action bellygun was the break-top of 1880, chambered in .38 S&W. In 1882, S&W brought forth the “lemon-squeezer,” a hammerless double-action with a grip safety. These guns featured not only a grip safety, but also an extra heavy DA-only trigger pull to make it that much more difficult for a child to operate. These guns were very popular as pocket pistols since there was no hammer to catch in the clothing.

I lucked onto one of these in excellent shape in a strange way. My daughter moved into an old house and, while she was cleaning it, she noticed a loose board in the back of a closet. She pulled it out and found a 1 lb. candy tin. Inside she discovered a 1935 championship high school ring, a box of .32 S&W and a .32 lemon squeezer. The rubber grips are perfect, while the rest of the gun is 98 percent with very minor nickel flaking. It works just as well today as it did more than 100 years ago when it left the Springfield factory.

In the 1890s Smith brought forth their first solid frame, swing-out cylinder gun, the I-frame. The little gun was beginning to take on the profile that is so recognizable today. These little I-frames were chambered in .32 S&W, .38 S&W and, in 1911, thanks to a gun dealer by the name of Bekeart, in .22 rimfire. The .22 would evolve into that grandest of all little sixguns, the .22/32 Kit Gun in 1936.

The late Col. Rex Applegate was often involved in clandestine operations from his early days with an outfit known as the OSS in World War II through his commissioning as a general in the Mexican Army. One of his favorite pocket pistols was the .38 S&W. At least until he found himself emptying it to stop an attacker.

More power was needed in pocket pistols. Colt had chopped the barrel of their Police Positive to 2″ before World War II and called it the Detective Special. It was a start in the right direction, but with its six-shot cylinder, it was a mite big for a pocket pistol.

The answer was soon forthcoming. Smith & Wesson engineers had been working to improve the I-frame by slightly enlarging it to take five rounds of .38 Special. In addition to a larger frame, the new revolver, dubbed the J-frame, used a coil mainspring. It was very much like the .38 S&W I-frame except for the extra long cylinder, filling the J-frame window.

To introduce the new pocket pistol, the J-frame was taken to the 1950 annual meeting of the conference of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, You are probably now ahead of me and can see the name coming. The police chiefs voted on a new name and the first I-frame was appropriately given the name of .38 Chief’s Special.

It is altogether fitting that the police chiefs should knight the new five-gun, as it became immensely popular with peace officers as a second or backup gun that slipped easily into a uniform pocket or as a very easily concealed and carried off-duty weapon. For 40 years, until the revolution of sorts in semiautomatic weapons, it was the pocket pistol by which all others were judged.

Not only was the J-frame .38 Chief’s Special a near perfect pocket gun, but also it was extremely strong. The bolt cuts came between the cylinder chambers and the cylinder itself to fill the frame, with no unsupported portion of the barrel sticking back through the main frame as found on the .357 Magnum and .44 Special Smith & Wessons of the time.

How strong are these little pocket revolvers? Elmer Keith reported in 1955 that both of them would perfectly handle the .38/44 and other high speed .38 Special ammunition, as he ran 500 rounds through a Chief’s Special with no ill effects. At the time of Keith’s writing the .38/44 was a +P loading, the forerunner of the .357 Magnum, rated at 1,150 fps from a 5″ Smith & Wesson .38 Heavy Duty sixgun.

I’ve gone even further with my little Chief’s Special. In the pre-.357 Magnum days of the early 1930s, Keith came up with a heavy .38 Special loading for his sixguns that does 1,400+ fps from an 8 3/8″ S&W .357 Magnum. Using this load in a Chief’s Special, the recoil is stout, with a muzzle velocity of 1,150 fps with a 168 gr. bullet from a 2″ barrel. This is not something I recommend and I do not shoot loads like those very often, but it is great to know that option is mine should I need it.

