Handgun design involves trade-offs. For instance, the powerful .357 magnum kicks like a mule, so most .357 magnum revolvers are made heavy — but not the Chiappa Rhino, which Borepatch explains, has found an alternative solution:
This is a .357 Magnum revolver weighing 25 ounces (!) that is simply a pleasure to shoot. And therein lies the tale of the design.
The most important part of the design is the barrel placement, which is aligned with the bottom cylinder, not the top one.
The centerline of the bore is in line with the shooter’s arm, which reduces muzzle flip:
While the revolver is quite frankly butt-ugly, Chiappa’s description is entirely correct. There is no muzzle flip, even when shooting 195 grain .357 Magnum loads. Remember — the revolver only weighs a pound and a half.
You can see the barrel placement here. It puts the recoil force vector in line with your hand and arm, so the recoil is if anything like what you’d get from a 1911 — a soft push, rather than the snappy rotation that I’m used to with .357 revolvers.