Revolvers Suck or My Bad Luck

Revolvers Suck or My Bad Luck?

  • Revolvers Suck

    Votes: 2 2.0%
  • My Bad Luck

    Votes: 96 98.0%

  • Total voters
    98
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You forgot option #3 - Buy better revolvers!

I am a semi-auto guy so my revolver experience is somewhat limited. The only revolver that we have in common is the NAA mini of which I own 3 all of which have shot perfectly and been perfectly reliable.

Back in the 90's I bought a Webley top break 45 and a Nagant 7.62 gas seal revolver. These revolvers taught me that the troops back then must have had very muscular trigger fingers! Both these military revolvers have incredibly stiff triggers but have also been incredibly reliable!

I year or two ago I decided that I wanted a NICE revolver that I could enjoy at the range so I started reading and doing a lot of research. My search came down to buying a S&W for the best trigger or a Redhawk for its over built ruggedness. I finally decided on a S&W 625 in 45LC (or even possibly 45acp) for its versatility and the search for a used one I could afford started...

About 3 months ago while perusing the adds for a 625 I found a great price on a Dan Wesson 744 (44 mag) and jumped! A 44 mag was never really in the running but the Dan Wesson reputation made it too good to pass up! The 8" barrel on the Dan Wesson was much longer than what I wanted but that was pretty easily rectified by buying a 4" barrel for $240 which made it much better balanced and even looks much better. Of course I soon found that I enjoyed shooting full power 44 mag loads out of the 8" barrel much more than I do out of the 4" barrel. I just just got in the gear and supplies for assembling some 44 mag wimp loads for the 4" barrel.

I have been seriously considering a .38 special LCRx. Your issue with your LCR really makes me wonder if I should spend my money else where since I already have a full range of semi-auto carry guns to choose from. I have never owned a Taurus but have read so many reports similar to yours that I probably never will own one. I have also considered the Kimber DASA revolvers... I am not sure if they are worth the money a new one cost and it will be a while before they start showing up used.

Like your J frame my Dan Wesson did come with an excessive cylinder to forcing cone gap... luckily this is a 2 minute fix on a Dan Wesson and I reset the gap every time I switch barrels at the range.

I wouldn’t be afraid to buy a Ruger LCR, even though they have had to replace one for me and fix two others... reason being, they will fix it or replace it, and they will likely do so quickly.
 
I bought 4 last year and had 8 trips back to the factory. One gun is still there on its third trip back. The only gun that had a single trip back has been sold. To their credit, the other two guns have been fixed to a very satisfactory condition. They're both very nice now after their second trip back, and I have not just assumed this but proven them well. One is a S&W and the other a Ruger.

I hate it when I complain about new revolver quality and someone suggests that I was slapping the cylinder shut or some other stupid thing like not centering the cylinder on the stop before closing the loading gate or full cocking from half-cock before lowering the hammer on a single action.
 
Man, that is a run of bad luck.
Ive only sent two guns back to the mother ship for repairs, a Ruger Mk II auto and a S&W 686+ that was binding up.

I did have the firing pin nose break off after about 200 rounds on a 629 classic 6.5”, but that was an easy fix.

Other guns that I’ve had issues with are a PPK/s that would occasionally double and a Rossi .38 snub nose that had a crookedly cut cylinder that would rub the forcing cone. These I got rid of.

My failure rate is about 50-50 revolver -auto, so my experience is a bit different than yours.

I hope your next series of revolvers are all 100%!
 
In the last 10 years I have purchased 15 new revolvers. Of these, 8 have had to go back to the factory for significant repair!

Well there's your problem right there. If it was built after 1985 expect some issues. My last revolver was purchased around 2015. I'm not buying anymore "new" revolvers. The companies that used to pay attention to quality (Colt, S&W) are dead to me. I wouldn't buy a new revolver from either one these days.
 
The prices on the old handbuilt S&W revolvers are considerably more than the prices of the new ones. There is a reason for that. In my opinion after 1995 S&W went straight downhill - and they're still going downhill. But there's LOTS of old ones out there if you're patient.
 
