My favorite thing about revolvers (over semiautos)

T

TennJed

New member
I am a revolver guy at heart, but I have been on an Autoloader kick lately. Been reading a lot more post about auto guns as a result. I noticed everytime I click on a thread about how great such-n-such semiauto is the first sentence is usually something like

"Went to the range today with my new gun and NOT ONE MALFUNCTION. It ate everything I fed it"

Never see this on the revolver threads for some reason. :) Yet I hear alot about how far semiautos have come and reliabilty is not too much of an issue......but (and maybe it is just me) but it does seem like the first words of praise about an autoloader is reliabilty. Six shots without a stovepipe, FTF, or FTE sure beats 12 jams
 
The only time I ever had a failure with a revolver was a time that my crimper was set too lightly. some cartridges didn't crimp, and were slightly flared as a result. At the range, the things locked in and wouldn't eject; I had to press all of them out individually with a cleaning rod.

My stupid mistake
 
Auto-loaders have three advantages over revolvers: flatter for concealed carry, potentially higher capacity, and quicker reloads. If you don't need these advantages, the revolver is the logical choice.
 
Also no brass chasing:p...don't get me wrong I like autos it just seem to me that that is the first thing that people mention......doesn't jam...maybe I am trying to talk myself back over from the darkside and get off my semiauto kick
 
I don't think you'll get too many arguements about the reliability and simplicity of a revolver compared to a semi-auto. I also don't think very many would argue that an AX is more reliable than a hydraulic log splitter either.
 
Recoil junkies tend to gravitate towards revolvers.
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Some do, some don't. I learned early on to download my revolvers with the lightest loads listed. They are much more pleasant to shoot. But with autos, you do not have the luxury of such light loads inasmuch as the autos have to have enough energy to cycle the action.
 
I enjoy my auto's but chasing the brass is really starting to get old. I find myself going to the range more and more with my revolvers. 45 Colt 45acp N-frame and always 38 spl. I love the auto's but have been getting the cold shoulder lately they barely speak to me. ;)
 
dahermit said:
Some do, some don't. I learned early on to download my revolvers with the lightest loads listed. They are much more pleasant to shoot. But with autos, you do not have the luxury of such light loads inasmuch as the autos have to have enough energy to cycle the action.
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With semiautos, a lighter recoil spring is usually necessary for the gun to cycle reliably with powderpuff handloads.

If I'm planning on an extended range session with one of my big bore revolvers, I'll usually bring along some light loads to reduce the wear and tear on my wrist. However, while shooting the revolver with these light handloads, I've occasionally had other range users come up and comment that the gun didn't seem at all as noisy or obnoxious as its caliber would suggest. That's when I load the cylinder up with my full-house handloads and touch off a few rounds, then offer to let the observer finish off the rest of the rounds in the gun. They usually never refuse, and almost always have a goofy grin on their faces after the last round (especially if they've shot my .454 SRH).
 
I think the reason people mention that an autoloader performed flawlessy is due primarily for three reasons.

The first, it is recommend that you should "break-in" an autoloader because of the tight machining tolerances. When a person cycles a gun a few hundred times it allows all the internal parts to "settle in" with each other. Basically, it is making the gun "detail finish" itself rather than hand-fitting eerything for smoother performance. Occassionally, some autos (like Kahrs) that have extremely tight fitting small parts will experience a few malfunctions until things have "worn in" after a few hundred rounds.

Another reason people mention a lack of malfunction in an auto pistol is ammo. Certain semiautos for various reasons (usually the feed ramp angle or magazine design) don't feed particular types of ammo very well. Nowadays, this often only an issue with exceptionally wide mouthed hollowpoint designs or cartridges that are loaded with the bullet depth deviating from the standard length. Again, most guns designed for self-defense have loose enough tolerances to allow for darn near anything you throw down range.

Finally, the third reason people mention that a new semiauto didn't malfunction, is to let people know that it is a good reliable option for self-defense. Many people still harken back to the archaic idea notion that semiautos are not reliable enough to use for self-defense. The past 100 years of service by our military and 25 years of service by most other law enforcement agencies has finally helped to end this debate.
 
