I'm becoming a revolver man

[Overkill777]

I have been carrying a smith and wesson j frame for a couple years now. With a lot of practice and a lot of dry fire training, I have become quite a fan of a revolver with a nice double action trigger. After recently upgrading my grip I like it and shoot it even more.

Also after having reliability issues with semi autos it makes me appreciate the simplicity of revolvers.

I also shoot revolvers more accurately. I shoot my j frame better than my full size 1911.

And finally they are more fun to reload for because they aren't chucking your brass 4 lanes over.

With all that said I've decided I'm going to buy a smith and wesson 629. I just have to decide 4 or 6 inch barrel!

I think this would be a really fun cartridge to reload, and with all of the above reasons and more it's a no brainer.

 

[Mastrogiacomo]

I recently acquired a S&W 586 to go with my 686+ - I'm always amazed how much I love the gun...revolvers are just special....

Laura

 

[tallball]

I agree. I generally shoot them better and generally prefer them for SD.

With one of my revolvers it doesn't matter which ammo I use or how I grip it. I pull the trigger and it goes bang.

 

[UncleEd]

All posters so far are woefully wrong.

Many more like them and it'll get harder
and harder to find those crummy revolvers.

Stick with the Tupperware, it's modern, dogs
like to chew on them and you can go bang,
bang, bang just like when you owned a 50-shot
capgun.

 

[AK103K]

I dont think you have much to worry about in that respect. Autos are the "thing" these days, and thats not likely to change, Deals on the older, more desirable revolvers still seem to abound, or at least around here they do. I have seen they are climbing quickly in other places though, and the newer revolvers are not cheap, or even reasonable.

Ive generally always shot my revolvers better than my autos, from a "small group" stand point. They just seem to be more inherently accurate.

The downside to them, is capacity and reloading. Not that reloading is necessarily difficult or slow, but it does take more practice to be good at it, and the reloads tend to be a good bit bulkier to carry than the mags.

 

[T. O'Heir]

Reliability issues with semi-autos is usually the ammo. A guy playing with the strain screw on some revolver can make them just as unreliable.
A Smith and Wesson 629 fit your hand? 'N' Frames are big SOB's.
"...I pull the trigger and it goes bang..." But does the bullet that comes out of it go where you wanted it to?

 

[AK103K]

Reliability issues with semi-autos is usually the ammo.

And it can be with the revolvers as well.

The problem with revolvers when there is an issue, is its usually a tied up gun at that point, and not easily straightened out. With the autos, its usually a quick TRB and youre back in business.

A Smith and Wesson 629 fit your hand? 'N' Frames are big SOB's.

They arent really to bad, especially with a proper set of grips. The old "Coke bottle" target type grips are shaped wrong and not the best. The old service type stocks with a "T grip", or something like the Houges, give a much different feel, and are much more comfortable.

 

[abowlieb]

IMO a Ruger Red Hawk or Super Red hawk would be more fun to reload for. I personally like the Red Hawk's looks better then the Super Red Hawk.

I only say that because you can load hoyter rounds more often with the Rugers. The 629 is a very beautiful gun but from the way I read your post, you seem more like a shooter and that Red Hawk will be able to handle more loads.

This was my reasoning for picking the GP100 over the S&W 686. I am very happy I did too!

 

[Overkill777]

from the way I read your post, you seem more like a shooter and that Red Hawk will be able to handle more loads

Thanks for the tip but after owning both ruger and smith and wesson revolvers, I prefer the trigger on the smiths. Nothing against the rugers, I love how they look and respect how beefy they are but I just prefer s&w triggers.

As far as the loads I will probably shoot 44 specials or light magnums more than anything and probaby not go above standard magnum loads. I think if I needed a bigger bang I would go with a bigger caliber or a rifle.

 

[Skeets]

I've had both 4"and 6".I very much preferred the 6",way more "shootable" for me.

 

[tallball]

"But does the bullet that comes out of it go where you wanted it to?"

I have practiced enough that I should be better than I am. When I was 15 I got a Ruger Single Six convertible. I've been shooting revolvers ever since. After 35 years of shooting I can hit what I'm aiming at... sometimes. I'm hoping to practice another 35 years and finally get good at it.

That doesn't 100% carry over to semi-automatics, for me anyway. I really have to concentrate more to shoot them decently. Shooting revolvers (especially the ones I've been shooting for decades) feels less like work. It's more relaxed.

If I'd grown up with semi-autos it might have turned out the other way around.

 

[Dave Chuppa]

I like Snub Revolvers. All I shoot are my LCR357, SP101, and S&W442. I don't shoot 357 ammo in light guns anymore. I save the 357 for when I shoot my 4". I carry Two of the Snubs every day. When I practice at the Range I load up my Speed Loaders so I can practice reloading also. I'm no speed deamon but I do OK.

