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Ever since the Colt Detective Special came on the scene nearly a hundred years ago, the snub-nosed revolver has been a staple of the gun world. Well, Ruger came up with their own take on this in polymer.

In 1927, Colt Firearms of Connecticut coughed up a shortened version of their Police Positive revolver. Their new gun was the first short-barreled revolvers produced with a modern swing-out cylinder. When we say ‘short-barreled’, we mean it. The new ‘Detective Special’ had an abbreviated 2-inch barrel. This gave the gun an overall length of just 6.75-inches and a weight of only 21-ounces. Packing six rounds of .38 Special into this pocket gun gave it a serious bite. Soon bankers, businessmen, lawmen, and even outlaws (Bonnie Parker or Bonnie and Clyde fame loved her Detective Special), began carrying the little ‘snub-nosed’ gun.

Smith and Wesson came out with their own version in 1946, which lives today as the Chief’s Special, and then there are snubs by Rossi, Charter Arms, Taurus, and others. Even though the basic concept dates back almost a century, these revolvers still sell very well. This is because they are simple to use, reliable, compact enough to fit under almost any clothing option, and can still deliver 5-6 rounds when needed. That’s probably why Ruger decided to try their hand at one of their own….

Read the rest in my column at Ruger Talk