My revolvers tend to suffer from ignition failure, which is something that I've literally never had a problem with when shooting any of my auto pistols. I'd say my revolvers probably fail to fire about 5% of the time, while my autos, regardless of ammo, clean, dirty, etc., are 99.9% reliable.
Guys who shoot revolvers in competition generally are very specific about which primers they use in their handloads, as only the most sensitive can be counted upon to work every time.
Funny that one of the advantages claimed for revolvers is that they are not "ammo sensitive", because power levels and bullet shapes don't affect function, but there's more to sensitivity than feed reliability.
I've not shot revolvers nearly as much as auto pistols, but have a list of a half-dozen reliability issues that I've experienced with the former. When I listed them, one guy who claimed to have shot tens of thousands of rounds through his revolvers claimed he'd never experienced any of them. You'll also find guys who claim to have fired 10,000 or 50,000, or 450,000 rounds through their auto pistols without a failure of any kind. I'm sure they've never had a dead battery, or a clogged toilet, or a warm beer, either. ;)
 
I like them both ....especially in 1911's on the semi-auto side ...and older S&W revolvers on the revolver side...

To me ...its an apples and oranges thing ...they're very different / and while I might choose to carry a K frame revolver once in a while ..they're pretty big ..vs a 1911. I like to shoot both ...and when I make it a "revolver day" at the range....I'll have 3 or 4 guns with me ..maybe a K, L and N frame ...drawing from holsters, doing double taps ..and working on my reloads even though I'm ridiculously slow ..its just fun.

I don't bother comparing one to the other ...its kind of like my big SUV compared to my wife's fancy hard-top convertible ...they're both nice vehicles ...but do very different things.../sort of the same / but sort of not the same.../ I drive the one I feel like driving .../ and I shoot the guns I feel like shooting that day.
 
RickB -

Unless your gun was tuned for competition and has a light trigger pull, I suspect something's amiss with your gun. Strain screw backed out, endshake, mainspring or hammer rubbing on something internal, firing pin, etc.

I do agree, though, that revolver reliability is easily overrated. If you've never experienced a revolver malfunction, you likely haven't pushed them hard enough. :cool:
 
TenJed:

When I was shooting on a Marine Corps pistol team I purchased a Smith & Wesson model 29, 44 Magnum to build strength in my shooting arm. I don't know why I don't own an auto loader because I enjoyed my 1911 match pistols; however, I do shoot six revolvers.


Semper Fi.

Gunnery sergeant
Clifford L. Hughes
USMC Retired
 
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Face it folks the wheel gun vs bottom feeder debate will never go away, and it is really rather silly. Face it everybody needs at lest one of each. (probably a lot more than one):D
 
RickB -

Unless your gun was tuned for competition and has a light trigger pull, I suspect something's amiss with your gun. Strain screw backed out, endshake, mainspring or hammer rubbing on something internal, firing pin, etc.

I do agree, though, that revolver reliability is easily overrated. If you've never experienced a revolver malfunction, you likely haven't pushed them hard enough.
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Both when stock, and after a factory "Master Action Job", the revolver through which I've fired the most rounds is not especially reliable. Some shooters will hand-seat only Federal primers to ensure ignition reliability, and I could probably do that considering the relatively limited amount of rounds the gun sees.
 
What type of revolvers are you shooting? If you bought them new and paid for the work to be done, you should send them back for a little tweaking for better reliablity.

A 5% failure to perform is very high EVEN in a gun set-up for strictly competition. No serious competition (or even somewhat regular recreational) shooter would use/tolerate a firearm that malfunctions about 5 out of every 100 rounds!

Most use certain "soft" primers to help FURTHER REDUCE (read: almost COMPLETELY eliminate) the chance of a light strike. It's not normally done out of necessity for the gun to function properly.
 
Both platforms have distinct advantages and disadvantages and neither is universally better than the other, it all depends on the application.

Semi-Automatic Advantages
Potentially higher capacity
Faster and easier to reload under stress
flatter (easier for some to conceal)
better recoil-to-power ratio
more accurate with low-power cartridges due to blowback operation
available with DAO, DA/SA, or SAO trigger types
more tolerant of outright abuse

Revolver Advantages
Better power-to-size ratio
more rounded contours (easier for some to conceal)
inability to be pushed out of battery
immune to grip-induced malfunction
less sensitive to bullet shape and cartridge power level
does not need a magazine to function
simpler manual of arms
generally has a better DA trigger than most DA autos
second-strike capability with a fresh cartridge
more tolerant of neglect
more accurate with medium to high-power cartridges due to fixed barrel
wider variety of aftermarket grip shapes and styles
 
RickB - something is very wrong with your revolvers. You must have gotten a very poor action job for that to happen. I've fed a bunch of different ammo through my revolver which has has a substantially lighter hammer spring than stock and it's fired every time.

Send them back and have them do the action job right - there's no reason to live with that nonsense.
 
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