I think you've had a run of bad luck.
I have gotten rid of one Taurus and one NAA due to problems with them.
I did get something of a lemon SP101. It had deep tooling marks in the rifling from the factory, and poor metal to metal fit. It also had a sticky firing pin. I was so excited to et it home and shoot it that I overlooked its flaws.(lesson learned)
The rest of my revolvers...(almost all single actions btw)....have been perfect.
 
I tried the "new" Charter Arms a couple years ago; total disaster. The weapon literally fell apart with each shot. Their customer service was beyond reproach; I traded the replacement gun without shooting it. Taurus wasn't quite as dramatic a failure, and again, flawless customer service. I'm down to pre-lock S&W wheel guns and Rugers.

There's only one revolver I wish for; have CZ make a real good Dan Wesson 15. I know they resurrected the name, and they clearly have the know-how to make a good gun at a reasonable price. They just have not convinced me to give it a go yet.
 
I've had a number of both revolvers and autos that required some factory work... some I sent to the factory, some I just sold off rather than bother with it. I've had a slide crack in half (AMT,) a forcing cone not cut straight (S&W 657 Hunter,) a short chamber (Kahr,) umpteen revolver throat/barrel torque bulge issues (all Rugers, which is why I've sworn off Ruger revolvers, save my single remaining .45 Colt Vaquero,) uncorrectable inaccuracy (Taurus,) soft slide metal (Taurus,)... the list goes on. They are all mechanical devices manufactured and assembled by people... nothing is perfect.
 
So, is it possible that in reality revolvers are not the "simplest and most reliable" firearms or have I just had a run of really crappy luck?
.

First I think you have just had a run of really bad luck, but In My Humble Opinion, to truly appreciate revolvers, you have to pretty much stay away from the new stuff. There are 2 on your list that sort of surprise me and that is the GP100 and the Kimber KS6. Both top notch guns. The rest, I would call low end but that again is just my opinion. While I'm a Smith Man to the core, the Kimber KS6 is the only gun produced in the last 10 years that I've really been impressed with. I have one that I carry and its a jewel. The GP100 has a great following and Rugers are normally built like a tank but the LCR's haven't been impressive to me and obviously a lot of others with the low prices you see in Pawn Shops and Gun Shows. You need to pick you up an older Smith or Two and I think you will have your faith restored in revolvers
 
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I tried the "new" Charter Arms a couple years ago; total disaster. The weapon literally fell apart with each shot. Their customer service was beyond reproach; I traded the replacement gun without shooting it. Taurus wasn't quite as dramatic a failure, and again, flawless customer service. I'm down to pre-lock S&W wheel guns and Rugers.

There's only one revolver I wish for; have CZ make a real good Dan Wesson 15. I know they resurrected the name, and they clearly have the know-how to make a good gun at a reasonable price. They just have not convinced me to give it a go yet.

The 4" barrel I bought for my Dan Wesson 744 from CZ is of excellent quality. I really love the Dan Wesson revolver design! After doing a lot of reading on the Dan Wesson forum it seems that no gun design is fool proof and no matter how good a design it is still possible to have problems... even if it is pretty rare to have problems.
 
I only own 2 wheelguns, both Rugers and zero problems, a "'76 liberty" blue Security-Six 357 mag 4" and a "first run" 480 Ruger "Target Grey" Super Redhawk 7.5".
 
I almost never buy brand-new handguns anymore. I own or have owned most of the revolvers on the OP's list and didn't have any trouble with them. IMHO he was just very unlucky. It happens. My first wife was a lemon and had to be returned to the factory (her mom). I didn't give up on women, though, and the second one has been great. :)
 
You know what I find to be a really interesting theme in this thread and many like it?

I bought this NEW (insert gun) and had problems. In the OPs case there are 15 new revolvers referenced and of those 8 had problems. Maybe isolated but that is >50%. Quite impressive.

I have never bought a new gun in my life and I have never had problems significant enough for me to send anything back. The main guns I buy are pre lock Smiths, pre safety Marlins, and pre plastic trigger group Remingtons. Objectively speaking, there is nothing wrong per se with S&W locks, Marlin safeties, or Remington trigger groups, but this is when I decided that those manufacturers started not caring about guns and a proper final product and with the exception of Marlin (of which happened after Remignton acquired them some 30 years after the introduction of the hammer block safety) you could see immediate downturns in quality.

