Had a Taurus 905 years ago. With self-defense ammunition recoil felt about the same as similar 38spl ammunition out of a J-Frame. Sold the 905 and kept the J-Frame. That ended my interest in a 9mm revolver.

I have a Taurus 905. A snub nosed 9mm revolver is NOT a pleasant revolver to shoot. Not at all.

The recoil is surprisingly harsh, it’s pretty close to 357Mag. For an 9mm it is also loud as hell.

It’s a fun range toy because no one ever expects it to have such snotty recoil. 9mm revolvers are neat as an oddity but it isn’t something I would carry or recommend for defensive purposes. There are vastly superior options out there.

I fitted a carbon steel 9mm cylinder to this .38/.357 Ruger Blackhawk along with the high polish stainless Birdshead grip frame and the Factory Micarta grips.
It isn't really a snubbie with a 4 5/8" barrel, but no moon clips needed.
The reloads are a little slow however.
I've never had 9mm ammo jump the crimp, and it shoots 9mm as accurately as .38/.357 so I almost never use the stainless steel .38/.357 cylinder.
This revolver is somewhat cosmetically deficient so when I'm out working or using the tractor, I pick this Blackhawk.

IMG_20201209_145418094 by cee_Kamp 32ACP, on Flickr

Here are some pics of my recoil happy little 9mm wheel gun.

I’ve currently got two Ruger Speed Sixes, a 4” in .38 special +p and a 2 3/4” in 9mm. Using 147gr HST in the 9mm and 158gr LSWCHP in the .38 feel pretty similar to me. I also have a Taurus 905 but I’ve never been able to successfully fire an entire cylinder without a light strike or three but it is indeed a snappy little gun when it does shoot.

Unless you are carrying it as a backup to a 9mm pistol, are buying it as a collectors item (I like autoloading caliber revolvers and rare Rugers so that’s my excuse) or really don’t want to add another caliber to your collection, then I’d recommend getting a .357 magnum revolver personally.

Moon clips is a no for me.
If federal would make 9mm rimmed again and I could find a charter arms bulldog I'd be all in.



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I had the Ruger LCR in 9 mm and couldn’t stand it I only kept it about a month and then I traded it off. Think about a 9 mm blow back that’s what you have in the 9 mm revolver. There is nothing to ease the recoil

quote:

Originally posted by mike56:
Primarily interested in the 38 special/9mm comparison.
Have a SW 640 that I would be swapping it for. 38 was a little hard to come by for awhile. Have a ton of 9mm

It is possible to have a 38 Special cylinder rechambered to 9MM Parabellum

Just buy a second cylinder off one of the auction sites and send it off to Hawthorne Precision and you will have a convertible revolver.

The only reason that I have not converted any of my J-frames is that I own several Smith & Wesson 940s



I also have some of the PC 940 Specials which are chambered in the MUCH more powerful 356TSW. These are also capable of shooting 9MM Parabellum as well



Moon clips are a love them or hate them item. There does not appear to be a middle ground

Myself, I have been shooting moon clip enabled revolvers for four decades now and have NEVER bent a clip that was intended for rimless ammunition. With a moon clip enabled revolver you can fire all of the smaller/less powerful cartridges from that family. You can even fire 380 ACP in your 9MM revolver if you want to

Now the revolver cartridges that are moon clipped use very thin clips due to the very thin grooves in the cases and they are easy to bend if mishandled.

Of course the fastest way to reload, is the New York reload