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Do you know one type of gun that’s remained untouched in an era of innovation?
The revolver.
And it’s time we talk about one of the coolest, best shooting, and innovative revolvers on the market – the Chiappa Rhino!
They took the six gun and employed a little bit of creativity to it. Chiappa employed a fella named Emilio Ghisoni, and he teamed up with another guy named Antonio Cudazzo to design something truly unique.
Emilio had a refreshing habit of building ultra-excellent revolver, starting with forgotten Mateba Auto revolver, a semi-automatic revolver.
It’s All About That Bore Axis.
We hear a lot of garbage about bore axis in the firearms industry. If you want to make fun of SIG Sauer, then point out “How high” their bore axis is. Then you can feel smug on Facebook.
On to the Review
Now that we’ve addressed the Rhino in the room that is the oddball design we can talk about the Rhino a little more in depth. The Rhino comes in a variety of sizes with model numbers that express the barrel length.
The Rhino’s Unique Edge
Outside of the lower barrel height the Chiappa Rhino 40DS sports a Picatinny rail for attaching lights or lasers. Rails are a very rare feature for revolvers. The 60DS even has a small rail for attaching an optic.
Hitting the Range
The Rhino 40DS is a fun gun to shoot. It looks cool, and it’s very comfortable. As I mentioned above the weapon has minimal muzzle rise and its perfectly pleasant to shoot with .357 Magnums. It can also handle .38 Special and with .38 special loads its perfect for teaching new shooters how to handle a revolver.
If this weapon is going to serve a defensive role the double action is much more important than the single action. As a revolver, the Rhino is reliable as a gun can be. It ignites ammo both cheap and pricey, including Tula .357 Magnums and their overly hard primers.
I will say the biggest downside, in my opinion, is the gun’s grip. It looks nice, it points nicely, but it doesn’t feel my hand very well. It’s just too small for me. I do have big hands, and I think a bigger grip would benefit me.
The grip is also excessively smooth and feels like it wants to slide around in my hand. If it wasn’t for the low bore axis, the Rhino 40DS has I feel like it requires me to shift grips every few shots.
Best Chiappa Rhino Aftermarket Upgrades
The aftermarket for the Chiappa Rhino is somewhat small. There are some holsters out there, some custom speed loaders, and speed strips will always work with the Rhino. In terms of what I would choose for my Rhino given its limited market, I would go with the following.1. Galco Combat Master
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25% off all OAKLEY products – OAKLEY25
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2. Safariland J-R4C Comp 2 Speed loader (Ruger Security Six version)
Available Coupons
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25% off all OAKLEY products – OAKLEY25
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3. Snap Cap .357 Magnum Rounds
Available Coupons
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25% off all OAKLEY products – OAKLEY25
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4. Bianchi Speed Strips
$10
at OpticsPlanet
Prices accurate at time of writing
Prices accurate at time of writing
Available Coupons
-
25% off all OAKLEY products – OAKLEY25
Copied! Visit Merchant
By the Numbers
Reliability 5/5
It’s a flipping revolver. It’s either a 5 or a 1, and there is no in-between! It’s certainly not ammo or primer picky, and it goes bang when you pull the trigger. The cylinder always opens, the hammer still cocks, and it all just works.Accuracy 4/5
The gun is plenty accurate, and you can reach out and touch a target. The gun points very well, the sights are small but easy to see, and the rear sight is adjustable. I knocked one point off just because the single action is very meh. The Rhino is not a cheap revolver, and I’d prefer a crisper SA design.Ergonomics 4/5
The gun is plenty ergonomic. The controls are well thought out, and you can tell the design is from a shooter for shooters.
Looks 5/5
I mean c’ mon, this thing is cool as hell. There are a few reasons why it ends up in movies like Ghost in the Shell, Suicide Squad, and Total Recall. It looks like it stepped out of the pages of a comic book and I can’t help but love it.Customization 2/5
There isn’t much you can do, you can change the grips, add a light maybe, and that is about it. It gets two because of that rail and how rare a rail is on revolvers.Bang for your Buck 3/5
This is a pricey revolver, with the average price of the 40Ds being around 800 bucks it’s a tough sell. At least to me, it is. For 800 bucks and some change, you can get a 686 Plus Performance Center revolver with more rounds, a better trigger, and comparative sights.Overall 4/5
Overall this is one of my favorite revolvers. It’s not perfect, but it is just so freakin’ cool. It’s fun to shoot, easy to hit your target with, and the futuristic look and design make it a unique experience.Parting Thoughts and Final Shots
The Chiappa Rhino is an ultra-cool gun. As far as revolvers go, it’s tough to take the concept and improve upon it, but two Italian designers managed to find a way. The Rhino is also more than just a gimmick.
