I spent 32 years in the Canadian military and our sidearm of choice when I first joined was the Browning 9 mm. Over time we switched to Sig Sauer P226s (I think, but it’s been awhile).
I certainly had no issues with either one and I particularly liked the Sig.
When I see movies and tv shows in which some people choose to use revolvers I wonder why they are chosen. Is there some advantage to revolvers? I would be interested in knowing what it is.
My understanding is that revolvers have a mechanical simplicity that makes them extremely reliable.
Lower cost, ease of use, style, greater accuracy and perhaps greater reliability. Pick which matters to you and that can be your reason.
Also if you are a criminal or something, you don’t have to worry about leaving around spent shells as evidence.
In addition to the above, you can vary the loading of a revolver without causing cycling issues. So in the field I can keep my S&W Model 28 loaded with a couple of snake loads, then a couple of wadcutters, then a couple of magnum rounds. Try doing that with your Sig.
Bingo.
This is the main reason.
There is also a quick-loader for a revolver that loads one as fast as a clip, if you are skilled with it. Small handguns sometimes have only 8 round clips, revolvers have six rounds, generally, and most people who own them think they aim better and are more reliable.
Revolvers are simple, which makes them reliable. The bullets don’t feed so they can’t jam up like they can in a semi-auto pistol. You can drag a revolver through the mud and chances are the cylinder will still spin well enough to shoot it. By comparison, just using cheap ammo and/or not cleaning your gun often enough can often cause a semi-auto to misfeed and jam.
A revolver will also fire a wide variety of rounds, basically anything that fits in the chamber. A semi-auto sometimes won’t cycle properly with low-recoil rounds and is much more picky in general about the size and shape of the ammunition. If you want to fire more or less powerful rounds in a semi-auto reliably, you can tune it to do so by adjusting springs and such, but a revolver just fires them all, no problem, no adjustments.
A double-action revolver requires a somewhat hefty trigger pull, so they aren’t as likely to have an accidental discharge as a semi-auto.
Being simpler, they are less expensive.
Being simpler, they require less training to learn how to use one properly.
Snub nose revolvers are pretty dang small, and are therefore easy to conceal.
Revolvers have their disadvantages as well.
A revolver typically holds 5 or 6 rounds, and for safety you often want to leave one of the chambers empty so that if the hammer catches on something it won’t snap down and accidentally discharge. Semi-auto pistols tend to hold more rounds per magazine, with somewhere between 9 and 15 being common.
Revolvers are slower to reload, though there are quick loaders out there that load pretty much as fast as a magazine for a semi-auto.
While the lighter trigger makes semi-autos more prone to accidental discharge, some people also see the lighter trigger as an advantage, making the weapon easier to shoot in some ways.
It’s a bit easier to fire a semi-auto quickly. If you need to do a spray and pray type of thing, a semi-auto sprays faster and sprays more lead before needing to reload.
Dirty Harry didn’t use a semi-auto.
There’s also the issues noted above about reliability (you’ll never stove-pipe a revolver,) ease of use, variable loads, and scattered casings, but I’m pretty sure Clint Eastwood is as big a reason as any of these for many people first deciding between a revolver and a pistol.
No. Unless you are carrying a revolver your grandfather bought, no. Most modern revolvers use a transfer bar safety that makes it impossible for the hammer to contact the primer in any way without the trigger being pulled. So there is no reason to sacrifice 1/6 of your ammo load for “safety.”
BTW, Dirty Harry also used a semi-auto: the Automag. I have one, but mine is chambered in .30 carbine rather than .44 Magnum. Still kicks something fierce.
I disagree on the revolvers are cheaper statement. Extreme example, Hi-Point 9mm goes for less than $200 at the local shop. You’ll likely not find any revolvers at that price. In something of better quality you can get decent semi auto pistols in the $500 range and Taurus revolvers for about the same.
Jerry Miculek can shoot 12 rounds from a 6 round revolver in 2 seconds.
Also because they normally headspace on the rim, length doesn’t really matter if shorter. This even leads to bring able to shoot multicaliber, like .38 in a .357, .44 Special in a .44 Magnum, or from .460 S&W you can Also shoot .454 Casull, .45 Colt, .45 Schofeld, and maybe another one I forgot. Autos are single caliber with a few exceptions.
Really? :dubious:
Yes, revolvers are on average more expensive, even discounting Saturday Night specials. Double barrel shotguns are also normally more expensive than pumps or semiautos despite holding fewer rounds.
I recommend revolvers for folks who are not “gun people”. They don’t need to worry if there’s a round in the chamber, if the magazine is fully seated, nor worry about operating a safety. Just pull the trigger and it’ll go bang.
Neither did Barney Fife.
3 seconds.
And Dennis Kimetto can run a marathon in 2:02:57.
ETA: Miculek has fired 10 rounds through a .45 semi-auto in under 1second.
There are brass-catchers (or “ejector-port condoms”) that solve that problem reasonably well. (They’re kinda dorky-looking.)
Out here in cattle country, it’s a style thing. Paw never went anywhere without his horn-handled forty-five.
Sometimes they’re also recommended for people with weaker hand strength who might have trouble racking a slide, particularly under duress. I think that this concern is a bit overblown, and most slides might be easier if you grip it right.
Certain models of semiauto can also jam as a result of improper grip, usually called “limp wristing.”
Dirty Harry et al. didn’t use semi autos because they weren’t as popular in 1971 and weren’t as reliable. Police were still using .38/.357 then. But the CZ 75 et al. did much to improve autos’ reputations.
Thanks. He’s dead to me now 
With one magazine? I assume so, not a standard 1911. Impressive either way.
My revolver has that. For some reason I thought this was a relatively new thing. Poking around on google it seems that it isn’t, so I don’t know why I had that impression.
I’m not a gun owner, but my dad is former USMC and then spent 36 years as a police officer. He was also a gun enthusiast/hobbyist, and he always preferred revolvers over semiautos. He had a lot of guns, but, not having unlimited funds, he only occasionally added to his collection (as he could afford it), and he always did a lot of research to decide what gun to buy next. And for handguns he always chose revolvers (aside from the Thompson Contender, a single-shot handgun). He never had a semiauto until his department forced one on him.
That was really interesting and, though the various responses make sense to me in retrospect, it’s something I’ve never thought about.
I recall “Dirty Harry”, if I recall correctly, using something called a speedloader or something like that. I assume that is the quick loader referred to upthread.
Why not? Serious question, not snark. Why can’t I load a magazine with different types of loads? I understand that a revolver gives me the freedom to pick which round to fire next, which a semi wouldn’t, is that the only reason it wouldn’t work?
