Revolvers remain popular for personal defense for many reasons. The revolver is simple to load, fire, and handle. A revolver will function with light loads and heavy loads without changing the springs. A revolver will come up firing, even after long periods of storage because the springs are at rest when the revolver is loaded. A revolver can feature a smooth double-action trigger that helps fight flinch. We wanted to test revolvers in 38 Special for home defense and economy. We elected to test two large-frame and two small-frame revolvers that would fire easy-on-the-hands 38 Specials. As a bonus, some would also chamber 357 Magnums and, surprisingly, one accepted 9mm Luger rounds. Our test guns were as follows:

European American Armory’s (EAA) Windicator 770133 357 Magnum, $394, is a European idea of a revolver that comes off well. The cylinder features six chambers bored for the 357 Magnum. The barrel is marked 38 Special and just below, 357 Magnum. The revolver is a conventional double action with single-action capability. The cylinder is opened for loading and unloading by pressing a cylinder latch forward. Three of the four revolvers in the test operate in this manner.

Rock Island Armory’s Model 206 51283 38 Special, $240, is a small-frame revolver that comes in a couple of variations. The blued M206 Spurless 51280 and matte-nickel-finished Spurless M206 lack the exterior hammer of our test gun, but all three have channel frame-cut rear sights. Similar to our test gun, the M200 51261 is likewise chambered in 38 Special but has a 4-inch semi-shrouded barrel. When you put together the price of the EAA Windicator and the Rock Island M206, you have about the price of a new Glock. That isn’t bad economy having two 38 Special handguns at the ready for less than $600.

The Taurus Defender 856 2-85639NS 38 Special +P, $306, is a small-frame 38 Special +P revolver with a six-shot cylinder and a 3-inch barrel. Our test handgun was made of matte stainless steel with Hogue grips, but the line is available in several versions. The Ultra-Lite models come in stainless-steel (2-85639ULNS) and black-anodized (2-85631ULNS) finishes. Three other steel-frame revolvers are the matte black with Hogue grips (2-85631NS), matte-stainless with VZ Grips’ panels (2-85635NSVZ), and tungsten Cerakote with Altamont wood grips (2-8563CNS).

The Taurus Tracker 692 Multi-Caliber Revolver 2692031, $487, chambers and fires 38 Special, 357 Magnum, and 9mm Luger rounds. We should note that stainless-steel versions of our test gun were available for $543. The matte-finish-blued revolver is more in keeping with our economy theme. Like in the other revolvers, the Tracker 692 is a double-action mechanism with a swing-out cylinder, exposed hammer, and single-action capability. The 692 features a seven-shot cylinder. This is a nice upgrade in a relatively compact revolver. The grips, barrel, and frame are slightly smaller than the popular Taurus 66, another seven-shot 357 Magnum.

During the test, we fired four 38 Special loads in all four revolvers. These included a handload with the MattsBullets.com 178-grain SWC loaded to 850 fps average. This is a +P load that is well suited to outdoors use and practice for those using +P personal defense loads. We fired 50 rounds in offhand combat firing, including firing at multiple targets as quickly as possible. While economical, this load also tested recoil control and comfort better than a light target load. In accuracy testing off the benchrest, we used three loads. These included the Remington 158-grain SWCHP +P, the Black Hills Ammunition 158-grain RNL Cowboy Load, and the Black Hills Ammunition 125-grain +P.

For bench accuracy testing and velocity compilations, we also tested a full-power 357 Magnum loading in the Tracker and Windicator revolvers, the Black Hills Ammunition 125-grain JHP. For combat shooting, we added the Remington HTP 357 Magnum 125-grain SJHP, a milder 1200 fps Magnum load, to give breadth to the test in the two Magnums. Also in the Tracker, we fired a 9mm load, the Remington HTP 124-grain JHP, off the bench. We fired 20 of each of the magnum loads in each revolver and 20 9mm loads in the Taurus 692.

The revolvers tested were all reliable with no obvious defects. For home defense, all were accurate enough. Here’s what we thought about these handguns in more detail.

