In Praise of Revolvers

[jad0110]

cslinger, your post was spot on. I can't add anything more.

I gravitate more towards what I shoot better - revolvers.

For those that shoot semis better, then it only makes since to go that route for SD. Choosing capacity for capacity's sake is unwise, IMHO. Sure, it is nice, but it isn't the only characteristic of a good defensive arm.

In the end, I still greatly prefer my 12 ga to either a wheelie or semi in a serious situation.

 

[19-3Ben]

It's interesting. Every time that I shoot an auto-loader, I am pleasantly surprised when it feeds and functions properly. I mean, I expect that it will, but it still pleasantly surprises me. It's kind of like when an e-bay purchase goes really smoothly.

With my revolvers, I just know that they will work. Why? because that is what wheelguns do best. That's why I carry a revolver, and my HD gun is a revolver (backed by a pump-action shotgun for the same reason. It's another mechanism that I know will not malfunction if I do my part.) I also drive a car with a manual transmission for the same exact reason. Are we picking up a pattern here?

MECHANICAL SIMPLICITY.

A part that doesn't exist can't break, now can it?

 

[Vern Humphrey]

A part that doesn't exist can't break, now can it?

Hands, transfer bars, cylinder stops and springs, ejector stars and other parts can and do break, jam, or otherwise malfunction. Bullets jump crimp. Primers back out. All kinds of things can happen to revolvers -- and most revolver stoppages can't be cleared with a simple drill.

 

[Quigley]

Well said Vern!

You gotta love them all! Your autos for the most part are right at home shredding paper and rolling cans at 50 feet, the wheel gun is more at home hunting where the range of the target is 50 feet to 100 yards or more. I don't shred alot of paper, I prefer ringing a 24" gong at 100 yards +.
There are enough cross over rounds like the 38, 357, 44 for wheel guns to play in all arenas but I personally know of no autos chambered to compete in the 100 yard arena.

 

[19-3Ben]

Vern- No doubt about it. Revolvers CAN break, and can have malfs. I'm just saying they are simpler mechanisms and their simplicity is conducive to reliability. that's all.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

I don't know of any definitive study showing revolvers are more reliable than autos. I do know that virtually every agency that uses handguns for real prefers automatics.

 

[19-3Ben]

But couldn't that also be that the nature of those agencies is to be engaged in fighting which would necessitate higher capacity and quicker reloads.
Semi-autos are so reliable these days that there is not much trade-off in reliability and there is a huge gain in "firepower."

For me, I don't feel the need for the same capacity. I am very comfortable with my revolvers, I shoot them better than autos, they feel and point more naturally to me, and I am more confident with them. That to me, is the most important thing.

That being said, I do plan to get a new SR9 pretty soon. it's sweeeeet.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

But couldn't that also be that the nature of those agencies is to be engaged in fighting which would necessitate higher capacity and quicker reloads.

Yup -- but they can't hardly pick and choose their fights, so the evidence seems to be the automatic is the best all-around choice for a fighting pistol.

Semi-autos are so reliable these days that there is not much trade-off in reliability and there is a huge gain in "firepower."

My point, exactly.

There is a place for revolvers -- but it isn't because they are significantly more reliable than automatics.

 

[19-3Ben]

And I'll give you that. I never said otherwise. I just feel (totally subjective, and with no data to back it up) like I trust the reliability of revolvers more than that of semi-autos. But I'm not one to go around saying that revolvers are the be-all-end-all of handguns because they are 100% reliable, and semi-autos won't get through a single mag without a malfunction.
Revolvers just work better for me. That's all.

I think we are saying the same thing just with different emphasis.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

I think so.

 

[BlindJustice]

Let's see - the title of this thread is

IN PRAISE OF REVOLVERS
It isn't about Semi-Autos, of whatever mag. cap.
It isn't about .45 Colt vs .45 ACP

That said, a couple of years ago I retired, and have gotten
back into this hobby which at a basic level is an enjoyment
of firearms, the mechanical design, quality, etc, On the more
serious level it is in using them for hunting or self defense it's
martial art.

So, being comfortable in retirement and coming into an inheritance
I first put 2/3rds of it into low risk investment, the rest I've been
buying firearms and top drawer accessories.
I now have a 1911 as well as a S&W DA revovler in each of the
frame sizes excluding the X frame. My two favorites are
the 1911 and my 625 .45 ACP / .45 Auto RIm revolver.
SOmetimes I take them both to the range. SOmetimes I shoot one
better than the other then it's visa versa the next time.
I save the .45 ACP brass out of the full moon clips for once fired
reloads for the 1911. THe 686P is a versatile .357 Mag or
.38 spcl. versatile. The 617 is just good old cheap fun and a great
platform for DA practice economically.
The model 60 .357 mag +P .38 SPcl. for the bedside nightstand is
handy

All of the above are Stainless Steel 'shoooters' Now, I'm
looking for pinned barreld blued guns or if I want a
SA I'll go for the Colt SAA I've wanted for more than 40 years.

To each their own
.

