L E O carrying a revolver
- Thread starter Nick_C_S
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walnut1704
New member
I still see an occasional HPD officer with a revolver when I'm in Houston. I think some were grand-fathered in. New officers can't carry them but those that carry them don't get them taken away.
Quite frankly, I found my old 25-5 Smith a helluva lot more comforting to have along then than the Glock we were all forced to carry later when introduced & issued.
I started my LE career with a .357 at my first PD, briefly carried it as a deputy following the first LE job, and was disappointed to have to drop down to a .38 initially at my last PD. The last duty revolver carried there was that .45 Colt Smith, after that PD opened up to personally-owned revolvers & autos.
Some guys took to the Glock immediately, others like me continued on till the last shift possible with the revolvers.
I would have been delighted to get back into my .357 there, when they allowed privately-owned revolvers, but not allowed. Most powerful caliber I could carry was the .45 Colt & I felt quite comfortable with it.
The 9mm just did not inspire much confidence.
Denis
I started my LE career with a .357 at my first PD, briefly carried it as a deputy following the first LE job, and was disappointed to have to drop down to a .38 initially at my last PD. The last duty revolver carried there was that .45 Colt Smith, after that PD opened up to personally-owned revolvers & autos.
Some guys took to the Glock immediately, others like me continued on till the last shift possible with the revolvers.
I would have been delighted to get back into my .357 there, when they allowed privately-owned revolvers, but not allowed. Most powerful caliber I could carry was the .45 Colt & I felt quite comfortable with it.
The 9mm just did not inspire much confidence.
Denis
I just went to the Smithsonian Museum a couple of months ago and all the personel were carrying revolvers. I don't know if the were cops or security guards but all were armed with wheel guns.
My uncle was a Ft Worth cop and carried his revolver for his career except when he was on warrant arrest duty and then he carried a S&W model 645 45acp auto. He then went to the DAs office after 28 years as a cop and I am not sure what he carried but I believe it was a snubby model 19.
He killed one man on duty way back in the 1960s with a S&W model 15 with round nose lead bullets. One shot, one kill.
My uncle was a Ft Worth cop and carried his revolver for his career except when he was on warrant arrest duty and then he carried a S&W model 645 45acp auto. He then went to the DAs office after 28 years as a cop and I am not sure what he carried but I believe it was a snubby model 19.
He killed one man on duty way back in the 1960s with a S&W model 15 with round nose lead bullets. One shot, one kill.
There are PD's that allow the employees to carry whatever they can qualify with. A copper who can hit what he shoots at is far more effective than the one who is spraying shots all over.
The fact remains that most cops, anywhere, had never seen a real firearm before getting hired and consider their issue piece as another heavy thing they're required to lug around.
"...example of the failure of the wonder nine..." Nope. That's operator failure. Machines can neither pass or fail.
The fact remains that most cops, anywhere, had never seen a real firearm before getting hired and consider their issue piece as another heavy thing they're required to lug around.
"...example of the failure of the wonder nine..." Nope. That's operator failure. Machines can neither pass or fail.
I would not, today, with the advanced 9mm ammunition available, consider the caliber to be grossly inadequate.
I would just consider the .357 or the .45 Colt to be somewhat......less grossly inadequate.
With the right bullet in those two, people shot with them tend to stay shot.
(Said with no intention of provoking a caliber war. )
Denis
I would just consider the .357 or the .45 Colt to be somewhat......less grossly inadequate.
With the right bullet in those two, people shot with them tend to stay shot.
(Said with no intention of provoking a caliber war.
)Denis
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I understand and empathize.
I know some other experienced cops and firearms instructors who feel the same way. Of course, since gun belts have largely turned into "equipment " belts, and are festooned with more things that Batman ever dreamed of carrying on his Utility Belt, there would be a bit of a cost to pay in weapon weight. Gone are the days when all I had to carry in uniform was a gun, speedloaders, a single cuff case (I carried spare cuffs tucked over the gun belt), flashlight & baton rings and a radio swivel holster.
