One shot to live ... Auto ... or ... Revolver

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WildBill45

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You and your family are on a cross-country trip, and sleeping in a small hotel on the edge of some high crime city, when the door busts open in the middle of the night. The large silhouette in the doorway is holding a knife, a Big Knife, and your kids are still sleeping. You grab your handgun next to you on the bedside table as he enters the room and you only have time for one shot to save everybody.

BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF AND US:

Would you feel more nervous and think about if the gun will work more if you had an auto in your hand than if you had a revolver?

Seriously, that last time your handgun failed, was it an auto or a revolver?

Which would you choose with one shot and your family’s life was on the line … PERIOD … NO OTHER OPTIONS OR THOUGHTS … PERIOD

WHICH ONE AND WHY?
 
It's fairly obvious you want us to say "Revolver all the way!".

I'd use the gun I am most familiar, competent and comfortable with.
 
Last time I had a failure in a semi-auto, I just had to tap/rack.

Last time I had a failure in a revolver, I had to disassemble the gun 3 times to find the problem (washer from the grips came loose and jammed the main-spring).
 
I'd be comfortable with the first one out of the safe. I know my firearms, revolvers and autos, I maintain them and shoot them enough to be comfortable with them all. I can't remember the last time I had a failure that was not ammo related (i.e from load development, which doesn't really count)

Personal preference would be for an auto. HK, Sig, Glock, 1911 all work just fine though I'd choose the 1911, likely in .38 super :)
 
Smith Model 28, only gun I've had bullet holes touching with, been shooting it the longest and feel the most comfortably with it, and nobody can deny that a .357 has some stopping power.

Last failure I had was when rounds were sticking because of the ring of gunk you get from shooting 38s out of a .357. Last failure I had in an auto was when I was using 8 and 10 round magazines at the same time and put 9 rounds in an 8 round mag and it jammed in the gun and I had to pull the magazine out. The only time I've had an actually failure in any type of firearm was in my 10/22 I put so many rounds through it the magazines just gave out.
 
WHICH ONE AND WHY?
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The one I brought. ...because it's what I have available. ;)



That may sound a bit sarcastic, but it's a serious answer. If I don't trust a handgun, I don't use it. I have both revolvers and semi-autos that find themselves on self-defense/home-defense duty. I don't prefer one over the other, in general. On a trip, there are a lot of different factors that can influence me, as to which handgun I decide to bring.

Sometimes, it might be consideration of what a state I'm traveling through defines, or doesn't define, as "unloaded", and the requirements that go along with that. Other times, I grab whatever hasn't been on a "field trip" for a while. Other times, I might grab something specifically for its magazine/cylinder capacity (generally a consideration of wildlife in the area - not a preparation for fending off a flash mob). And, other times, I might grab something for its simplicity (DAO S&W J-frame comes to mind).


What I can tell you, for certain, is that if some one were to break into my house and come after my family tonight, I would be working the J-frame (simplicity and reliability) and my wife would be running a Ruger P-95DC (simplicity, reliability, AND magazine capacity ;)).
 
My current traveling kit is the following :

Primary Handgun - HK USP 45 ACP
Secondary Handgun - Para-Ord P-13 45 ACP
Primary Shotgun - Saiga-12, folding stock, 2 X 10 round magazines 12 gauge
Primary Carbine - AR "handgun" 11.5 inch barrel, 2 X 25 round magazines, 6.8X43mm caliber

I always have this kit with me when I'm on the road - especially if I am staying a motel. It all fits into a tennis racket bag which doesn't attract attention or even seem to be worth stealing.

To keep this in your narrative - let's say I was up (not in bed where I always keep the shotgun or carbine handy) and for whatever reason the handguns were closest to me - I would go with the HK USP because it is the gun which I have the most confidence in being able to hit my target. Reliability is not an issue with this gun either.
 
One shot? I'd use my TRP 1911. Worried about a failure? Not at all.

When I carry or have a home defense gun handy there is always a round in the chamber so I would have zero concerns that I couldn't get at least a single round off.

My last jammed up gun was a revolver by the way, it was a Taurus M85.
 
One shot? Just awakened. I am disoriented, bad light. I don't have my glasses on. I choose a single action Army Colt 45. Barrel length, type of sights don't matter.

There may be a lot of reasons for choosing a great many other guns in other situations, and any doubts I have about other types don't include a fear of a 1911 failing to fire the round up the pipe, but in the scenario laid out where I might not be able to see the front sight, and might not have time for a second shot, and I have to rely on speed and instinctive pointing, I want the one I have known since childhood.
 
