Something that we all must keep in mind is that a gun's sole purpose isn't to subdue a bad guy. There are all sorts of guns and they all have a purpose. I own a Taurus Judge. I carry it in an old leather holster on an old leather belt. On our property, I put A LOT of time into our property. I am constantly putting work into the property, whether it be cutting deer trails through blackberries, planting food plots with my small John Deere tractor (with attachments), etc. I mill around and work a lot outside because I am retired and we have a lot of land to take care of. It is primarily hunting land. There are a ton of rattlesnakes around here and if I'm "weed-whacking," or on the tractor, the Judge is perfect "snake medicine."
The point I am trying to make is that while most people in America live in populated areas, millions and millions of people don't. People that are mostly worried about human attacker, might find a "Judge style" firearm inferior...and they are probably right. However, for those of us who are worried about animal attacks more than people attacks (though I still worry about bad guys and am ready for them), tend to need a wider range of firearms that we use for our everyday lives.
I carry different firearms on the property depending on what I am doing, where I am on the property, what time of the year it is, etc. And sometimes the Judge just fits the bill. If snakes are an issue, I need a small gun, and am doing something that makes a perectly placed first shot difficult, it is just about perfect. Whenever I carry it, I always carry five .45 LC handloads, loaded with 250 grain GoldDot HP.
Sometimes a Judge isn't what is best though. Sometimes I would need to carry
three firearms to cover all possible situations. Coyotes, deer (if it's hunting season), large animal protection (bear and cougar), snakes, feral cats, skunks, raccoons, people, etc., are all possible firearm uses where I live and spend most of my time.
The point I am trying make is that there are hundreds of different styles of firearms. There are hundreds of different cartridges for these different firearms. That equals countless possibilities to fill countless needs. There is a place for something like the Judge, even though many people could never conceive what that may be. Some people on here have never been to a place like mine. For others, my property would seem like the absolute definition of wilderness. My nearest neighbor is about 4 miles away and the next is about 6 miles away, if that tells you anything. Some people just cannot conceive living an everyday life like that. Therefore some people cannot conceive an actual use for the Judge.
It is not my favorite firearm, in fact it is one of my least favorite (I own about 50). However, that damn ugly thing does have a purpose and it is good at what it does. I just wish S&W had their's out when my wife went out to buy me a Judge for Christmas four years ago.
Sorry for the long post. Just giving my two cents. Keep an open mind when it comes to guns and realize they are not all for self defense. Take care everyone.
