Even worth bringing a speed loader or strips for a revolver?

[Coyote56]

Best revolver reloading protocol I know…..

 

[Pisgah]

It is strictly up to you as to whether you carry a reload or not. Likewise, you are free to remove the spare tire from your car's trunk, and cancel your insurance, too, because, hey -- you're not going to have a wreck or a flat tire, right?

 

[mikerjf]

Sometimes we’re in the woods. A bear may not give you 10 seconds to reload, but a feral dog pack might.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

I like to have ammo near at hand, often on my person.
Carry it in loaders, baggies and different ways.

 

[Kiwi cop]

There is a lot of good advice above. One competition I shoot has a string of 6 shots in each of two targets with a mandatory reload between the targets in 15 seconds, all rounds fired unsighted (gun below the shoulders) at 7 yards. I shoot this with my 686 and a Safariland II speedloader.

I usually have 2-3 seconds left over at the end of the string. Practice, practice and practice.

 

[Telecaster]

I love revolvers, my favorite guns are revolvers. That being said, even a relative newbie like me can tell that one of the glaring weaknesses of revolvers is reloading them. I have tried everything, multiple speed loaders of different brands, bianchi strips, even the rubberized speedloaders out there. Every single thing I tried could not get under 4 seconds from last shot to loaded and ready to go and that's being generous. Most times I was 5-8 seconds to be realistic.

I've begun to question whether reloading is even worth it if that situation were to arise (unlikely). Would you really be better off reloading during that time, or fleeing the scene if the threat was still around. The more I think about just how long it takes me when I am not under pressure, that it might be better to just run at that point. In a firefight that is just a ridiculous amount of time. I guess maybe find cover, but even then if you could do that then why not get out of there at that point?

Only you can answer this question, based on your environment. If you live in Chicago, your answer would be different than someone living in Wyoming.

The gun companies that make fancy hi cap triple stack mega power handguns (with red dot sights), and the trainers that want us to pay them to calm our panic about Clockwork Orange type gangs roaming the streets looking to kill for fun, are what drives the lust for capacity.

Can anyone tell us how many ordinary citizens with revolvers have died or been injured because they ran out of ammo?

Fear sells!

 

[BabaBlueJay]

As usual the wisdom on this forum has helped me immensely. I will continue to carry my speed beez loader for one extra reload with my Model 36. As many of you pointed out, better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it. Yes, it is slow, but being out of ammo is far worse.

 

[Kanewpadle]

After many years of carrying a semi auto I finally “wised up” and realized that a 5 or 6 shot revolver would be good enough in most situations. Two speed strips in a pocket for back up.

Situational awareness is far more important.

 

[pantannojack]

In the 50's when I watched Sgt Preston of the Yukon, the bad guys would empty their revolvers, then throw them at the good guy.

 

[Rpg]

I’ve never seen a documented civilian self defense case where the person defending themselves needed to reload during the self defense event.

We all enjoy the “what if…” game. Unfortunately, we sometimes end up going beyond reality in our hypotheticals. I think the need for reloads is one of those that’s beyond reality.

 

[Rustyt1953]

For over ten years I have pocket carried a plastic 7 shooter mouse gun. I have yet to have had the need to deploy it.

The odds of me being taken out by one of my cats on a darkened stairwell are astronomically higher.

 

[Rubone]

Maybe...
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FbUMqoyjDw[/ame]

 

[Brian Parrish]

ASP

John Correia of Active Self Protection YouTube channel has a video regarding how many rounds are needed. It is a series of short clips starting with no rounds, (he ran off when he saw the draw), and then clips featuring 2, 3, 4 5 and then finally six rounds. His commentary is interesting, and there were no reloads under fire.

If I miss I will need to shoot again until I get a hit. Pretty simple if you think about it. That is at least how many rounds I need. The big problem is the target is always moving and I am moving. I practice my reloads while I am moving tactically. That second speed loader comes in handy especially when I drop the first one!

As another commenter here mentioned, I must prepare for when Dindu Nuffin's friends and family hunt me up an hour after the shooting for revenge. My reload will not need to be speedy, but I might really reeeeeaally need one.

If I get a good hit, the perp will still take time to bleed. Even if shot clean through the heart, he may still fight for another minute or even longer and I want to survive that minute. Spraying 34 more 9mm rounds during that time may or may not help. Later, when it is known that I unloaded three 17 round magazines into the bad guy, it will be said that I "needed" all those rounds.

Please correct me with my thanks. I am not the expert.
BrianD

 

[Rustyt1953]

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

I love revolvers, my favorite guns are revolvers. That being said, even a relative newbie like me can tell that one of the glaring weaknesses of revolvers is reloading them. I have tried everything, multiple speed loaders of different brands, bianchi strips, even the rubberized speedloaders out there. Every single thing I tried could not get under 4 seconds from last shot to loaded and ready to go and that's being generous. Most times I was 5-8 seconds to be realistic.

I've begun to question whether reloading is even worth it if that situation were to arise ...

When I was a LEO we carried two revolvers. Quicker to draw the second revolver. One friend of mine won his gunfight with his seventh (7th) round. He fired six rounds from his primary, wounding the bad guy. But the bad guy's "fight or flight response" was to fight. My friend drew his BUG and finished the gunfight.

In the Police Academy when we got "speedloaders" the requirement was, complete a reload in 6.0 seconds or less.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

I’ve never seen a documented civilian self defense case where the person defending themselves needed to reload during the self defense event.

We all enjoy the “what if…” game. Unfortunately, we sometimes end up going beyond reality in our hypotheticals. I think the need for reloads is one of those that’s beyond reality.

A watch dealer who has shot and killed five robbers since 1989 has closed his shop, saying he fears revenge.

The dealer, Lance Thomas, was wounded five times at his shop in West Los Angeles in a series of shootings that have led to him being called a hero and a vigilante. Watch Seller Who Shot Robbers Shuts Shop - The New York Times

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

Lance Thomas in one shooting went to a second pistol after shooting the first one empty. In that shooting he killed two gang members and wounded an unknown number. He was wounded in the neck.

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

Can anyone tell us how many ordinary citizens with revolvers have died or been injured because they ran out of ammo?

See #37 this thread.

 

[pharmer]

A watch dealer who has shot and killed five robbers since 1989 has closed his shop, saying he fears revenge.

The dealer, Lance Thomas, was wounded five times at his shop in West Los Angeles in a series of shootings that have led to him being called a hero and a vigilante. Watch Seller Who Shot Robbers Shuts Shop - The New York Times

Unfortunately I reached my 6 "free articles" in the NY times in the 20th century. He quit 30 years ago so it was dangerous then too. Joe

 

[Old cop]

I’m a Jerry M. fan but would like to see him shooting & reloading a stock 442.