Revolvers are passe - Claude Werner

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I'm so out of touch ......

380 would be a lot more popular in these parts if it weren't for the cheap, unreliable, polymer framed turds used to fire them. But, we have folks who actually shoot their guns here and have expectations of them.

LCP's and similar guns are under $200.00 NOT because they're a good firearm. People buy them 'cause they're CHEAP; and it's a WalMart world.

My older German made Walther PP and PPK ..... another story.
 
I recognize that markets change over time and there are natural fluctuations. I personally don't see .38 special or wheel guns going anywhere. The main thing I think you would see in a declining revolver market is that there are such great used options for so much less money! Right now you can hop on GB and find a number of LE trade in Smith 686-6's for $400 that have new Hogue grips and can easily clean up versus their $700 new counterpart. Not to mention LE trade j frames that have no lock and can be had for really reasonable prices. You buy a $200 Ruger LCP new (as others have referenced) and when you realize it's a cheaper gun that is pretty snappy then suddenly what will you do with it? Sell for $125? Isn't worth the hassle, just throw it in the back of the safe and buy the next deal on a Smith and Wesson bodyguard or shield for $200-$250 and try their luck again.

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I believe that the revolver, except in certain areas of collecting and as curiosities , are indeed way behind the sales and use of semi-autos.
To every thing there is a season- Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
Sad.
 
hittman77 said:
LCP's and similar guns are under $200.00 NOT because they're a good firearm. People buy them 'cause they're CHEAP; and it's a WalMart world.

My older German made Walther PP and PPK ..... another story.
Click to expand...

There are several excellent pistols available for around two bills.

Quality and low pricing aren't mutually-exclusive. It's called "being good at manufacturing" or sometimes just "being competitive". It's what successful businesses do.

As for the OP, I think that a lot of people look at the data wrong. They look at raw sales of new guns, and bemoan how revolvers are so horribly unpopular.

But that's just...well, kind've dumb. Because I can't think of why anyone would buy a new revolver today if a used example of the same gun was available. Properly-made, high-quality revolvers from 50 years ago are just as good as ones made today--better, in some instances. I can fully expect my pre-numbers Target Masterpiece to outlive me.

So when you look at raw sales figures, you're really taking a very market-ignorant approach.

Not that I disagree with Claude. I actually think he's right, because given the reliability modern automatics and ammunition deliver, it's very hard to make a case for the snub-nosed revolver.

All that said, I think that snubbies are doing better than people think, because I think that the number of people truly carrying on a regular basis is vastly over-reported. In other words, there's a lot more people talking about CCW than actually doing CCW, doing > talking.
 
Well, i suppose this is true, and brought about by concealed carry. Now, my .02. I am not a fan of the 9mm or the 380, although I have a 1971 Browning Hi Power, and a Walther PPK/s. I also own an Officers ACP. Love the 45 auto. But having said that, with the exception of 1 glock 36( 45 acp), you will find none og that plastic in my safe either in a rifle, shotgun, or handgun. The LEO application is there, but when I want to reach out and touch something at 100 yards, it will not have a slide on it
 
There's two sides to every market, the supply side and the demand side.
The supply side, in my opinion, basically stinks.
I'm not interested in polymer, aluminum alloy, MIM, investment castings etc. Especially if they don't have the balance, trigger quality, or accuracy I demand from a "one hand" gun (which is how I view pistols and revolvers).
Past a certain price point, I do have options such as a new Manurhin MR73, or possibly a Freedom Arms SA.

But, generally, I walk in to a LGS, look around, and walk out.

Jim
 
Tried the Glock thing hated them. Got rid of them quickly. A 1911 seems to stick around a while but even those have left the building. I will take a revolver every day of the week and never look back. I am in the minority these days and it bothers me not at all. Like others I find little in gun stores to look at these days and rarely go in one.
 
Interesting figures thank you for posting. The average firearm consumer wants something cheap, a gun is a gun, 380 or 50 cal, there is no difference to them. Whether for hold ups or self defense as long as it is a gun. 380 being the cheapest firearm, notwithstanding slightly expensive ammo, is therefore the most popular. Most of these 380s, after being pawned several times, will be lost in the underwear drawer with the cartridges eventually rusting into the magazines. I will watch for the long predicted revolver demise in anticipation of the drastic decline in prices. I will not be holding my breath.
 
