Ruger OR Smith Snubbie

[Redf150]

I was looking at a S&W air weight 38Special +p, or the ruger sp101, I know the Ruger is a .357 just didnt know if it had booku kick.
And the quality of it, any suggestions would help thanks.

[DzrtRat]

I haven't looked at the sp101, but I carry a Smith 637 airweight daily in a Kramer Confidant shirt.  

The only thing negative that I've heard about the sp101 is that it's heavier than the Smith for daily concealed carry.

Just depends on what you're going to use it for I reckon....

~Rat

[Savage]

For durability go with the Ruger! For daily carry the airweights or Ti's hands down! When you carry daily, you soon discover weight is just as big an issue as size-----------!!
Savage

[Lawdog]

Redf150,

I like both companies.  Own a number of guns from each.  As Savage said,

For durability go with the Ruger! For daily carry the airweights.

 If weight is your main concern then pack the Smith(although I don't care for the .38 Sp. as a defense weapon.  I consider the .357 a much better choice for defending your life).  If weight isn't a problem then go with the Ruger.  It's a very dependable weapon.  Lawdog

[TimWieneke]

Both good guns.  Have you tried holding both?  What grip do you favor?  With a small gun you need to make sure the grip is comfortable enough for you to be accurate with it.  Also, I think w/ the smith if you're going to do +p loads - you need a +p rated gun - w/ the ruger .357 you can do .38, +P and +P+ - just something to think about.

Tim

[Mikey]

Redf150:  My personal preference is the S&W Model 38, Airweight Bodyguard, with an airweight Model 36 as an aside (for whenever I want to carry it).

The Ruger snubbies are just too heavy.

Hay Savage:  you mentioned the durability of the rugers - no doubt but, a couple of years ago one of the gunwriters decided to stress out a couple of non Plus P rated S&W snubbies to see how long they would last under heavy fire.  He tested an older steel Bodyguard and a lightweight newer model (36, 37 or 38) and put 2500 rounds of Plus P ammo of various manufacture through each one.  Now, this test was conducted just a few months before S&W rated their snubbie for Plus Ps.  What the author of that article found after testing was completed that each S&W snubbie held up just fine, smoothed right out and even shot better (more accurately) than before.  He still uses both.  S&W then took the hint, tested their products and now rates them (the lightweight revolvers ) for Plus P ammo.

One of the other folks responded to a question by one of the posters about the 'carried much but shot little' concept of the S&W lightweights - not any more.....Ya'll can shoot those things as much as you want - they are supposed to hold up.  Whenever I get one of my snubbies out to the range I usually try and go through a couple of hundred rounds of carry ammo at each practice.  Please notice I said 'whenever'.....  Shooting my snubbies is not an every day affair but they do get a fair amount of work and a good workout when they do.  Mine still function without problem, are pretty smooth to shoot and danged accurate.  They have held up just as well as a steel frame revolver, and all with a steady diet of 200 gn SWCs at factory loads.

Get the S&W, you won't be disappointed.  HTH.  Mikey.

[Savage]

Mikey,
300 rds of full power ammo thru an airweight in a session! Wow! I'm impressed!! I put about a hundred rounds a year thru my backups. That's plenty for me! It has been my experience that the full size Smiths need a tune up at about 10/15k round count, depending on the power of the loads. Of course, most persons owning one of these revolvers won't put that many rounds thru one in two lifetimes.  I have never put that many rounds thru a snubby, but would expect no better from the lightweights. I still have a fondness for snubbies, but have reduced my "snubbie" inventory to two. And old Charter stainless and an old blued mdl 36. I have owned those two for 30+ years. Kinda thinking about a Taurus "Ti".
Savage

[Redf150]

Ah yes The 637 is the exact Snub I had a year back, I loved that thing.
I was out of work and needed to pay some bills, so i took it back to sell to Galyans, they gave me 300.00 for it.
I should have kept it, but oh well, Im just curious if I should go the .357 magnum rout.
IM not sure if I like any of the .357 Smiths out there.

[444nut]

I carry the Ruger SP101 357mag 2.5in spurless & love it. I don`t think it kicks that much. I carry it all day ISWB, & never know it`s there. It`s a great carry gun.      :biggun: 444

[michbob]

And with the Ruger, if you run out of ammo, you can use it as a bludgeon.  No, really.

[american]

I also carry a ruger sp101 2 1/4" barrel 357 DAO. Don't kick much with full power loads and is very accurate. Never was very good at shooting the Smiths although they do seem like good guns. I carry my ruger iswb without any trouble. The trick is to get a quality holster. Only thing I plan to change on my ruger is the grips. Don't like the rubber ones.

[Mikey]

Interesting thing about those 'full power 200 grain factory' loads I shoot through my S&W snubby - they are at the same pressure rating as the wadcutter target loads.  I could not quite understand that but when I look at my loading data, those 200 grain bullets over the factory charge of WW231 have a lower pressure than the 158 grain factory loads and are at the same level as the wadcutter target loads.  

So, even 300 rounds of the 200s at a session may sound impressive, and thank you very much for the flattery, but it's not quite all it sounds to be.  They are pretty easy to shoot, thankfully, 'cause I don't have a wrist the size of John Taffin's thighs  :-D .  Mikey.

[MarkJ_Thompson]

Due to problems stated on GBO forum I have stopped marketing any Taurus Handguns.

MJT

[Nanook 450]

I have both - seem to carry my airweight a lot - my wife always has the ruger sp 101 -with tritium sights and a good trigger action job, its fine.  357s are not for my wife, but I enjoy shooting them in that revolver.  Before you quit shopping, check out the Smith 329pd - I have one on right now - carried it all day (except while in the gun show) and its unbelievably light.  44mags are no fun to shoot, but hot specials are great, and all I need for pd.

[His lordship.]

Taurus revolvers are cheaper than Smith and Wessons, etc. but now I am preparing to sell my Taurus Model 85 in stainless steel, .38 cal.  I have had it since 1997 and rarely shot it, noticed that it has alot of slop with the hammer, cylinder release knob, and play with 3 of the five slots for the cylinder.

Took it to the range yesterday and put 125 rounds of lead semi-wadcutters through it, had evidence of lead spitting near the forcing cone, not surprised with the extensive play on the cylinder, and the hammer is hitting the side of the frame and gouging it when the trigger is released.  But, the gun is accurate, reliable, and the cost was decent.  I have sold my other 3 Taurus guns as there were problems with those as well.  

I think Taurus would be ok if you looked it over real good before buying it, and rarely, if ever, shot it.  But I figure, would I trust my live to such a rickety gun?  That is why I am looking at a Ruger 101 or other.