Rastoff
US Veteran
Diggin' deep for that one.
Single Action Revolvers for Self Defense?
- Thread starter gen3guy
- Start date
If, as you were walking in from the coral, Big Foot carried your wife away from the porch heading towards the woods you'd be better off with a Ruger Old Army than most CCW handguns.
Still too deep? You could conjure up some other hostage situation or perhaps a mass shooter in a public place with panicked people running every which way. You would need accuracy above all else but it's unlikely you'd have a loaded Old Army handy.
Rastoff
US Veteran
If there was a hostage situation from 50 yards away, I wouldn't take a shot with anything less than a scoped rifle. I certainly wouldn't even attempt it with a pistol. Even if I could take the shot from a rest.
Of course Polymathpioneer could do it with a revolver, in the rain, after sunset.
Of course Polymathpioneer could do it with a revolver, in the rain, after sunset.
Rastoff
US Veteran
Yes, the accuracy point was well made. I was just havin' fun with it.
When it comes to accuracy, I'm picking a revolver, and firing it SA, every time. However, when it comes to speed, combined with accuracy, a revolver is not my first choice.
When it comes to accuracy, I'm picking a revolver, and firing it SA, every time. However, when it comes to speed, combined with accuracy, a revolver is not my first choice.
RABULL
Member
Well, I have carried a number of handguns over the past 40 years for CCW and every once in awhile a Colt SAA .45 ACP has fit the CCW bill but I always had a New York reload (2nd handgun somewhere) as the Single Action is slow to reload. In my 35+ year law enforcement career, I had several incidents where I had to pull an off-duty handgun to stop an incident or make an arrest (or usually both) and the only time I felt undergunned was when I had 4 dopers in a stolen car where they were stoned and had dope and handguns in the car..... That Walther PPK/S .380 looked very small and I could see those dopers eyeing my little .380 up to decide what to do next.... I would have gladly traded that .380 for my Colt SAA .45 ACP so they could look down a large caliber barrel instead of a small handgun in a small caliber..... I have always Thanked God for having the dopers decide to put their hands up and to wait for the good guys in patrol cars to show up to put handcuffs on them..... I have never carried that Walther PPK/S CCW since........but I have carried my Colt SAA .45 ACP as it shoots like my Colt .45 Gold Cup and I have Confidence in it.......that is the difference.....
stantheman86
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A few SF guys in Vietnam carried personally owned Blackhawks......but then they also probably had 2 or 3 other weapons on them they would have used first. Probably more for the fact was the Blackhawk didn't really need much maintenance and would give them 6 .357's as a get off me gun.
No matter what anyone says, people will continue to carry whatever they want. Guy at my job said he bought his daughter a Taurus TCP and I actually got a little depressed.....
I carry a .25 Beretta as a summer carry gun despite most people saying .25 is worthless.
No matter what anyone says, people will continue to carry whatever they want. Guy at my job said he bought his daughter a Taurus TCP and I actually got a little depressed.....
I carry a .25 Beretta as a summer carry gun despite most people saying .25 is worthless.
Everyone gets hung up on capacity and rate of fire. Anybody watched Bob Munden's Fastest Gun Alive video? I don't care WHAT you're carrying if you can shoot like Bob does in that video the other guy will be dead. I also think that high capacity gives people a false sense of security and the urgency of needing to hit the target with first round is diminished.
StrawHat
Member
Yes, the very few can do it fast and accurately. However, mere mortals like most of us, need to concern themselves with things like not running out of ammo, not missing the target, not getting dead. In those situations, I am happy to carry a DA revolver and leave the SA revolver for when I am woods loafing or similar.
And by the way, " ...if you can shoot like Bob does... " should read, like Bob did as he has since passed away.
Kevin
The secret to Bob Munden's success wasn't that he was some sort of supernatural being but rather the result of extensive practice. And while it is true he is dead, he did not die in a gunfight. I never said I prefer to carry a single action but pointed out that he could make it work and others can, too. But carrying a single action is far superior to carrying no gun. If that's all you have then I say go for it.
Ah, BUT......
That is definitely true but if you know something is cooking rather than being completely surprised (especially in a home defense situation, there's no difference between cocking an SA/DA pistol and a plain SA. So people that use SAs for defense are looking for an accidental discharge. But you can also make a better shot w/o the trigger pull (most people) I'll read the article you suggested and get further educated.
That is definitely true but if you know something is cooking rather than being completely surprised (especially in a home defense situation, there's no difference between cocking an SA/DA pistol and a plain SA. So people that use SAs for defense are looking for an accidental discharge. But you can also make a better shot w/o the trigger pull (most people) I'll read the article you suggested and get further educated.
stantheman86
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Saying "if Bob Munden or Jerry Miculek can do it, a single action is perfectly fine for defense" is like saying "if Derek Jeter can crush an 87 mph curve out of the park so can I"........these people are not only highly gifted "naturals" but also eat, breathe and sleep their chosen sport and have spent a LOT of time training and practicing. Jerry Miculek has probably fired more rounds in a month than I have in my lifetime so far, and I shoot quite a bit (for a working man)......
