Day at the range and took a couple of semi autos and two revolvers. Shot both semi's pretty well. Stayed on paper and kept pretty tight groups at 10 yards. Broke out my 649 and model 15 and was no where near as accurate. I can still hit paper from 10 yards, but my groups are all over the place. I usually carry my 649 but I'm switching to my Sig P938 until I can become competent with a revolver. Any tips for a poor shooting revolver guy?
Gotta stop carrying a revolver
- Thread starter Irn-Bru
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Stop shooting semi auto's . . .
JJEH
Member
Keep practicing on a regular basis and you'll be very accurate in no time.
Try some different drills if possible, depending on your range.
Try some different drills if possible, depending on your range.
Biggfoot44
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Dry. Fire.
It might be the sights that I'm not used to. The three dot system on most semi's works for me, the sights on the J-Frame not so much. I won't give up and keep practicing until I get accurate, but in the meantime I have to leave them in the safe when carrying 
Lotsa dry fire practice. Practice that trigger control. Not only will you get used to a J frame trigger, you'll strengthen your trigger finger.
nawilson
US Veteran
You are probably correct that it is the sights on those J frames... They are notoriously bad, and it is a big change when compared to most modern pistol sights.
That said, I have found the opposite of your experience to be true. Shooting revolvers makes me a better pistol shooter. I think that it is because I focus on trigger pull more with a DA revolver, and that same focus transfers over onto the trigger of the semis. As always, your mileage may vary...
That said, I have found the opposite of your experience to be true. Shooting revolvers makes me a better pistol shooter. I think that it is because I focus on trigger pull more with a DA revolver, and that same focus transfers over onto the trigger of the semis. As always, your mileage may vary...
Abbynormal
Member
A decent S&W will kick anythings ZZZ @ under 20 yards@
If you dought me, try me
If you dought me, try me
10mmauto
Member
Sight alignment, trigger control. The platform doesn't matter. Get it out of your head that there is a substantial difference. You are unconsciously prejudicing yourself.
labworm
US Veteran
If you would like to strengthen your trigger finger, go buy a Ruger SP101 8 shot .22, dry fire that for about two weeks.
BobC357
Member
My weekly range trips require just as many rounds through the revolver as the semi-auto. While I've owned the revolver a lot longer than the other, I'm starting to get almost as accurate with both. Practice. Practice Practice. 
Your revolvers are obsolete. You should stick to bottom feeders. If you like, as a service to a fellow forum member, I will place your Smiths in my archives where they will be preserved for posterity.
+ 1 on that!!!!!!
Normally Semi has better sights.
Semi does every thing for you but line up the sights and pull the trigger.
No matter how smooth a revolver's double action trigger is, the same size and caliber semi is smoother and lighter.
Semi does every thing for you but line up the sights and pull the trigger.
No matter how smooth a revolver's double action trigger is, the same size and caliber semi is smoother and lighter.
For me there is a difference in accuracy. The gun has nothing to do with it, it's my performance with both. I need to keep working on shooting a revolver to get better. I might invest in a .22 revolver and try and master that.
Triathloncoach
Member
I told people mine was nice if you could crush coal into diamonds
Biggfoot44
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I don't know 'bout that smoother comment. It takes an excellent DAO or DA/SA to get even close to an average service grade S&W K Frame.My highest complement for a semiauto trigger is " Wow , that's almost as good as a revolver" .
As a police firearms instructor, I've used the tried and true wheelguns as a way to help a struggling recruits and in-service officers to improve their trigger control. Yea we use Glock's and theoretically they should be easy to control. However, they slap, jerk, yank and otherwise screw up their trigger pull. A revolver teaches them to concentrate on the front post and to control their 'booger hook' throughout the trigger pull cycle. It works very well.
Practicing with snap caps in your wheelgun will help you too. Likewise, mastering the trigger on a revolver will help you with ALL firearms. The two most important fundamentals of the six are? Sight alignment and trigger control. Don't expect perfect groups at 25yds from your J frame, but your Mod 15? You should be ripping out the center of the target (providing your sights are zeroed).
I had a young rook notice one day at the PD range that I was carrying my trusty old 3" Mod 10. He chided me about it so I offered a challenge. The AZPOST Qual at that time was still the 2 and 3 shot strings intended for revolvers. We shot the post qualification and I spanked him. I shot a perfect 250 and reloaded the 6 gun faster than he did his Glock 22. He was humbled and now has a new respect for the old adage: "Its not the gun, it's the shooter".
Keep practicing both on and off the range. You'll find that it will get better.
To paraphrase Obi Wan: "This is your father's revolver. The weapon of a blue knight. It's not as clumsy and random as a semi auto. A elegant weapon for a more civilized time".
Practicing with snap caps in your wheelgun will help you too. Likewise, mastering the trigger on a revolver will help you with ALL firearms. The two most important fundamentals of the six are? Sight alignment and trigger control. Don't expect perfect groups at 25yds from your J frame, but your Mod 15? You should be ripping out the center of the target (providing your sights are zeroed).
