I own both but after many years of experience I have to wonder whether the technology of semi-autos has offered a sufficient advantage over revolvers to place our safety and lives in the functioning of semi-autos. Even the very best 1911 pistols and other semis have a percentage of misfires and jams.
Yes, the beautiful single fire action of a well made 1911 is fantastic but I know of no one who has used a semi-auto for a long period of time who has not experienced any malfunctions. Then there are the springs, rods and slides that have to be maintained and serviced. Extractor problems, magazine issues, etc.
Fun on the range but when an intruder enters my house my .357 revolver will fire every single time.
I don't and can't carry in NJ but at my bedside, a loaded revolver will fire every single time!
Simplicity is a beautiful thing.

My carry gun is a revolver but I do have a few auto loading pistols that I feel are reliable. I don't usually carry them though. (no, no glocks)

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Lynnie, Professional Pest

I bet my life on a semi-auto everyday. It's a Springfield XD-45 Service model. I put it through rigorous testing before it got to ride along with me. I have complete faith in it. Having said that, my revolvers are never even questioned. Whether I strap on the 686 or drop the 640 in my pocket, I never give it a thought that they will not perform flawlessly if ever needed. I guess we all have that little smidgen of concern that a problem could arise with a semi, but when one proves to be extremely dependable, that concern becomes so minuscule as to be practically non existent.

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Freedom above all else.

I have seen Revolvers malfunction as well. Maybe not as often but it happens. Quality and maint. is the key. Homework needs to be done with any type firearm. Even the single shots.

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SC Army National Guard

If you're at home, then you might as well have a rifle or shotgun. If you're a pessimist, stick a bayonet on the end and you also have a spear and a club to hand. Shrug.

Like anything else, the rest is a balancing equation between the relatively slighter (but not impossible, either mechanically or do to bad ammo) risk of a malfunction with a revolver compared to faster reload time, ease of field maintenance, and greater capacity of an auto.

I like both but prefer an auto. If everyone was the same they would only make one type of gun. I'm glad everyone's different and like seeing the different type guns everyone carries.

I have 1 revolver, it locked up on me and had to be partially disassembled to work again. I have numerous semi-auto's, if they jam I quickly rack the slide and have a fresh round. Revolvers have a wonderful old school look and feel to them and I look forward to buying more but I'll stick with carrying a semi-auto for the reason I mentioned above. For those who say revolvers ALWAYS go bang when you pull the trigger, my 460V was the exception to that rule.

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NRA Endowment Member

I trust the simple revolver. I own many semi-autos, but, for the most part, they are not my carry gun or my bedside gun.

If I ever have to use a gun for protection, I don't want to have any doubts. I've never experience a revolver "malfunction", but like everybody else, I've had plenty of failures with semi-autos...even the good ones...even the reliable ones.

I guess I'm old school. Simple is just better.

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G.P. Charlie

I have carried both, and now I rely on my 640 Centennial to be ready 24/7.
Semi autos are great, but as I get older it's so much easier to pick up the brass from a revolver, out of the palm of my hand.

I carry my Flintlock because it works!

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Thirty characters. Exactly...

I carry them interchangeably. I don't have preference for type, only make and model. I'm just as happy with my 3" S&W Model 65 as I am with my Glock 19.

There was a time when the 1911 platform was very reliable. It wasn't that accurate but feed it 230 grain LRN and it would not jam. The reputation for jamming with these pistols popped up when people started to tighten them up for accuracy and started feeding it semi-wadcutters and then hollowpoints. Today's 1911's have mostly worked out those problems but they are still vastlly "tighter" than the original and are sensitive to grime and maintenance issues that the original didn't have.

However, there are semi auto's in production today that can probably match the reliability of a revolver if maintaned properly. I carry a 40 caliber Sig Sauer P239 and, despite feeding it whatever I can find, it has yet to jam on me even once in well over 1000 rounds downrange. It also points superbly for me and it's a bit scarey how well I can shoot it.

There is also the matter of proper maintenance. Revolvers probably require just as much mantenance as a semi auto, it's just a difference routine. Fail to keep either type of handgun in good working order and either type can fail when you need it to work.

Personally, I am torn between the two types. I like that every time I shoot in double action with a revolver that it challenges me, that there is always room for improvement. I also like the single action trigger in both my 67 and 620 and the 620 is the single most accurate handgun I have ever shot off the bench. However, my P239 points so well for me that it's a pure joy to shoot. It doesn't matter how poorly I am shooting with any of my other handguns, I can always shoot well with the P239.

