Are revolvers relevant in the 21st century ?

Yeah, but you can't say that a cylinder which is much larger than any point of a flat auto isn't a problem for some.

Sharp lines vs an orange in your pocket. Either way, it's no less bulky than an auto BUT you get more rounds out of an auto.

It's not a capacity concern, it's a, "why would you go lower for a larger bulk?"
 
But are they even relevant in the 21st century as a weapon?
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Why do you think a functional weapon needs to be "relevant"??

relevant:

closely connected or appropriate to what is being done or considered.

appropriate to the current time, period, or circumstances; of contemporary interest.

As far as I can see, revolvers fit both versions of the definition.
 
wild cat mccane said:
Yeah, but you can't say that a cylinder which is much larger than any point of a flat auto isn't a problem for some.

Sharp lines vs an orange in your pocket. Either way, it's no less bulky than an auto BUT you get more rounds out of an auto.

It's not a capacity concern, it's a, "why would you go lower for a larger bulk?"
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Agree with you in all points. But you considered only two factors, concealability vs capacity. Both valid ones, but in my case I would consider reliability before any of them both.
 
Of course revolvers are relevant. First, I don't understand the 'capacity' thing as I am not a soldier which may 'need' the extra rounds, or law enforcement which may run into situations beyond the common citizen. I like my little .44 Special Bulldog for concealed carry. Unless the idea is to just spray bullets and pray you hit something them maybe the higher capacity (and several magazines of ammo available ) .... Next up is I read a lot of books by authors that have been there and done that... and I don't recall any handgun hunting done with the peanut 9mm catridge.... Nor any semi-autos for that matter. For me, the woods gun has to be a .4x cartridge to be relevant from what I've read again. Most people I know carry a revolver in the woods. And of course for play, the Single Action is the cat's meow for target shooting, etc. Personally, I don't have any reason at all to own a semi-auto as my revolvers do it all.
 
Worst failure you can experience is with a revolver. A bad/stuck round can't take an auto out like a round can lock up the cylinder.

Ask me how I know :)
 
wild cat mccane said:
Worst failure you can experience is with a revolver. A bad/stuck round can't take an auto out like a round can lock up the cylinder.

Ask me how I know :)
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Which was exactly your failure with the revolver?
The only ammunition-related cause I know that could turn a revolver unable to shoot is a bullet stuck in the barrel or forcing cone, and this because of a squib load. Judging for your comment on the cylinder locking I suspect you are talking about a bullet stuck at the forcing cone. It's real, in this case you have just a club in your hand. But exactly the same applies in case a bullet get stuck inside of a semiauto barrel, so such problem let both guns at the same level of un-usefulness.

And in case you may experience something like this in a semiauto you cannot clear it by hand neither.
 
I saw Glocks and HK USPs with such kind of failure, bullet stuck into the chamber, with explosions on the next shot that turned both guns into ruins.
 
I'm still not sure what caused this but once (out of thousands of rounds shot thru this revolver) I had a primer back out and lock up the cylinder.

Absolutely NOT a common occurence at all, but it happened.

A little judicial banging on the cylinder eventually got it to open.

I like both revolvers and semi-autos. They both have their places.
 
OK... Hunting with a revolver. I think most people would hunt with a rifle. However, if you are looking for portability then something like a Ruger Redhawk .44 mag 4.2" or its S&W equivalent would make sense. I am just curious did anyone shoot it without experiencing pain and discomfort? I assume we are not after small game like rabbits but still don't need any heavy loads.
 
Originally Posted by wild cat mccane View Post
Worst failure you can experience is with a revolver. A bad/stuck round can't take an auto out like a round can lock up the cylinder.

Ask me how I know
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SO, how do you know?? :rolleyes:

The worst failure you can experience with a firearm can happen to ANY firearm, is NOT restricted to revolvers and semi autos are NOT immune.
(its the dreaded "ka-boom where the gun literally blows up in a catastrophic failure to contain the pressure)

No, a bad/stuck round in a semi can't lock up the cylinder, because there is no cylinder to lock up. However, it can, and has, locked up semi autos to the point of requiring tools and disassembly of the firearm to clear.

Ask me how I know? Because I've SEEN it, and had it happen to me.

Most of the time, stoppages in a semi are easily cleared, and most of the time stoppage in a revolver requires more effort, usually meaning the gun is out of service until then. But MOST of the time is not ALL the time, and to state otherwise is both untrue and I think, deliberately misleading.
 
