Miroku · Pistol
Miroku Liberty Chief
Double action revolver · .38 Special · introduced 1962
Also known as Liberty Chief
About the Miroku Liberty Chief
The Miroku Liberty Chief is a compact five-to-six-shot .38 Special double-action revolver produced by Japan's Miroku Corporation between 1962 and 1968. A short-barreled snub-nose design in the mold of the Smith & Wesson Chief's Special, it features an exposed hammer, a swing-out cylinder, fixed sights, and wood grips. It was one of the most common of the handful of handgun models Miroku built before the company shifted its focus to over/under shotguns and lever-action rifles for Browning and Winchester.
A .38-caliber Liberty Chief revolver made by Miroku turns up in United States federal case files from the 1960s, a reminder that these obscure Japanese snub-noses quietly found their way overseas during the brief window Miroku built handguns.
Miroku Liberty Chief specifications
General
- Type
- Pistol
- Action
- Double action revolver
- Firing mechanism
- Double action
- Trigger
- Double action
- Calibres
- .38 Special
- Magazine capacity
- 6 rounds
- Magazine
- Internal
Dimensions
- Barrel length
- 51 mm (2.0 in)
Barrel
- Rifling
- Right hand
Materials
- Barrel
- Steel
- Receiver / frame
- Steel
- Stock
- Wood
- Finish
- blued
Performance
- Muzzle velocity (typical)
- 290 m/s (951 fps)
- Muzzle energy (typical)
- 341 J (252 ft·lb)
- Effective range
- 25 m
History
- Introduced
- 1962
- Discontinued
- 1968
- Production status
- Discontinued
- Country of origin
- JP
Features
- Snub nose barrel
- Exposed hammer
- Swing out cylinder
- Fixed sights
- Wood grips
Safety
- Rebounding hammer
Miroku produced only a small number of handgun models during the 1960s; the Liberty Chief was the best known. Some examples were imported to the United States. Barrel length is commonly cited as 2 inches with a six-round cylinder.