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Revolvers are passe for self defense, in the main. Exception for those who are unable to manipulate the slide on a semi. Exception for those who are unwilling to put in the practice necessary for semi-auto familarization.

Revolvers are still quite viable for:

Specialized target shooting, e.g. silhouettes.

Specialized big game hunting, and bear defense.

Handloaders. I'm only the last couple of years getting into revolvers. Bought a 686 and a 629 recently, for no other reason than playing around with handloads, which you can't do as much with semis, due to their narrower tolerance for what will operate the gun. A .44 mag is a marvellous thing for handloaders.
 
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Univibe said:
Revolvers are passe for self defense, in the main. Exception for those who are unable to manipulate the slide on a semi. Exception for those who are unwilling to put in the practice necessary for semi-auto familarization.
Click to expand...

Why is that? Capacity? Do we really need to beat that dead horse again?

Reliability, trigger safety and small size and less weight will always make a revolver "not passe".
 
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Just like everything else. More and more plastic in everything. But in almost every gun shop I go to is a 642. Probably one of the most popular guns on the planet. I'm partial to the rotary magazine fed self cocking guns myself. Not real big on plastic bottom feeding type. Though I have a few of them myself.
 
From my experience buying and selling FTF on many occasions, what I have seen as the normal is when buying or selling a revolver the person is my age or older(I'm old:().. Semi auto's are more often than not younger than me, by quite a bit.

As we have talked about this before, the collectors of revolvers are aging. and many of us are selling off these days because no one, or few heirs want the collections we have assembled.

Like many of us that do like revolvers, I only by vintage, out of production guns. No help for new production from me..
 
Well folks I'm a 'J' phile. Got quite a few. I've also owned .380s in PPK, Browning 1910, Sig 232, Beretta 1934, Ruger LCP, Kel-Tec P3AT, Bersa, and even Glock 42 formats.

But I pack Glock 26, 43, OR S&W 642/640. I don't use the .380 except my WWII Beretta 1934 Italian Army gun.

Why? Cause for the size of a 380 I can pack a 9mm. The .38 J frame I carry I do so when I need deep concealment. The .38 gives me five absolutely reliable rounds of power (more power than a .380.) And I can fire right through my coat if need be (and I can stick the muzzle into the badguy's ribs if need be without any fear of a jam.) I also don't worry about the 'limp wrist' syndrome.

And since I practice with another J airweight that's just a practice gun, like the Glock 26 practice gun I have, I am fairly skilled with the .38s.

Those that buy the .380s do so cause they carry more rounds and are a bit easier to shoot (but they rarely practice anyway.) They just want peace of mind and the gun gives them that.
 
bigggbbruce said:
From my experience buying and selling FTF on many occasions, what I have seen as the normal is when buying or selling a revolver the person is my age or older(I'm old:().. Semi auto's are more often than not younger than me, by quite a bit.

As we have talked about this before, the collectors of revolvers are aging. and many of us are selling off these days because no one, or few heirs want the collections we have assembled.

Like many of us that do like revolvers, I only by vintage, out of production guns. No help for new production from me..
Click to expand...


But there have to be more guys like me: I've been shooting and loading for semis for decades. Only in the last year or so, did I purchase a new production 686 and a new 629, for the express purpose of using them as handloading platforms. My 1911s have been getting plenty of rest since then!
 
Sweet! Does this mean they are going to become less expensive and I can give less consideration to the rate at which I hoard them? Yeah, I didn't think so. In my area I've actually seen more revolvers at the range in the past couple years than I have seen in the preceding fifteen years. Maybe it's a regional thing and mag bans are playing a roll.
 
I think everyone should have one or two good quality revolvers.

Why? Some day soon we are all going to be proved wrong, and they will come for the semis > 10 rounds. A bit further, the semis period.

Revolvers will be last, because they are not as ugly to certain folks.
 