Not too long ago, at the range my very first shot was a dud. Pulled the the trigger and the gun did not go boom. First shot dud despite repeated trigger pulls. Still have the cartridge. The gun, a S&W SW99 in 45ACP, DA/SA.... what are the chances of that ? Since then, had a somewhat similar thing happen with a Sig P239 in 9mm. (2nd shot ftf)

Nowadays I try to make sure my go-to gun is always a revolver. Even if the first shot fails the next trigger pull will do the job.
 
Would you feel more nervous and think about if the gun will work more if you had an auto in your hand than if you had a revolver?
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No, why should I?

Seriously, that last time your handgun failed, was it an auto or a revolver?
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Last time my handgun failed to fire was a couple of years ago. It was an H&R Silver Sportsman .22 revolver I bought in a pawnshop. It was made in 1964 but looks brand new. It would misfire 2 or 3 rounds out of every cylinder of 9. Very aggravating. It's in the back of one of the safes somewhere, maybe one day I'll feel like fooling with it.

Which would you choose with one shot and your family’s life was on the line … PERIOD … NO OTHER OPTIONS OR THOUGHTS … PERIOD

WHICH ONE AND WHY?
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Why in the world would I only fire one shot? My splits between shots typically run just over a tenth of a second. I'll shoot till the threat is gone. Anyway, I'd go with any of my 1911's or Glocks that I've been training and competing with for the last 25 years or so. They're proven to be 100% reliable. Why would I throw all that training and practice away hoping to master the trigger pull of a revolver while some guy is coming at me with a big knife?

In over 25 years of running matches and training classes, every initial failure to fire that I've seen is because the shooter didn't have ammo in the chamber. Didn't make any difference whether it was a revolver or semi-auto.

The type of tool you use (revolver or semi) will be irrelevant. Your proficiency with the tool will be the deciding factor.

Whether it's a revolver or semi will be just as important to the outcome of the engagement as the color of the towels in the hotel bathroom.
 
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This is a pointless thread, you obviously want to steer us into your chosen answer. The correct answer is the one you brought with you. As was said before, I wont keep a unreliable pistol.

I honestly don't see the point of this thread, its only going to start a auto vs revolver debate. I think this thread should be closed. As for trolling attempt I give you 1/10 for lack of creativity.
 
You grab your handgun next to you on the bedside table as he enters the room and you only have time for one shot to save everybody.
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I don't want to appear to stray off topic by challenging the hypothesis, but I would not be confident in depending upon "one shot to save everybody."

A shotgun would likely do if it if one could get on target and score a hit quickly enough.

Otherwise, the issue becomes one of reliability and rapid fire controllability.

Either a medium to large frame revolver with a good DA pull or a single action semiautomatic would be my choice. If it has to be my carry weapon, that rules out the revolver.
 
mordis said:
I honestly don't see the point of this thread, its only going to start a auto vs revolver debate. I think this thread should be closed.
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This is an internet gun forum. Why should it be closed? You'll find that if you're not interested in a thread and don't click on the link to it, it won't make any difference to you whether it's open or closed, but people who would like to discuss it are still able to.
 
Seems to me that the proper choice would be the particular individual reliable handgun with which you are most proficient in hitting an intended target.

Rational thought and testing would have determined the reliability of your choice of weapon. Practice would have let you determine whether you are most proficient with either a revolver or a semi-auto pistol.

Stipulating that all of you are rational and thoughtful as well as practiced and skillful, I see no difference between a revolver and a semi-auto pistol.

I say again: "The best handgun is the one with which you can best hit your intended target."
 
Boy ... are some folks sensitive or what?

This is about how one feels when it is real, nothing more. If you ask a combat vet or a cop, they can answer this quicker than most, as they know the feeling I was trying to convey, as most have been in that place ... Death standing before them ... therefore it is not theory or training ... that confidence in your chosen weapon really comes home at that last moment, on the edge of life or death in that flash of light. Why do you think double rifles have stayed so popular, two quick shots even if one round or primer was bad, or a firing pin was bad, etc...

This is all I am asking; how confident, without all the other factors being brought to bear here, do you feel more confident with one style of gun design over the other in that last grasp of the edge before going over the cliff ... just for a brief moment suspend your present choice of gun or agenda or firearm-political view and any anticipatory self-defense of your views or shooting styles...

If you have been there, the better, if not, open your mind with this very simple question. It is about you, not necessarily the gun. Fear is real whether perceived or actual...
 
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