There are a few reasons to never buy new. Most warranties are transferable first of all but since my objective is to never use a warranty that really doesn’t rank too high. Another is that any nit picky problem the gun has when new has already been taken care of by previous owners. If it hasn’t then you should be able to detect it in your pre purchase inspection. Another reason is that older guns are just.....better. I know, that is serious opinion and debate material but to me why is it that I buy the old stuff when new stuff is readily available as well?

Anyway, I find it amusing that I am having no problems at all with quite a bit older items.
 
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Since you said you've "always been a revolver guy" I doubt you really think revolvers suck. I can appreciate your frustration since of the three new Ruger revolvers I've bought in the past 5 years, two have gone back for repair. Ruger fixed them quickly at no charge so it really didn't bother me. Now that I know what to look for in a used revolver, I'll probably buy used from now on. Since you've had problems with new Smith, Ruger, Kimber, Charter and Taurus revolvers, the question might be "Do new revolvers suck?"
 
I almost never buy brand-new handguns anymore. I own or have owned most of the revolvers on the OP's list and didn't have any trouble with them. IMHO he was just very unlucky. It happens. My first wife was a lemon and had to be returned to the factory (her mom). I didn't give up on women, though, and the second one has been great. :)
I returned my first one(wife) after 27 days, second LNIB after 30 years.:)
 
Bad Luck OP. Shooting for nearly 50 years, but I haven't had a malfunction, or the need to send in for repairs, with any on my Ruger, Smith & Wesson or Charter Arms revolvers. Including newer purchases from S&W and CA.

That said, with the exception of a broken spring in and old Husqvarna 9mm back in the 70's, I have not had to repair any of my semi autos either.
 
I think a bunch of major companies quit doing qc and started letting the warranty section get it. They should be cheaper without all the handfitring they used to get. But there is a fall on something. That’s inspection.
 
This just sounds like bad luck to me but as many have mentioned, QC is not what it used to be.

I’d say buy older guns or just be patient and expect a factory trip for new guns. If they’re good, then yay!
 
I've had more issues with revolvers than autos as well. From minor things in an old 29 to old colts to a new 329 pd (not so minor on that one) and a couple others. Then H&R, heritage, taurus, iver johnson, etc, I've worked on many more than I have in semi auto guns. The mechanisms are just more complex and more to go wrong.
My rugers (Redhawk, Blackhawk, and single sixs) have ran flawless but accuracy ranges from incredible to pretty darn bad. Most people I know who boast about the superiority of wheelguns have a bunch of pristine smith and Wesson and Colts, they are either unfired or so rarely fired that they look new. They feel and look great, I agree. But guns rarely break without use. Other than being able to handle the powerful hunting cartridges when used in the proper frame, I see no advantage to a revolver.
 
In the last 10 years I have purchased 15 new revolvers. Of these, 8 have had to go back to the factory for significant repair!

So, is it possible that in reality revolvers are not the "simplest and most reliable" firearms or have I just had a run of really crappy luck?

10 years ago one of the greatest gun salesmen in history took office and created a amazing long gun and ammunition buying panic.

I think it is more likely you are suffering the consequences of the last 10 years of the manufacturers cutting corners when making guns to try to meet consumer demand and of course make deep profits. This is of little comfort having to deal with getting your guns replaced or fixed properly.

However my theory does not explain the problems with the Kimber.
 
LCR 357, Taurus 85, and a S&W 640 Pro are the only revolvers I've owned. Carry the Taurus the most, and never had an issue with it. I don't buy used guns unless it's a steal, and rather buy new because with used guns, I know the gun's history and know it hasn't been tampered with internally. Plus, I hear a repeated theme of people selling aka pawning off their lemons once they get them back from their second or third trip back to the factory... Nothing against those who prefer used guns though...