Even still, defensive shooting is different than shooting on a range, obviously. Someone who is a match shooting master may turn into a puddle of pee in combat.
I have been in armed conflict, at least in today's type of combat, being a "good shot" doesn't really mean a hill of beans when it's dark, you're exhausted and things go from a 0 to a 10 in half a second.......you just shoot at whatever threats or signs of a threat you can see in all that chaos and hope you're still breathing with no extra holes when it's over with. I did it with M4's and machine guns like 249's and 240's......using an SA in a gunfight today is kind of like bringing a bolt action rifle to a shootout, you're going to be behind the 8 ball from the start.......It's not like you're going to have time to cock a hammer and draw a fine bead when people are doing their best to kill you.
Even still, defensive shooting is different than shooting on a range, obviously. Someone who is a match shooting master may turn into a puddle of pee in combat.
I have been in armed conflict, at least in today's type of combat, being a "good shot" doesn't really mean a hill of beans when it's dark, you're exhausted and things go from a 0 to a 10 in half a second.......you just shoot at whatever threats or signs of a threat you can see in all that chaos and hope you're still breathing with no extra holes when it's over with. I did it with M4's and machine guns like 249's and 240's......using an SA in a gunfight today is kind of like bringing a bolt action rifle to a shootout, you're going to be behind the 8 ball from the start.......It's not like you're going to have time to cock a hammer and draw a fine bead when people are doing their best to kill you.
That's like saying if practice makes perfect and nobody is perfect why bother to practice. I practice a lot and while I'm no Jerry Miculek or Bob Munden I do alright. And like I said earlier better a single action than nothing. And, as was mentioned earlier, if it's not a viable option why does Gunsite have a course for SA revolvers?
squidsix
Member
I would greatly prefer to carry a Single Action revolver over no gun at all. I have run a pistol to slidelock and hit nothing at all in anger before, and fired one round and killed what I was shooting at another time, so in real world terms, having a few rounds in a reliable handgun is as good as things need to be.
I've survived 100% of the unpleasant engagements in my life, and in many, many of those, a Single Action Army would have been very nice to have indeed.
I've survived 100% of the unpleasant engagements in my life, and in many, many of those, a Single Action Army would have been very nice to have indeed.
I like the KISS principle. Pull the trigger...gun go bang!
Some wish they were....
Some wish we were in a war zone so they could could carry all of their tactical gear as a fashion statement.
Some wish we were in a war zone so they could could carry all of their tactical gear as a fashion statement.
Watchdog
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I live in North Carolina, too, so this is interesting to me.
Every person and organization that I've talked to who gives qualification classes does not allow the use of single-action revolvers for qualification. They all cite impracticality and the fact that it slows down the qualification shooting at the range.
I'm curious as to which part of North Carolina you qualified in.
It's kind of like taking a trip in the middle of summer, (or winter), with a horse & buggy or a Cadillac. They'll both get you there, but one's a whole lot more efficient, and comfortable. Point is, you can use a single action for SD, but why would you want to?
LoboGunLeather
US Veteran
One of my favorite handguns for many years has been the Colt Single Action Army revolver. I have one of each (1st, 2nd, 3rd generations and a Bisley Model) produced between 1885 and 1979, in calibers .32-20, .45 Colt, .357 magnum, and .44 Special. I have used these enough to consider myself reasonably competent and I would not feel unarmed with any one of them.
That said, the SA revolvers would not be my first choice for self defense or discreet concealed carry. They are rather bulky and a bit heavy. Aside from range use I am limited to 5 rounds for safety's sake. Reloading is slow and would be very difficult under stress. There was a very good reason why many old time lawmen and bad guys carried two, three, or more revolvers when expecting trouble.
As a holster maker I do receive a few orders for concealment holsters for the SA revolvers. To put that into perspective, the last time I tallied up a year's orders the numbers came out at 62% DA revolvers, 37% semi-autos, and 1% SA revolvers. Now that represents only one holster maker, and others would probably report different numbers, but with 13 holster designs offered for 162 different handguns I think it illustrates things fairly well.
There is a "cool" factor that just can't be denied, though. Show up at the range or a nice barbecue with the old hog leg strapped on and you have the attention of everyone there.
That said, the SA revolvers would not be my first choice for self defense or discreet concealed carry. They are rather bulky and a bit heavy. Aside from range use I am limited to 5 rounds for safety's sake. Reloading is slow and would be very difficult under stress. There was a very good reason why many old time lawmen and bad guys carried two, three, or more revolvers when expecting trouble.
As a holster maker I do receive a few orders for concealment holsters for the SA revolvers. To put that into perspective, the last time I tallied up a year's orders the numbers came out at 62% DA revolvers, 37% semi-autos, and 1% SA revolvers. Now that represents only one holster maker, and others would probably report different numbers, but with 13 holster designs offered for 162 different handguns I think it illustrates things fairly well.
There is a "cool" factor that just can't be denied, though. Show up at the range or a nice barbecue with the old hog leg strapped on and you have the attention of everyone there.