44 AMP said:
SO, how do you know?? :rolleyes:

The worst failure you can experience with a firearm can happen to ANY firearm, is NOT restricted to revolvers and semi autos are NOT immune.
(its the dreaded "ka-boom where the gun literally blows up in a catastrophic failure to contain the pressure)

No, a bad/stuck round in a semi can't lock up the cylinder, because there is no cylinder to lock up. However, it can, and has, locked up semi autos to the point of requiring tools and disassembly of the firearm to clear.

Ask me how I know? Because I've SEEN it, and had it happen to me.

Most of the time, stoppages in a semi are easily cleared, and most of the time stoppage in a revolver requires more effort, usually meaning the gun is out of service until then. But MOST of the time is not ALL the time, and to state otherwise is both untrue and I think, deliberately misleading.
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Totally agree with you. And that's the reason why the revolver is more reliable than a pistol.
 
Kurbsky said:
At some point even collectors will give them up, just like the they did on barbie dolls and vynil records.
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Apparently you haven't bought vinyl records lately. Some of those old albums are pricey. Even my fairly modest collection (just under 700) is valued at over $20K.

I like my albums because they sound amazing. I like my revolvers because they shoot amazing.
 
OK... Hunting with a revolver. I think most people would hunt with a rifle. However, if you are looking for portability then something like a Ruger Redhawk .44 mag 4.2" or its S&W equivalent would make sense. I am just curious did anyone shoot it without experiencing pain and discomfort?
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For most hunting, most people do choose rifles, but there are a significant number of people who hunt big game (deer, etc) with handguns, and not just revolvers, and none of them I know (including myself) would voluntarily handicap ourselves with a 4.someting inch barrel.

Handgun Hunting is not about concealability or even "easy packing". Its about using a handgun instead of a rifle, and even a 4lb 14" barrel pistol is less cumbersome and lighter than a carbine or rifle.

So we mostly choose longer barrel lengths, 6", 7.5" or 8" to maximize the available power in what is still a shorter, lighter handier package than a rifle. With magnum loads, the difference over a 4" can be a couple hundred fps and that is not an insignificant amount of energy.

As to pain and discomfort from shooting it, a lot depends on the gun and the grips. My Ruger Super Blackhawk with Pachmayr grips is not painful or uncomfortable to shoot, but my S&W model 29 with the factory wood grips shooting the exact same ammo is quite painful. And my Desert Eagle shooting the same ammo is a comparative pussycat for recoil, though it does roar quite loudly! :D

TO shoot heavy loads, the gun needs some heft to it, AND it needs grips that fit your hand well, for the recoil level. Stock wood grips on most guns are fine until the recoil level exceeds .45 Colt (factory level) or .357 Magnum. Then they get uncomfortable, quickly and painful as the recoil level increases.

.44 Mag and "Ruger Only" .45 Colt recoil is a "whole 'nother level" and of course, the .454 and bigger rounds are above that.

Experience matters, too. What I can use and tolerate might be quite different than what works for you.
 
Defensive guns intended for use against two legged critters is only a part of the hand gun big picture.

I shoot hand guns in following order for volume:

- Break open single shot (TC Contender)
- Revolver (Rugers)
- Semi Auto (Glock)

We all have different needs and desires. Many will continue to find that wheel guns fit part or all of their needs/desires. And this will continue to include use of snubbies and the like for defensive use.

Even if they stopped making new revolvers, there are a lot of them out there. Many of these would continue to find there way into pockets, holsters and stashed near bedsides for many many decades to come. Typically they just work.

People that feel that otherwise are most likely thinking too narrowly. Yes the plastic fantastic autos can be made at a low cost allowing good profits for makers. This is probably one of the bigger reasons for their popularity.

Actual defensive use of a hand gun is very rare. Use for defense where more than 5 rounds is needed by a competent shooter is so rare that the whole capacity argument is close to trivial. The capacity argument sells based on emotional appeal much more than anything factual.

Although good revolvers tend to cost a little more, I feel you get what you pay for. Like many, I voted with my pocket book. I spent a little more and went with revolvers for all my recent hand gun purchases.

My son is closer to a 50 - 50 split. He still shoots his 4" GP-100 357 by close to a 4 to one margin over the Glock 9 mm at the range.
 
