Chiappa Rhino thoughts

[sdalover]

Today i got a chance to take my buddy's 2 inch Chiappa Rhino to the range for a test run. It's true what they say, and what you see on youtube videos. The way this gun manages recoil and allows for rapid fire with full bore 357 mag is incredible. I made the switch to go strictly revolver a while back for the revolver reliability and the stopping power of the 357 mag cartridge. I have shot many different revolvers and up until now only owned steel smiths of various size frames and barrel lengths.

I was and still am sold on my smiths and love em' but after shooting this 2 inch snub rhino i may have to add one to the mix.

The downsides of the rhino are the ugly look, complicated insides that i don't think your everyday gunsmith is ready to fix if need be, heavy ass trigger pull, uncomfortable wide / flat trigger, and holster choices are limited.

That's quite a bit of downsides but i'm telling you, they become null and void once you fire it and see how easily controlled this gun is in regards to recoil control. I brought my much heavier 3 inch k frame smith with me for a side by side comparison. It was like going from dial-up to broadband internet. Recoil was night and day difference the with same cartridges.

Just some food for thought for those in the market or care to read my post.

 

[RIP]

That is intriguing. I've considered a similar switch to wheel guns but can't seem to find a "perfect" ECW. You're right about the rhino being one ugly duckling but if its lighter & more carry friendly I might buy one to try it. Seems that it would be hard to beat your 3" K frame. I'm jealous about that weapon. Those are very rare and fetch a pretty penny when they come up for sale.

 

[RIP]

Meant to ask...with that cylinder on the rhino having flat sides, how do you think it compares to a traditional cylinder when carried IWB? Does it feel pretty flat?

 

[sdalover]

The flat sides are another weird thing about this gun but it does seem like it would be easier for iwb carry. It comes with a pretty nice leather owb pancake holster but owb isn't my thing. I have found some good custom holster makers online that are already making holsters for these rhinos. Another interesting and useful feature of the rhino is the fact that all sizes are 6 shot including the 2 inch snubby.

 

[silenttim]

I've wanted a 5" model for a while now. Just about everyone I've shown them to thinks they're hideous, but I love em. Very sci-fi looking. I imagine they're only going to gain in popularity now that they've been featured in the new Total Recall remake. Maybe that means they'll start producing more of them which in turn may lower their ridiculous price.

 

[RickN]

I handled one at Heartland one day and could not get used to the feel of it. I hated the grips more then any firearm I have ever handled. Without firing I can not say for sure if I could come to like it but after a lifetime of handling revolvers it just felt wrong.

 

[saddlebum]

i have one ,it goes out of timing about every 100-200 rounds, been back for repair 3 times.my son keeps it in his tackle box with snake loads in it. don't care if i ever see it again

 

[sdalover]

I also think the grip is weird. It is on an angle that i'm not used to but after shooting it i realized how the ergonomics of the grip work with the low barrel. As far as out of timing every few hundred rounds issue from above post....That is something i haven't read or heard about searching online reviews but if it happened once....Im sure it is happening again somewhere. That could definitely be a deal breaker. I will keep an eye on my buddy's gun for such problems. It has 100 rounds so far without any problems. Clearly not enough rounds to determine wear. I wanted one of these guns but didn't want to buy one to find out the likes and dislikes. Thankfully i had a friend that fell in love with the gun after and bought it. His gun is my guinea pig.

 

[ASP785]

I also think the grip is weird. It is on an angle that i'm not used to but after shooting it i realized how the ergonomics of the grip work with the low barrel. As far as out of timing every few hundred rounds issue from above post....That is something i haven't read or heard about searching online reviews but if it happened once....Im sure it is happening again somewhere. That could definitely be a deal breaker. I will keep an eye on my buddy's gun for such problems. It has 100 rounds so far without any problems. Clearly not enough rounds to determine wear. I wanted one of these guns but didn't want to buy one to find out the likes and dislikes. Thankfully i had a friend that fell in love with the gun after and bought it. His gun is my guinea pig.

I will let this thread be my guinea pig so make sure you post a ranger report!

 

[osy79]

Something to check out if you're not into a 20lb trigger pull of the stock trigger:

http://www.thetruthaboutguns.com/2010/11/chris-dumm/the-chiappa-rhino-trigger-job-has-landed/