OT-Rossi Revolvers

[Barcelona Rick]

My DIL is kinda looking at 38 Special revolvers and Academy Outdoors sells a pretty good looking Rossi 3" revolver for about $229 + tax......anyone have experience with these ?? She will shoot it enough to break it in and get real famliar then it will be here HD revolver. I would appreciate any input....

rick

[damienph]

i have a 5 shot 2" 38Special blue Rossi (M85?) and a blue Taurus 5 shot 2" blue ported in 38 special. I haven't firedmore than a couple of hundred rounds out of each but they are well finished and fitted revolvers. No problems with either so far.

[JerryB]

My Rossi 2" .38 spl is my main hot weather carry gun, I could not want a better piece t cary and shoot.

[MrMurphy]

How much do you like your inlaw?

Don't buy the copy of a copy, buy an original........cough up the extra coin for an S&W.

[olyinaz]

I don't know what they're building today (I suspect Tauruses) but I have a 15 year old Rossi stainless .38 that is rock solid and works just fine.

Oly

[Ysabel Kid]

I have had a M877 for 15 or so years. It is a 6-shot snubbie .357 Magnum. Great little carry gun. Not fun to shoot with full-bore .357 Magnum loads, but not bad with .38 Specials.

[Hobie]

S&W has cut prices on their revolvers. Look and see if that won't be a better VALUE for her. If price is THE consideration you can do worse, much worse, than a Rossi revolver.

[Ji in Hawaii]

I had a stainless 4" Rossi 971 in .357 mag for several years and she was reliable, and accurate. This was back when Rossi was a separate entity from Taurus, and at the time I feel a superior product. I finally sold it to my friend on Maui who olst all his guns in a house fire several years ago (oldtimers here would remember). He has used it to great success on wild pigs with his hounds.

[t.r.]

I bought the Rossi in 38 Special about 25 years old. This 5 shot revolver features 3 inch barrel and fixed sights. I understand that this Rossi is a Smith & Wesson copy. They build it under a patent lease arrangement.

This revolver has been fired about 500 times with zero problems. We've never felt handicapped by the fixed sights because this revolver hits right on the money!! You can spend more but whether you actually get more is debateable. I paid $129. back in mid-1980's.

Before an argument for a larger caliber is started let me state this: a former Detroit Detective I know had to put a couple bad guys down for good with his snub nose 38. They didn't get away.

TR

[Boreman]

I have an older stainless 2" Rossi in 38 SPL.Very comfortable to shoot,rock solid and have never had any problens with it.Good little gun for the money.

[mouthpiece]

How much do you like your inlaw?

Don't buy the copy of a copy, buy an original........cough up the extra coin for an S&W.

Why would you trust your life to a gun made in Brazil?

[t.r.]

Foreign made steel is the way it is in 2011. American Steel Industry fell apart in the mid 1970's. Even refinement of foreign made ingots has nearly vanished from USA. Thank your Politicians for these facts but don't blame foreign steel makers.

- Brazil and Argentina are TOP steel producers to the south.
- Canada still makes some of the BEST structural steel in the world.
- Spain and Germany produce TOP stainless steels and other tool steel alloys.

But the largest steel producers are to be found in Asia (no particular order):

- China
- Japan
- Taiwan
- South Korea
- India
- Pakistan

Would I stake my life on a Rossi 38 Special revolver made with foreign steel? Yes, of course. My Rossi has been fired approx 500 times without a single problem.

TR

[AmBraCol]

How much do you like your inlaw?

Don't buy the copy of a copy, buy an original........cough up the extra coin for an S&W.

Why would you trust your life to a gun made in Brazil?

Because I've lived in Brazil most of my life.

Why would you trust your life to a weapon built by the lowest bidder? (ex-military firearms, for example)

One can be a snob about almost anything. Brazil makes some fine firearms and some that are trash. Hmm... kind of like the U.S..

[AmBraCol]

My DIL is kinda looking at 38 Special revolvers and Academy Outdoors sells a pretty good looking Rossi 3" revolver for about $229 + tax......anyone have experience with these ?? She will shoot it enough to break it in and get real famliar then it will be here HD revolver. I would appreciate any input....

rick

jumbeaux, 229 + tax sounds quite reasonable. Pick up the revolver and give it a good looking over. Rossi, like any other manufacturer, sometimes puts out one that's a lemon, but all the ones I've handled over the years have been decent to excellent firearms. For years my carry gun was a Rossi 853 with a 6" barrel. Shot everything from powder puff to fairly stiff loads in it and it stood up to the task quite well. I've no idea how many rounds I put down range through it, but it was enough to show that it was/is a reliable weapon.

Pick up a few boxes of ammo and make sure she practices with it and can handle it safely and place her shots well. It used to be you could pick up a police trade in Ruger, Colt or Smith $ Wesson for less money than that, but good luck finding anything these days for the same money, never mind less.