Unofficial revolver round count.

[Hotdog1911]

I want to buy and or build a real strong revolver to shoot and feed real .357 Remington Magnum loads thru on a regular basis. Real .357s. All 41,900 cups worth. No whimmpy 19,000 cup 38 special stuff. I asked a few good smiths for their opinion on the durability of the most popular revolvers out there today and here is what they said:

Smith & Wesson K frames last ~50 thousand rounds total; with about half of those at .357 pressure, before the gun need serious attention.

Smith & Wesson L frames last~50 thousand rounds of .357 pressure loads before they need to be driven back to the shop. Unknown number of lower pressure loads. All 38 special pressure loads thought not to be a factor.

As for the Smith N frames in 35 caliber they said they knew of none worn out by 38 special pressures. Most of the LE agencies back in the 70's and 80's sold them at the 50 thousand round mark or sooner with plenty of miles left on them. Of the rounds fired most were at the higher pressure level. Most fell to "handyman tinker-ring", neglect or they were converted to 44 & 45 acp, or confiscated or lost or sold to or for collecting. They didn't know about the new 8 shot .35 cal N frames or the current N frames in 45acp.

Ruger Security & Speed Six or GP-100; they didn't know. Not one has ever come in with one that was worn-out. The pressure of the load or the quantity of the loads isn't known and doesn't matter. Some have come in damaged by abuse or neglect or 'tinker-ing', but that wasn't a factor.

All the gunsmiths spoke highly of the DA Ruger Revolver and said they bought one in the past but didn't currently own one. All owned a Smith.

What do you think?

 

[mjrodney]

Ruger's widely acknowledged reputation for durability and "being built like a tank" did not materialize by mere chance.

It arose from the collective long term experience of large numbers of shooters, many of whom are much like yourself, a recoil groupie.

 

[SixForSure]

Lets say a gun costs $500.00. 50,000 rounds handloaded @ $0.10-$0.20 per round (depending on components used) = $5,000 - $10,000. Even if you don't figure in other gear, gasoline to the range, etc, that makes the cost of a 50,000 round gun only 5-10% of the total cost of shooting those 50,000 rounds. The point is pick the gun you like the best!
1. It is highly unlikely that you will wear any of them out.
2. If you do wear one out:
(a) If 5 - 10 thousand dollars for ammunition is not a problem, then another $500.00 for a new gun shouldn't be either.
(b) Who doesn't want an excuse to buy a new gun?

 

[PzGren]

Sixforsure,

I have been thinking the same for all those similiar posts on different boards. I have more than 50,000 rounds through more than one gun over the years and repair or replacemant of the gun are really a minor financial burden for a hard core shooter.

 

[Socrates]

You want the strongest revolver on the market? BY FAR, FREEDOM ARMS.

50K WOULD BE A WARM UP FOR THIS GUN...

s

 

[2ndamd]

+1 for what sixforsure said.


Being someone who shoots alot of rounds I like the rugers for the durability reasons given by the original poster. If you buy a Ruger you can buy more ammo because the gun has yet to wear out.

 

[SixForSure]

You want the strongest revolver on the market? BY FAR, FREEDOM ARMS.

50K WOULD BE A WARM UP FOR THIS GUN...

They are also one of the most finely contructed and fitted, and most accurate, revolvers ever made.

Back in the late 80s one of the gun magazines did a review of the Model 353 in .357 mag. It was either the most accurate, or second most accurate (I forget which) revolver that they had ever tested. The reason I can't remember is that whichever of those two honors it held, the other was held by the .22 LR version. I just don't remember which was #1 and which was #2.

Edited to add: I really wish I had one! (sigh)

 

[629 shooter]

I spread out my 357 shooting with 4 different guns at the moment , even still , it will be a long time before I hit 50,000 rounds with all 4 combined!

The strongest 357 revolvers I own would have to be my Blackhawk 357s. There are built on the 44 mag frame and the cylinder is massive by 357 standards. Add to that the SA design.