Depend on what you are comfortable with, but after 10,000 trouble free rounds and countless hours of training I have no problem depending my life and that of my family on my Glock. Second choice would be my M65. They both go 'bang' everytime I pull the trigger.

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- Change it back -

I would not doubt either. I carry a 642 or 638 because of it's size, but I would never be concerned that my 1911 would fail me.

I've carried both in harm's way (combat), and used both extensively in those situations. Yes, it was some time ago, but I am here to say that semi-automatics can and will suffer failures, including the 1911, usually at the worst possible moment, and the typical clearing exercises do not cure a number of the jams the darn things can use to vex you. This, BTW, with extensive and ongoing care and maintenance of the firearm. On the other hand, I have never had a mechanical failure with a revolver. In fact, there were more than a few times that I used my revolver to carry on when my semi-auto had jammed itself into uselessness, and I'm darn glad I always carried it back then. I now carry a 1911 (in .45 ACP, of course) frequently, but, if I'm carrying it, I always have a revolver on my person, as well. I do not carry any other semi-auto for protection (my S&W 39-2 is a joy to hold, points well, and is reasonably accurate, but it is just not anywhere near reliable enough to bet my life on). If I had to choose one or the other, I'd be carrying a revolver (and not one with a designed-in/built-in failure mechanism, i.e., internal lock - I don't and won't own one, from any manufacturer). For the gentleman who suffered a lock-up with his .460VR, I can only say that what he experienced (if a mechanical lock-up, not poorly crimped ammo jamming cylinder rotation) would not, likely, have been experienced with one of Smith's previous guns that did not include a lot of additional complexity, such as his. In fact, an experience such as that is definitely reason not to trust THAT gun, but should not be a reason to condemn all revolvers. I agree that semi-autos have, generally, improved significantly in reliability over the years, but they are still subject to failure, to a greater degree than most high quality revolvers.

first post here,learned a lot. love all firearms but have mostly autos.by my bed colt 38 dective special smith 645 . 645,745,845,945,4506,4583,4006,669 beretta25 cal.

The only auto I will carry is the Colt Pony DA only. Nothing to fumble with just pull the trigger, just like a revolver.

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IN GOD WE TRUST     ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ

I work on both. Carry both interchangeably. I'm convinced the ultimate CCW piece is a DA semi. It covers all bases, including legal.

That said, I carry a revolver...

giz

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Non gratum anus rodentum

Ask a range officer.

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Formerly Model520Fan

The screw on the right side backed out slightly, not even enough to be noticeable BUT enough to allow the cylinder to bind/jam then when I was able to swing it open, it fell out. S&W talked me through the repair and now it works flawlessly and I know what to check. I'd never carry it anyway, it's got a 5" barrel on an X-frame and weighs 4 lbs. empty. Add to that the hearing damage I'd incur just firing it, I'll leave it for fun shooting.

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NRA Endowment Member

Because it "never rains in Southern Califirnia"!

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Memory of Randy Freas-Rimfired

Try shooting multple shots from a coat pocket!

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Memory of Randy Freas-Rimfired

If you had said your K-22 had misfired, it'd be okay...maybe. But if a 460V misfires, it can get you eaten in a hurry.
Scary prospect...my buddy carries one for Alaska hiking trips.

I carry S & W revolvers. I own two autos; both Browning Hi Powers (MK III) that I've had for a number of years. I've been through lots of autos everything from S &W to Kahr and whatever is inbetween. Just never developed a real affection for them. Find a gun that fits your hand and then practice with it until hitting becomes second nature. Yeah, if it don't work get rid of it.

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R Gitz

My Glocks and my 1911's always go Bang. But I normally carry my 640-1 or my 442. It's a matter of size. A j-frame on Barami Hip-Grips is invisible under a t-shirt. Wore it to church this morning.
sonny

Sir, revolvers are not actually simple (look inside one some time), and they can and do fail. There are posts about it on the boards here all the time. I've personally had failures with several different revolvers, and each time it required disassembly and/or gunsmith attention to fix. Not quite the same as clearing a stovepipe in an auto.

But no matter. More important than action type is what *you* shoot best and are most comfortable with.

Hope this helps, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.

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Wishin' don't make it so.

Make sure he checks all the screws BEFORE his hunting trip or he may become bear **** if it failed like mine did.

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NRA Endowment Member

I prefer Revolvers..

I've carried both as a LEO.

I still carry a revolver off duty and as a back up to the plastic wonder.

I trust semi autos with my life...

as long as I have a revolver back up

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- The Federalist #46 -

I'm a true believer so prefer the revolver. I think they'll come up with death ray guns before the semi-auto ever closes the reliability gap, shot for shot, with the revolver.

