I’ve had a .44special Stainless Bulldog since the early eighties. I spent almost as much as it cost to have the barrel bobbed to 2â€, the front sight replaced and the hammer bobbed. I shot it major (240gr @775fps) in snubby class at local matches and carried it for years, primarily in a Renegade ankle holster. It’s had about 4-5000 rds through it, mostly hand loaded 240 SWC cast at 750 to 800 fps. A few of the hand loads stretched the envelope, but the limiting factor for me was the recoil, going past a factor of 185 or so quickly became very unpleasant. The gun is still tight and though it is showing use is still fully functional. My wife of the time had an Stainless Undercover in .38 special that had at least 3000 rds through it, primarily midrange wadcutters, and last I knew it was still tight. However, it did break the firing pin return spring twice in the first 300 rounds. During that same time period (mid eighties) I purchased another Stainless Undercover (used) for a steal and put 6-700 rds through it without problem.
That said, I’ve seen very inconsistent QC from Charter, even in the “Golden Daysâ€. A friend bought a new blued Undercover, partially because of the good luck I’d had, and shot it loose in less than a thousand rounds of midrange wadcutters. After Charter’s repair (free) it started to develop end shake within the next 500 rounds. He sent it back for repair and sold it when it returned. I’ve also heard a few other stories of very limited durability, but I couldn’t verify the details.
My sense is that of the earlier pieces, the QC was significantly better with the stainless guns but could vary even with them.