For DA , I have my old 686. Strong enough for me. If I ever wear it out I figure I will be about as old as Yoda by then and it won't really matter much!

 

[eldon519]

I think if you're operating at really high pressures like full blown .357 magnum, you can get a gun that mechanically won't wear out for a long time, but you're still going to have wear on your forcing cone. I'm just not sure there are materials out there that will be able to serve indefinitely for this relatively violent function.

I've got a GP100 and after maybe something like 4000 pretty hot handloads of Blue Dot, it shows some wear on the forcing cone. It hasn't negatively affected the gun or accuracy that I can tell, but it is something I imagine will get worse and will eventually develop problems long before the action or mechanisms of the gun wear out.

 

[Webleymkv]

I'd suggest a N-Frame Smith for what you're describing. they have very thick forcing cones to withstand the velocities of the ammo you're describing. Some of Colt's models are said to be very strong, the Trooper Mk V if memory serves and possibly an old New Service. I'd ask for other opinions before buying a Colt though, I'm no expert on Pony Pistols.

 

[HSMITH]

A HUGE MONUMENTAL GINORMOUS variable is missing here, and that is how the revolver is used.

I can and have thrashed N-frame 357's in less than 5000 rounds of 38 specials. I have taken K-frames well over 50K rounds total with 10K of them extremely heavy 357 magnum loads.

Another guy might run 100K rounds of 38's through an N with little or no appreciable wear, still tight and accurate. That same guy isn't going to have problems with a K either, but the N illustrates my point.

The difference between me and that guy? I shoot 99.5%+ of the revolver rounds I shoot DA, and 99% of those rounds are shot HARD and FAST double action. The other guy shoots slow DA or slow cocks in SA mode for 99% of his shooting. I beat the snot out of N's due to the mass of the cylinder hitting the cylinder stop at high speed. It peens the heck out of the notches, beats the stop window in the frame out, wears the hand accelerating the cylinder to that speed, and in general is hard on the gun. A K-frame will take that sort of use MUCH longer, but only because the smaller and lighter cylinder isn't as hard to get up to speed or to stop from that speed.

How you use a quality made revolver is the key to how long it will last. Pick the gun best suited to how you intend to use it and they will last an amazingly long time.

 

[SixForSure]

................A K-frame will take that sort of use MUCH longer, but only because the smaller and lighter cylinder isn't as hard to get up to speed or to stop from that speed.

I've always wondered about that. I always shoot double action, but it is what you described as slow DA so I probably don't need to worry either way, but it was nice to see that posted to validate my theory.

Jim

 

[Hotdog1911]

Six R.S.

You sure got the cost of ammo right. Now add gas, range fees & Motels. I've ate cases of MREs7 drank instant coffe and camped out in a tent many a time to save money to buy componets.

As for G-Smith: I shoot ~less than .001% of my Revolvers SA. I shoot them fast too. I've got a dozen speed loaders and a few reloading blocks that hold 100 plus rounds each. During 'ThanksGive' I shot Over~3000 38spl of all kinds. Not to mention 9 mils & 45 & .223 & 12 gauge. The heat off the gun felt good on those cold daytime firing session.

I wanted to send a picture of a wet, powder smudged K frame next to all of my wet gun related equipment, but I don't know how to include them in the post. I spend too much time shooting and not on the computer stuff.

I think it's a M27 or M28 4'' coming up next.

 

[Amendtwo]

Another vote for Ruger .357's. I have a 3" SP101 and a 6" GP100. Solid machines and reasonably priced.

 

[HSMITH]

If you shoot hard fast DA skip the 27 and the 28, it would be almost impossible to find a worse choice for that kind of shooting. A 19 will hold up a LOT longer even with full load magnums though it won't be as comfortable to put all the magnums through. A 586 or 686 would be a good compromise, they seem to hold up almost as well as the K's to hard fast DA hammering.

I have wrecked a couple small bore N's, you can rebuild them once for sure and probably twice before it gets really bad but I really doubt you will get more than about 25K rounds out of one shooting truly hard fast DA. I couldn't anyway.