The Revolver vs. the Pistol for self defense. Which is better?

S

sirrduke2010

Member
Joined
Jul 6, 2011
Messages
163
Reaction score
35
I think this ranks as one of the most controversial subjects in gun safety. Each has it advantages and disadvantages. The revolver advantage is that you don't get confused by the safety in an emergency, there is a lot less chance of it jamming, and you can just point and shoot. There is a lot less risk of it firing if dropped although automatics now have a safety for that. The one big drawback is the rounds that are available which is often a lot less than in an automatic in a lot of cases.

The automatic has a lot larger round capacity, it is easier to reload with magazines, it has a safety to help protect the shooter with hammer drop, and it can be a lot more compact and flatter than a revolver. The big drawbacks are a load jamming in the chamber possible making your weapon unusable, the possibility of it going off it is dropped unless your pistol has safeties for this which many of the new weapons have, and in an emergency situation less advanced shooters can forget, in a high pressure situation, to load the chamber or take off the safety. This can make these people more vulnerable to attack.
 
Register to hide this ad
Ah, the age old question.
The answer to which is better is this: The one you have with you when you need it.
It's not really that important which one, it just has to be there, it has to work and you need to be able to operate it well under stress. Both types have their advantages and disadvantages. Personally, I use both, sometimes one of each at the same time. I am thoroughly familiar with how each one operates, and I shoot them well.
Sometimes I'm in the mood for a semi-auto, so I take a Glock. Other times nothing will do but a Smith and Wesson revolver. Truthfully though, if I KNEW I was gonna need a gun tonight when I was going out......I'd stay home.:eek:
Jim
 
Which is better?

Why not ask the FBI, CIA, Navy seals, Army Rangers, Military, and Secret Service, along with a couple million law enforcement officers who depend on their weapon to save their life every day and see what they carry?
 
There must be studys and statistics somewhere. I think far too much is made of how many rounds the gun has. We are talking civilian encounters here arent we? I would like to hear just how often if at all any gun fight between a civilian and a BG went past a couple rounds!
I know the possibility never cross`s my mind. This aint like a grade B western where we get behind a water trough and try to hold out for the cavary or hero shows up! I cant say when I ever read of a shootout like that! So takeing away THAT senerio, I see no advantage at all with a auto.
Now I know there is also romantics out there with a 12 year old mentality that think they need a backup besides, and a fighting knife to gut the remaining aggressers. Maybe I would be half that bad if I lived in bagdad or detroit myself.
 
FWIW I was a LEO for 30 years and had to use my duty weapon to defend myself. It was a revolver and it did the job. In retirement I carry my 442 (circa '92) & Colt Cobra w/complete confidence.

Before retirement my agency switched to the semi auto so I had to go w/the flow, but reluctantly. Choose the one that works best for you, practice often and hope you never have to use it.

Best,
Old Cop
 
There are so many diverse answers to this subject.

But, as I see it the basic facts boil down to this

Most(but not all)use of a handgun for self defense fall under these circumstances:

Poor or low/no light conditions
3-7 yds
Awakened from sleep
Surprised or ambushed (parking lots,carjackings ect.)

Take a moment to think how well you are prepared to defend
yourself under those parameters. What will your reaction time be? Can you identify your target, with no doubt in your mind. Are bystanders or family members at risk if you fire? Where will your round end up if you miss?

It's not the number of rounds you have available.It's the one(s)that you put on target.

Just my honest opinion.
 
I think that a quality double action only semi automatic (without external safety) firing ammunition that you have function tested, has more advantages than a revolver. That only applies if you practice with the gun including malfunction drills, and function tested it with your carry ammo.
If you're just going to the store to buy your one and only home defense handgun that you're going to shoot 50 rounds a year through and kid yourself that you're safe, then the double action revolver is your best choice.
 
I have read that a lot of encounters is 3 shots, 3 seconds, at 3 feet. I don't think having a gun that holds a bunch of bullets is important. I have known people that didn't carry a reload. Their thinking is a couple of shots will handle the problem and that still leaves a couple in the gun for the next problem. They can reload when they get home. Larry
 
Back when I was given a choice of a six-shot S&W 681 in 357 or a Beretta 92F in 9mm with 16 rounds, I chose the revolver. No soda can was safe out to 75 yards or better with the revolver, 40 yards was about my limit with the Beretta. Just a personal thing for me. I still carry the revolver on duty, these days it's a S&W 64, as restricted by local ordinance and company policy. I don't mind.............I practice shooting it a lot, practice using speedloaders, and I carry 30 rounds with me on duty here in the Ghetto. I may only need three shots to settle things, but I'd sure rather have too many than not enough.

I carry both types off-duty........most often a 1911, though a M-64 in a shoulder rig is great for driving around where the Bad Folks hang out. :)
 
Lost Lake said:
Which is better?

Why not ask the FBI, CIA, Navy seals, Army Rangers, Military, and Secret Service, along with a couple million law enforcement officers who depend on their weapon to save their life every day and see what they carry?
Click to expand...


Because their job is NOT SELF DEFENSE?
 
Not long after IDPA shooting came about, I found a club within driving distance and decided to give it a try.

I enjoy both my S&W's and my 1911's. So I would take both, a Model 19 and a 1911 .45 ACP that was slightly customized.

The club (like most are) was a friendly group and after my first few trys at IDPA, I decided I wanted to try something. I asked if it were okay if I shot both my 1911 and my S&W 19? I would have to change out rigs between shooters to keep up. As long as I did so safely there wasn't any problem with anyone objecting to it. So I paid up two entry fee's and away I'd go.