The .38 Special Chief’s became the Model 36 in 1957, the Centennial became the Model 40, while the number 37 was attached to the Airweight Chief’s Special. In 1965, a revolution of sorts arrived in handgun manufacturing when Smith used the Model 36 as the platform for the same gun in stainless steel. This of course is the Model 60.

A favorite little sixgun of hikers, backpackers and fishermen is the six-shot .22 Kit Gun on the J-frame platform. The Model 34 with either a 2′ or 4′ barrel was produced from 1953 to 1991. It then became a stainless steel sixgun, the Model 63, and was subsequently joined by the Model 651, the .22 Magnum version, and the very rare (only offered in 1990) .32 Magnum Kit Gun, the Model 631.

These diminutive sixguns make fine companion guns for the hunter who does not want to pack any more weight than necessary, but can still be prepared to take a grouse, squirrel or rabbit for the camp cooking pot.

The 1990s brought major changes in the J-frame series. All of the older .38 Specials are gone. Today’s J-frame is slightly larger with a 2 1/8″ barrel and chambered in .357 Magnum. In the mid-1930s, a heavy duty, large framed .357 Magnum was looked upon as the ultimate sixgun. Now we have the .357 Magnum chambered in a 24 oz. five-shot pocket pistol. Firing full house 158 gr. .357 Magnums in one of thee little J-frames is a real attention getter. On both ends.

My wife carries Smith & Wesson J-frames. In her fanny pack is a blued Airweight with a 2″ barrel while her purse gun is a 3″ stainless steel Airweight. Both of these are the Bodyguard models with no hammers exposed. From blued to airweight to stainless to titanium, the J-frames keep evolving. Loaded with 125 gr. JHP, I can think of no better carry gun for wife, mother or daughter than these.

By Stephen A. Camp

Revolvers continue to be popular in the age of the autoloader and one that seems to garner good reports far and wide is the Ruger SP101. It is currently offered in .22, .32 Magnum, .38 Special, as well as .357 Magnum. Barrel lengths run from 2 1/4″ to 4″ and the revolver is available with fixed or adjustable sights. The one I purchased was in .357 Magnum with the 3 1/16″ barrel and fixed sights.

The .357 Magnum chambering is probably the most common and I suspect that it is sold more often than not in the 2 1/4″ barrel length with fixed sights. Of course, .38 Specials can be fired in the .357 guns. These little magnums are five-shooters rather than six and the swing-out cylinder is used. As the gun comes from the factory, stocks are of rubber with plastic inserts snapped in and retained by the grip screw.

The SP101 is a bit smaller than the S&W K-frame but beefier than the same company’s compact J-frame, some models of which can be had in .357 Magnum.

Specifications:

Weight: 27 ounces
Length: 8″ (with 3 1/16″ bbl)
Height: 4.5″
Cylinder Width: 1.349″
Frame Width at Barrel: 0.774″
Top Strap Width: 0.602″
Top Strap Thickness: 0.204″
Trigger: smooth
Action: Conventional double/single action revolver
Cylinder Rotation: counterclockwise
Sights: Fixed or adjustable (front sight pinned to bbl)
Twist: 1:18 3/4″ (.38/. 357)
Safety: Internal transfer bar allows for firing only when the trigger is pressed all the way rearward. The revolver is safe to carry fully loaded.

Ruger SP101 Comparison to S&W J & K-frame Revolvers

Measurement (in.) – Ruger SP101 – S&W K-frame – S&W J-frame

Cylinder Width – 1.349 – 1.47 – 1.34

Frame Width at bbl – 0.744 – 0.823 – 0.697

Top Strap Width – 0.602 – 0.654 – 0.546

Top Strap Thickness – 0.204 – 0.233 – 0.168

Forcing Cone Thickness – 0.086 – 0.086 – 0.066

The table shows that the SP101 might be thought of as a J-frame on steroids, a compact revolver that has been beefed up in critical areas. Note also that the forcing cone on the SP101 is equivalent to that on the K-frame rather than the J.