Revolvers are not the current fad. For those looking to buy a pistol for self-defense, the semi-autos make sense. Many of them in .380 or 9mm are very easily concealed. Other than the J-frame, few revolvers are really so very easy to conceal. For those who favor target shootings, games, hunting, etc., there are some uses for semi-autos especially the speed type events, but in many cases the revolver has excellent utility. I have a RIA 1911-A1 in .45 ACP that shoots very well on targets out to 25 yds. I often mount a Marvel .22LR Conversion unit on top of the RIA frame. The result is a extremely accurate thoroughly reliable .22 LR pistol that will reliably hit shotgun shell hulls at 25 yds. firing standing w/ two hand hold. I can do exactly the same routine using my beloved 18-2 ... which will at 25 yds. reliably keep six shots under 2 inches about as long as I care to sit and pull the trigger. Firing standing w/ two hand hold, the 18-2 will do the Ga. qualification course of 50 shots with just about every round inside the 10/X rings of a B-27. That includes drawing from the holster, reloads, etc. For just simply hitting stuff at distances beyond say 20-25 yds., the revolver is my first choice because day in and day out I find revolvers easier to shoot accurately at longer distances. JMHO. Sincerely. bruce.
 
Ha! Just read the article by this self-proclaimed "professor" Werner. What a joke!

What is "passé" is quality workmanship. The revolver is a product of a time when things were built to last by people who cared about, and took pride, in their work.
In a world where incompetence and apathy are the norm in the workplace and beyond, it's no wonder the "professor's" Top 10 list reads like the inventory of a scrap heap:
To mention a few, we have Jimenez, Hi Point, Taurus, and Cobra.
I guess if my marksmanship endeavors consisted of hitting a trashcan size target at 20 feet, I would be happy with one if these turkeys. Then again, I could accomplish the same level of accuracy with a kid's slingshot.

I'd feel as well armed, or at least have a lot more fun, with a cap and ball revolver stoked with FFFg black powder.

Maybe I'm just dating myself....

Jim
 
If you look at the same report from the ATF for 2007 you'd see that 391,000 revolvers were manufactured in the US that year. Last year 721,000 were made. That's over a 50% increase in 10 years.

The sales figures show that autoloaders are much more popular, but it doesn't make much sense to me to say revolvers are out of date.
 
First off, I'm am always excited to see people are buying any gun. Second the natural progression of modern gun ownership is first timers buy a whiz bang semi auto plastic fantastic go to the range and impress no one. So, after a few trips to the range seeing the old gray beards shooting revolves and the crowd that gathers around them admiring the wheel guns, curiosity starts. Then a neighbor or friend or relative offers a revolver cheap and they say why not. Next thing you know they have a pile of revolvers and they turn up on this site looking for info. Then the cycle starts over, and they end up being the revolver guy.

The next gen of youngsters or newbies is always out there buying plastic fantastic pistols. Then they go to sites like this trying to justify their purchase and convince people whatever current piece of plastic they have is the best gun ever made and the old farts are just too dumb to realize it. It's a constant turn over and sort of a rite of passage.
 
To many new gun owners (calling them new "shooters" would presume too much), a used gun is a blind item. They could buy a used J-frame for around $300+ or a brand new in-the-box LCP for $200. That is literally a no-brainer decision. People want easy, but that choice is a false one. Easier to afford, easier to carry, but I don't see that an LCP is any easier to shoot than a J-frame. The LCP II might have a better trigger than either the first version or a DAO round gun, but the manual of arms will always be more complicated. And that's the irony about the whole thing.
 
I think one thing to consider is how many people actually shoot their guns. I don't have any idea what that number is, but my bet is far, far less than half of gun owners shoot their gun once per year.

When I started shooting more often (I try for once a month) is when I rapidly got sick of semi-auto problems. I've posted about it before, but I had a G26 that gave me nothing but problems, and it greatly influenced a change of mindset that pushed me toward carrying a revolver.

Just recently I bought a couple of new-to-me but very nice semis at a very good price, and sure enough during their first range trip I had some issues with each of them. Not G26 bad, but enough to damage my trust in them quite a bit.

So I'm still carrying my 4" M29. Which is ok because, I love it.
 
The selling thought is to have a gun that is feather light, easiest to hide, that can carry more rounds and is quick to reload. And of course make it inexpensive that anyone can own one. That is why there are way more pistols sold than revolvers.

Many people buy into the gotta have pistols and due to the recoil and failure to function many of them end up in a drawer for years. I imagine many in the drawers even have the first box of ammo that was bought when the gun was bought.

I have to say probably 90% of the handguns at the shooting ranges are probably semi autos. Yep the revolvers are passé at the ranges I guess.

Personally I carry the passé revolver as my choice for protection because of its dependability and safety.
 
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