IMHO, more people are willing and take the time to complain about issues, and those complaints usually resinate and are passed around more so than good reviews and experiences... It's all perception. If a company sells millions of guns, and only 50 need Q/C work done, you'll likely hear more about and remember hearing about the negative forum post, YouTube videos, etc from that small percentage. Others are more likely to regurgitate those bad reviews.. Then the perception will start to be that the issues are bigger and more widespread than they really are....

I doubt that the top gun companies QC is so bad that a high percentage or anywhere close to a double digit percentage out of the tens of thousands they manufacture every year are being sent in for warrenty work.. I've owned dozens of firearms over the years retailing from $200 to $1600 or so, and I only had to send one back which was a Ruger LC9 Pro...
 
Curious, due to me being in the market for one, what kind of bad luck have you had with the Kimber?
The max B/C gap on my K6 is .006 which is fine. However, the cylinder can move far enough forward for its face to drag on the back of the barrel. When opening the cylinder, the release latch pushes the cylinder forward against the rear of the barrel and makes it difficult to open. Having this amount of endshake will only get worse with use. On many revolvers this can be easily corrected with cylinder shims. When I called Kimber, the service guy I spoke to said they had never before seen this issue on a K6 and they didn't have any shims available to ship out so they asked me to return the revolver to them for service. Other than this issue the gun seems to be well made and has a great out of the box trigger.
 
Never had a issue with revolvers, but my Ruger Single Six Convert, I bought in 1972 was fired so much it became out of time and would spit lead if not cocked smartly. Called Ruger, they took it back and fixed it, NO CHARGE !!! hdbiker
 
First let me state that I have traditionally always been a revolver guy. I learned to shoot on a wheel gun and carry one almost exclusively to protect myself and my family. I have believed what I have always been taught, "revolvers are simpler and more reliable than semi autos".

A couple weeks ago I purchased a brand new Kimber K6s and today I just dropped it off at UPS for a trip back to the factory for repair. This got me to thinking about my recent experience with revolvers and what I discovered shocked me:

In the last 10 years I have purchased 15 new revolvers. Of these, 8 have had to go back to the factory for significant repair!

Note: I don't shoot handloads or give any of my guns a steady diet of high pressure "hot" ammo. I clean and maintain all of my firearms with great care.

So, is it possible that in reality revolvers are not the "simplest and most reliable" firearms or have I just had a run of really crappy luck?

Below is a list of my revolvers that have had to make a trip back to the factory for repair. Notice that this list includes manufacturers with great reputations and those of lesser reputations. FWIW - all of these manufacturers have demonstrated very good service in returning and repairing the weapons.

Ruger GP100 - Broken hand/pawl
Ruger LCR 38 - Cracked topstrap - unrepairable
Ruger LCR 357 - Significant timing problems
NAA Mini 22 Mag - Keyholed every other shot
Charter Arms Undercover 38 - Defective barrel
Taurus Tracker 22lr - Completely locked up action
S&W 642 J frame - Excessive B/C gap - .013
Kimber K6s - Excessive endshake causing cylinder face to drag on forcing cone.

Hi Marb4 -- I've had direct experience with the keyholing issue regarding the NAA Mini.

In my case, it's a Black Widow. I found that my BW would keyhole 60% of the time with Winchester Dynapoints. With CCI Maxi Mags (either solids or HPs), it would punch clean, straight holes.

It's an anecdotal observation based on one weapon, but it sort of led me to conclude that the NAAs -- maybe because of their extremely short barrels -- were more prone to keyhole with .22 mag.

Hopefully, NAA corrects the issue with your revolver in its entirety. But if you still find it keyholing, you might want to experiment with various loads of ammo.

Good luck! :)
 
Quality control... is Rock bottom..
I have had the best luck with Charter Arms ..
They have less parts ...
Great customer service
Light weight
Great caliber selection
I have people rag me about me chooseing Charters ... Some forums slam them.. To make their S&W J frames seem better..

They are alot of moving parts in revolvers...
If you have noticed older used revolvers prices have slowly climbed.. Such as Ruger Six series and S&W model 10's and like ...
But as of late Ruger and S&W have had serious QC issues , canted barrels, crane arm / frame fit and such
 
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