Having been in constant production in .357 for over a decade now, complaints on the SP101 being fragile have been few and far between. Why is this? The K-frame from S&W has been associated with some parts breakage when a constant diet of magnums have been used, but the K-frame is a bit larger than the SP101. That means there is more steel around the .357’s SAAMI-rated 35K CUP pressure limit each time a round is fired. What’s the deal here? SP101’s are regularly described as being “built like a bank vault” and praised for their ability to digest huge amounts of full-power magnum ammunition.

I think the answer is two-fold. It has been my observation that most .357 factory ammunition is simply not loaded as hot as it was a few decades ago. Years ago it was not uncommon to honestly break 1450 ft/sec with various makers’ 125-gr. magnum loads from 4″ barrels. Now, chronographed velocities are closer to 100 ft/sec slower. Since the hot 125-gr seemed the culprit in most cracked forcing cones and flame cutting, this slight reduction in muzzle velocity probably alleviated the problem. Combine with that the reduction in size of .357 Magnum revolvers in recent times. These guns are certainly easier to carry concealed than the K, L, and N-frames of years past, but one pays for it in increased felt recoil. I strongly suspect that most owners of the compact magnum revolvers shoot a few full-power loads through them, but do the bulk of their practice with the considerably milder .38 Special. I believe that this includes SP101 shooters, but they are shooting a gun is probably a bit more rugged than the J-frame. Hence, we get the comments on the Ruger’s durability. I am neither a gunsmith nor a mechanical engineer so I cannot honestly say whether the internal parts on the Ruger are stronger than the S&W, or give bold statements on which system is better. It does appear that both work quite well, but there seems to be fewer complaints of the small Ruger having problems than the small S&W when either is heavily used.

There is an area where the S&W usually beats the Ruger: trigger pull and smoothness of action. I believe that S&W is almost always the winner here. Using full-power springs in the SP101 compared to the S&W will almost always result in a noticeably smoother action in the latter. Both the Ruger and the S&W use coiled springs to power their hammers. The SP101 spring is rated at 14 pounds, the S&W at 8.5. The trigger return spring on the SP comes in at 10 pounds while the rebound spring on the S&W is 18 pounds at factory standard. It seems like the Ruger should have the lighter smoother trigger pull, but such is usually not the case. Some folks reduce the trigger return spring a bit to smooth up the Ruger, but if a person opts to do this, make absolutely sure that the trigger doesn’t have a sluggish return for the next shot.

I suspect that S&W perfected the double-action pull many years ago and that we’d have to look long and hard to find better ones on out of the box guns. That does not mean that the RUGER SP101 necessarily has a terrible trigger pull or that they cannot be smoothed up very nicely for they certainly can.

The trigger pull on the SP101 used in this evaluation was smooth, but stiff, and certainly nothing special. It has proven imminently useable however. As it came from the box, it did have sharp edges. These were taken care of using 400-grit sandpaper and a little elbow grease. Others have commented on similar experiences and applied similar corrections. Total time spent was less than 15 minutes. Other than that slight “modification”, the SP101 used was as it came from the box.

Shooting:

I fired the SP101 at 7 and 15 yards. The revolver was fired in double-action at a combat-type target at the closer distance. At 15 yards, the revolver was fired single-action and from a sitting position with wrists braced. Unfortunately, I only had two types of .357 Magnum ammunition available so I included quite an array of .38 Special also.

The chronograph data is based on 10 shots fired approximately 10′ from the chronograph screens.

Ruger SP101 w/3 1/16″ Bbl Chronograph Results

Load: – Average Velocity (ft/sec) – Extreme Spread (ft/sec) – Std. Deviation (ft/sec)

38 Corbon 110-gr. DPX – 1141 – 44 – 18

38 Corbon 115-gr. +P+ – 1342 – 62 – 24

38 Rem 130-gr. FMJ – 821 – 28 – 11

38 Federal 147-gr. HS +P+ – 963 – 35 – 13

38 Remington 158-gr. LSWCHP +P – 906 – 23 – 9

357 Remington 125-gr. GS* – 1189 – 57 – 22

357 Winchester 145-gr. STHP – 1207 – 39 – 18

*Mid-range load.

