EAA Windicator 357 Magnum

Firearmfanatic · Mar 11, 2017

Anyone have one of these in the 2" barrel? If so what are your likes, dislikes, and opinions of them? Thinking about getting one since I have no wheel gun in 357magnum. Planning on a steady diet of 38special with the occassional 357magnum sent down the tube.

rcm192 · Mar 11, 2017

The first handgun I ever purchased was one of these in 38spl. I payed about $170 for it. Never had any issues with mine. It was pretty chunky as a ccw; thats why I ended up trading it off. If you are willing to spend a few more bucks to get better quality I would consider hunting down a nice older, used S&W or Ruger. You could probably find a nice police trade in....hell even an older model steel frame taurus could work if you are on a budget.

Firearmfanatic · Mar 11, 2017

rcm192 said:
The first handgun I ever purchased was one of these in 38spl. I payed about $170 for it. Never had any issues with mine. It was pretty chunky as a ccw; thats why I ended up trading it off. If you are willing to spend a few more bucks I would consider hunting down a nice older, used S&W or Ruger. You could probably find a nice police trade in....hell even an older model steel frame taurus could work.

Thanks for the advice! Not going to be using it for ccw, thats what my Glock G19 is for. Just want an inexpensive 357mag wheel gun that is built to take the punishment and also be reliable to "play around with" since I dont have one. Also, I dont want to spend a whole lot on one since it will be in the safe more than fired.

topgunz1 · Mar 11, 2017

2" barrel and 357 Mag will be fun, I can guarantee that. Hope you like flamethrowers!

Firearmfanatic · Mar 11, 2017

Decided to go ahead and purchase one. It is on its way! Probably see it sometime next week.

Saintsfan6 · Mar 11, 2017

I had one with the longer barrel, never had an issue with it. Nice six shooter. Stolen a couple of years ago...

RG43 · Mar 11, 2017

Let us know how you like it when you get it. Who makes it? I think EAA is just an importer, right? I have an EAA Tangfolio Witness, nice gun made in Italy. I wonder if Tangfolio makes this pistol as well?

Firearmfanatic · Mar 11, 2017

RG43 said:
Let us know how you like it when you get it. Who makes it? I think EAA is just an importer, right? I have an EAA Tangfolio Witness, nice gun made in Italy. I wonder if Tangfolio makes this pistol as well?

This one is made in Germany by Weiharauch and yes, EAA is just the importer.

dk.easterly · Mar 11, 2017

The shorter barrels are literally just longer barrels cut down to size. No crown or finishing. I picked one up a few year ago cheap. Sights aren't adjustable (if I recall correctly, its a barrel shroud that mounts to the frame over the barrel?) and it was shooting way to the right at 5 yards. Recrowned and cleaned it up a fair amount. That helped a little.

It was ok for the money. Sold it off pretty soon after though.

RG43 · Mar 11, 2017

I have revolvers made by Colt, S&W, Ruger and Taurus. They are all fine revolvers and I would rate them in quality just as I listed them, and in terms of price. Anything lower than Taurus I would be hesitant to consider strongly. I have no problems recommending the first three, although Colts DA revolvers are rather over priced as collector items these days, and as far as Taurus, I like the one I have very much, but I don't know if their quality is consistent from one gun to the next as much as the other makers are. I suspect any other revolver brand, aside from Korth or some Dan Wesson models, are probably going to be a mixed bag at best. When it comes to low cost revolvers, I think Taurus is about as risky as I'm willing to try, and I'm less inclined to buy one of those new as I would be a used one from someone I might trust can verify it's a good example of the model. If I'm buying a new revolver, Ruger would be my preferred brand. I did consider a Rock Armory at one time, reading reviews of their snub nose model made it seem to be a good value, but again I don't know if they have good consistency in manufacturing quality. Like most of the "off brand" models, I suspect you can get a good example of the brand and be happy, or just as easily wind up with a poor example and regret buying it, more of a crap shoot probably than the makes I listed above.

Firearmfanatic · Mar 11, 2017

RG43 said:
I have revolvers made by Colt, S&W, Ruger and Taurus. They are all fine revolvers and I would rate them in quality just as I listed them, and in terms of price. Anything lower than Taurus I would be hesitant to consider strongly. I have no problems recommending the first three, although Colts DA revolvers are rather over priced as collector items these days, and as far as Taurus, I like the one I have very much, but I don't know if their quality is consistent from one gun to the next as much as the other makers are. I suspect any other revolver brand, aside from Korth or some Dan Wesson models, are probably going to be a mixed bag at best. When it comes to low cost revolvers, I think Taurus is about as risky as I'm willing to try, and I'm less inclined to buy one of those new as I would be a used one from someone I might trust can verify it's a good example of the model. If I'm buying a new revolver, Ruger would be my preferred brand. I did consider a Rock Armory at one time, reading reviews of their snub nose model made it seem to be a good value, but again I don't know if they have good consistency in manufacturing quality. Like most of the "off brand" models, I suspect you can get a good example of the brand and be happy, or just as easily wind up with a poor example and regret buying it, more of a crap shoot probably than the makes I listed above.

Many dealers refuse to sell any taurus products in my area because of their reputation and the hassel of dealing with their customer service department. I will not to this day buy anything made by taurus ever again regardless if semi auto or revolver. I have owned 2 from them and both were not worth dog spit! And when I had issues with them and contacted taurus to get the issues taken care of, their customer service sucked to the max! I have an RIA Armscor M206 38 special and while lower in price and not quite as refined in finish compared to taurus, it is reliable and functions as I expect it to for the price. The only other snub nose revolver I would consider would be a Ruger SP101 in 357mag because I know Ruger builds some good stuff. I am just not willing to pay the premium for something that is going to sit in the safe more than being taken out and fired.

