Six for Sure

[WR Moore]

The title repeats what many revolver enthusiasts maintain. FWIW, my K frame, with less than 2000 rounds through with this new hammer, broke its hammer nose. Only the 2nd one I've had break in 60+ years of handgun shooting, but it happened.

So, what ya gonna do if it happens to you????????????????????

 

[tops]

RUN!!!!!!!!

 

[jbull380]

Well I suppose one advantage a steel K frame has over a Glock. Makes a half way decent club. Lol.

 

[alwslate]

So...it was a new hammer that broke? Was it a factory original or after market? You make it sound like a condemnation of revolvers in general.

 

[lihpster]

New York Reload.

 

[haywood]

I ALWAYS carry 2 guns.

 

[WR Moore]

Hammer was new factory about 3 years ago. Not a condemnation, simply an example that revolvers fail too and without abuse. Hence the title.

Bad guns, bad guns, whatcha gonna do when they fail on you.........
That's parody folks.

 

[Sevens]

I helped my brother find an early-70’s Highway Patrolman for his first revolver at the age of 60 and he is over the moon with it. He loved it when he first got it, he loved the first session with it and he still loves it now after I’ve had to fix it.

Talk about a rare breakage and failure — the center pin in the ejector snapped on a range day we had together and due to distance between us, we are lucky to shoot together once a year.

“Six for sure” had it’s heyday half a century ago or earlier when semiautomatic pistols weren’t nearly so prevalent nor refined.

It is NOT an applicable term today. I absolutely love revolvers and enjoy them immensely. But sometimes when there is an issue, you will need tools, a bench and good lighting to get that revolver back to shooting. With most pistols it’s a tap-rack or another magazine.

I’m definitely not arguing that you’re doomed with a revolver but I am a true believer that “six for sure” is historic and nostalgic but also irrelevant and not applicable today. And I will double down on that given S&W’s QC of the last decade. (awful)

 

[rockquarry]

Mechanical things break, but in fifty+ years of shooting many S&W revolvers, I've seldom had breakage occur. So seldom, I give it no thought.

 

[Rustyt1953]

The "unsinkable" Titanic sank.

 

[Dump1567]

This was my Christmas Eve Church Carry.

This was my Christmas Day Carry.

I think you get the idea.

 

[sigp220.45]

Guns break. I was shooting this 1976 Series 70 Colt and the thumb safety just broke off. I’ve never seen such a thing.

If I had been shooting at sassy bandits instead of paper targets I would consider it a sign to depart forthwith.

 

[.45mtngun]

Just this summer I was dry firing my 5 1/2" Ruger .44 special with snap caps. All of a sudden when cocking the gun, the cylinder would only rotate 1/2 way. Upon taking it apart I found that the hand had snapped in half where the upper portion narrows about 1/2 way down the hand. I've never seen that in 60+ years of working with single actions. Got a return label and Ruger had it back to me in 8 days fixed. Several years ago I had a trigger return spring break on Freedom Arms Model 97. I could have fixed it myself but they wanted it back since it was part of the "fire control system" they said.
Just to show that any part can break on any gun no matter how expensive the gun may be. We've all heard the old story among race car drivers that a broken 50 cent valve spring can cost you the race. I know they cost more than 50 cents now! What this all boils down to is that the "New York Reload" is something to consider.
Jim

 

[45Smashemflat]

Two is one, and one is none, as the saying goes. As Mr Dump, I lean towards a semi primary and a revolver back up. (The ubiquitous J frame…)

 

[MG34/bar]

WR,

You mentioned 2,000 rounds through your revolver, but did not mention any “dry-firing”. I bought my first S&W revolver in 1958 (yes, I’m old) and have at least several hundred thousand rounds through many different K and N frames during the last 66 years. In all that time I have never broken a firing pin, but several of my friends and fellow LEOs have done so. I have no proof, but I believe that my use of snap-caps when dry firing has prevented such damage.

