auto vs revolver

[briansp82593]

heres something to think about... what is safer in your view a auto or a revolver? now dont specify guns i mean very broadly every auto & revolver now lets see :evil:

[jad0110]

Did not vote.

Safety is not determined by the tool, but rather it's user in most cases.

Now I can see where a revolver is a good place for a newbie to start, because of the simpler manual of arms. But you can still have royal screw ups with one if you don't follow the 4 rules.

[TexasRifleman]

Poll makes no sense sorry.

Safer is what you train with.

For a new shooter out of the block with no experience it's different, I'd vote revolver then.

[briansp82593]

let me rephrase.... not with people the gun it self like if it was dropped etc.

[cslinger]

I agree that safety is generally a between the ears kind of thing but overall I would say that teaching a revolver is generally easier for one to learn and therefore safer overall. I would also add a few other things that make it safter so to speak.

1)Quick and easy visual ID of loaded status.
2)Super easy to unload and make safe, no round in the chamber so to speak.
3)No worry about repeated chamberings of a single round causing setback and therefore increased chamber pressure.
4)So easy to unload and load that wiping it down after carry means one is likely to unload, wipe down and reload. I have known folks with semi auto that wipe down while loaded, and I find this to be a possible safety issue.
5)Generally a very heavy double action trigger which I personally like as a safety feature. You still generally have the option of a super slick single action trigger as well.

The reality is with training there really isn't much difference but I think the nod goes to the revolver as being a bit more idiot resistent.

[cslinger]

If we are taking people out of the equation then a modern revolver is no more lor less safe then a modern semi auto.

I could toss a Glock around all day and it will never go off barring some 1 in a million set of circumstances, the same could be said about a Ruger GP100 for example.

There is, IMHO, not one whit of difference as far as mechanical safety between a good semi auto vs. a good revo.

[MCgunner]

The reality is with training there really isn't much difference but I think the nod goes to the revolver as being a bit more idiot resistent.

+1

"I'm the only one here qualified to handle this Glo".....POW!

[Bezoar]

Fool proof in a high stress environment to relaod a revolver: open cylinder, eject spent casings, reload, snap cylinder into frame, pull trigger vs. remove empty magazine, insert new one correctly, pull slide back, release slide stop, deactivate any automatically operating safeties, pull trigger

[5Wire]

I'm inclined to go with the training leading to safe gun handling. That being said, a Glock with a round in the chamber is safe as long as nothing--finger, car keys, loose threads-- snags the trigger enough to overcome the trigger safety with enough pull to trip the sear. That is, cocked but not locked. One does not 'safely' pocket or 'Mexican carry' a Glock or similar action pistol. Almost any revolver is safer under those casual carry circumstances.

Revolvers are not carried with the hammer back, like 1911 pistols with grip, slide, and drop safeties. Some revolvers can be safely pocketed without a holster. Nothing else in the pocket is a good idea for either holstered or unholstered pocket carry of revolver or pistol. My favorite 'safe' revolver is a S&W 642 in an Uncle Mike's Pocket Holster.

Para Ordnance LDA pistols also have several safeties: grip safety, slide safety, and trigger/hammer interactive safety, and, like the Glock, a drop safety. Most modern revolvers have the transfer bar to preclude accidental discharge if dropped.

My personal favorite 'safe' pistol is H&K P7 M8 in a IWB or High RIde Belt Slide holster. The gun cannot fire unless the cocking lever is firmly squeezed. Like about 15 lbs of deliberate gripping force. Relax the grip, the P7 is decocked.

Still, training is it.

[Jamie C.]

No vote from me, since if either is designed and built correctly, it won't have an advantage over the other.

And "cocked and locked" is just as safe as "Double Action Only", if the operator is properly trained, and knows how to deal with the gun.

Now, for an absolute idiot, nothing can truly said to be safe... They could wreck an M-1 tank with a feather pillow. *shrug*

One way or the other, there's no real answer to this poll, only opinion.


J.C.

[ArchAngelCD]

I'll add my voice to the "can't vote members." The type of gun has nothing to do with how safe the gun is. As said above if the pistol/revolver is in good operating condition safety isn't in question and only controlled by the user.

Sorry, only ANTI's think guns are unsafe!!

[5Wire]

Come on, "can't voters," given that training cures all safety problems, ya gotta admit that certain guns in untrained hands are less safe than others.

Single Action Army (original) with rounds in each chamber, an unholstered Glock with a round in the chamber each are an example of less safe than some other revolvers and pistols respectively.

Since the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed, any one, trained or not, has the right to bear arms. Forget wisdom of training for the sake of this thread and dive in to the unsafe, safer, safest parameters known to you. I'd like to hear some more comparisons.

I say simplicity and weight of trigger pull make most revolvers inherently safer than most semiauto pistols without regard to reloading. Most civilian defensive gun uses don't involve firing the gun and if fired, only two or three shots.

[Soybomb]

They are equally safe.

[Jamie C.]

I say simplicity and weight of trigger pull make most revolvers inherently safer than most semiauto pistols without regard to reloading.

So what you're saying is that a gun that can just be picked up and fired by nothing more than pulling the trigger is safer than one that you have to know to take the safety off first?

Sorry, but I'm just not seeing the logic there.


J.C.

[SniperStraz]

the gun it self like if it was dropped
There are some revolvers without transfer bars, and there are some autos that are DAO. For the purpose of this thread it would depend entirely on the specific firearm in question.
If we're talking about most modern revolvers (with transfer bar) than it would depend on which model of auto you are speaking of. in a SA target .22 v.s. a DAO Kel-Tec P-11 your gonna see a big difference in safety. Not to mention that you didn't specify for what use.

