This will be a little different from most of my reviews. I almost always sing the praises of whatever gun I'm reviewing. It's not exactly hard to figure out why. My money (like yours) is finite, and I do A LOT of research before spending several hundred dollars on a firearm. I'm usually at least reasonably happy with what I buy.
But I didn't buy this handgun. The NAA Mini Revolver was given to me many years ago. It was a very thoughtful gift and greatly appreciated. I just never really figured out what to do with it.
Let's get this out of the way. It's not a target gun, and it's too small to be an effective home defense gun.
It's obviously intended as just a CCW gun. The problem is that it's not a great concealed carry gun. The caliber is nothing to brag about and you're pushing a .22lr out of a 1 1/8" barrel. I have my doubts about it's stopping power. The NAA Mini Revolver is a 5 shot single action so the capacity and speed of use is not that great. As a first line of defense it's kind of sad.
When shooting offhand, you really can't get much of a grip on the firearm. The recoil flips the gun up in your hand after every shot. It has to be readjusted and obviously your grip changes every time you shoot it. None of this is conductive to accurate shooting. The standard grip panels can be changed to this folding holster grip , and that will no doubt help somewhat.
I can keep all of my shots in the vitals at 7 yards... but it's kind of slow compared to other weapons that I use. I'm sure that some will shoot much better with the Mini Revolver than I do. I doubt that many people will adopt it as their first line of defense.
The sights are about average for a CCW revolver. There's a bladed front sight (no serrations) and a notched rear. There's nothing to brag about, but there's nothing to really critique either.
The trigger pull is about 6lbs and feels just a little heavy. That is probably a good thing with this particular gun. The trigger pull is very short. Obviously there is no trigger guard.
The Mini Revolver must be disassembled to load or reload.
To load the Mini Revolver:
1) Point the weapon in a safe direction.
2) Put the hammer on half cock.
3) Remove the cylinder pin and roll the cylinder out either side of the handgun.
4) Drop 5 rounds into the chamber or if reloading, punch out the spent cases with the cylinder pin first.
5) Place the cylinder back into the frame.
6) Replace the cylinder pin.
CCI and Winchester ammunition is recommended by the manufacturer.
I'll let the manufacturer tell you about this gun's unique safety.BE VERY CAREFUL WHEN USING THIS SAFETY AND KEEP THE MUZZLE POINTED IN A SAFE DIRECTION WHEN LOWERING THE HAMMER.
I view this gun as more of a novelty than as a self defense weapon. I've carried it now and then. While it's clearly easy to conceal, I have to wonder what good it would really do me. Personally, I would be afraid to take a shot with this gun in a crowded setting if the distance was more than 7 yards (no doubt some are more skilled). The rate of fire is very slow and I have my doubts about the stopping power of a .22lr round exiting a 1 1/8" barrel. To be honest... if a threat was that close I would probably be better off rushing it with my SOG Aegis (or retreating).
It's possible that I'm being a bit too hard on this gun. If that seems to be the case, it's because I don't really have a use for it. The only role that it would fill for me is concealed carry, and I have much better choices available.
For those that need something for DEEP carry, this might be an excellent choice. If I worked in an environment that dictated difficult clothing for concealed carry then this might be a good choice. If I needed to carry and absolutely had to keep others from knowing, then this gun might be a fine choice.
You will be able to carry this weapon where no other firearm would conceal (hmm... that sounded kind of weird). The NAA Mini Revolver could be a last resort back up gun. I believe that it would serve well in that role. In my opinion it's not a good choice for a first line of defense, and I really have no need for a backup gun. Thus my lukewarm review.
Most of what I said above was either negative or faint praise. There are some good things about this firearm.
It's very well made. I wish that everything that I buy had this level of quality, and it's clear that a lot of pride went into the manufacture of this little gun. Despite the small size and low cost, this weapon doesn't scream "Cheap" like some inexpensive firearms do. The Mini Revolver feels like a quality handgun.
The reliability has been 100% despite very sporadic cleaning on my part.
All of the edges are nicely rounded.
There are pretty good serrations on the hammer spur.
The manufacturer has a great website full of useful information. I've never seen a company include ballistics info before. Kudos to NAA. Give them a look. They actually do have a model or two that would interest me if I still backpacked and wanted to keep my gear lightweight. I could probably find more of a use for some of their other models such as the Black Widow.
There's a fair amount of accessories on the North American Arms site.
So in conclusion, this is a cool little gun that I personally have no real use for. Sometimes you buy things that are interesting or kind of fun. This gun is both of those things in a package that runs about $200 (on Buds).
At this time I don't really need a single action revolver for deep carry, or as a backup gun. Others will believe that this gun fills their concealed carry needs. If you're one of those people then I think that you'll find this to be a quality firearm at a reasonable price.
It's just not my cup of tea.
I feel the need to say this again. Pay very careful attention to the manufacturer's instruction regarding how to put the weapon on safe.
And speaking of deep carry...
this wasn't what I meant.
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