So what that the semi-auto MAY in some cases be cleared more quickly than the revolver that suffers a snag? Stoppages occur with more frequency with the semi-auto which is subject to more different types of failures that require some clearing function in the first place.

I started out with a j-frame 60LS but I didn't feel secure with only 5 shots and to conceal-carry a larger revolver would be heavier and bulkier.

So I traded off caliber for capacity and slimness. I gradually moved up through the Kel-Tec 32, and then the Kel-Tec 380, and then the Walther PPS 9mm, and now I'm working on obtaining the M&P 45c, which may put me back to the heavier and bulkier quandary.

I do like the DAO semi-autos with no safety. The semi's I have are also very easy to field-strip and clean. Mine are shot a lot and broken in well. If I weren't confident in them, I wouldn't carry them.

I confess, I own a bottom feeder, as in one. It does hide nicely under lighter weight summer clothing. Sometimes it goes bang , sometimes it doesn't, it does like to spit empty shells forcefully into my forehead on occasion.
My revolvers go bang every time, they don't spit, and in cooler weather they hide under the jeans and sweatshirts I normally wear.
My 1911 holds 7 in the mag and one in the pipe, my 686+ holds 7 and I shoot it way better. If it came down to needing one to save my butt, I sure hope I'm carrying a revolver if that day comes.
Revolvers are easier(for me at least) to clean and maintain, and I think most of use agree, that from a purely asthetic standpoint a revolver is simply better looking. Just looking at some of the gun porn posted here answers that question.

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Μολὼν λαβέ

I've shot SASS matches for over a decade. In tens of thousands of rounds, I've never had a SA Ruger fail in any way. Routine cleaning, never even a loose screw to tighten.

Colt SAAs & clones, also tens of thousands of rounds. Same reliability, occasionally need to tighten a screw.

S&W N frames in ICORE, speed steel, target work over several decades....never any FTF issues.

Took the bottom feeders from 4 major brands out for a little exercise about 6 months ago.

They quickly reminded me why they stayed home most of the time....

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Dum vivimus Vivamas

Revolvers vs. jam-a-matics is sort of a mute point...
When you get one of these:

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Lost it all in a boat accident

I believe in simplicity in high stress situations so I keep a M36 (no dash) on my night table. I figure if it is ever needed I will likely be jarred awake and not able to perform fine motor skill activities, so i like point and shoot. For typical daily carry it is either a S&W 1911 (.45 ACP) or a Kimber Commander sized 9mm. In any event I never leave home without taking a handful of dowels...

Frank

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sona si latine loqueris .

At one point the only sidearm I trusted was my 1911A1. Then I went through a stage where I carried mostly small revolvers. Now I carry both, depending on what I feel like. I would say that reliability is more a function of price rather than design, then I remember for the last 25 years my best friend has kept a RG 22 short revolver in his night stand. Uses it to dispatch raccoons on a fairly regular basis. He has more powerful and better grade firearms, but as this revolver has been 100% reliable for what he uses it for he sees no need to change.

Well, I bet my life on my M&P45, my primary back up/off duty is a Glock 32 (357 Sig) and secondary back up/off duty is a 686 2 1/2" (357 Mag). I used to be qualified with several guns but I am much more a believer in the axiom "Beware of the man with only one gun -he probably knows how to use it."

It is a wonderful topic to discuss to no end without any real resolution.

I started carrying revolvers in the late 70's - Model 19, 28, 586, and probably would be carrying such except we had a Chief of Police that not allow us to carry 357 Magnum loads for patrol and that is when I changed to the 45 ACP.

They are both mechanical, and breakdowns can occur with either, and when it does occur with a revolver (normally) it is completely out of action.

I am comfortable with either, and must admit that I have real soft spot for quality revolvers from those times when craftsmanship was honored and a way of life.

But in the end I do depend on my 45 M&P to defend my life and the lifes of my citizens.

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I am a sheep dog!
1601 (ret)

Do you get your citizens in bulk? I but mine from Wal Mart.

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- The Federalist #46 -

Nothing is 100% reliable. My Colt MK IV locked back on me once, had to strip it down to the bare frame, clean the trigger mechanism, fine ever since. My 4" M-19 broke on me at the range once.
I think the design of semiautomatics-the M1911, e.g. is more "user friendly"regarding field stripping and cleaning. I tend to the leave the actions of my revolver alone, if they feel a little sluggish or gritty I rely on spray cleaners to retore them.

Semis are the sexy gal at the bar who you'd love to spend a few nights with. Revolvers are the gal who winds up the love of your life.

