Revolver for civilian use launched in Kolkata (India)

IndiaVarta.com ^

[tarawa]

Revolver for civilian use launched in Kolkata

An Ordnance factory in Kolkata manufactures a .22 inch revolver, the first of its kind in the country for civilian use.

A recently developed revolver that is just making its appearance in Kolkata is the .22" revolver, the first of its kind in the country for civilian use. Indigenously manufactured by Ishapore rifles factory, a unit of India's ordnance factory, the revolver was launched on Wednesday (June 19). It took authorities 8 months to come up with the revolver.

Growing demand for a light weight, user friendly revolver made Ishapore rifles factory come up with the product. Officials say, the .22" revolver with its svelte looks matches the best in the world. Harbans Lal Kapoor, Additional General Manager, Ishapore rifle factory, said its light weight and other specific features make it first of its kind in the country.

It's price is placed at Rs 32,000, for arms dealers in Kolakta, relatively low as compared to prices in international market. "This revolver is very light, just 80 grams, fit for use by even ladies for self defence. It is powder coated, it has got a barrel and has a chrome flash, so it will not get rusted in time. It is made of aluminium alloys which are having a very good strength as good as steel. It can match an international standard revolver and we have produced here the same kind of revolvers what USA is producing," Harbans Lal said.

Even before the launch, the factory received 5000 orders forcing the authorities to refuse further orders. Arms dealers say the new product competes the international brands available in market and will fare well. "It is definitely a competable product, because we have seen similar weapons from the so called developing countries. Compared to that I think our product here is quite OK," said Anup Kaur, an arms dealer.

Other than Ishapore, revolvers are made at Kanpur and Tiruchirapalli ordnance factories. India's ordnance factories cater mainly to the three services and paramilitary forces. Army accounts for 45 per cent of the total production. The remaining 55 per cent is said to five other customers which includes the Indian navy, air force, paramilitary forces and the private sector, including exports. The basic produce of the Indian ordnance factories which are exported are spare parts of conventional weapons, rifles and revolvers.

[Dialup Llama]

A-bout frikkin time!

[SandfleaCSC]

Wow great, a .22 caliber for defense. They can't be serious. This thing will come in handy in defending agains Jihadi squirrels and rabbits within a 3 meter radius.

[S.O.S121.500]

Wow great, a .22 caliber for defense. They can't be serious. This thing will come in handy in defending agains Jihadi squirrels and rabbits within a 3 meter radius.

Your ignorance of the .22WRF in its various configurations and applications is most apparent......

[Cool Guy]

Second Amendment BUMP!

[Lazamataz]

Wow! As America becomes more and more controlled, the world becomes freer and freer. Go figure.

Contact me ASAP as regards August....

[Lazamataz]

Wow great, a .22 caliber for defense. They can't be serious. This thing will come in handy in defending agains Jihadi squirrels and rabbits within a 3 meter radius.

You gotta start somewhere.

[Hugin]

While it wouldn't be my first choice, a .22 is infinitely better than an empty hand. Hint--shoot 'em in the eye or point blank under the chin at a 45 degree angle.

[epow]

According to people who compile records on that sort of thing, more people have been killed by .22's than any other caliber. Not counting military of course.
That's probably because there are so many more of them, not because they're the best tool for the job.

I would much rather have my .45 or .357 mag when the BGs come calling, but if I couldn't get anything better, a .22 would be way better than a pointed stick.

[SandfleaCSC]

Your ignorance of the .22WRF in its various configurations and applications is most apparent......

So let me get this straight. You're going to tell me that a .22 chambered cartridge(SR,LR, or Mag) is a dandy choice for a defense weapon. The .22mag load loses effective stopping power after just 4 feet of travel from the end of the barrel. That's stopping power as calculated by the military (bullet mass x impact speed). The .40SW cartridge in its FMJ form comes in at the top of all modern handgun loads, beating even the .45ACP, 10mm, and .50AE(yes its true).

I saw in the article where almost half of all the new guns owners will be military. Well it may be my ignorance showing again, but a .22 pistol cartridge in any military application is a joke. I would have only slightly less confidence in it than I did when I had to carry a M-9 on a daily basis. It's very rare that a pistol is useful in any military engagement, but if called for, the .38SP or .45ACP is much preferred.

On the subject of my ignorance that you were so kind to highlight for me....just what is it that I'm ignorant of. You seemed to imply that there were more uses for a .22 cartridge than hunting small game and teaching eight year olds to shoot. What exactly are they?

[NEPA]

This story brings me back to a firearms safety class I took a while back. The Indian gov't had Ruger make them the dandiest 9mm revolvers. Ruger sold some in the US and one lady had one. Each person in the class told the instructors what they would be shooting and when the lady said a 9mm revolver the instructors patronizingly told her she had to be wrong. Turned out to be a really nice gun.

Seems the Indian gov't prefers revolvers to semi's.

[Lessismore]

You seemed to imply that there were more uses for a .22 cartridge than hunting small game and teaching eight year olds to shoot. What exactly are they?

During WW II Hi-Standard produced the USA HD .22 semi-automatic. When fitted with a silencer, it was relatively quiet.

[dighton]

While it wouldn't be my first choice, a .22 is infinitely better than an empty hand.

You bet. I'd rather use a .45, but .22LR beats pointing one's finger and going "bang!"

[SandfleaCSC]

Yeah...Ruger also makes an excellent .22 auto that can be silenced. The Dan Wesson silenced .38 revolver still is the epitome of sound suppressed handguns. That still doesn't make the silenced .22 Hi-Standard much more than an assassin's weapon, much more suited for a mob hit than a military application. The gist of the article led me to believe that this new Indian pistol would be a standard issue type sidearm, I could be wrong though. IMHO, any handgun chambered for less than .38/9mm has no business as a military sidearm.

[dighton]

And here's a case in point.

[boris]

" It is powder coated, it has got a barrel and has a chrome flash, so it will not get rusted in time."

I want my guns to rust in time. I hate it when they are late!

[Aaron_A]

Lee-Enfield .303 fans would have definitely heard of the Ishapore factory...they've been around for a while.

[E Rocc]

Wow! As America becomes more and more controlled, the world becomes freer and freer.

I wouldn't be so sure here. It doesn't say anything about who is allowed to have these guns. If 5,000 orders in a nation of one billion overwhelmed "the authorities", it suggests they intend quite limited availability. The fact that "the authorities" are involved at all speaks volumes.

-Eric

[glc1173@aol.com]

"This revolver is very light, just 80 grams, fit for use by even ladies for self defence." (IndiaVarta.com)

Big joke. A .22 LR handgun will kill - but has little stopping power. Woman can empty revolver into rapist - leaving him nonsurvivably wounded - and he'll still kill her before he dies. He may not even notice that he's been hit.

If that factory wanted to help India's women against India's many predatory men, it would make a snubby chambered in 9mm using moon clips. Believe me, that loaded with Speer Gold Dot would ruin any predatory male's day - or lifetime!

GUN REVIEWS free from ad-money bias - emphasizing woman-friendliness of tested guns!

[boris]

"Big joke. A .22 LR handgun will kill - but has little stopping power. Woman can empty revolver into rapist - leaving him nonsurvivably wounded - and he'll still kill her before he dies. He may not even notice that he's been hit."

Certainly true. However, when you need a gun, any gun is better than no gun. The old First Rule of Gunfighting: Bring a gun...still applies.

That said, I tell people "Don't depend on a .22 for self-defense unless you are positive you can shoot your attacker in the eye. Not positive? Forget the .22!"

--Boris