Charter Arms Bulldog

Charter Arms Bulldog
Charter Arms Bulldog .44 Special with 5 rounds
Type	Revolver
Place of origin	United States
Production history
Designer	Doug McClenahan
Designed	1971
Manufacturer	Charter Arms
Produced	1973–present
No. built	More than 500,000
Variants	13520, 14420, 7352, 74420 and 74421
Specifications
Weight	21.8 oz (620 g) and 20.1 oz (570 g)
Length	6.7 inches (171 mm) and 7.2 inches (184 mm)
Barrel length	2.2 in (55.9 mm), 2.5 in (63.5 mm), 3 in (76.2 mm), or 4.2 in (106.7 mm)
Cartridge	.44 Special or .357 Magnum
Caliber	.44 or .357
Action	Traditional double-action or double action only
Rate of fire	Single
Muzzle velocity	Usually between 705–1,000 ft/s (215–305 m/s); can reach 1,100 ft/s (340 m/s) with some kinds of bullets.
Feed system	5-round cylinder

The Bulldog is a 5-shot traditional double-action revolver designed by Doug McClenahan and produced by Charter Arms. It was introduced in 1973. The Bulldog has been available for the .44 Special and .357 Magnum cartridges. It was a top-selling gun during the 1980s and it is considered to be Charter Arms' trademark weapon. It has been produced by four different companies since it was released.

Designed by the founder of the first version of Charter Arms, Doug McClenahan, the Bulldog was released in 1973. It was one of the best-selling weapons of the 1970s and the 1980s in the United States. Its design and execution, which were quite modern at the time, caught the attention of the gun press and combat shooters. By the mid-1980s, more than half a million units had been produced and nearly 37,000 were being manufactured every year. Bulldog production has been stopped a few times since 1992, when Charter Arms (the original manufacturer) went bankrupt.

Some time later, manufacturing began again under the Charco (descendant company of Charter Arms) trademark. This company also filed bankruptcy, and the models produced during this period showed obvious production flaws. It was produced again by Charter 2000; this company, which failed also, improved the weapon with a one-piece barrel, front sight, ejector-shroud assembly. The original model had no ejector-shroud and the aluminum front sight was soldered to the barrel.

In June 2007, a version of the Bulldog with new features began to be produced by another company named Charter Arms, but this time was distributed by MKS Supply.

The Bulldog was used by the infamous serial killer David Berkowitz aka "The .44 Caliber Killer" and the "Son of Sam" who was responsible for a brutal series of attacks and murders in New York City during 1976–1977 (before he was caught due to an outstanding parking violation).

Like most Charter Arms weapons, the Bulldog is a relatively inexpensive yet serviceable, no-frills,snubnosed revolver. It was designed to be concealed easily because of its small size, yet also fire a "big bore" caliber. The Bulldog has no sharp edges to contend with when carrying the weapon in a holster or a pocket. The Bulldog is a solid-framed traditional double-action revolver with a five-round cylinder which can be opened by pushing a release slide on the left of the gun, or in the original model by pulling the ejector rod. It features a concave sight. Its trigger pull, in both single and double-action modes, is quite light. If a large quantity of residue piles up inside the revolver because of heavy usage, the cylinder crane's axle screw can be removed and the cylinder pulled out from the gun for cleaning. Most critics believe the best use for the Bulldog is self-defense.