I rely mostly on revolvers. But, I have a 70 Series Gov't Model that has never failed(with a Colt Mag) as I can remember and I have put more rounds through it than any other gun. Revolvers can fail, they are designed and made by humans. I once kept a Model 29 in my headboard. I unloaded it, to take it to the range. I then pulled the hammer back, and the mainspring broke. A fat lot of good it would have done me if I had needed it. I have a Model 13-3 that broke the trigger notch off, rendering it useless as well. I have no use for autos that don't have a safety lever. My nightstand has a 13-3, and my truck has a highly disfigured BHP. The Browning has never failed to fire with any mag.

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Wayne
Torn & Frayed

Take a look at all the post from guys with semi-autos with fail to fire,dropped clips,fail to eject, fail to feed etc etc. vs the few with wheel gun issues, and so far the .357/.41/.44 mag have much more ft.lbs than anything except the 1911, and it's not plastic either...

I'm a revolver guy and conceal carry a 442. I've shot it alot and it's never failed me. I keep it cleaned and maintained, that includes making sure the screws are tight. I've been thinking of getting an M&P9c for concealed carry for the higher capacity but it'll really have to prove itself before I'll trust it. I'll probably just end up carrying a second revolver.

There is no best gun, there is no best defense round, and there is no best action. Choosing a gun is like squeezing on a balloon. Push in one place and it pops out somewhere else.

Autoloaders, some people without a lot of hand strength cannot work the action. Whether it is real or not, the idea is they tend to jam from time to time.

Revolvers, bulkier, heavier, and limited usually to six rounds or less.

I had a LEO friend who told me that during a silent alarm he dropped his revolver on the concrete floor of a department store. Nothing was found and after his shift he went to unload the revolver. He couldn't get the cylinder to open and he couldn't get the cylinder to turn.

I bought a .22 revolver used, took it to the range and test fired it. About one in 8 rounds wouldn't go off in the SA mode. Shooting DA almost none would go off. Apparently it had a weak mainspring. (I took it back).

I carry a Kel Tec PF-9. All of my possible carry guns are autos except for a Taurus 44C snub nosed .44 magnum I bought for hiking. I chose it because it was a concealable .44, not because it was a wheelgun.

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Luke 22:36

Semiauto is actually a bit simpler than a revolver. And I can assure you that a revolver WILL malf from time to time.

I've got a Model 49 that's often carried in my left front pocket, and the darn thing always fails me on the sixth shot.

Sure, they won't work every time but what does? As for simplicity, what's easier than swinging out the cylinder and loading 'er up. Many of the semis are tough to rack/slide and jamming problems are common. Plus a good heavy revolver recoils less and is more accurate. Just my opinion.

I have a target 1911 that is tight, accurate, guaranteed to shoot 1.5" at 50 yds. One of those guns that everyone claims should be unreliable because it isn't loose and doesn't rattle. I have had it for about 5 years, probably approaching 10,000 rounds through it. It has NEVER malfunctioned. Not even once. Ever.

I have had my revolver malfunction - I've had dirt/powder/something get under the ejector star and jam up the cylinder. I also had the ejector rod unscrew and tie up the cylinder. So it can happen, and if it does, you aren't going to be able to fix it 'right now'. Your odds of recovering from a malfunction with an auto is a lot higher.

That said, I got a 642. It it will do the job, the odds of it malfunctioning are extremely remote, and it is easily replaced.

Hey, wow--a zombie thread. This thing's been resurrected from 2009.

Semper Fi,

Ron H.

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Wishin' don't make it so.

I own and shoot about 30 or so revolvers; mostly S&W's with 4 or 5 Colt's and one Charter Arms adding to the mix. I have about 30 or so semi-autos, including Glocks, S&W's, Sigs, Beretta, a Colt .25, a Walther .22, a browning .22 Challenger and a couple of High Standard .22's from my Bullseye days and 7 or 8 1911's. Romantically, I like my S&W revolvers the most, but only carry a couple of .38 snubbies; a 338 and 442. I have a CCW and generally carry a 1911 Les Brown or Wilson, or a Glock .40, or a SIg 9mm or .40. I shoot and maintain my carry guns regularly, and can't remember the last time I had a malfunction of any kind. I practice malfunction drills and can clear a semi-auto very quickly. I carry the autos because they hold more rounds, are very quick to reload and I am more practiced with their triggers and can fire more quickly and with greater accuracy than when I fire my revolvers double action. Many can shoot their revolvers about as fast and accurately as I can my autos, so; " To each their own."