The SP101 used for testing had fixed sights. Nothing fancy to be sure, but they worked fine and provided a very usable sight picture.

15 Yards:

Observations:

Neither the double or single-action trigger pulls on my SP101 were as smooth or light as on my J or K-frame S&W revolvers. It is slightly heavier but has smoothed up a bit after roughly 400 shots, about half of which were .357 Magnum handloads and factory ammunition. The gun does appear to have its fixed sights regulated toward the heavier end of the .357 bullet spectrum although POI was perfectly satisfactory at 15 yards with the slightly attenuated Remington Golden Saber load.

The 145-gr. Silvertip was right on the edge of becoming uncontrollable in rapid-fire when using two hands. Using one hand, as might occur in a defense scenario, it was not at all easy to handle. For that reason, I will be using the Remington 125-gr. Golden Saber in this gun for now. Other potential defensive .357 ammunition will be looked at as time permits, but the Golden Saber is it for now.

I found the revolver more comfortable than expected when firing magnum rounds. No doubt the heavy barrel and its shroud putting more weight up front to reduce muzzle flip were factors, but I think there’s also much to be said for the grips on this revolver. I found them extremely comfortable and have no plans to replace them.

There were no malfunctions of any kind. Primer strikes were plenty reliable and well centered. Case ejection was positive and there were no incidents of “sticking” cases.

I find the SP101 a little gem. It might be a bit of a “diamond in the rough,” but not by much. I will use this revolver and report back any problems that might crop up. Frankly, I expect none from what I’ve read and now, seen.

Some will opine that 5 shots are not enough for a serious defense arm. I suggest that it depends on the type scenario envisioned. I believe that for me, it is adequate in my now tame orbits. I no longer am involved in police service and my days of kicking in a door to a room full of crack heads are long over. That said, if you do not feel comfortable with but five rounds before a reload, the SP101 might not be your best choice as a primary defense gun. A nice fact is that the SP101 uses the same speed loaders as the J-frame S&W revolvers. A fellow could have the SP101 on his belt and an Airweight J-frame in a pocket holster and use the same speed loader(s) for both. (Obviously, the speed loader would contain 38 Special ammo if the pocket gun were so chambered.)

Some complain about a handgun of this weight for carry. I agree that it is heavier than many revolvers intended for concealed carry. I also find it too large for pocket use, but as a compact belt gun, it is just fine and carries comfortably. Its weight is appreciated when firing magnum ammunition.

Frankly, I cannot see limiting this revolver to “just” self-protection. Though its stainless steel construction makes it heavier than various lighter framed revolvers, that emphatically does not mean that these are hard to tote. Given a proper belt and decent holster, just the opposite has proven true for me. I think they would be a heck of a fine sidearm for hiking, camping, fishing, or just knocking about in the woods.

The gun has no removable side plate. The gun is easily disassembled for cleaning via very good instructions provided in Ruger’s paperwork accompanying the revolver. Some suggest that the frame is stronger as it has no removable side plate as do S&W revolvers. I don’t know if that’s true or not, but do think that these are tough little guns that should easily last a lifetime, even with regular use over the long term. The barrel’s bore cleaned about as easily as a Smith so I assume smoothness is similar.

Though I am not about to divest myself of S&W revolvers, neither am I going to ignore Ruger wheelguns. They have a lot going for them and I remain very favorably impressed with this example.

Best

By Dan Smith – genitron.com

I’m relatively new to revolvers. Being a semi-automatic man for many years, I only have one revolver in my gun collection. That’s been a Smith & Wesson Model 66 .357 Magnum service revolver. Not a small gun, and with reasonable weight, this gun has none-the-less been a joy to shoot at the range, being quite capable of absorbing the power of a .357 Magnum round. This would be a nice home defense gun, and would be a reliable piece to have for camping or hiking. But, I wouldn’t consider it a good concealed carry weapon for self-defense. It’s just too big.