Gun Tests Grade: B

$240

The M206 is a chunky revolver at 25 ounces. The six-shot double-action has a swing-out cylinder, and its cylinder latch operates differently from the other three revolvers. This latch is pulled to the rear rather than pressed forward to open the cylinder. We found no difference in speed between the two types.

When the Smith & Wesson–type revolvers have the cylinder open, the action cannot be operated unless you press the cylinder latch. The Model 206 may be dry-fired with the cylinder open. No advantage, just different. The revolver in appearance, weight, and heft appears to be a clone of the Colt Detective Special. Well, it is, and it isn’t. The cylinder latch operates like a Colt and the cylinder rotates to the right; the other revolvers rotate to the left. But the 206 revolver uses a coil spring to power the hammer rather than a Colt-type V spring. For most shooters, a coil spring and a trigger reset spring are simpler to use than the Colt action. A shooter may tie up an original or modern Colt by not allowing the trigger to reset properly. We will stop short of saying the design is an improvement over the Colt action, but it works well enough. Dimensionally, the Rock Island revolver is larger than the Colt Police Positive/Detective Special, so it will not fit Detective Special holsters.

The finish is matte blue. There were no tool marks or grinder marks we could see until we removed the grips, reasonable in this price range. The hammer is serrated, and there are grooves on the cylinder latch. The trigger face is smooth, as it should be. The action is smooth enough in double-action fire. The single-action trigger is heavier than we like at 5.75 pounds — but average for an economy revolver — and lighter than the Taurus Defender. The sights are broad, with a well-designed sight picture. However, the front post is almost invisible in most shooting scenarios. It simply fades out. We added a drop of nail polish to improve visibility, the only modification of any type during the test.

The 850-fps 38 Special handload that was docile in the magnum revolvers generated more noticeable recoil in the 206. That’s fine; a defense-oriented revolver should be loaded with +P loads. However, the M206 isn’t marked for +P loads on the gun, and the owner’s manual was unclear on the point. We contacted the factory to ask if the M206 would handle +P pressure, and they said it would. Specifically, a chat with customer service said, “All our firearms are +P ready, but please use only when necessary. +P ammo may wear your gun faster.” Rock Island should make the gun’s +P rating explicit, we think.

Once we had the front sight painted, the revolver printed 2 inches high with the 158-grain load, but it was dead on with the 125-grain +P. The revolver is controllable for the size, and centered hits in the X ring. At 5 yards, it was comparable to the larger handguns. The difference really showed up at 10 yards and beyond. The revolver is comparable in some ways to Colt revolvers we have fired, but the 206 was not as smooth.

A problem arose with the long hammer spur. At times, with some raters, the hammer spur contacted the shooting hand. We adjusted our grip, and it did not cause a further problem. It is simply something you should know about. We liked the recoil-absorbing design of the large grips. They are a finger-groove design and are quite hard. The revolver is supplied with a much smaller set of grips for concealed carry or small hands. With the small wooden grips, we had a serious problem with the hammer spur. When the raters used the small grip, the hammer spur tended to contact the firing hand and tie the action up. We think the small grips would be okay with the spurless hammer version we mention above, but not the hammer-spur version. The revolver kicks more with the small grips, and as a result, bullet impacts land another 0.75- to 1.0-inch high at 10 yards. During the firing test, there were no failures to fire or cycle. During the accuracy stage, the RIA 206 was the least accurate revolver tested. It is also the least expensive, has the shortest barrel, and the shortest sight radius. Just the same for personal defense and home defense, the revolver is accurate enough.

Our Team Said: We think the plastic grips are a tad too thick. Conversely, the supplied wooden grips are far too small. We rated it down on accuracy compared to the other handguns and on the hammer spur problem, which should be corrected if you plan to buy this wheelgun.

357 Magnum Range Data

9mm Luger Range Data

38 Special Range Data

Value Guide: 39 Special/375 Magnum Revolver Rankings