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Chiappa Rhino .357 ?

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Tomcat47

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Hi all, Happy New Year....My son called me regarding buying a Chiappa .357 pistol. I had heard of it, did not really interest me but I told him I would see if I could find any info on it.

I did search THR and seen some reviews from the past, however nothing conclusive as to whether or not it was a good value at what I believe to be out of bounds price point...IMO!

Anyway is anyone here put one through the paces.....carry? accuracy? and most of all round count! I seen one of the reviews from past mention the way the barrel was fitted and remarked "time will only tell if that loosens up"?

Anyway...thats it? Whatcha got?

And Thanks
 
This thread should probably be in the wheelgun forum. That said...


I've seen various videos of the Rhino being fired, and I'm impressed with its minimal muzzle flip. The concept is excellent, the design appears to be sound, but I don't know of any first-hand long term reliability accounts. If it holds up, I'd say it's worth MSRP.
 
Haven't actually fired one but I've held one and played with it and I haft say one of these WILL be my next revolver
 
What do these things run for?

I personally don't like them for purely cosmetic purposes. I'd love to have a S&W 66 with a stamped sideplate and a counterbored chamber.
 
They run around $699.00 from what I see, and now they make a 6 inch.

I cannot get a visual feel for them my self.....and I want a lot more info before I see the price point making sense!

But thats me....
 
I haven't even held one yet, but in a 6", I want one. They aren't very easy on the eyes (maybe it will grow on me), but the design impresses me. I like to use my wallet to reward innovative companies.
 
I like the innovation of it. Not sure how I will like it once I handle one. IMHO the snubby is the only one that looks even halfway decent, and I have no use for .357's with less than 3" of barrel. I am curious and would like to handle and shoot one though.
 
I'd like to see one blown up before I'd feel comfortable shooting one. Which way is the force of the explosion likely to be directed on that design?
 
I have a snubbie Rhino. I find the DA trigger pull on mine just fine, little difference as to other snubbies. Yes, in a fast string of 357s you will have noticeably less muzzle flip, the point of the exercise in the first place. And as to the 'can't see shooting a 357 from a short bbl' post in this thread, I get nice results from the Buffalo Bore loads designed to be used in snubbies.

Is the Rhino a target gun? No, it is a short range blaster, which is the point. If the need arises, a defensive revolver should be used at short range and is not intended to be fired with patient deliberation. The Rhino should fit the bill IMHO. Dave
 
I kinda liked the first version better, it put a smile on my face on a cold morning. Dave
 
In theory they have a 6" version with better sights listed. Haven't seen any offered for sale yet so assume you will need to wait a bit. Dave
 
The Rhino has two features that should make it a serious contender for personal defense: 1) the lower barrel position is designed to reduce muzzle flip and push the recoil back into the hand, and 2) the flat-sided cylinder should make for easier concealed carry.

I'd love to shoot one and the price is not outrageous.
 
There is an interesting article in the Feb. 2011 issue of Shooting Illustrated (published by the NRA) on this gun. Following are a few excerpts:

Its double-action pull weight is a hefty 10 lbs, but the trigger's travel is about half of what you would expect.

Future models of the Rhino will incorporate an 8-lb trigger, which will make this gun even easier to shoot well.

Chiappa ships each snub-nose revolver with a leather pancake holster (light brown).

There is no doubt that this gun will be a boon to recoil-sensitive shooters who want to carry a magnum revolver. Even if recoil doesn't bother you, the reduced muzzle rise makes follow-up shots faster with the Rhino.

You must be careful to grip the gun properly, keeping your thumbs away from the front edge of the cylinder and the barrel/cylinder gap. Other revolvers are more forgiving because the gap is on top of the cylinder, but the Rhino will surely singe flesh with hot expanding gases if you get your thumb too close.

The hammer is difficult to cock for single-action firing. Shooters may need two hands to apply enough pressure to the cocking piece.

The Rhino is manufactured in Italy, but all service and warranty work is performed at Chiappa's American facility that is located in Dayton, OH. Chiappa considers the Rhino to be a high end product, and the company stands behind its guns with a lifetime warranty.
 
It also doesn't appear to have a way to safely "decock" the firearm once cocked, the little "hammer" isn't able to stop the real hammer if blocked.
 
+1 on that, it's incredibly easy to cock/decock, at least for me it was and I'm used to revolvers, I'd suggest anyone interested to find a local shop with one and try it out, I was very impressed
 
where can you find these for sale? I found a couple online, but very few and have yet to find any in stores or at the gun shows here in San Antonio.
I really like this one and would like to see how it feels in my hand.
 
I actually was unaware they were so uncommon, my local gun store has a couple of the snubbies, were not exactly in a big city or anywhere near one so I figured they were getting big
 
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