Can someone please explain why a revolver is preferred over an auto?
Okay, I'll admit a long time wheelgun bias first and get over it
Why I'd prefer a wheelgun for the great outdoors (a short essay by ZeSpectre).
I won't deny that semi-auto pistols can function very well in a rugged, outdoors, environment. The excellent service given by the 1911 under every imaginable condition of combat has demonstrated beyond a doubt that a semi-auto can perform under poor conditions. However, I still prefer a good, old-fashioned, wheelgun for my backcountry adventures.
Part of the preference begins with ammunition. The variety of loads available for my favorite gun (the .357 Magnum) is absolutely astounding and it can be tailored to almost any conceivable situation where a handgun would be reasonably used (and a few situations where a handgun might not be the most reasonable choice).
Another part of the ammunition consideration is how one recovers from a dud round (due to anything from bad primers to moisture from being outdoors). In a revolver you simply pull the trigger (or cock the hammer and pull the trigger) again.
Then there is the mechanical simplicity of a revolver. Without opening or disassembling anything you can give most revolvers a pretty complete visual inspection for functionality and while I am not advocating bad maintenance behavior, an un-lubed and grunged up revolver (say one dropped in a mud puddle after a day in the rain..umm, can’t imagine where I got that one from <grin>) will be far more likely to operate without a hitch. This can become very important if you are out for multiple days in bad weather.
Another possibility (though admittedly a remote one) is that the gun might need to be used in a contact situation. I read a story quite a while back where a man was jumped by a cougar and had just about enough time to pull his revolver, jam it in the cat’s side, and start pulling the trigger. The cat was killed by the third or fourth round and the man survived. I am uncertain if a semi-auto would have fired more than once in this situation but I know a revolver will.
A final note specifically about carrying a pistol when you are out on horseback for an extended period. It is absolutely amazing how much jolting you endure on horseback without even realizing it. As a result I have had the damnedest things happen to semi-auto pistols including a magazine ejecting (total loss, never found it), slides winding up half out of battery (and the in chamber round dropped out) and sights slammed WAY out of zero. Add a couple of days of persistent rain and your lube can vanish and then you start finding the horsehair gummed up in everything.
Better holsters and improved carry techniques cut way down on this sort of thing but I never had any of that kind of thing happen with a revolver.
Just my opinion, well worth what you paid for it.