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Charter Arms Undercover

• moderate
• Shop tier 2
• low confidence
• Revolver
• revolver
• double action
• concealed carry
• one piece frame
• no sideplate
• budget

field strip ~3 min · reassembly ~5 min · detail strip ~40 min

Specifications

Model-specific safety

• A revolver is not cleared by opening the cylinder. Look through every chamber and count them.
• Charter Arms revolvers use a one-piece frame with no sideplate, unlike Smith & Wesson and Colt. That means there is no sideplate to remove — and also no conventional way in. Owner disassembly beyond cylinder removal is not supported.
• Cylinder removal on a Charter differs from the S&W yoke-screw method. Confirm the procedure against the manual for your revolver rather than assuming.
• Never flick the cylinder closed.
• The cylinder release is pushed forward, following the S&W convention.

Under spring tension

• Mainspring
• Cylinder stop spring
• Hand spring

Easily lost parts

Cylinder and crane assembly · Grip screw · Ejector rod components

Tools

Shop difficulty

Shop tier 2 Tier 2 — moderate among revolvers, for the full job: strip to the parts that get coated and put it back together working. Small 5-shot DA with a one-piece frame and no sideplate, so the lockwork comes out through the bottom with the trigger, hand and transfer-bar safety as a group; fewer loose parts than a S&W, but the procedure differs from every other DA and Charter treats the lockwork as not owner-serviceable. Moderate, low confidence.

No sourced part count yet.

Bench time: about 30 min to strip, 50 min to rebuild (estimate). Estimated: grips, cylinder/crane, trigger group and hammer out through the bottom of the one-piece frame, ejector parts and sights. Rebuild dominated by refitting hand, transfer bar and springs through the bottom and a timing check.

What comes off for coating

• Cylinder and crane: cylinder and crane per Charter procedure (not an S&W yoke screw), ejector rod and spring if the cylinder is coated — fitted screwdrivers
• Lockwork (through the bottom of the frame): grips, mainspring, trigger group with hand and transfer-bar safety, hammer, cylinder stop and spring, cylinder release / thumbpiece — pin punches
• Frame: front sight if pinned — pin punch

Special tools

• Pin punches sized to the trigger/hammer pins — Trigger and hammer pivot pins in the one-piece frame

Fit or check on rebuild

• Timing / carry-up: every chamber locks before the hammer falls, single and double action; cylinder gap and end shake — Standard revolver check after lockwork has been out; worn hand or cylinder stop gives the "does not lock up" fault under Common issues.
• Transfer bar rises with the trigger and the hammer cannot reach the firing pin with the trigger forward — Charter uses a transfer bar; it comes out with the trigger group and must be refitted correctly (well-known check).

This is Pew-Takedown's rating, not the manufacturer's. How tiers are rated. Forum reports are owners' experience, not specifications.

Procedures

Torque specifications

No sourced torque values from the manufacturer are recorded for this firearm. Where a fastener has a specified torque — action screws, scope bases, muzzle devices, barrel nuts — get it from the manufacturer or a gunsmith rather than estimating it.

Materials and factory finish

As stated by Charter Arms. Prep, masking and cure depend on these; a polymer or aluminium part, a nitrided or anodised finish, and a blued steel part are each a different job. Variants with other finishes may exist — check the maker's page for the exact SKU on the bench.

Function check

• Verify every chamber is empty before each check.
• Cock the hammer slowly and confirm the cylinder locks up at each chamber before full cock.
• With the hammer at full cock, confirm the cylinder is locked with minimal play.
• Press the trigger in single action and confirm a clean hammer fall.
• Cycle the action in double action through every chamber.
• Confirm the cylinder latches closed securely.

Maintenance

Lubrication points

• Crane where the cylinder rides
• Ejector rod
• Hammer and trigger pivots
• Cylinder stop

Cleaning notes

Clean the chambers, cylinder face, and forcing cone. Keep lubrication sparing — revolver lockwork does not want to be wet.

Suggested inspection interval: roughly every 1500 rounds. This is a general guideline, not a manufacturer specification.

Wear parts to inspect

Hand · Cylinder stop · Ejector rod tightness · Forcing cone

Common issues

Also covers

The procedures above are reported to apply to: Charter Arms Off Duty · Charter Arms Bulldog (.44 Special) · Charter Arms Pathfinder (rimfire). Verify against the manual for your specific model.

Similar manual of arms

• Smith & Wesson Model 642
• Taurus 856

Sourcing