38 Sp

Question
I hope you can help me with this.My friend is selling a 38 I would like to buy.It is a Rossi 38 made in Brazil by Interarms, Alexandria, Virginia. I know that Rossi is now made by Taurus.Could you tell me how the Interarms guns hold up and how accurate are they? Thanks, Paul M.

Answer
Paul,

The Taurus and Rossi guns were pretty similar "back in the day," the Rossi being a little rougher than the Taurus.

Neither of these guns is spectacularly durable. Taurus now has a life-time guarantee, which is kind of like the Kia 100,000 warrenty - you will probably make use of it because it's not that great of a car, but it's a good selling feature.

How much do you want to shoot the thing? If it will be a lot, S&W is the way to go. If it's something to shoot occasionally and drop in your pocket when you stop by the grocery store - well, I have a Taurus that I do just that with sometimes.

The gun is not a hunk of junk, its just not that great (it's why you won't see any police department using Taurus semi autos), but for minimal use it should work fine.

FYI, Charl Van Wyk, who stopped the St. James massacre in 1993 which was being carried out by terrorists with military rifles and hand grenades did so with a Rossi revolver.  I've heard the man speak - a fascinating account.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St_James_Church_massacre

Best to you.