At the end of a year (we shot once a month), I tallied up how well I fared. It was by a small margin, but I proved to be better with my revolver than my 1911. I was more likely to hit faster and had less misses with my revolver. My reload times weren't anything to be concerned about.

That being said, I feel perfectly fine with my revolver. The only exception I make are those rare times I may travel into known high crime areas.

And a 2nd factor comes into play where I live, it's a very rural area. No one picks when and where the time comes when they have to defend themselfs with a firearm. 99% of the time I drive a pickup truck. So keeping a long gun available isn't a problem. In Oklahoma if you have a concealed carry permit, you are allowed to have a magazine loaded long gun in the vehicle. As long as it isn't chambered you're fine. So it isn't uncommon to have friends who carry shotguns or AR's loaded and just need chambering.

All in all? I'm comfortable with my revolver and a speedloader. I know I have just a slight edge over my performance with a 1911. Then there are those days I just enjoy carring ole' slab sides with me.

Thanks,

Murphy2000
 
Last edited:
Well all you Rambos that carry 5 rounds and 'reload at home' must only expect perfect shots and less than a couple attackers.

Someone posted that at BEST, highly trained officers will score a hit ratio of 30 +/- percent. Put your self in a grocery store where the bad guys come in, maybe two of them, on the run from the law, looking for hostages. They grab a girl and shoot 3 others, no witnesses. You run for your life and they shoot at you, you return fire running, at distance, at two guys. You use four of your five rounds and haven't hit a thing. You still have two bad guys coming at you.

Watch any self defense shooting caught on video surveillance and count how many shots are missed, and how many shots it takes to incapacitate the BG, and if there are multiple BG's it's worse. Fact is, under stress, running for your life, you are not going to be hitting tin cans at 75 yards, and that one shot stop probably isn't going to happen either.

Hey, each to his own. There's a reason cops carry spare mags. I have a beautiful revolver sitting in the safe, and that's where it will stay while I carry my semi-auto.
 
MY opinion, the semi-auto was developed for war - get lots of rounds downrange fast and be able to reload fast, because there are lots of bad guys coming at you.

The revolver is more of a personal defense weapon, basically foolproof discharge accurately, and needing one or two or three shots to get the job done.

As stated by a few here, your typical citizen's self-defense encounter is usually sudden, up close, and a couple of rounds usually gets the bad guy to change his mind. In this case a 5 shot revolver would the job. A typical semi-auto would have a lot of rounds left.

But, there are of course a lot of other questions to answer in order to make that final determination of revolver or pistol.

What is the likelihood I would encounter a 'gang' need to defend myself, and which weapon would I need to dissuade them?

For CC, what fits what I am wearing?

What caliber do I think makes a big enough hole? And how heavy a gun do I want to go with that caliber choice.

Can I recover my 2-3 shots on target at 0-7 yds within my allotted time with a DA revolver, or do I think I can do better with the semi-auto?

And on and on.

So if you like revolvers and want to carry one for personal protection, consider yourself well armed.

If you want to carry a pistol, consider yourself well armed.

Me? I carry a 642 Airweight when dressed up (not very often), mostly due to the smaller belt. I carry a 4513 all other times, again mostly due to the larger belt. One reload is in my pocket.

And I practice with both at 0-7 yds. I shoot from behind a pretend chair, from my back between my knees, on my knees, from a chair, from a chair sideways pretending I am shooting through my truck window. I try to draw and shoot 2 within 2 seconds and hit the paper plate. I am moderately successful with both guns, but I don't reload the revolver very fast yet.
 
TEXAS POLICEMAN HERE, i pack a series 70 colt 1911 on duty but just bought a pre 27 3.5in blue from dave keith with worn magnas and just got my lobo iwb holster, so ill be packing the full house magnums in it under a hoodie off duty as well as when i retire in 3 years,

revolvers are simple the will work filthy if you dont ever remember to clean them all you have to do is point and shoot no safteys to remember to flip off under stress i love them KEEP IT SIMPLE.. just my thoughts anyway from carrying pistolos for over 25 years...
 
Last edited:
With hit ratios under the 50% mark in many LEO shootings, a 5 or 6 shot revolver does not sound like an appealing primary carry gun for a civilian. Especially if you face more than one attacker which is not outside the realm of possibilities. Attackers generally don't fall over after the first shot hits them, at at 50% or less hit ratio you'll burn through a cylinder full of ammo and be looking for a speed strip or speed loader in a matter of seconds.

I prefer a j-frame for a BUG over a microsized semi auto, but for my primary carry weapon I want to carry a duty size weapon that fits my hands and that I shoot well that has as many rounds on board as possible.

There has never been a person who had to defend their life with a gun who afterwards said "I wish I had a smaller gun with less rounds in it".

These are just my reasonings for carry a full size semi auto, if you choose a revolver that doesn't mean you're wrong and I'm right, it just means we disagree but can still be friends.:D

Good day and be safe out there!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

SGT ROCK 11B
Favorite Self Defense Drills
Replies
17
Views
844
Model 15-4ever
M
T
Model 66-2 K-Frame 6” shoulder holster
Replies
3
Views
460
tops
tops
NCBeagle
Appendix Carry K Frame
Replies
9
Views
824
demkofour
demkofour
chief38
MT PET PEEVE WITH THE CCW PISTOL CENTER BLADE TRIGGER SAFETY
2 3 4
Replies
65
Views
2K
Transamconvert
T
G
K frame snub carry was surprisingly easy
2
Replies
37
Views
2K
crows
C

Latest posts

Back
Top