Yep. I have a S&W 642 and Ruger LCR, both in .38 that I use for 'casual' carry or holdout guns and I find them pleasant to shoot. Hard to shoot accurately at long range and of course very limited fire power but if carried as the firearm equivalent to a neck knife they fill the role.

And for simple fun they are great as the short side radius makes you really focus on fundamentals.

 

instead of a 38 special standard pressure for a backpacking gun, what about .327 federal?.. even smaller, even lighter, more power, and you get an extra shot for the same size frame

 

I want to keep what hearing I have left, and .38 wadcutters fired from a short barrel are less painful without ear protection than the .327. Also, the .327 gives up much of its potential performance when fired from short barrels. Of course you can use lower powered ammunition such as .32 S&W Long or .32 H&R Magnum in it, but at short-barrel velocities with non-expanding bullets I would prefer the .38 Special wadcutter, because it has more frontal area, better accuracy with adequate penetration.

I really want to avoid further thread drift into the .32s unless you want to talk pluses and minuses about very light, "AIRWEIGHT" guns, which is the point of this thread, not the "caliber wars." If you have further thoughts on .32 "Popguns" put them in THAT thread.

For me the .327 is a non-starter. First because most guns chambered for it weigh more than 24 ounces, which is too much IMHO for pocket carry. Second, its full charge loads tear up too much meat and Third, as was said before, an expensive, boutique caiber which is unobtanium around here.

With .38 wadcutters you can eat right up to the bullet hole.

Two-inch groups fired two-handed at 50 feet are possible and wadcutters pass the "woodchuck test."

SO let's hear who else has an Airweight? In any caliber.

Nomad 2nd, please tell us more about your 317.
IIRC this is a 2" .22 LR. How reliable, accurate, does it shoot where the sights point?

MANY years ago I had an S&W Model 43 Airwewight .22 Kit Gun with aluminum cylinder, later refitted with steel cylinder.
I wore it out shooting CCI Mini-Mags and after the second rebuild I sold it. It was OK, but the 9-shot High Standard Sentinel I used to replace it cost only 1/3 the money and is still going after 50 years. Not a target revolver, but a good DA trainer for the ladies classes, which is what I use it for now.

 

.327 federal?

Rare, expensive, boutique caliber.

.38 on the other hand, while not ideal as a non NATO or Combloc caliber, is at least an extremely common caliber in the US.

 

I keep a few model 37's, 38's, and such around.
If I'm lounging in shorts or something I'll drop one into a pocket, and in winter one will go into a coat or bib pocket.

Hard to beat my 317 though.

 

The 6-shot S&W K-frame "Aircrewman" or pre-Model 12 with 2-inch barrel, round butt and its original aluminum cylinder weighs 15 ozs...

I think you are about the only person I have ever heard of still shooting an aluminum cylinder pre-12. Even the weakest version of the M41 ball was too hot for them.

 

I use factory wadcutter only and an occasional Speer No.9 shot.

I have thought about returning the gun to S&W to have a steel cylinder fitted, as they have offered to do so, but I am not real comfortable shipping the gun to MA and possibly having it lost in shipment and then not being able to replace it.

My revolver is still tight and mechanically correct. It has been carried alot and shot, but only with wadcutters. I have over 1000 rounds of factory Remington Targetmaster leftover from my bullseye competition days, and that ammo is dedicated to my two Airweight .38s.

 

I load the 103gr SWC lee if I'm wanting a 22rimfire substitute. Also good for practice, cause it is easier on the lead supply. It is easy to cast and lube with tumble lube and shoot unsized.

 

How much lower do the light bullets shoot than standard ammo, how much do you have to hold off?

 

I have a S&W 38S air with a 1 ⅞ barrel. I find it accurate but not precise. One would not expect distant precision with such a barrel. It is one of two truck guns. I think if I was still backpacking I would want at least a 6 inch barrel.