Although I carried an issued .357MAG revolver for several years, at various times I later ended up carrying a hi-cap 9 or .40, and ended my regular career carrying a 7+1 compact .45 (4513TSW). I continued to carry that .45 as a reserve, but eventually traded it for a single stack 9 (3913TSW), and then finally one of the plastic pistols being adopted for issue. In my case it was a M&P 40, although we also issued M&P 9's and .45's. I just opted for the .40 because there were lines for the 9's and .45's, and I didn't really care what caliber weapon I was carrying as a reserve. They all shot the same for me.
For the OP's thread ...
The last time I saw a couple of uniformed cops wearing holstered revolvers, it was a couple campus cops at a local junior college. (One of them was apparently the chief.)
You mean like the NYPD cops who fired 51 shots to hit a suspect about 3 times? Where did all those other rounds go?
Better to have a cop who knows how to shoot and stop a threat with 1-2 shots, than some young untrained kid who can't hit the broad side of a barn from the inside....
I agree that in the hands of an experienced shooter, a revolver is a good piece, however, with it's much higher bore axis it puts more torque on the shooter's wrist. Further, the inverted conical shape of a revolver's grip is harder to grip solidly than the grip of a semi-auto. Together, it can be harder for many to learn to shoot well with a revolver.
That's why many women and smaller stature males with less grip and wrist strength find it easier to learn to shoot well with the lower bore axis of a semi-auto. That's more of a training issue, not an intrinsic element of either type of handgun.
I also agree that more rounds may only mean more misses with more chances to hit innocents with a poorly shooting officer. We let Police & Sheriff Departments, the State Police, and Military use our private range for free and I've seen many departments train the troops. I'm amazed that some departments work for well trained officers while others just ensure that their troopers know which end the bullet comes out of.
That's why many women and smaller stature males with less grip and wrist strength find it easier to learn to shoot well with the lower bore axis of a semi-auto. That's more of a training issue, not an intrinsic element of either type of handgun.
I also agree that more rounds may only mean more misses with more chances to hit innocents with a poorly shooting officer. We let Police & Sheriff Departments, the State Police, and Military use our private range for free and I've seen many departments train the troops. I'm amazed that some departments work for well trained officers while others just ensure that their troopers know which end the bullet comes out of.
My agency transitioned from revolvers to Smith & Wesson "Third Generation" autos, chambered in 9mm, sometime in the mid-eighties. There was/is nothing wrong with those durable and reliable Smith autos nor the 9mm cartridge and there is something to be said about having more bullets on board and the benefit of a speedy reload but if I was allowed to have had my druthers, it would still be a Model 58 revolver, chambered in .41 Magnum. My second choice would be a Smith Model 686 "Plus", chambered in .357 Magnum, with either revolver having a four-inch long barrel.
Familiarity and good training breeds competency.
Familiarity and good training breeds competency.
Given the same amount of practice and level of expertise, I would argue that reloading a typical semi-auto will be more "speedy" than reloading a typical revolver. I got to be pretty quick reloading a revolver with a speed loader but never as fast or as sure as reloading an auto with a magazine exchange. I'm speaking only for myself but, for me, fast reloads with a revolver took lots more practice to be truly proficient with a speed loader than with a magazine reload in an auto.
As always, YMMV.
Cosmodragoon
New member
Many younger folks today don't know and many older folks seem to have forgotten. Inner city crime and violence were major issues through the late 1970s with the crack epidemic and big gangs rising in the 80s. They didn't have internet back then but the public interest and mass fear are certainly reflected in media, from the Death Wish movie series to original Law and Order. Glorified reflections of it shaped Gangsta Rap and other media throughout the 90s and somehow, either things have gotten a little better or media and popular coverage of these things have changed.
In the 60s I think everyone did. My uncle was still on the Ft Worth PD in the 80s. You may have known him. He was A.J. Tiroff. Known as Joe Tiroff. The BG he killed on duty was named Earl Gratz. But I am not sure I am spelling Gratz correctly. I think it was the late 1980s when he retired and went to the DAs office as an investigator. He died in 2003 with me on an Elk hunt.