November 30, 2007
Revolvers or semi-autos?
I had a brief discussion with a colleague yesterday about the merits of semi-autos versus revolvers; he was a proponent of wheel guns, claiming greater reliability -- which I disputed -- while I preferred the mechanical simplicity, higher capacity and thinner profile of modern pistols.
Last night I came across a website devoted to wimmin' shooters; one of the posts addressed this topic, aiming to help the neophyte decide which is better for a first gun.
This is one of those discussions that has no right answer, just lots of impassioned advocates who love arguing. But there must be a reason why no major police force or military issues revolvers anymore -- and I'm willing to bet it not because they want their people to be in the field with the less-reliable weapon.
Anyhow, check out the post, and then check out the site Cornered Cat, and tell me what you think.
Posted by Mike Lief at November 30, 2007 06:30 AM
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Comments
I have carried a Smith .357 for 30 years and have never thought it was the wrong gun. When I got it, there were reliability issues with similarly-priced semi-autos, problems that I believe are now resolved. Now I would consider carrying a compact .45; similar weight, thinner profile, more rounds. I don't worry much about the quick re-load . . . if I get into a fire-fight that requires more than 6 or 7 rounds I am in pretty deep water no matter what gun I am holding.
The Cornered Cat is right, a husband can't shop for his wife's gun, or for his kids' either. Take them to a range with enough friends that there will be a whole bunch of handguns to shoot, line up all the guns on a table, and have some fun.
Posted by: The Little Coach at November 30, 2007 11:37 AM
A good wheel gun will fire true every time. You can get by without ever really cleaning it and it will still fire year after year. Have a dud round? No problem, cycle past it and rip off a hot one.
A revolver is the most practical, reliable self defense weapon for the average home owner.
Posted by: Bill H at December 3, 2007 09:03 PM
This is from the linked article above, but I've heard it elsewhere, as well.
Standard wisdom also says that revolvers are less prone to jams and other failures than semi-autos, but this is again not entirely true. In reality, revolvers are somewhat more tolerant of inept handling, but are no more mechanically robust than a semi-auto under normal operating conditions, in the hands of a practiced operator.
[...]
Under less than ideal conditions, either platform can fail. The main difference is that with the Glock, both jams were easily cleared by whacking the bottom of the magazine. That was enough to make the slide close the rest of the way, without racking the slide.
With the [revolver's] trigger, I had to disassemble the gun at home and polish off a small burr that was only a problem with the lighter return spring (though it may have eventually been a problem even with the original spring, as it was less due to the 2 pound difference, but the particular way the parts lined up when I put it back together). With the black powder ammo, I didn't have any cleaning supplies at the range with me, so I ended up throwing the gun in a mud puddle, then wiping the front of the cylinder with my fingers. It worked fine for another 5 rounds, but it had to go back in the puddle every 5 rounds, to keep it from binding again.
Like I said, all things being equal, the latest-generation autos (like the Glock) are actually less complex than wheelguns, and easier to clear when jammed.
I came upon another site that had an account of revolvers requiring the services of a gunsmith to get them working again, after nothing more severe than being dropped -- something that wouldn't give a Glock more than a slight blemish.
Posted by: Mike Lief at December 3, 2007 09:13 PM