Advantages of revolvers over semi autos

If you've got pics of your home built shoulder rig, I'd be interested in seeing them.
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I've got some jpg's around somewhere ... I'll take a look. I've also got some verbal descriptions somewhere. The harness is mostly 2" knitted elastic strap ... I wanted a rig that wouldn't allow the gun to flop around (without any need for a tie-down to the belt). The 1911 holster is made out of soft flexible leather (wish I could get some more of it), and the .44mag holster is made out of medium-weight cotton duck ... I made it easily hand-washable, so I could sweat in it on mountain hikes if necessary. It's not very durable, though ... I'm always needing to patch it. I need to either make a leather holster for it, or at least make one from heavier cotton duck.
 
Oh, about a millennium ago, revolvers were considered more reliable than semi-autos, assuredly due to many poor quality semi-autos.

I've had two revolvers suffer catastrophic failures. Both were Smith revolvers. A 586 failed at least twice. With either gun, had I had to save my life from a bad guy shooting at me, I'd of been in a bad way. When revolvers fail, they're almost always catastrophic, meaning your revolver is out of the fight. I've known others who've had revolvers suffer catastrophic failures.

In terms of reliability, I'll take a good-quality or better semi-auto over a revolver every time. The most reliable handgun I own, and that includes Smith and Ruger revolvers, is a P-229. The old S&W 5904 was far more reliable than any revolver.

In the very rare circumstance a semi-auto fails, causes can almost always be fixed within seconds.

Revolvers hold six rounds. With practice, one can reload six more in about three seconds. I can reload 12 more in a P-229 in about a second, and I can do it in complete darkness. That's a huge advantage, especially where more than one bad guy intended to reduce you evidence.

In the realm of self-defense, semi-autos offer more powerful rounds. And no, the .357 Mag is not a man-stopper. In fact, in tactical handguns, there is no such thing as a man-stopper. There is in entertainment magazines, but not in reality. I'd rate a .357 Mag a decent self-defense cartridge for use against one bad guy and where one won't be placed at a tactical disadvantage by reloading. Try reloading a revolver in complete darkness. Let me know how that works out for you. Don't drop rounds and have to feel around for them. In a gunfight, you might wind us as evidence. BTW, gunfight corpses are evidence of crimes.

Like women, it boils down to preference. We like what we like.

BTW, there is a reason why no law enforcement agency of which I'm aware issues revolvers. And they're not subjective decisions.

One more BTW, I like revolvers. Were I limited to one handgun, it'd probably be a Model 27 .357 Mag because it has crossover to a wilderness survival weapon. But for self-defense, I'd take a good-quality 1911A1 in .45 ACP followed by a P-229 in .40 S&W every time.
 
Generally I prefer my autos. Higher capacity, simpler to reload (even with speed loaders, an auto is still faster to reload than a revolver) and your good quality autos (think H&K, Glock, Sig, Beretta, Walther, etc.) kept in good working order aren't really all that prone to malfunctions but if they do, a "tap, rack, bang" procedure will work for 90% or better for clearing these stoppages whereas I had 2 occasions where a full power .357 Magnum bound up my old S&W 586 tight so while in theory revolvers don't malfunction very often but when they do, they jam and it's pretty epic when it does happen. However, the revolver does have something else going for it.
I guess the 2 big things that a revolver has going for it over an auto is centered around the ammo.
Revolvers lend themselves for a more powerful cartridge than autos. With an auto, the length of the cartridge is limited to how big the grip can be made to accommodate a cartridge before it gets too large to be practical.
A revolver isn't limited to practical cartridge length to still be feasible. If you look at say a Taurus Judge with it's ability to chamber a .410 shotgun shell, you get an idea of what I am talking about. The other positive aspect of the revolver is that it's not dependent on a certain power level to function. For example, my Model 28 can fire .44 Magnum, .44 Special, .44 Russian and even snakeshot rounds without problems. An auto needs that certain power level to be able to operate the slide. When I lived in Wyoming, I kept a Taurus 85CH loaded with snakeshot loads to deal with rattlers. I also had .45 ACP snakeshot loads for my Sig P220 but that was really a 1-shot deal since it wouldn't cycle the slide whereas the revolver gave me a rapid second shot if needed.
 
True ,but it's still nowhere as easy as an auto, especially with a double stack with the narrow feed lips. But that brings up a problem with a revolver that no one else has mentioned and that's night firing. Every firearm is going to produce muzzle flash to one extent or another but a revolver also throws in another problem and that's the flash from the cylinder gap. I've tried it before and after the first round, especially with a .357 Magnum, your night vision is a gonner! Ever wonder why you don't really see tritium night sights for revolvers? Probably a reason for it, huh?
 
You may notice how the bulk of the autos "advantages" are in combat situations. A bit less in ordinary self defense type situations. And I won't dispute this. However, while they are very important, they are not the entire world of handgunning.

And, again, I caution you all against taking blanket pronouncements (except, of course, this one, :D) at full face value

In the realm of self-defense, semi-autos offer more powerful rounds. And no, the .357 Mag is not a man-stopper.
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I know, and know of a lot of people who would disagree with this statement.

An auto needs that certain power level to be able to operate the slide.
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Generally true, but not absolutely true. Although rare, I know one semi auto with an adjustable gas system that will literally run on anything that shoves the bullet out of the barrel.

It doesn't matter much to me what the military and police use, because I'm not them. 99.9999% of the time, my situations are not their situations. For the tiny remainder, when/IF it happens, I believe I will be able to manage well enough. There are a number of us who use both revolver and semi (and single shot too!), who understand the advantages and draw backs of each, in different situations.
 
