Have you switched to become a revolver guy?

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el Godfather

el Godfather

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Dear THR:
Would like to hear from those of you who have switched from semi auto to revolver for EDC SD and HD. What made you change your mind? How old are you and when did you made the switch?

Hypothesis I: Most of the people who make the switch to revolver are 40 or above.

Hypothesis II: The reason behind the switch is the ease of use and/or some reasoning to justify revolvers being more reliable.

Thanks.
 
I am in my early 20s, at first I carried a sig 226 but have since switched to a ruger LCR in .38 spl.

One reason for switching was i wanted something lighter and easier to conceal, the fact that it holds 5 shots doesn't really bother me as most situations end well before those 5 shots would be used up. As for ease of use or reliability I would still consider my sig very good in both and never had any issues in the years i have been using it (started using the sig in my mid teens).

I am still young and might go back to a semi later in life too. I won't decide a gun based just on if it is a revolver or a semi.
 
Switched? Never left - I shoot both types and own an equal amount of both - was just shooting my new-to-me Model 17, K22 Masterpiece this morning. Having to manually load and eject 6 cartridges sure slows down my use of hard-to-find .22 ammo!
 
My first carry gun was a semi duty weapon I was issued that I carried on/off duty. Within 6 months, I bought a snub. I have been carrying a snub off-duty for over 20 years now....I was about 24 when I bought my first carry revolver.
 
I'm in the process of switching. And by in the process I mean planning ahead for my next purchase(s). Currently, my EDC is an LCP, and my HD/open carry is an Armscor 1911. I'm also looking into purchasing a CZ-75 as a target/range gun.

Over the next few months I'm going to be sending off my Dan Wesson 6" .357 to get refinished (serious pitting/rusting from being stored in a sock before I inherited it - I gave it a cheap parkerizing to hold it over) and that will take over the 1911 as my primary open carry / hunting sidearm / keep in the car on road trips gun.

As for the LCP - I downgraded from a G26 because it was just too thick for pocket carry. While I don't necessary feel inadequate with .380, I'm going to try real hard to see if the Birthday fairy (March) will bring me a J-frame to replace it with.

So, yes I'm planning on switching from semi-auto to revolver, but I also plan on keeping my semi-autos. The LCP will make a nice backup, and I'll have something with a little more power in my pocket. As for the Dan Wesson vs. 1911 - IMHO the 1911 makes the better indoors/HD gun, while the .357 trumps the big 3 (9, 40, 45) any day of the week once you're outside the walls of the home.
 
I'm 33 and I've always like revolvers better, maybe because that's what I was started on. I just recently became a revolver only guy though. I'm not against semis as they are easy to shoot and have greater capacity but a couple things have made me a revolver only guy. 1) Simplicity of a revolver, no safeties to swith off just grab and pull the trigger. 2) Reliability, yes any machine can and will fail but generally revolvers are more reliable. 3) A biggie for me right now is ammo and money. I reload .357 and .38spl and have plenty stockpiled so that played a big role in my decision also. 4) They are just plain cool :p. 5) My J-frame Chiefs Special fits and goes everywhere with me and I don't feel undergunned with it either.

I will probably own a semi or 2 again but right now I have what I need.
 
Started out as a revolver guy with a Charter Arms Undercover. Switched to semi-autos for a while and then back occasionally with revolvers. Nowadays I go with either a S&W Model 638 or a Kahr PM9.
 
Carry a semi auto, save the revolvers for the range mostly. I don't like chasing down brass and they're such a joy to shoot :D

In the summer I'll carry my model 36
 
I'm 32 and started carrying a snub .357 recently as I found one that I can shoot well.

I still love my semis, but I like the penetration of the .357 and I have to take my gun on and off a lot, so I like the safety of the DA trigger over my Glock's.

Like I said, I pick BOTH, but for winter carry and probably most of the year, I'm going to stick with the revolver until I find a need for another gun.
 
I was 39 when I made the switch. I used to carry Beretta semi-autos of different varieties along with the occasional .380 ACP etc. I was one of those guys that poo pooed revolvers/leverguns as obsolete and clunky.