And my focus here is on self-defense. I’m not a hunter, so you won’t see me reviewing the likes of the Smith & Wesson Model 500 for instance. Nor will I probably ever review a .480 Ruger or .454 Casull model. These are big hunting guns, and I’ll let others review those models. So, for my first review of a revolver for self-defense, I jumped right into it and acquired the Smith & Wesson Airweight 360PD super-lightweight revolver.

Introduced in 2002, this small, lightweight revolver is built from Smith & Wesson’s “J” frame design which has a lineage that goes all the way back to 1950 with the introduction of their Model 36 “Chiefs Special”. The key feature of this “J” frame model is the use of exotic alloys in its frame and cylinder construction, producing one of the lightest revolvers on the market.

Specifications –

Caliber: .357 Magnum, .38 Special +P, .38 Special

Action: revolving chamber

Length: 6.375 in

Width: 1.312 in

Height: 4.25 in

Cylinder Capacity: 5 rounds

Barrel Length: 1.875 in

Rifling: 5-grooves, RH twist

Trigger: double-action

Sights: red ramp front, fixed notch rear

Weight Empty: 11.3 oz

Weight Loaded: 13.7oz

Features –
Titanium cylinder.
Scandium/aluminum alloy frame.
Black anodized finish.
Stainless steel barrel tube.
Hogue Bantam Monogrip.

Click HERE to see the full line of Smith & Wesson revolvers.

Design Notes –

The frame of the 360PD is constructed from a scandium reinforced aluminum alloy. Scandium, a novel alloying element for aluminum, is mined and processed in Zhovti Vody, Ukraine, the only primary scandium mine in operation in the world. The key properties of this alloy are light weight, superior strength and good resistance to corrosion. The frame is topped off with a smooth black anodized finish.

The titanium cylinder weighs just 60% of what a similar stainless steel cylinder weighs and yet is able to withstand the same operating pressures. As with all “J” frame designs, this is a swing-out cylinder with an axial pin driven star extractor. The extractor pin rests in a slot in the bottom of the barrel shroud when the cylinder is closed.

The barrel is a hybrid construction consisting of a scandium/aluminum alloy shroud keyed into the frame with a metal tab, and a stainless steel barrel tube which is screwed into the frame with a special tool, holding the shroud in place.

The grip is a Hogue Bantam Monogrip, a one-piece wrap-around construction that is held into place by being pressed into a stock pin that extrudes from both sides of the frame near the base of the butt.

The Caliber –

The .38 Special cartridge was developed by Smith & Wesson and was introduced with its Military & Police Model revolver in 1899. It is considered one of the best-balanced, all-round handgun cartridges ever designed. It is also one of the most accurate and very widely used for match shooting. This subsonic round is available with bullet weights ranging from 95 to 200 grains.

The .357 Magnum cartridge was introduced in 1935 by Smith & Wesson for its heavy-frame revolver. Ammunition was developed by Winchester in cooperation with Smith & Wesson using a lengthened and strengthened version of the .38 Special case. While it has less power than .44 Magnum, it compares favorably to the .45 ACP, but with better armor penetration. Today factories offer over fifty different loadings in this caliber. Bullet weights range from 110 to 200 grains with an average muzzle energy exceeding 500 ft-lbs.

The following data set is based on standard factory loaded cartridges fired from a 4″ barrel, listed by weight, brand, type and muzzle velocity. This is only a very small sample of what is available.