Gun preferences are so personal and expected use so varied it is difficult for me to say what anyone else should carry. Half the time I do not agree with myself.

 

I like my j frames. Presently I have a 442 with the longer combat grip, a 640 Pro Shop, steel w factory night sights, a Ruger LCRx in 38 and a LCR in 22lr.

By far the 640 in 357, takes the prize, but has more weight, like my SP101 in 357.

I know, not much out guns a Glock 17 with a happy stick. But j frames are great.

 

I had a 632 in .32mag I stupidly stupidly stupidly gave to my now ex-wife to use that I never got back.
One of the very very few guns I’d really like to have back.

 

Am I correct that the 632 was a stainless J-frame?. Do you recall what it weighed? What was the barrel length?

I don't know that anybody has ever made an airweight .32 H&R Magnum, but I once had a light alloy frame Colt Cobra in .32 Colt New Police, but I didn't care for it with a 2-inch barrel and sold it. Had I known then what I know now, I would have gotten a 4" Police Positive barrel in .32 NP from Numrich and rebarreled it to make the "Bunny Gun of My Dreams."

As they say, too soon old and too late smart.

 

I'm a fan of the shrouded hammers, so a 649, 638 and 438. I also have a hammerless Charter.
The 649 is also 357mag, but I'm a fan of the 38spl. I carry either Hornady or Federal HST and I tend towards +P, though the Hornady is 158 normal pressure IIRC.
I shoot a lot of reloads at the range, and like to walk in rounds at 50 and sometimes 100 yards. Shrouded hammers allow SA, so that helps.
I have no illusions about doing that in any kind of SD event... they're definitely point and shoot guns in that role, and I feel I'm proficient with that.

 

Personally I don't like any of the lightweight revolvers made nowadays. Their only value IN MY OPINION are concealabilty. I'd take any old school .38 or .22 and what I currently carry when hiking as a pack gun myself is SP101 9mm revolver. I like it's weight and accuracy isn't bad at all for 2.25 in barrel.

 

there really isnt anything you cant kill with a 22.. even deer with headshot without much issue, so i dont see much use in a 38 revolver when a 22 pistol kills things just as dead and you can carry a **** ton more ammo

 

Their only value IN MY OPINION are concealabilty.

Well, duh as they say.

Which you could apply to handguns in general as well.

 

May as well go to .22 Short. Then you can really carry more ammunition. Thanks for opening my eyes Justin.

 

bbs....the real answer is a bb gun...you can carry thousands of projectiles in your pocket. Firearms are for people who can't shoot well.

 

Outpost,

Great points! I have had Charter Arms undercover for 25 years and carried alot of that time. Action smooth as glass. The wife has problems racking slides and with grandkids hate to leave round in. Bought her airweight with shroud, smith not sure the model. In any case either vehicle has the simple weapon ready for use. Like others have said, I have many guns, but the .38's are always ready to use.

good luck

Dan

 

I carried one for years as my pocket pistol (and bug) it's been replaced though with a Ruger LC9S easier to conceal being flat in pocket holster and easy to reload were the main reasons why. 8 shots of 9mm HST didn't hurt either fwiw

 

i like 38 revolvers. my s&w 642 gets points for its lightweight and pocketability, but those attributes are its downfall too: i’m recoil averse so i only shoot 38 wadcutters and cbc shorts through it. a heavier steel taurus 85 is a much better shooter for me. plus for general outdoor use i prefer having the 85’s external hammer over the hammerless 642. a 3” rossi 38 would actually be preferable for the outdoors over an airweight for the former’s longer sight radius. all that said, as long as i’m not out roaming in apex predator (human or animal) home turf, i prefer a 22 for its lighter, smaller load of ammo, for my usual needs 50 rounds of 22 trumps 2 speedloaders of 38.

 

i . a 3” rossi 38 would actually be preferable for the outdoors over an airweight 8.

I have a 3" 37....

 

Yep. Smith and Wesson model 242 L frame "airlite" 7 shooter in 38 special. My usual ccw.