Joe

 

[SGT ROCK 11B]

I got 60+ years of handgun shooting. If you shoot enough you will see it all.

 

[murphydog]

A broken hammer nose is, shall we say, a terminal event for bullet launching if the need is urgent. It seems the only solution for the failure of "six for sure" is "two to tote".

 

[Model 15-4ever]

One of the reasons I frustrate myself getting a good new production S&W revolver with frame-mounted firing pin to carry: no hammer nose to break.

Through tens of thousands of rounds through dozens of original style hammer S&W revolvers, I've only broken THREE hammer noses - all on the same gun!

I was issued a S&W 13-3 3" HB at the FBI Academy in 1986. It didn't appear to be a brand new gun, as it had a bit of muzzle and cylinder wear. I had been shooting revolvers regularly for the past 4 years (mostly a Ruger Security-Six), so could tell the difference.

In the sixth week of training - about 1500 rounds of .38 Special wadcutter into it - the hammer nose broke while we practiced prone firing at 50 yards. The PFI asked me how I broke the gun; of course he knew better, but he has to be a jerk to trainees. I went to the Gun Vault and they issued me a replacement for the rest of the shooting session.

My original issue was repaired before qualification day and everything went fine. We continued shooting, switching to combat and movement type courses. In the twelfth week during during a combat course, the hammer nose broke again. Revolver had about 2500 rounds fired by me at that point, mostly wadcutter but about 150 rounds of +P service ammo. Back to the Gun Vault for a loaner. By graduation in the thirteenth week, the original was returned repaired.

In the field we trained and qualified quarterly. During my third quarterly session, the hammer nose broke off again. Total round count to that point was about 3500 rounds. I was thoroughly disgusted with the weapon, and had no confidence in it. I also was rather piqued that no one at the Gun Vault would wonder why this particular revolver kept breaking hammer noses, and replace the entire gun, rather than keep fixing a broken clock. Poor record keeping I suppose.

At that time, if you had your own approved personal weapons, you could turn in your issue gun. I did that, and carried my own guns for the remaining 33 years of my career.

Never broke a hammer nose since.

Anything mechanical can break at an inopportune moment. I keep my defense guns well-maintained, regularly check for wear, and don't see the point of shooting nuclear-level loads through them.

I always carried a BUG during my career. Rarely in retirement. But as I soon approach the day when running or hand-to-hand fighting doesn't work like it used to, one of these as a spare has it's merits:

 

[6string]

Revolvers, like all firearms, are mechanical devices.
If that seems irresolvable, then maybe consider selling your automobile and buying a horse?

 

[tops]

Revolvers, like all firearms, are mechanical devices.
If that seems irresolvable, then maybe consider selling your automobile and buying a horse?

Once upon a time I was loping along on a horse minding my own business and the horse dropped deader than 4 oclock. Getting a saddle off a dead horse when the horse is laying on its side on the stirrup is a lot harder in real life than it shows in cowboy movies. I had to walk about a mile carrying that saddle. Larry

 

[petepeterson]

The title repeats what many revolver enthusiasts maintain. FWIW, my K frame, with less than 2000 rounds through with this new hammer, broke its hammer nose. Only the 2nd one I've had break in 60+ years of handgun shooting, but it happened.

So, what ya gonna do if it happens to you????????????????????

If you factor in the mathematical percentages of:
A. Needing the gun
B. Needing to fire it
C. The hammer breaking when you do (assuming you've not had an issue before)

I'd say at that point, it's just not your day. Not sure I'd be toting an extra handgun just for that eventuality. There has to be a limit somewhere. No reason to think that second gun couldn't fail, too, ya know?

 

[MSD2343]

I shoot about 6,000 handgun rounds per year through a mix of revolvers and semi-autos. In general, the semis are much more tolerant of high volume shooting between cleanings. I just about always clean my guns after each range session, but during the longer sessions, the semis seem less prone to dirt-induced issues. My older revolvers, which tend to have the narrowest cylinder gaps, seem most prone to problems as the range session goes on.