.38 Special

123 grain Norma FMJ : 886 Feet Per Second
132 grain PMC FMJ : 841 Feet Per Second
158 grain MagTech SJHP : 890 Feet Per Second
125 grain Federal JSP+P : 900 Feet Per Second
158 grain CCI-Speer FMJ+P : 900 Feet Per Second

.357 Magnum

125 grain Remington JHP : 1220 Feet Per Second
158 grain Norma FMJ : 1214 Feet Per Second
180 grain Winchester JHP : 1180 Feet Per Second

Handgun Observations –

I should first note that in the description of the .357 Magnum cartridge above I mention a bullet weight range that goes as low as 110 grains. You will notice that engraved on the right side of the 360PD barrel is the statement “NO LESS THAN 120 GR BULLET”. This statement refers to .357 Magnum rounds only, not .38 Special rounds, and there is an interesting reason for this restriction. Magnum bullets that weigh less than 120 grains will exit their cartridge before the cartridge charge has a chance to completely burn. This charge will leak out onto the cylinder and frame while still burning, causing damaging oxidation to the gun’s exotic materials over time.

My initial observation of the 360PD was that the grip was obviously too small. But, I based this observation on my experience with many sub-compact semi-automatics whose standard grips are usually just shortened. Those grips are typically fat and straight as they house the gun’s ammo, and the grip stance usually leaves the little finger hanging. The grip on the 360PD though, has a small diameter and is ergonomically curved to fit deep within the palm of the hand. All of your fingers wrap fully around the grip and make good contact, including the little finger.

The 360PD’s sister, the 340PD, is basically the same revolver but with a spurless hammer, making the 340PD a double-action-only revolver. I chose the 360PD for its ability to fire in both double-action and single-action modes. Although the spurless hammer was designed to minimize snagging while being carried concealed, after a month of carrying the 360PD in-the-waistband I found no problems with the exposed hammer spur. In fact, when drawing the gun I found my thumb falling naturally next to the hammer spur, not only protecting it from snags but also staging my thumb for quick cocking during the draw for single-action firing.

I was surprisingly pleased with this with this little 5-round revolver. In my opinion it is quite adequate as a self-defense weapon. Having carried it for a full month, I am very comfortable with it, and now include it in my cache of weapons that I regularly use for concealed carry. I have a new appreciation for revolvers.

One note about cleaning Although the black anodized frame cleans easily, as well as the stainless steel barrel, I found it extremely difficult to remove gunshot residue from the somewhat porous surface of the titanium cylinder. I tried every gun solvent and cleaner I had with no success. What finally worked for me came from my car cleaning supplies. A small dab of magnesium and aluminum rim polish lifted the stains right off the cylinder.

Shooting –

With a barrel length under two inches and a sight radius under four inches, it was difficult for me to even hit a small target at 25 yards. Those with a more steady hand and sharper vision my have better luck than I had. But from my perspective, I consider this gun a short range weapon, and I limited my range tests to only 7 yards. Although the gun is rated for .357 Magnum rounds, after shooting just one box of fifty 125 grain rounds through the 360PD, the .357 Magnum recoil left me with a very sore wrist. Surprisingly, my palm and grip remained unaffected, which says a lot about the small Hogue Bantam grip. Firing .38 Special standard and +P rounds through the 360PD, on the other hand was quite an enjoyable experience. I have opted to stay with .38 Special+P rounds when carrying this weapon.

In double-action mode the trigger pull reaches a peak of 15.5 pounds at the mid point of its 3/4 inch of travel. It then drops to 4.5 pounds where it breaks to fire during the last 1/8 inch of travel. Short of the at-rest hammer block there is no other safety. In single-action mode when the hammer is drawn, the trigger moves all the way back to that final 1/8 inch of travel, where it sets, requiring just a slight 4.5 pound pull to fire the weapon.

Often I found I was able to pull through the 15.5 pound double-action travel, and then stop just short of the 4.5 pound break, holding to take aim just before firing. But occasionally I would un-intentionally pull through, prematurely firing the gun. Trying to pull straight through the 15.5 pound travel non-stop to fire the gun brought the worst results. In practice I found that the best control and accuracy for me resulted from drawing the hammer manually to single-action mode before firing.

This article is used by permission of the author
Visit his site. It’s a wealth of information