Advice needed - want a pistol

S&W .38 Revolver

Hammer-less - No issue with it getting caught on your belt

Unless someone is holding the cylinder you never need to worry about a jam

6 shots - If you need more than that your in trouble

Revolver isn't as cool or tuckable as a semi but when its time to cause action it'll never fail.

[jjirons69]

Looked around a lot on the net, plus watched many videos. No hands on yet, but I like the way the 642 S&W looks. Double action with a concealed hammer and it's small enough to conceal. Not looking at shooting "whatever" at 50 yds, so something like this looks like a good fit for short to medium distance. I like that it's sub-$400, uses a common .38 shell, and is not so powerful my wife wouldn't shoot it. I'm going to keep looking, but I've started a list now.

[floydpink]

Originally Posted by jjirons69

Looked around a lot on the net, plus watched many videos. No hands on yet, but I like the way the 642 S&W looks. Double action with a concealed hammer and it's small enough to conceal. Not looking at shooting "whatever" at 50 yds, so something like this looks like a good fit for short to medium distance. I like that it's sub-$400, uses a common .38 shell, and is not so powerful my wife wouldn't shoot it. I'm going to keep looking, but I've started a list now.

Exactly what I chose when I was looking.

The guy at my local range encouraged me to try it as did my brother who is a Sgt and carries it off duty.

With a Desantis Nemesis pocket holster for summer and Uncle Mike's IWB in the winter, I barely notice it's in my front pocket.



I have since added Crimson trace laser grips and don't even think about a different setup.

A lot of the semi-auto guys like 9 or more shots, but I figure if I need more than 5, I'm in a prolonged gunfight that i should have ran from a long time ago.

I'm a wheelgun guy for life.

[elderboy02]

Originally Posted by jjirons69

Looked around a lot on the net, plus watched many videos. No hands on yet, but I like the way the 642 S&W looks. Double action with a concealed hammer and it's small enough to conceal. Not looking at shooting "whatever" at 50 yds, so something like this looks like a good fit for short to medium distance. I like that it's sub-$400, uses a common .38 shell, and is not so powerful my wife wouldn't shoot it. I'm going to keep looking, but I've started a list now.

I carry a similar pistol every day. I carry the S&W Bodyguard 38. It is basically the same pistol as the 642, except it has a laser and the cylinder release is on the top instead of the side.

I highly recommend it!