 

[BlindJustice]

Reliability

SW1911 & S&W 625 both have about 300 rounds through them.
The 1911 had one cartridge stick on the feedramp - racked the slide
it then fed, this first stubborn round. WIth the 625 I had to send it
back to the factory - extraction problem it got a new cylinder on warranty
I also had them do a Master Revolver Action Job. SInce that it has had
a half dozen failed primer strikes/duds. and now it is sitting in it's case
waiting to go to the gunsmith with a backed out primer on a shotshell and the cylinder is jammed

but with the other three S&W DA revolvers they have never failed to fire
but when a revolver jams, you're DIW. Hunting I'll take a revolver beside
a long gun. Go to battle and I want my 1911. sorry, revo guys.
but a revolver is a much better handgun to teach the young with or to advise an older person for a HD weapon.

They all have their place.

 

[DAL]

I can't say I carry a revolver because it's better than an auto, but because, for me, it's a more versatile platform. My preferred method for carry is pocket and I find my S&W 642 is much slicker than any of the autos I've tried to carry that way (Kahr MK40: too heavy; Glocks 26 and 36: too fat and heavy; Kel-Tec P3AT: too small).

Lest anyone think I'm against autos, no way. I like my Glock 34, 1911, and Makarov, but for concealed carry, I'll stick with my 642 and SP101. If carrying them is a mistake, I guess I'll be the one to pay the price (or maybe my family...YIKES!).
DAL

 

[Checkman]

I like revolvers. As I've gotten older I've come back to the wheelies and I've noticed that shooting revolvers has improved my overall skill with handguns - both semi and revolver. Great trainer. Not as forgiving and demands greater attention to the basics.

However I carry Glocks when on duty.

 

[DMK]

I'm not sure that revolvers are as unpopular as ya'll make them out to be. I've heard dealers tell me that J-frames and similar revolvers are their most popular sellers for CCW. I think on these forums, autos are very (perhaps more) popular CCWs, but we are a small percentage of those who carry. Many folks just want something simple to operate, simple to maintain.

One of the things I like best about revolvers is they don't have magazines. Buying and testing magazines with carry ammo every time I get a new gun gets expensive and tiring.

 

[cherryriver]

On top of all of the other praiseworthy things about revolvers, one great thing is how they build intestinal fortitude.
Just try going to a USPSA match with a .357. Shoot major power factor, too, and watch everyone else whiz past you.
But shooting the sixgun in competition is a whole different game. As one fellow I'm accustomed to seeing shooting a 625 in IDPA likes to say, everymatch is a revolver match if you get your head right about it.
I make a point of hauling a Webley Mk VI around the USPSA matches at least a few times a year. Slow, but fun, and I never stop laughing (and causing laughs). That's what it's about- fun.
But as we say behind the firing line: "You know what the difference between a revolver and an autoloader is?
The revolver's almost always empty..."
Bill
(Safe full of sixguns, holster full of Colt 1911)

 

[kount_zer0]

I carry my 1911 in town.
I carry my Ruger Blackhawk in the woods.

A revolver is a fine weapon. So is a semi auto. My experience with malfunctions in both handguns dictates that the semi is generally easier to clear.

I must point out that my use of a handgun in a defense situation is predicated on using it to get to a better weapon. Shotgun indoors rifle outside. This does not mean spray and move, but seek cover first then shoot for effect and move towards a better weapon.

Neither is perfect.

Just my 2p.

 

[FLA2760]

I started out on revolvers in the early 80s. I never had to worry about ammo sensitivity,out of battery, weak magazine springs and proper grip as in limpwrist a semi and most won't cycle properly. Weak hand unsupported shooting in a deadly force encounter is a very real possibility. The revolver will shine here. Also the revolver will work for more than one shot as it is pressed into your would be killer's ribs as you roll around the ground. That said I CCW a Glock27 since 2001; but one of my J frame Smiths is always carried as a BUG accessible to my weak hand. My Glock has jammed on two occasions recently under ideal conditions at the range. I was not limpwristing and I have since replaced the magazine and the recoil spring assembly.

 

[cslinger]

Weak hand unsupported shooting in a deadly force encounter is a very real possibility. The revolver will shine here. Also the revolver will work for more than one shot as it is pressed into your would be killer's ribs as you roll around the ground. That said I CCW a Glock27 since 2001; but one of my J frame Smiths is always carried as a BUG accessible to my weak hand. My Glock has jammed on two occasions recently under ideal conditions at the range. I was not limpwristing and I have since replaced the magazine and the recoil spring assembly.

Once again this is why I praise the revolver. It is all about the right tool for the job. If I was going into known combat where I was to be the aggressor then I would absolutely pick a semi but for normal civilian carry the revolver shines IMHO.

 

[sgt127]

For offensive use, auto's rule.
For defensive use, the revolver comes out on top.
The question is, how do YOU think you will need your gun? They both have strong points.

 

[Hawk]

Weak hand unsupported shooting in a deadly force encounter is a very real possibility.

There are no small number of us that believe a semi-auto that won't work weak hand unsupported is defective and should be replaced or repaired.

 

[TCB in TN]

I happen to love both, and have carried both in the past, but one comment made in the article really has been born out in my own personal experience. As pistols shrink, so does their reliability. I have very little doubt about the reliability of any of the full size pistols I have owned/carried, but as pistols shrink their tendency to become ammo sensitive and more flaky exponentially seems to increase. That is why my carry weapon is a little 38spcl snubby. I can run any proper cal ammo through it and it has never hicupped at all. On my bedside table you will find both a pistol and a revolver but IWB or ankle carry belongs to a revolver and I don't expect that to change.