I am the odd man out. I don't care about stopping power or number of rounds. Accuracy wins me heart and soul. I am not worried about chamber gap flash because I am not pulling the trigger unless my target, specifically, my target point is in my highly accurate and adjustable sights. I have no problem reloading in the dark because enough practice leads to flawless muscle memory. "What about nerves" You say? Simple. Walk yourself on a paintball field with a loud as can be GZ5000 one cock one shot 50 rd hopper relic against 200 round semi autos automags and sterling pumps laying paint like a titan sprayer enough times and you will have nerves of steel and the confidence to make the shot count to boot!

To make this long story short, I am perfectly comfortable and confident with my S&W K32 Masterpiece because if I pull that trigger, I won't miss.
 
Walk yourself on a paintball field with a loud as can be GZ5000 one cock one shot 50 rd hopper relic against 200 round semi autos automags and sterling pumps laying paint like a titan sprayer enough times and you will have nerves of steel and the confidence to make the shot count to boot!
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Personally, I wouldn't rely on a cool head in a paintball match as being indicative of the same in a firefight involving bullets, but to each their own.

Here's hoping neither of us finds out.
 
I feel that my revolvers hold enough rounds for SD. I am not in the military and am not LEO. I just want to have something handy in case someone tries to mug me. Or if they are dumb enough to try to break into my house when I am home (we have big loud dogs). Revolvers are plenty good enough for that, imho.
 
True ,but it's still nowhere as easy as an auto, especially with a double stack with the narrow feed lips. But that brings up a problem with a revolver that no one else has mentioned and that's night firing. Every firearm is going to produce muzzle flash to one extent or another but a revolver also throws in another problem and that's the flash from the cylinder gap. I've tried it before and after the first round, especially with a .357 Magnum, your night vision is a gonner! Ever wonder why you don't really see tritium night sights for revolvers? Probably a reason for it, huh?
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Hmmm, I have taken night classes with a semi auto but never with a revolver. I should try a night class with a revolver and see how it works out.
 
44AMP, the only advantage the auto has over the revolver is it holds more ammo. What I stated earlier is true, not an opinion. I realize that there are competition guns that are just as accurate and almost as reliable as the revolver. There are no autos that handle .500 or .460 S&W rounds, there is one that'll handle a .44 Mag but it is giant and not practical for carry without a sling. BUT no revolver holds 20 rounds, that is considered an advantage by some and in police or military applications may be an advantage. Friend of mine has a small 9mm auto the std. mag holds 12, the extended he carries as a reload hold 17 or 18. My carry is a 5 or 6 shot revolver or a subcompact 9 that holds 8. I don't carry a reload. Doesn't seem warranted as a civilian. I do have a couple auos that haven't malfunctioned yet, one is the 8 shot I sometimes carry, the other is a 92FS, the 92 is larger than I like to carry concealed.
 
BUT no revolver holds 20 rounds, that is considered an advantage by some and in police or military applications may be an advantage.
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Most semi autos don't either. I've got 9mms that have 18 round magazines but nothing that holds 20 rounds. And if you're in CA you can't have anything that holds over 10 rounds.
 
Photon Guy said:
Most semi autos don't either. I've got 9mms that have 18 round magazines but nothing that holds 20 rounds. And if you're in CA you can't have anything that holds over 10 rounds.
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Plenty of semi autos hold over 20, with aftermarket magazines...

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... And if you're in CA you can't have anything that holds over 10 rounds.
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I hate to say it but besides violating rights and being totally absurd from a safety or crime prevention standpoint, magazine restrictions have probably done a lot for the revolver market in some states.
 
there is one that'll handle a .44 Mag but it is giant and not practical for carry without a sling.
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I couldn't find the word (or requirement to be) "practical" in the OP.

I have 4 different semi autos in the .44Mag power class, (only one of them is a Desert Eagle) so I think I know a little bit about them. They are, indeed heavy but then the giant X frame S&Ws aren't exactly lightweights, either.

One advantage to revolver design is that it can be stretched to take longer rounds, without the need for them to fit in the gripframe. You could (absent laws making it an "assault weapon") make a semi along the lines of a broomhandle Mauser and use any length cartridge you want. BUT, at that point weight and bulk are little different than a carbine.

If you need 20 rnd capacity to be a good choice for you, then you do. If you need .500S&W power, then you do.

If you need both in one weapon, I suggest you re-examine just why that would be.
 
I have 4 different semi autos in the .44Mag power class, (only one of them is a Desert Eagle) so I think I know a little bit about them. They are, indeed heavy but then the giant X frame S&Ws aren't exactly lightweights, either.
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The X-frames are heavy but they are in an entirely different league. I could be wrong but aren't the magnum semi-autos down around .44 magnum power levels? As strange as it may sound to say "down around .44 magnum power levels", it's worth considering just how powerful the X-frame rounds really are. For instance, the venerable .454 Casull is essentially a .45 Colt magnum and is considerably more powerful than .44 magnum. The .460 S&W is essentially a .454 Casull magnum and is radically more powerful than .44 magnum!

Is there a semi-auto cartridge that competes with a .454 Casull?

As I think 44 AMP suggested, one style is king of capacity and the other is king of power. Getting the best of both worlds is a very tall order.
 
I keep seeing guys have NDs with their semi-autos and can't recall ever reading about this issue with a revolver. I'm sure it happens with a revolver but it seems 100x more frequent with the semi-autos.
 
Plenty of semi autos hold over 20, with aftermarket magazines...
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I've heard of magazines for 9mm that hold 20 rounds but not for the larger calibers. Do they make magazines that hold over 20 rounds for a .45 ACP?
 
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