The Chiappa Rhino 60DS - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly?
- Thread starter acq.away
- Start date
Have a 50DS, heres my impression.
QC is spotty on mine poor finish. Lots of stuck cases when using .357 mine most likely needs to get its chambers buffed/polished.
Grip angle is pretty unique and personally I find it quite comfortable but others with larger hands who have tried mine tend to not like the short grip.
The stories about the recoil being much less are all true, .38spl shoots softer than 9mm out of a steel framed semi.
D/A Trigger is a little heavier than your average revolver but very smooth.
Cocking mechanism requires quite a bit more force and its strange compared to a regular hammer.
S/A Trigger is the tiniest bit of creep but overall not bad, a bit of over travel.
Trigger reset is the worst part(Not entirely sure if its just my gun) but on release there are two felt and audible trigger resets, if you don't release fully the trigger locks up. Not a huge issue for me but would be annoying in any kind of speed practice.
Accuracy as far as I can tell is far better than I am able to do with it.
At the end of the day its just plain fun to shoot and that's worth it to me.
Edit: Also should note the barrel seam where the shroud meets the frame is uglier in person.
QC is spotty on mine poor finish. Lots of stuck cases when using .357 mine most likely needs to get its chambers buffed/polished.
Grip angle is pretty unique and personally I find it quite comfortable but others with larger hands who have tried mine tend to not like the short grip.
The stories about the recoil being much less are all true, .38spl shoots softer than 9mm out of a steel framed semi.
D/A Trigger is a little heavier than your average revolver but very smooth.
Cocking mechanism requires quite a bit more force and its strange compared to a regular hammer.
S/A Trigger is the tiniest bit of creep but overall not bad, a bit of over travel.
Trigger reset is the worst part(Not entirely sure if its just my gun) but on release there are two felt and audible trigger resets, if you don't release fully the trigger locks up. Not a huge issue for me but would be annoying in any kind of speed practice.
Accuracy as far as I can tell is far better than I am able to do with it.
At the end of the day its just plain fun to shoot and that's worth it to me.
Edit: Also should note the barrel seam where the shroud meets the frame is uglier in person.
wayupnorth
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Northern Alberta
im one of those strange people that totally understands why they made that gun the way they did and i actually like the way it looks.
unfortunately im not much of a wheel gun guy, so ill never shell out the $1500 that it takes to get one.
but, should i come across one for rent or at the range and i would not turn my nose up at it to try!
my dad has always liked them, im holding out hope that he will buy one for me to inherit.
*fingers crossed!*
unfortunately im not much of a wheel gun guy, so ill never shell out the $1500 that it takes to get one.
but, should i come across one for rent or at the range and i would not turn my nose up at it to try!
my dad has always liked them, im holding out hope that he will buy one for me to inherit.
*fingers crossed!*
I have a 60DS and very happy with it - it is a very accurate revolver. AntiKhaos summed it up pretty good there; I don't have the weird trigger reset mentioned though, and in SA mine has zero creep, just a clean crisp break. Chiappa did change the trigger action on the Rhino from it's first issue iteration, not sure of the actual time frame that happened though. Maybe mine is a latter version and AK's the earlier one? The Bad? - DA is still very heavy. The Ugly? - well it's that ugly you can't help but like it lol....I like weird stuff 
Mine appears to be a Gen 2. I would just put it down to spotty QC on mine.
I've always liked the thinking behind the Rhino's design so I'm willing -- very willing -- to accept its appearance. After all, we only accept conventional revolvers because we grew up watching Paladin shoot them.
I am not willing to accept Chiappa's poor quality. Maybe Alfa or Sarsilmaz or some other manufacturer will make their own upside-down revolver.
I am not willing to accept Chiappa's poor quality. Maybe Alfa or Sarsilmaz or some other manufacturer will make their own upside-down revolver.
shootist1876
Member
After examining one of these, I can fully understand why the 6 o'clock barrel idea never caught on when it was first tried over a century ago.
