Quote:
Originally Posted by zeke
Own and like revolvers and semi autos. However the increase of legal ccw may have significantly increased the popularity of plastic semi's, and for good reasons. And yea, this is all just opinion. The semi's are much easier to conceal, easier to shoot with any accuracy / less practice and more affordable...//...
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That depends on a lot of factors and is not a universally true statement.
I like and carry both. A J Magnum frame .357 magnum is difficult for most people to shoot well and qualifies as an "expert" gun, but it is easy to conceal.
A 2.5" or 3" K or L frame .357 Magnum is much easier to shoot with full power .357 Magnum loads, and while harder to conceal than a Model 60 it is still just as easy to conceal as many medium frame 9mm semi autos.
Similarly, a 1 7/8" Model 36 is as easy to conceal as some .380 pistols, and offers similar terminal ballistics. It also has no slide to rack, so it is much easier for women and for older people with arthritis to operate.
I don't know that a DA/SA pistol is that much easier to shoot than a DA revolver, especially when the first shot matters. With a DAO pistol it's a draw.
How well the handgun fits the shooter is far more important and revolvers generally have a much wider range of grips available to fit people's hands than pistols. That's especially true with the GP-100 and SP-101 where it has a grip stub rather than a grip frame, allowing for a much shorter trigger reach if needed for a small hand.
Revolvers also offer a great deal more flexibility.
Consider a 3" Model 60, a Model 66 or a 3" Model 686+. All three can shoot .38 Special, .38+P, and .357 Magnum, as well as .38/.357 shot shells, and they are fully functional across the entire range.
Try that kind of range of performance with the average 9mm semi-auto - without changing out the recoil spring.
Revolvers are also not picky in terms of feeding. I generally need to shoot a minimum of 200-300 rounds of my carry ammo in a semi-auto using all the magazines I plan to carry with zero malfunctions before I am comfortable carrying it.
With a revolver I can just check for bullets backing out of the case under recoil, cases sticking on ejection and large grains of powder that might get under an ejector star. 50 rounds and I'm usually comfortable with it's reliability and familiar with it's point of impact with that load.