Plenty of guns come out with a gimmicky feature and rely solely on that feature. The problem is they lose focus on how to make a good gun. The Rhino is a good gun. It’s more than just a low barrel profile.
The gun features excellent controls and ergonomics, a decent trigger, and several innovations that leave most revolvers in the dust. The Rhino isn’t perfect, but I’ll be damned if it isn’t my current favorite revolver.
What’s your take on the Rhino? Is it cool enough to enter your collection? Otherwise check out our other favorites in Best .357 Magnum Revolvers.
24 Leave a Reply
Travis I think you need to do another article on the Rhino as part of your Pop culture series, I don't have the numbers to back this up, but anecdotally speaking I'd have to say the Chiappa Rhino may be the most used revolver to be used in futuristic movies. I know you mentioned a few in this article, but if a Rhino is good enough for Master Chief in the new Halo series...its good enough for me!
Does Anyone Know Where I can get a 40D I live in Alaska and No One Has One/
There are a number of aftermarket grips for the Chiappa Rhino
Hi I have the 177 pellet charging rhino .I find the trigger very hard to squeeze in s/a and would like to fit a Red Dot on top( 5in barrel pickattiny rail under , none on top) how do I fit one ? Regards Keith
If it has adjustable sights on top you may be able to remove them and install a scope mount in their place. You would have too check too see if any are available and confirm this is poss.
I have the .357. I love the way it shoots., And unlike a lot of people, I think it's beautiful. The trigger could use a little work and the grip needs to be a bit larger. I'm about to get another, just because I like the look so much.
What is a semi-automatic revolver?
Like the Webley Fosberry .455 Automatic Revolver.
Auto revolvers utilize blowback/recoil to achieve cylinder rotation & cocking.
There are numerous articles and videos on it. Here's a brief but good one.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EqkcVlzVSw
It's seen in "The Maltese Falcon" and "Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan" and "Zardoz"
Does their customer service still suck?
I own the 40DS and love it ...
I've been very intrigued by the Rhino since it came out.
I have 2 questions: 1) As I also require XL gloves, are there any aftermarket grips out there for the larger gentleman? And 2) Have you had a chance to try the 6" barrel? I seem to like the aesthetics of that a bit more.
Thanks, Travis. Keep the great articles coming, Marine, & Semper Fi!
Revolvers have been around almost 200 years. Congratulations Chiappa, you created the ugliest.
Agreed. While on a purely conceptual level, I can understand some of the design elements, it's hard to even look at that thing. About the closest I'll come to Italian firearms is Benelli shotguns.
Sounds interesting and I have seen a few out there. As has already been mentioned I wonder if there will be a trigger improvement?
"Bore axis in automatic handguns, in standard calibers like 9mm, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP is a joke.... If I drew you a pie chart of all the reasons why people cannot shoot quickly and accurately bore axis wouldn’t even be mentioned."
Kudos for profiling a highly unusual revolver. But even more praise for saying the above, which needs to be said. Repeatedly and loudly.
Got a snub nose rhino on my hip. My daily carry for approx 4 years or whenever they came our.
Any chance your trigger finger would be caught up in the cylinder gap blast?
I have the 60DS, and I have never had an issue with cylinder gap blast. That said, I do pay attention to my grip......
Most conventional revolvers have gap blast, you adjust your grip to suit. Should you be too old or stupid to overcome the issue, jump on the sawed off shotgun.
Always Love Your reviews, Travis. Equally fun to read and informative.
If they would put even a decent trigger on it (or somebody make a trigger kit, or something) I would be on board. I hate the current trigger! Paying $800 for a trigger I have to fight with is not going to happen for me.
I agree I think they are certainly selling the novelty of the design while ignoring a few necessary refinements.
Great review
They are the ugliest wheel guns ever made. I've shot one, was not impressed. My buddy sent it back to get fixed twice for locking up before trading it in. I'll stick with my gp100