It results in a clunky and over-complex, upside-down trigger mechanism, and requires a sight bridge, which makes it too bulky.
Firearms designers and makers knew what they were doing 100 years ago when they rejected this idea.
In the end, all it does it reduce muzzle flip slightly and (subjectively speaking) looks "kool".
Accepting the conventional 12 o'clock DA revolver layout is about far more than because we watched TV stars use these conventional guns.
It's because conventional DA revolvers are practical and the 6 o'clock barrel designs are not.
It results in a clunky and over-complex, upside-down trigger mechanism, and requires a sight bridge, which makes it too bulky.
Firearms designers and makers knew what they were doing 100 years ago when they rejected this idea.
In the end, all it does it reduce muzzle flip slightly and (subjectively speaking) looks "kool".
Accepting the conventional 12 o'clock DA revolver layout is about far more than because we watched TV stars use these conventional guns.
It's because conventional DA revolvers are practical and the 6 o'clock barrel designs are not.
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lavino
CGN frequent flyer
I was so hyped when I first saw it.. then the hype died down slowly. Quality and etc aside. The fact that I have to change my grip to adjust to use the Rhino makes it not ideal for me. When I tried it the DA trigger is even heavier than my Alfa... may be the recoil can be less but the trade off is not enough. It is a very cool looking gun, to me at least.
hatman1793
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Does it work for revolver competitions?
Are speedloaders that make for fast reloading available?
Are there any used in competition?
None of my friends own one. One friend wants to own one but cannot bring himself to buy one. But he likes the concept. Have not seen any of them used in competition either.....
Are speedloaders that make for fast reloading available?
Are there any used in competition?
None of my friends own one. One friend wants to own one but cannot bring himself to buy one. But he likes the concept. Have not seen any of them used in competition either.....
shootist1876
Member
You would think that if the 6 o'clock barrel concept actually was practical, that at least one major revolver maker over the last hundred years would have made them. Yet, even when the revolver was king in military use, and much longer in police use, and even later in sporting use, nobody has ever introduced one to the market.
Innovative and practical firearms get manufactured. Mechanical curiosities usually do not.
Chiappa seems to make it's money off "novelty" firearms, regardless of their practicality or durability.
But, I don't ever recall seeing an S&W, Colt, Ruger, Dan Wesson, or any other reputable maker bother with this concept.
Innovative and practical firearms get manufactured. Mechanical curiosities usually do not.
Chiappa seems to make it's money off "novelty" firearms, regardless of their practicality or durability.
But, I don't ever recall seeing an S&W, Colt, Ruger, Dan Wesson, or any other reputable maker bother with this concept.
Probably not good for competition without dumping money into it.
It does however come with full moon clips and HKS MK3-A and Five Star firearms speedloaders work too.
I don't know much about revolver competition but the accuracy and recoil should be a bonus but I doubt even the best gunsmith could get the trigger anywhere close to PPC revolvers.
shootist1876
Member
The 1980s-era Mateba MTR moved the cylinder forward to lower it and still fire from the 12 o'clock position. The downside, of course, is that the barrel length is only 3".
The other obvious downside is that it is quite ridiculous.
lavino
CGN frequent flyer
The 1980s-era Mateba MTR moved the cylinder forward to lower it and still fire from the 12 o'clock position. The downside, of course, is that the barrel length is only 3".
With a gun like this.. who needs to worry about recoil anymore eh?
shootist1876
Member
With a gun like this.. who needs to worry about recoil anymore eh?
Nope. Just other shooters rolling on the floor laughing at you.
Just think, if you could somehow adapt this handgun so that it somehow loads cartridges into a single chamber, from some kind of box magazine, and then expels the empty casing, then you would not need that big ugly cylinder out front.
That way it would still have a low bore axis.
Here's a thought: Maybe that box magazine could fit inside the grip of the pistol.
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