Ever Been Tempted to Switch to a SEMI for CCW?

[ISCS Yoda]

Absolutely. I carry a 6906 when I go to certain places that I consider to be high in targets of opportunity for the world's terrorists and that especially includes large congregations at houses of worship. Otherwise I carry a K frame snubbie.

 

[Handgun Hunter]

Even when I carry a Glock 17 I carry a revolver on the off side in case my shooting hand is injured or busy fighting the attacker. When I carry a revolver as my main gun (which is most of the time) I carry an eight-shot .357. When in the woods (which is 99% of the time) I carry a .44 mag but sometimes carry a .357. I try to stay out of town as much as possible. In the woods it's mostly bears and feral dogs to worry about.

 

[fyimo]

I own S&W revolvers but my concealed carry pistol has always been a Semi Auto Pistol. My current one is a Sig P228 9mm with a 15 round magazine. I used to carry a Colt Government 45 ACP but I find the Sig easier to conceal. I was a combat soldier in Vietnam and I always felt 16 rounds of 9mm was much better than 6 of something else.

 

[CS45Fan]

Eons ago I started off with a 5 or 6 shot revolver. It didn't fit well in my front pocket and I hate IWB carry; so it ended up on my hip. Then I realized the speed loaders were bulky and speed strip weren't fast on a tactical reload. So I figured if I have to carry on my hip, it should be a semi auto w/spare mag. Never looked back.

 

[Black_Sheep]

I picked up a .45ACP Springfield XD Mod.2 about a year ago with the intention of carrying it. When I find a suitable holster the Springfield will replace my Model 60 EDC. With the extended magazine the capacity is nearly 3x that of a J-Frame.

 

[357-RevolverGuy]

... and the slow reload times,

I reload revolvers faster than I do semi-autos. I had tried conceal carrying a few pistols but still have not found one I love and trust as much as my revolvers. Closest I have ever really liked a pistol almost as much was with my Walther P99. The grip frame goes well with my hands. It shoots right on target. I sometimes carry it at home but haven't ventured out yet.

By the way why is it that carrying a full size pistol feels heavier than my K/L frames?

 

[Adk.IBO]

I used to carry an NAA Wasp in the pocket with a jframe in a kangaroo carry holster, switched the Wasp for a Bond Arms Mini .357 and just 2 days ago ordered an RM380 for the pocket. If I like it enough on occasion it will end up going solo without the jframe in the kangaroo carry... I shoot left handed, (ambi mag release) and I am used to DAO hence the RM380, plus it feels real good in the hand. So maybe in the process of switching. A jframe is just a bit big for my pockets. I'm a small guy that wears jeans.

Stay safe, John

 

[snubbyfan]

I'm kinda going through that right now.
The biggest question is which one?
I prefer owb but with summer coming up, I'll want something I can also pocket carry.
I have a disability to consider also.
With a J frame I can just change the grips to something that works with my big gimpy hands.
Anyway, I've been trying different models of bottom feeders. Some I can't even physically pull the trigger. Unfortunately, this includes the Shield.
The M&P9C feels pretty good, also the Ruger LC9s seems to work for me.
I'm leaning more toward the LC9s. I think I'll be more likely to carry it.
Now my problem is that my sister gave me a Charter Arms Target Pathfinder .22 for Christmas and now my wife says that I can't get another gun until I at least shoot it.
I've already put Pachmayr grips on it.

 

[ContinentalOp]

By the way why is it that carrying a full size pistol feels heavier than my K/L frames?

My guess would be the difference in balance. With a revolver most of the weight is centered around the cylinder, which most holsters carry somewhere around belt level. This makes for a fairly stable arrangement. With a semi-auto most of the weight is centered around the grip (more or less, depending on the specific gun), which is usually well above the belt, so it may be less stable than the revolver, depending on the belt/holster used.

 

[Sayoc01]

Only semi carried is my H&K P7 PSP...apex IWB ! Revolver carry would be my S&W model 60 2"!
Jim

 

[Rpg]

My usual carry pistol is a Colt Commander in town, a Colt series 70 1911 in the mountains.

When circumstances prevent me from carrying a 1911, I pocket carry a M 38.

This pattern hasn't changed for many, many years.

I have no thought of retiring the M38 in favor of a small semi auto.

 

[manyguns]

I started with a 442 which was a very nice revolver. I have a long history with DA revolvers. Then I picked up a Kahr PM9. After looking at what I could really do at speed and ballistic comparisons the 442 got sold. I really like revolvers but for a day in day out relationship on your body the Kahr has not been challenged.

 

[SaberOne]

I still prefer a snub, be it my customized 640 or my new 351PD w/CT350G grips in a Milt Sparks PMK. I held a G43 the other day but I'm already too spoiled. On the flip side I got a wild hair and purchased a 'new' K48 just for those times in the desert. Being a new version I can tweak it with mods that I otherwise wouldn't do on a pinned barrel.

More on point, I've carried semi-autos on and off for decades but for the most part I find them less reliable and more difficult to conceal, or at least less comfortable. Also, now that I'm in my 60s' I don't quite have the same priorities as I used to when it comes to carrying. Now it's more about comfort than taking on the 5th Chinese Hoard.