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Ya gotta love the internet, so much BS constantly being thrown out there. The much Overrated high capacity nonsense which is the latest, sounds like CNN on steroids, any new fad always leads to this kind of thing. Revolvers will be obsolete, single stacks will be gone, the 380 cartridge is done, etc etc. A few small guns come out with a higher round count and all of a sudden gun owners across the world are tossing their guns into the fire. Revolvers, Single stacks etc. Constant chatter that you are a dead man walking if you have less than this , or less than that for capacity. All without a single substantive statistic and reality goes right out the window.
Remember when the big bore boys would tell you the same kind of thing about 40 cal vs 9mm? You were a dead man walking back then as well if you did not carry it. Then they would go after the 380 etc. All of which has shown one thing. It is just internet BS. Revolvers are still solid as a rock, 380's are more popular than ever and single stacks are actually preferred by millions. Gosh the Over rated capacity thing now is the latest fad, folks forget the the Keltec PF11 with 11 plus 1 came out years ago, and has been discontinued for years. Most double stack new small gun owners conveniently do not tell you that loading one of the magazines is a pain in the but without a upula. And of course shooting the fad gun, means it will always be the best shooter for all. Guess what, it is NOT.
Revolvers? Can you imagine how many millions of dollars would be LOST if Manufacturers discontinued the Revolver? The Revolver is solid as a rock and not going anywhere, regardless of what the latest fad is.
Scare tactics are used to place fear in a person. Don't do this or that you will die. But Scare tactics are SHORT term tactics and selling points. They do not last long once people come to their senses.
 
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"Yeah, but you can't say that a cylinder which is much larger than any point of a flat auto isn't a problem for some."

From dimensions specifications I found on the web...

Width of a J frame across the cylinder -- 33.1 mm.

Width of a Glock Model 19 -- 30 mm

A MASSIVE difference.... That "flat auto" just disappears by comparison...

Regarding the "problem for some," the same can be said about the grips frame on a semi-auto. Some find it to be a problem.



"Sharp lines vs an orange in your pocket. Either way, it's no less bulky than an auto BUT you get more rounds out of an auto."

The Hottentots are coming for us all...

And, once again, I've carried a J frame in a pocket holster for over 20 years and have never been made. The key to doing it is to use the PROPER holster so you don't telegraph.
 
"A bad/stuck round can't take an auto out like a round can lock up the cylinder."

Wow. Where did you ever come up with that?

I've seen more locked up semi-autos caused by cases stuck in the chamber than I have revolvers locked up by backed out primers, squibs, etc.

I've also seen quite a few semi-autos rendered useless by damaged magazines that won't feed properly.

I've NEVER seen the magazine (the cylinder) on a revolver fail.
 
Back in 1993/1994 I was associate editor of American Rifleman magazine.

We were still firmly entrenched in the Wonder9 era. Pretty much every other day, and twice on Sundays, one or more of the gun companies was introducing the "NEWEST, GREATEST, HIGHEST CAPACITY 9MM/10MM/.45ACP (insert caliber here)" handgun to market to great fanfare and more speculation that this gun or that gun was the final nail in the coffin of the tired old anachronistic revolver...

Magazines like Guns & Ammo and Handgunner seemed to hold a "funeral/wake for the revolver" on a monthly basis.

After all, no one, and I mean NO ONE was buying revolvers anymore, right? So why were the gun makers even bothering to keep them in production if they were only selling 3 a year?

So, I decided to start talking to the various manufacturers and put together an article on revolvers. Since we were also moving forward at the state level on CCW shall issue legislation, I decided to focus on concealed carry revolvers.

As I talked to reps for the various companies, some interesting trends began to emerge...

Despite what all of the magazines were telling us (YOU'LL DIE IF YOU DON'T HAVE 20 OR MORE ROUNDS IN YOUR CARRY GUN! DIE! and REVOLVERS ARE OBSOLETE AND WILL BE DISCONTINUED TOMORROW!), what I found out from Smith, Ruger, and the other companies was quite... revealing...

Not only were ALL revolvers selling well, the concealed carry revolvers were, by and large, selling better and faster than anyone had any reason to believe possible (if you listened to Buns & Whammo or the other mags.)

None of the companies were interested in letting me print actual production and sales numbers, but the numbers that they did share with me were eye opening and certainly proved that far fewer people were drinking the gun press kool-aide than most people believed.
 
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