What kind of handgun do you think would sell well?

If those guns would sell, somebody would be making them already.

A small, thin DA/SA single stack 9mm. People loved the 3913 and CS9s, but they are gone. Meanwhile, more people are wondering if every pistol should have a 5 pound trigger.

10 shot .327mag revolver made for home defense with rails on top and bottom.

4 shot NAA type tiny revolver in .32Mag (or even .32 S&W if pressures of the mag are too high).

Lever gun in .327mag. Yes, I'm a fan of that round and think it's undeserved.

Most S&W's without the silly lock in them would sell better.

327 fed Coonan
308 BFR
22tcm in most pocket gun formats
And of course a side by side pistol with about 8 inch barrels in nearly any flavor.

A 20 shot .45 ACP weighing only 5 ounces and firing a heat-seeking bullet with radar directed fire control and a built in cell phone that dials 911 for you.

A 20 shot .45 ACP weighing only 5 ounces and firing a heat-seeking bullet with radar directed fire control and a built in cell phone that dials 911 for you.

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Vern Humphrey you make me wish THR had a like button. You left out the 20 round capacity.

A scandium frame S&W500 snubbie.

I think a full-sized but very light weight .32 ACP could be targeted toward people with weakness in their hands or arthritis for home defense. A .32 ACP can be made of lightweight materials, and the longer barrel would produce slightly better terminal ballistics than the pocket pistols the caliber is normally chambered in.

I've been stumping for a break-top .357 revolver for decades.

Not that it was a practical defense gun in modern terms, but I had one of those early S&W top-break revolvers in the anemic .38 S&W chambering. It had a few excellent ergonomic qualities, especially in terms of rapid reloading. If they had been able to import OP's top-break .357 into the US, I'd have bought one in a second.

Unfortunately, it would take a wide distribution of this "non-traditional" style of gun for them to become popular enough for them to have wide distribution in the first place. Sort of a "chain reaction," in a sense. Of course, the trend toward semiautos, with their rapid reloading and large ammunition capability, have by now satisfied the need for rapid reloads.

However, there still are devotees of revolvers who would love the handling of a top-break revolver if they had a chance to try them out.

But let's not turn this into a revolver versus semiauto thread. I'm just talking in terms of revolver ergonomics and their advantages over side-loading or gate-loading revolvers.

Terry

There's a reason top break revolvers went the way of the dodo.

There's also a reason the Luger did as well.

And of course, there were many multi-barrel pistol models throughout history, and as with the others, there was a reason they too are nothing but a fond memory.

What I think sells - reliable, affordable, semiauto polymer pistols. I don't have to like it, neither do you, but that's what the market likes. T.C. Mits (look him up) doesn't worry as much about accuracy any more, just worries about having something which he believes can defend his home, burn a few boxes a year at the range, and not burn a whole months paycheck to bring home. Full size stuff is doing ok, but the compacts seem to do better, since TC feels it's possible to conceal a compact - which is still about as easy as concealing a brick. But, like it or not - that is the market these days.

What I would personally buy - a Ruger GP 100 chambered in a bottleneck 6mm or 25cal standard length cartridge, something on the order of the 256win mag, with a 7.5" barrel and integral scope mounts like the Super Red's. Gonna build one myself soon enough, since Ruger would never dare into such bold water.

A modern,doublestack service sized auto in 7.62x25.Preferably with all steel construction,and a 5.5 inch barrel.
Barring that,more steel framed guns. Would love for someone to get S&W to crank out the 3rd Gen Steel Framed autos.
An affordable,all American made AK that didn't wind up a dog like IO or Century.

I would like a small metal framed DA/SA designed around either the 5.45x18mm +P or a new rimless .25 acp "magnum" and 15 rd double stack mag using a heel release.

A Glock 19/17. Glock 19 frame with a 17 slide. I'd be all over that in a flash. Factory, not a custom cut down grip.

I think a titanium .380 in art-deco styling would be awesome.

I like the idea of a full-size, hi-cap .32 auto. I'd buy that.

Also like the hi-cap Luger idea, only in .45 acp. Or .38 Super! I'd buy either of those.

Multi-barrelled (two or four long barrels) pistols in substantial calibers were made for folks riding on the backs of elephants in howdah platforms. They were used to eject tigers trying to howdah-jack.

They had the generic name Howdah Pistol. They were more reliable than contemporary revolvers. They did not have the revolver's cylinder/barrel gap flash which could be annoying in the confines of a howdah with two or more passengers. They did get full velocity from the cartridges used.

They are very cool collector's items but were useful weapons under very narrow circumstances. The collector interest in replicas is small; the demand as a hunting or self defense weapon is non-exstant.

I don't think the COP long barrel would sell. Multibarrel pistols always were hard to get the barrels regulated to all impact near the POA.

There are different markets for guns, and those markets often view each other with dislike and derision. Design for one market and people in the others will be tripping over each other to throw around phrases like "answer to a question nobody asked"...

For example, I bet there is actually a significant market for Star Wars styled guns. Not necessarily a direct copy but in that style. https://www.wired.com/2015/11/star-wars-force-awakens-props/ You see something close with "relicked" ARs (everything in the Star Wars universe is heavily relicked) but I think you could take it a step further and use deliberate styling. The simplest version would be pot metal/plastic shelled .22s al la the GSG MP5 fakes.

Some people will think that would be cool. Others will think it is the dumbest idea since the idea of carrying a single action revolver (I'm not saying anything about carrying a SA revolver, I'm saying that people who see carrying a single action revolver as idiotic would likewise see the fake sci-fi gun as idiotic).

Someone needs to make a modern automatic revolver, along the lines of the Webley-Fosbery, chambered in .357 magnum. 8-shot cylinder with moon clips as well. A 6-shot .45 ACP version could be developed as well.

Maybe someone other than Coonan could make a 357 1911 or at least a slide to swap. At around $675-$900 would be great and with adjustable sighs too. And mags under $25 each too.

One can dream, no?

I would be happy if Ruger brought back the Security/Service/Speed Six. Bet they might sell fairly well too. And yes, I did have a GP100 and tried as I might I never did take a liking to that gun.

And of course, there were many multi-barrel pistol models throughout history, and as with the others, there was a reason they too are nothing but a fond memory.

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I recommend reading Mark Twain's Roughing It, which tells of his experiences out west during and after the Civil War. One of the people who traveled with him, "Mister Bemis," had an Allen "Pepper Box" revolver. The Allen had a cluster of 6 rotating barrels. Mark Twain's discussion of the Allen revolver and the mis-adventures they had with it will leave you rolling on the floor.