 

[armedleo]

Us older guys trained on revolvers and no question as to their superior reliability over semi autos. But its capacity the revolvers lack. That being said, today's semi autos from high-end manufacturers are incredibly reliable and offer the firepower we know the bad guys have. That's why the cops switched over to semi autos from revolvers. With a well made semi auto and good training in manipulation (clearing malfunctions) the balance tips in favor of semi autos. This is especially true when considering that upwards of 80% of shots fired (by police) miss their mark completely. So, do the math. If you're gun's capacity is only 6 rds you're lucky if 2 hit the intended target. I'll take 15 + 1 capacity any day. I am partial to DAO and like it in my semi autos. BTW, the days of the lone highwayman or rogue bandit are long gone. If you are set upon today likely it will be by two, three, or more banditos.

 

[Overkill777]

Yeah high capacity is the fad right now it seems. If I need more capacity I'll use my 1911 with a bunch of spare mags or better yet my AK. Im not against autos, im just saying for my purposes my preference is shifting to revolvers right now. Which might change in a couple years but so what? Then I'll buy a new gun at that time.

I'm not swat, or any kind of law enforcement for that matter, so those stats don't really apply to me.

 

[AK103K]

I'm not swat, or any kind of law enforcement for that matter, so those stats don't really apply to me.

A J frame doesnt give you much in the way of options. They have a tendency to run dry real quick. Do you practice your reloads regularly? Try running one of the combat courses with it and see what you think.

 

[bedbugbilly]

I'm older - 62 - and consider myself a "revolver guy" as well. My current carry is a Smith Model 36 J frame snub. I also have the 3" 36 . . . plus K frames, Rugers, Colts, etc.

What it boils down to is "practice". If you don't practice with your carry . . you aren't going to be able to hit your target at SD ranges. I once had a Colt 1911A1 - pristine that was brought back by a WWII Navy Pilot. I could'd hit a barn with it if I was standing on the roof and pointing the pistol down - but that is me.

I do practice reloading my 36 as that's part of the SD "drill". But . . . I will soon be switching to a semi-auto. Why? Answer is simple . . . capacity. Plain and simple. Why? Because I feel more secure with more rounds and I have also had training on them including clearing them, switching mags. etc.

I used to feel secure carrying a wheelgun with five in the cylinder. Not anymore. I winter in AZ - about 40 miles north of the border. I go into a city every so often to shop, etc. While we avoid bad areas, etc. . . . there is gang activity. If we are traveling out in the boonies where the roads are not well traveled and happen to have a flat or break down, I want a little more "fire power" . . you just don't know who or what will happen along. With the drug activity and smuggling, the "bandits" who roam to rob the smugglers, etc. . . you are not talking a "single bad guy". Most seem to think that a SD situation will involve only one "perp". Not so true anymore . . . and those people, if armed, will probably not be armed with a wheelmen . . they'll be armed with something that can spray many rounds.

Part of SD is being aware of your surroundings. It's about being aware of what and who is around you if a situation should escalate. One class that I took, in which I got excellent training with semi-auto handguns, was not only about "shooting skills" . . but scanning as well. If your eyes weren't "working" the area and scanning for any additional "perps" . . you got hammered by the instructor. Hand gun "malfunctions" were set up and the training was to get you to "react" . . not "think about" the solution so you could clear your weapon and keep firing.

We all hope that we will never be put in to a situation where we have to draw or use our weapon if carrying. What a person "carries" is their decision and if they choose a revolver or a semi-auto - it's their choice. Just don't don't become so overly confident with whatever you acre carrying and think that it is 100% reliable - maybe yes . . maybe no.

The other day, I read a post that a fellow put up saying he was going to carry his .357 Ruger New Vaquero as his CCW . . . the .357 was a good cartridge and he knew he could "handle" whatever came along . . single action or not. He just might be able to . . . . if he comes face to vance with a bad guy who is also armed with a single action revolver . . . but he'd better hope that it is just one guy and when he draws, he doesn't panic and try pulling the trigger without cocking the piece because he is also used to shooting a SA semi-auto. And, I hope he plans out what he is going to do if two or three come at him from different angles. He just might have a major problem if one or more of them are armed with high capacity double stacks?

I'm not saying one is better than the other (revolver over semi). I'm just saying that we all have choices and a person needs to select what fits their individual situation the best that makes them feel the most secure.

 

[pete2]

I've had way less trouble with revolvers than semis. Good ammo goes a long way to keep either gun working. No bad mag to worry about with revolvers, get a misfire just pull trigger again. No limp wrist problem. If you hand load it gets even more likely you'll have malfunctions with semis until you get the load worked out. Ammo needs to meet factory specs( this is good in a revolver too but the revolver is more forgiving). Give me a S&W revolver or a 1911 and I'm a happy camper.

 

[AK103K]

Not that Ive had much trouble with my reloads, Ive had more issues with reloads in my revolvers than I have my autos.

Things that just cause an auto to stop, and make you look, tend to make a revolver go boom if youre not paying attention. Its just way to easy to pull that trigger again, especially if youre shooting fast.

 

[Overkill777]

I love how in a revolver you can load really light loads to really heavy loads to anything in between and they all function. My 1911 is very forgiving in this respect but a lot of semi autos aren't.

 

[MrBorland]

And finally they are more fun to reload for because they aren't chucking your brass 4 lanes over.

If this means, like it often does, that you casually eject brass into your hand and leisurely reload one round at a time, I'll echo AK103K and suggest you regularly practice your reloads-on-the-clock.