The "Chiefs Special" was the first 5-shot J-frame .38 Special produced by Smith & Wesson, all the way back in 1950. Some call it the "most influential compact revolver design of the 20th Century." Maybe it is, but whatever the case, I wanted to shoot mine.
And that's what I did. It's an easy little pistol to shoot and well-capable of sending its 5 rounds of .38 Special downrange with surprising accuracy, partly due to its consistent, short, crisp trigger. But be warned, its short sight plane means working on keeping a perfect sight picture, or you'll miss.
I had a lot of fun blasting away from around 10, 15 and 20 yards and did alright. Nothing special though, if you'll forgive the phrase. So I took a different approach, leaving the paper behind and going for a swinging steel plate that's, well, plate sized. I was surprised to see my shooting improve considerably on target and was pleased to make the metal adversary rock about from beyond 30 yards.
With a bit of practice I'd say you could get on "center mass", at least, from 50 yards, and I'm not a particularly good shooter.
Verdict? The Chiefs Special, or Model 60, S&W is small, accurate and gives you 5 rounds of 945 fps .38 Special to send at the opposition in short order. I'd imagine it'd make a great backup or concealed carry handgun. It looks good too and I can't fault the fit and finish of this pistol. All in all a great little gun.
Get one, if you haven't already. Fun to shoot and handy with it.
Cheers,
LSP