I had a young rook notice one day at the PD range that I was carrying my trusty old 3" Mod 10. He chided me about it so I offered a challenge. The AZPOST Qual at that time was still the 2 and 3 shot strings intended for revolvers. We shot the post qualification and I spanked him. I shot a perfect 250 and reloaded the 6 gun faster than he did his Glock 22. He was humbled and now has a new respect for the old adage: "Its not the gun, it's the shooter".
Keep practicing both on and off the range. You'll find that it will get better.
To paraphrase Obi Wan: "This is your father's revolver. The weapon of a blue knight. It's not as clumsy and random as a semi auto. A elegant weapon for a more civilized time".
slodraw
US Veteran
Like.others said practice, practice and more practice. It will help everything. Good luck and Happy New Year
sipowicz
Member
And stop trying to load it from the bottom.
Reevolvers
Member
I've heard it said that..... "Revolvers are easier to shoot, but harder to shoot well". I'm not sure if its true or not. I practice with both as often as I can. When shooting a double action revolver I shoot double action always. I have those and all manner of auto loaders. I choose and carry a double action revolver daily. I say shoot what you're most comfortable with. For me thats the wheel gun. Your mileage may vary!
mauiblue
Member
It might be the sights that I'm not used to. The three dot system on most semi's works for me, the sights on the J-Frame not so much. I won't give up and keep practicing until I get accurate, but in the meantime I have to leave them in the safe when carrying
The issues you presented in this thread I also mentioned in another thread in another forum. I mentioned that i thought the barrel is canted because my POI is about 8" from my POA and hitting low to the left. I know that shooting with the J frame sights are a challenge compared with what I am used to on a larger framed revolver sights or even semi auto pistols. Sure I would love to practice a lot but that would cause me to burn through a lot of expensive 38 spc ammo. I've been dry firing the snot out of the Model 638 and following up with live fire practice. Normal shooting distance range is 7 to 10 yards measured off with a range finder. I use bench bags and do what I need to to get consistent but I'm usually all over the place on a 8" paper plate. I'll try to practice a bit more and if I still can't get consistent with this revolver, I'll send it back to the service center.
Brian41
Member
When my revolver shooting starts to get bad I shoot one of my model 17s and concentrate on my trigger. The lack of recoil really lets you know where you're going wrong and makes it easy to get back on target again.
Changing back to centerfire revolvers again I find an improvement plus I've been shooting cheaply provided you can find 22lr at a decent price.
I bought a Sig 1911-22 recently too to help with my 1911 shooting in 45acp.
Changing back to centerfire revolvers again I find an improvement plus I've been shooting cheaply provided you can find 22lr at a decent price.
I bought a Sig 1911-22 recently too to help with my 1911 shooting in 45acp.
What grips are you running? The OEM grips on J frames leave a lot to be desired. I use Pach's Compac grips on my Mod 60 .357 & the Ergo Delta grip on my 638. I posted about the Ergo's on this forum & they do work...weird, ugly, unorthodox? Yes, but work they do. My 67 has Herrets modified my me.
Whatever you do, don't cheat & go SA! Work that DA trigger on & off the range. Wolff springs help A LOT. I'm running Wolff J spring kits in both of my J's & they have sweet triggers.
Whatever you do, don't cheat & go SA! Work that DA trigger on & off the range. Wolff springs help A LOT. I'm running Wolff J spring kits in both of my J's & they have sweet triggers.
I agree with your quote. Just from my personal experience with others, semi's are more difficult to load and manipulate (safety, no safety, work the slide, mag disconnect, slide locks back or not, is it loaded, etc.) for the novice, but the generally kinder trigger is easier to learn. It's the rest of the manual for semi's that is difficult. Revolvers, on the other hand, are simple to explain, load, and fire, but are much less forgiving due to the DA pull, and a little scary due to the SA pull . . . Just my observations over the years.
Doug M.
Member
For most shooting purposes, semi auto pistols have far better ergonomics. The problem in the grand scheme is not really THAT, but the fact that they are so different that it is very hard to maintain proficiency with a revolver unless you shoot it a lot.
JcMack
Member
I carry a revolver for self defense. I can't imagine defending myself against anything 30 feet away. At 10 feet I could say the threat was imminent and background was minimal, being covered by the approaching threat. (see Note 1.)
Note 1. Bears, Gorillas, and Ex wives not covered in the scenario.
Note 1. Bears, Gorillas, and Ex wives not covered in the scenario.
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Try putting the revolvers in a rest against the same for the semi's. You'll see pretty amazing accuracy results from both at 10 yards. This will prove to you that the issue is not the gun. Both feel different in both trigger and recoil. The second shot trigger on a semi is different from the first and can be dangerous in a stress situation if you don't practice, as the revolvers are always the same. You should also think about the reliability of a revolver. Only a lot of practice can get you where you want to be. Good luck and happy shooting.
pineappleshooter
US Veteran
Crimson trace grips work well for training purposes. Try to keep the dot still through the entire trigger pull. Doesn't even matter if the laser is adjusted properly - just focus on the dot not moving as you squeeze the trigger.