[5Wire]

So what you're saying is that a gun that can just be picked up and fired by nothing more than pulling the trigger is safer than one that you have to know to take the safety off first?

Yup. Pulling the trigger deliberately is the definitive act of will that causes the gun to discharge. That's what the trigger is for. All other safety devices are intended to prevent accidental discharge, not to substitute for training or familiarity.

From the Walther P99 Manual: To Fire this Gun, Pull the Trigger! There is no manual "on/off" safety mechanism. There is nothing to block the trigger from being pulled IF YOU PUT YOUR FINGER ON THE TRIGGER AND PULL IT

[sanson1]

easy one, all handgun beginner's classes, ALL begin with revolvers for SAFETY reasons. I have both, each fills a niche for me as with any tool.:D

[Jamie C.]

Yup. Pulling the trigger deliberately is the definitive act of will that causes the gun to discharge. That's what the trigger is for.

Well duh.

No firearm that's in proper working order is supposed to fire any other way than by pulling the trigger.

However, I've both seen and heard of people unintentionally pulling the trigger on both revolvers and auto loaders.

Worse yet, I've seen new shooters, or inexperienced people with a new gun forget to take off the safety, and have to spend a second or two scratching their head, trying to figure out why the gun didn't fire when they pulled the trigger.

So, any way you go at it, one type of handgun isn't any safer than the other. Both have pluses and minuses that even things out, and it comes back to training, or a lack of it, being the only real difference.


J.C.

[wally]

+1 did not vote. The only safety that works is between you ears!

--wally.

[Ghost Tracker]

Revolvers are simplier to understand & use. The single action revolver is a good starting point for new pistoleros...then D.A. revolvers, then D.A.O. autoloaders THEN single action automatics. The 1911 & Browning Hi-Power should be considered Professional Grade Only!

[5Wire]

However, I've both seen and heard of people unintentionally pulling the trigger on both revolvers and auto loaders.
My point exactly. Mistakes can be made on any type of gun but ar less likely and I'm sure less frequent more or less in this order: Revolver single action: safer than revolver double action: as safe as or safer than self loader double action: safer than self loader single action because of relative simplicity and trigger pull. While I agree that training and brain usage comprise the greatest contribution to safety, that's not the point.

sanson1 and Ghost Tracker make the point better than I did.

[CWL]

Both are as safe as the Operator in possession of them.

[L-Frame]

I voted for the revolver. I completely agree that in properly trained hands all kinds of guns can be equally safe. But I believe that revolvers are the most idiot proof, inherently safe handguns available. I keep reading the phrase "if properly trained", which of course applies to all handguns, but I think it's more difficult to properly train someone on the semi-autos thus making them inherently less safe than a revolver. With proper training it really doesn't make much of a difference, but unfortunately there are few willing to really be properly trained.

[Soybomb]

Revolvers are simplier to understand & use.
I'm not entirely sure I agree. If I give someone a revolver, invariably one of the first things they do is cock the hammer which leads to the problem of teaching a new shooter how to unload their now cocked revolver.

[SoCalShooter]

I did not vote, the tool is only as safe as its user. As for manufacturing the weapon, there is no more safe revolver than there is a semi auto handgun in my opinion.

[sb350hp]

What are you doing dropping your guns? :confused:

1911's have been proven on the "drop" test and have passed evertime as far as I know.
Additonal question: Hammer cocked or down?

Cocked 1911 auto evertime
hammer down. "Toss up" pardon the pun.;)

[cheygriz]

I voted revolver, but any DA semi-auto is just as safe. Double action is the key.

[briansp82593]

well i voted auto... a friend of a friend was hunting and was packing up and he had his revolver in one of those holsters where the strap lays on the hammer are beneath it... he took it out to decock the hammer and empty it and he dropped it.... boom 357 through his chest but since he was only a few miles from a hospital he got there fine... i havent dropped any of my revolvers i have dropped my beretta :( the guy in the range thought i was rapid firing and it slipped thank god for half cock but those are my determining factors

[OBXMIKE]

Safest is a single action revo with transfer bar, carried hammer down on empty chamber. :D

Echo best safety is 'tween yer ears!

[fattsgalore]

Revolvers don't have a safety.:eek:

[briansp82593]

yes one revolver i know of.... that thunder 5.... the ugliest revolver... 410/45

[10-Ring]

Both are equally safe. The biggest variable is not in the platform, but the shooter...

[Pat Cannon]

How about the DAO (spurless or concealed hammer) revolver? This eliminates the situation where you need to decock the hammer, making it arguably safer than either a regular double action revolver, or a single action.

[SniperStraz]

a friend of a friend was hunting and was packing up and he had his revolver in one of those holsters where the strap lays on the hammer are beneath it... he took it out to decock the hammer
Not so smart carrying a cocked revolver around IMO.

[Oldskoolfan]

If you hold the auto wrong the slide can tear your thumb off if you put your thumb on it. However with a revolver you cant do that.

I voted auto because I think of a safety on a gun. Not all autos have safeties though.

Either way the poll is not really fair.

[PaladinX13]

When starting out with handguns, I recommend a revolver because the lower capacity and action lend itself to fire-discipline. That helps the person to focus on marksmanship, good habits, and safety before the thrill of sending lead down the range. Same with rifles... I'll tend to recommend a bolt before a semi.

That doesn't mean a person can't be irresponsible with a manual action or that a person can't be responsible with a semi-automatic action... but it's minimizing an X-Factor with a new shooter. I prefer people to "graduate" to semi-automatics.

[PaladinX13]

If you hold the auto wrong the slide can tear your thumb off if you put your thumb on it. However with a revolver you cant do that.Well, if you hold a revolver the wrong way, you're going to be burned by what escapes from the cylinder gap.

All firearms are "dangerous" used improperly, which is why we have the 4 Rules.