 

7-shooter? What frame size is it on? Must be an "N".

How heavy is it?

 

It's an L frame and it weighs 19 oz. Kinda rare. I believe they were only made for one fun because they didn't sell well.

 

Would love to see pics!

 

I don't know how to post pics but here's a link to a pic. https://www.chuckhawks.com/s-w_M242.htm

I've replaced the grips on mine with vz grips and the front sight with a green fiber optic and had a trigger/action job done. Some people don't like the look. The are nicknamed the hunchback.

 

I know airweights are for everyone, but I still think everyone should own at least one: I have a few different types, mostly S&W J-Frames, but Ruger's LCR (I have the 3" LCRx) has a very smooth trigger.

I'm planning on picking up S&W's M&P 340 in .357 (admittedly, I will likely just run it with .38's). I like the option of shooting .357 and the night sights along with the package weight.

There are lot of pocket .380's as BUGs, but I still think the reliability and punch of the airweights still keeps them at the top of the BUG list. I think if you're wanting a primary carry piece, a heavier steel model would be a better option and much easier to spend time and ammo with training. Of course, moderately loaded wadcutters are pretty tame in my J-frames.



ROCK6

 

I have found light alloy frame .38 Special revolvers used with "standard" pressure (NOT +P) loads useful as a light backpacking or "Kit Gun" as an alternative to a .22 LR or similar small caliber.

Don't worry about the Plus P in the newer airweight guns. They are rated for it and the more powerful REAL 38 Special loads before 38 special was downloaded in the 1970s. Here is a good read on that subject. http://shootingwithhobie.blogspot.com/2009/01/p-phenomenon-by-saxonpig.html

And they did make an Airweight 32 mag revolver. I have one in my nightstand drawer. A S&W model 431PD with 2" barrel.

And if you reload try some 110-125gr lead bullets. I cast a 124gr 9mm lead bullet and used to load them to shoot in my Taurus model 85. They shoot very close to the same point of aim as the 158gr loads. Part of the muzzle rise that causes the lighter and heavier bullets to impart in different places is because of the time the bullet spends in the barrel. With the short barrel the bullet is out before the muzzle rises much from the heavier bullet and the POI stays close on the lighter and heavier rounds.

 

Don't worry about the Plus P in the newer airweight guns. They are rated for it and the more powerful REAL 38 Special loads before 38 special was downloaded in the 1970s. Here is a good read on that subject. Shooting with Hobie

And they did make an Airweight 32 mag revolver. I have one in my nightstand drawer. A S&W model 431PD with 2" barrel.

And if you reload try some 110-125gr lead bullets. I cast a 124gr 9mm lead bullet and used to load them to shoot in my Taurus model 85. They shoot very close to the same point of aim as the 158gr loads. Part of the muzzle rise that causes the lighter and heavier bullets to impart in different places is because of the time the bullet spends in the barrel. With the short barrel the bullet is out before the muzzle rises much from the heavier bullet and the POI stays close on the lighter and heavier rounds.

H.J. Thanx for the link. Very interesting. Can you tell me the date or at least the year it was posted? Thanx in advance.

 

This PLUS, when we (or at least I do) shoot groups with full size guns we tend to shoot them at 25 Y. when I shoot a group with my church gun I usually shoot at something like 7-12 Y.

 

Former German security guard gun, no import marks. Model 12-2, 1972.

 

I have one of the S&W model 631 revolvers that was asked about. Mine is a stainless steel with 4" barrel and adjustable sights. It was the only Grail Gun I have ever had. It took a long time to find one I could justify the price on. I paid $675 for it. Now its worth $1000+ even without the box and docs.

Another really good BUG out gun I have is a S&W model 36-6. S&W only made 615 of these. It is a 3" barrel with a matt black finish like on a model 28. It has adjustable sights and is in 38 Special only. Not an Airweight at 24OZ but with a decent holster you forget its there.