 

[Arik]

I reload revolvers faster than I do semi-autos. I had tried conceal carrying a few pistols but still have not found one I love and trust as much as my revolvers. Closest I have ever really liked a pistol almost as much was with my Walther P99. The grip frame goes well with my hands. It shoots right on target. I sometimes carry it at home but haven't ventured out yet.

By the way why is it that carrying a full size pistol feels heavier than my K/L frames?

Always feels the opposite to me. Throwing a model 36 in my hip feels as heavy as my G19

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[Mister X]

I'm always willing to reconsider my choices, but in my opinion there are too many relevant things a hammerless snub revolver can do better than any autoloader.

The most probable self-defense scenarios I would encounter as a civilian are reactive close-quarters situations. The snub is exceedingly quick to bring into action, it offers superb weapon retention, there is no slide to foul in an ECQ struggle, it will still fire if entangled in clothing, it cannot be pushed out of battery if contact is made with an adversary and it can even be fired from inside a jacket pocket. Failures caused by having a less than ideal grip or limp-wristing are not a concern and even though my Glock's are usually extremely dependable, I don't think their reliability equals that of my revolvers.

I fully understand capacity being a concern, but based on every stat I can find on the subject, it's not likely to ever be an issue. My primary directive is to avoid or escape a violent encounter since I'm not a Cop whose job it is to intentionally engage and pursue criminals, so a protracted shoot-out with armed gang members just isn't realistic. I'm also not all too worried about reloads because they just don't happen with any regularity in civilian encounters.

YMMV

 

[Arik]

My issue ....one of many!!! Is the little Itty bitty grips on revolvers. I need to wrap my fingers around something. Adding bigger grips to revolvers just makes them that much harder to conceal. But a few sub compact semi autos work great. The new G43, the Walther PPS, Kahr is ok, not great but ok. For me to get a good grip on the revolver with factory grips. ....especially J frames....I need to grip the actual gun

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[Kevin J.]

Switched a while ago. Carry either a Kahr PM-9 or a Ruger LCP. Both shoot better than my j frames and the long trigger pull is very revolver like, but smoother, IMO. I still keep my SW 360 with laser grips in the nightstand however.

 

[snowman.45]

I carried both during most of my police career. As an officially retired old fart, I still carry both, with the Shield 9mm, Glock 26 or Colt Combat Commander being the most common semi-autos. For revolvers, I most commonly carry a 340 M&P or a 640-1, both loaded with Buffalo Bore 158 gr. +p LHP FBI load. I carry .357 on rare occasion when in the mountains, but I always have at least one reload of them on me. If I want a bigger gun, I'll carry my 681PC+ 3".

I like having the speed of reloading that the semi-auto magazine provides, buy the revolvers are not far behind. I'm considering having the J-frames cut for moon clips to make the reloads even quicker. The 681PC is already cut for them.

 

[shawn mccarver]

Hey all.

For those of you that carry a revolver religiously, have you ever been tempted or strongly considered switching to a SEMI AUTO because of the 5 or 6 shot capacity you have and the slow reload times, comparatively speaking?

Why or why not?
I'm curious about your thoughts on this.

Thanks

I switched to the Colt Lightweight Commander in .45 ACP in about 1978, and have never looked back.

I was persuaded by Col. Jeff as to the superiority of the stopping power of the .45 ACP over typical revolver loads back then. In addition, the Commander was flatter and easier to carry concealed, and the recoil was far less than the .357 Magnum with effective loads.

As to that conventional wisdom about no malfunctions with revolvers - well the last day that I carried my .357 revolver was the day I was shooting at the range and it locked up "tighter than ole' Dick's hatband."

I went home, put it on the bench, and pulled the side plate, which revealed that a tiny sliver of lead shaving had gotten into the action. After I took the internals out, the shaving spilled out. I put it back together and it worked just fine. It also got nicely cleaned, lubed, and stored away.

The Commander got loaded with 7 + 1, placed in Condition One, and went "Mexican Carry" that evening and every day until I got a Summer Special. I have been semi-auto only for a primary carry since then; revolvers having been relegated to pocket carry for back-up only. I must confess that the J frame has now been pretty much replaced by the "mini-9" such as Glock 43 or S&W Shield, which are easier to shoot well, and more powerful than the J frames. An added bonus is that the mini-9 also holds more rounds than the J frame.

Now, with ammo improvements and so many quality small pistols, the 9mm is a good choice, and anyone would do very well with the Beretta Nano, Glock 43, Ruger LC9sPro, SIG 290RS, S&W Shield, or the Walther PPSM2. The current breed of service pistols which operate like revolvers (point and press) are very good, and they are arguably easier to learn than the 1911.

Get one of the quality 124 or 147 premium loads, such as Gold Dot, Ranger, etc., and you will be fine.

Oh, and there is nothing much wrong with a Lightweight Commander from Colt or Ruger either. I would not go to a barrel shorter than 4 1/4 inch Commander as you run into the need to replace recoil springs too often, and the "action length" for a long cartridge like the .45 ACP just makes for a short barrel and a cramped action, which seems to result in more malfunctions. If you want .45 ACP, then get a different platform than the 1911 if you want a gun smaller than a Commander.

 

[Rick_A]

No reason to be either/or. Have both and use both interchangeably and sometimes together. It's all dependent on the dress and situation.