Obviously this shouldn’t be a factor for well maintained revolvers carried for self-defense.

 

[alwslate]

Take a lesson from the military forces around the world. Semi autos for the hard duty, revolvers for light duty away from the trenches.

 

[ladder13]

Wait, revolvers break too?

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

This was my Christmas Eve Church Carry.

This was my Christmas Day Carry.

I think you get the idea.

I see you are a belt and suspenders type of guy!

My EDC is a 49, when I feel the need for "more" I add a 220 or 1911 (in God's chosen cartridge). If I still feel the need for more, I grab a 12 gauge pump! (Or more likely change my plans and go elsewhere!)

Ivan

 

[chief38]

There is no such thing as a fail proof mechanical devise! No matter how carefully it was produced, inspected and assembled, parts are sometimes flawed in a manner we can not see or know about until they fail. This is not just with guns but with every mechanical devise ever manufactured.

Yes, I would agree that revolvers were and still might hold the slight reliability edge against semi autos, but there is no denying the gap has narrowed. Narrowed enough now that I no longer EDC a revolver. The advantages to a good quality semi auto so far outweighs carrying a revolver, I have retired my 5 and 6 shooters for EDC.

I have stated here before that I have had several S&W revolvers fail to function and had broken. Broken Trigger and Hammer Studs, Hammer Noses, Springs, Sears, etc do occur.

Again, back in the day, yes revolvers were generally 5 or 6 "for sure" as they said, mostly, but not always true! Today's SA's have just about caught up! While SA's have gotten so much better, revolver technology has not changed much.

While back in the day manual transmissions were so much more reliable than automatic transmissions, that is no longer really true. Considering the numbers in which they are made, automatic tyranny's are now quite reliable!

While SA drills and clear jams are prudent & essential, if a revolver breaks, the only immediate use for it is as a set of brass knuckles. Hopefully everyone here has thoroughly tested and vetted their carry loads and know they are reliable and accurate.

 

[Dump1567]

I see you are a belt and suspenders type of guy!

My EDC is a 49, when I feel the need for "more" I add a 220 or 1911 (in God's chosen cartridge). If I still feel the need for more, I grab a 12 gauge pump! (Or more likely change my plans and go elsewhere!)

Ivan

Not really. I just run a Wilderness or 5.11 belt. Never had an issue. And I even have other things on the belt. The only time I ever really notice the weight is when I'm running a steel Gov. model.

 

[Miracle Man]

There's a fellow I work with at my part time just to have something to do job, selling guns haha. Anyways he's a defensive firearms instructor around here somewhere and he shocked me one day telling a customer that revolvers are banned from his classes!!

He says to her "they're a death trap", and he's not a play station kid youngin, probably mid to late 40's.

I haven't had the chance to dig deeper into why he thinks revolvers are a "death trap" but I can't wait to find out their reasoning?

 

[Marshal Tom]

Just Watched John Correia, Active Self Protection youtube video(Revolver vs.Pistol) last night. He makes some great points. I have many S&W revolvers and love them. I occasionally carry a J frame for quick outings, around the house and field as well as in my coat pocket in the winter for a quick town trip. Most often these days it's a 9mm striker fired pistol of medium size. Capacity over small and light in todays world makes more sense to me plus I shoot most of the semi autos more better!

 

[jbull380]

Just Watched John Correia, Active Self Protection youtube video(Revolver vs.Pistol) last night. He makes some great points. I have many S&W revolvers and love them. I occasionally carry a J frame for quick outings, around the house and field as well as in my coat pocket in the winter for a quick town trip. Most often these days it's a 9mm striker fired pistol of medium size. Capacity over small and light in todays world makes more sense to me plus I shoot most of the semi autos more better!

I find no reason to not carry a 9mm semiauto these days. Nothing against a revolver I just have more reason to carry a modern polymer higher capacity pistol.