Saintsfan6 · Mar 12, 2017

My EAA 357mag with 4 inch barrel was pretty accurate, so I guess it just depends.

Firearmfanatic · Mar 12, 2017

Saintsfan6 said:
My EAA 357mag with 4 inch barrel was pretty accurate, so I guess it just depends.

I have heard and read reviews that they can be pretty accurate. Also, the 2" snub for what it is has been claimed to be fairly accurate being a snub wheelgun. I am not looking for something that is a tack driver, just something to have fun with that has acceptable accuracy.

RG43 · Mar 12, 2017

Firearmfanatic said:
Many dealers refuse to sell any taurus products in my area because of their reputation and the hassel of dealing with their customer service department. I will not to this day buy anything made by taurus ever again regardless if semi auto or revolver. I have owned 2 from them and both were not worth dog spit! And when I had issues with them and contacted taurus to get the issues taken care of, their customer service sucked to the max! I have an RIA Armscor M206 38 special and while lower in price and not quite as refined in finish compared to taurus, it is reliable and functions as I expect it to for the price. The only other snub nose revolver I would consider would be a Ruger SP101 in 357mag because I know Ruger builds some good stuff. I am just not willing to pay the premium for something that is going to sit in the safe more than being taken out and fired.

I've certainly heard mixed reviews of Taurus, and know that many feel the way you do about them. I don't know if I'd buy a new one for that reason, you don't know what you are getting and if it's not a good one you could have a lot of hassle for you money and not much else. I bought a used snubbie one from someone I felt was honest about it, and it's proven to be pretty good. I didn't pay a lot for it, so if it ever does fail I'm not into it for enough to get upset about. At the time, I did look at the RIA, and being a Colt fan liked the idea it resembles the Detective Special. For the money, it does appear to be worth considering. It was just bigger than I wanted, and when the Taurus became available I just went that direction. Hope the Windicator works out for you. It's probably similar to Taurus in that you can wind up with a good one and have no complaints, or maybe get one that's not so satisfactory. But at least you've not invested enough to get upset if it doesn't work out.

RG43 · Mar 12, 2017

And my wife had an SP101, 4". If I wanted a small 357, that is a good way to go. The one thing that would bother me about buying a cheaper revolver would be shooting many hot 357 rounds in it. My Taurus is rated for +P, but I don't shoot the stronger rounds in it. The fact it's rated for +P is good, indicates it's built stronger than regular 38, but I know it would just wear out the gun quicker. I've got the GP100 and S&W 686 for when I want to shoot 357 rounds, or even +P, those guns can take a bigger diet of those rounds. The cheaper the gun, the less I'm inclined to see how far I can stress it.

John_ · Mar 12, 2017

I purchased a Taurus 709 Slim new about 2 months ago, single stack 9mm. Picked it up because it was such a good deal, $200 at sportsmanguide. Took it to Nick's and it ate everything we put in it without a hickup, not a single one. FMJ and hollowpoints, shoot to POA too. It is very similar to my Glock 19, the disassembly and design, but with a longer double action style only trigger pull.
I really like the little gun.

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/product/index/taurus-709-slim-semi-automatic-9mm-3-barrel-71-rounds?a=1831542

Firearmfanatic · Mar 12, 2017

Yeah, I am not saying all of taurus firearms are bad, I just had bad experiences and issues with their PT111 and PT145 gen 1 pistols. Wound up selling them off with full disclosure of the issues they tended to exhibit. Soured me on owning any of their stuff again.

John_ · Mar 12, 2017

If any of you guys need a low cost pocket handgun or BU, or one for the wife's purse, that compact $200 Taurus 709 single stack semi auto is hard to beat let me tell ya! Only comes with one magazine, so I purchased a second for $29 delivered.
Just throwing it out there.

DBMJR1 · Mar 12, 2017

If you are on a budget, Rock Island Armory sells a solid revolver that will never win any beauty contests, but it will shoot.

You should be able to find a Police Trade In SW Mod 10 on the cheap. I get them for around $200-$275. Solid shooters.

The Charter Arms Bulldog revolvers are decent. The .44 Bulldog is a staple in some circles. It's made in .38/.357 as well.

RG43 · Mar 12, 2017

As I said, some have fine examples of Taurus, and others nothing but trouble. Seems to be a mixed bag. I was looking at a Charter Arms Bulldog at one point, but reading about it found lot's of reports they don't hold up to 357 very well, tend to break down pretty consistently. What I read was they are ok if 99.9% of what you shoot is 38. I don't know about the 44 Bulldog, wasn't looking at that one.

The S&W model 10 is 38 only, not 357. I think you'd have to get a model 13, 19, 65 or 66 in the K-frame, but I've also heard K-frame doesn't hold up to a lot of 357 either, have to go to L-frame for a good S&W that will hold up to a steady diet of the hot rounds, 686, 586, or the N-frames, 27 or 28. They do make a couple of J-frames in 357, but probably like the K-frames, they aren't going to hold up well to a steady diet of 357...but neither would your wrist with those little guns. Probably the best snub nose in 357 is going to be the Ruger SP101, it is built pretty rugged.

EAA Windicator 357 Magnum

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