Charter Arms .357

[ProudHoosier]

I have inherited a Charter Arms .357 revolver. Can anyone provide any additional information about the gun?
All I have been able to determine that it was made between 1970-1980 due to the Stratford, Connecticut stamping on the barrel.

 

[Mgderf]

A lot of people will call them junk, but I think they'd be better than a Hi-Point.
I've shot a few of the Charter Arms snubby's.
No, they don't have match-grade triggers, or barrels.
The sights are usually fixed.
The fit and finish likely leaves a bit to be desired.

Still, they go bang when you pull the trigger, and if you use it as it was intended, as a plinker or short range self defense, it will probably be o.k.
I wouldn't run thousands of rounds of full load .357's as a regular diet, but it should chew up and spit out all the .38spl's you can throw at it.
Keep it clean and shoot it for practice.

Resale value for one of those will be low.
Maybe $175 - $250, depending on the buyer.

 

[PGRChaplain]

I have a Charter Undercover from the early 70's. Bought new it's a solid shooter. Only problem was a broken firing pin years ago, $10.00 fix.

 

[mcapo]

The first gen Charter Arms made in Stratford, CT are fine firearms and the negative reputation of the latter production runs should not reflect on yours. It's not a Smith or a Colt but you era of production is far above a hi-point. Unfortunately, prices are pretty modest on all of them.

I have a similar era 44 spcl. Good shooting little self defense pistol after putting a set of rubber grips on it.

I might stick with 38's though...

 

[halfmileharry]

https://unblinkingeye.com/Guns/CAR/car.html
I've got an early Bulldog in .44 spl I'm hanging onto. It's a good gun and I trust it.
Fit and finish is pretty darned good on it. It's blue and the finish is deep on it.
It was only about $139 new.

 

[ProudHoosier]

Thanks everyone. Appreciate the information. Took it to the range to try it out. It didn't like the .357 ammo too much. Difficult to eject the empty shells after 10 rounds. But as Mgderf pointed out, had no problem with 50 rounds of .38's.
Up and to the right at 7 yards, may just become a night stand piece.

 

[NyleRN]

If the 357 ammo was after 50 rounds of 38 then that's why the 357 was hard to extract

 

[Drail]

Stick with heavy bullet .38 Spl. loads. A Charter will not survive a steady diet of .357 Magnums and that is not an Internet rumor I heard somewhere. It would be a total waste anyway unless you just like huge fireballs for effect. The Stratford Charters are very good revolvers for the price but they are lightly built. I have a 1986 Bulldog and it is still in very good shape. But I have seen guys tear one up very quickly with hot loads.

 

[NKBJ]

The 1970's five shot Charter Arms .357 that I gave my mom was a solid shooter.
It was a good light weight trail packing piece. After having my tent circled in the middle of the night I admitted the goofiness of not packing. And yeah OK, don't know what they were and don't want to know. But Mom taught me to trim cones out of pine trees. Could I give her something better than the weapon she needed? Her father was the champion pistol shot at the county fair after coming back from WW1. I think he taught her with a Luger.
So yeah, the Charter Arms was handy and packed a punch, a pretty good choice for a woman's hand.
The agent she was dating liked the Speer HBWC's loaded backwards with gas checks (you had to trim off the the little hemi bulge), 296 and CCI550's.