It wasn't more than a year ago that I was talked into buying a GP100 .357. I was sold on a couple of points that I had never given much consideration. First, I have back issues... no more picking brass up off of the ground. Second, I was told I would go through fewer rounds at the range with a revolver and, especially with my SA revolvers, that is true for me. As a side note, I have found .357 and .38 to be extremely easy to reload. I don't know if it is just me but I seem to have far fewer issues with accuracy etc with them than say 9mm.

Last but most important, I love the feel of a good heavy revolver. They just feel cool! I shoot them better too.

I still love my Semi-autos and I still carry and shoot them for fun now and then but, for the most part, I find myself carrying my LCR .38 and shooting one of my other revolvers or leverguns at the range. It just added a whole new layer of fun for me.
 
Shoot far more consistently with a revolver, but I understand that is probably just me, not the gun.
 
Hypothesis I: Most of the people who make the switch to revolver are 40 or above.
Click to expand...

I'm 33 and I prefer revolvers.
I have 2 autos and I do like them. However, I would much rather take my Ruger Blackhawk in .45 Colt or the wife's Taurus 82 in .38 Spcl to the range. They're just as much fun and no chasing brass.

One of the things on my wish list is a nice double action .357 Smith.
 
I'm 46 yrs old, and have gone back and forth over the years.

I love revolvers for carry, and have carried: Ruger SP101, S&W 66, S&W 686, Colt Agent, Ruger Vaquero, S&W 340 M&P, ....

The semi autos I have carried for self defense are too numerous to list here, but I have carried FAR more semis for defense.

If I could only carry one gun for the rest of my life.....K-frame S&W snub.
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I'll be 30 next month and most of my friends and family would call me a revolver guy. Right now the autoloaders and revolvers are tied for space in the gun safe, but the next arrival will tip the balance one way or the other.

But I do have a couple of thoughts:

1) Shooting a revolver doesn't have to be a relaxed, slow day at the range, any more than dragging along a Glock means it's going to be a high volume day of blasting. I go through about the same amount of rounds with either. With the revolver I spend a significant amount of time practicing with speed loaders, keeping the gun loaded and in action.

2) Revolvers aren't immune to stoppages. Unburned flakes of powder under the ejector star, case rims slipping under the ejector, unscrewed ejector rods and my wonderful shooting 586 with buttery DA trigger sometimes light-strikes. On the balance I'd say my Glocks provide me with far fewer "now why did it do that?"

3) The .38/357 Magnum combination has got to be a handloader's dream! I've been reloading since I was 14 or so, these two cartridges introduced me to reloading and they are still easy to load for. Bonus points for the revolver not leaving all of the empties strewn across the landscape. And does .38 brass wear out? I know it will eventually, but it's going to be a lot of fun getting there! :D

4) And seriously, how can spending a day at the range or carrying one of these around not leave a satisfying impression?

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Howdy

I am a bit over 60 and I have not switched. I have always been a revolver guy. I have bunches and bunches of them. Oh, I have a few semi-autos too, but my heart has always belonged to revolvers. I guess I just don't like picking up brass off the ground.
 
26 and making the switch now. Was an auto guy but I always had a soft spot for wheel guns. I had breif affair with a pair of M82's when I was a teenager.

My EDC/CCW is now either a LCR or a North American .22 mag wasp. They seem to conceal more easily for me and I love all of the ammunition options. When I'm hiking a chamber of snake shot and 4 bonded .357's is all I feel I'll ever need this side of the country anyway.

Also my wife has trouble with autos and I like that she can operate my guns in addition to hers.

Will admit though my 1911 is still my bedside companion.
 
I have gravitated more towards revolvers. I do have 9mm's, 45acp's, a 40, but I have found I tended to carry my .357 more often. Six shots is enough for me.
 
I love my revolvers, and I have more of them than I do autos, but I'm not giving up the autos.

Revolvers either. :)

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I haven't switched back.......because I never left revolvers! When I started in LE in the early 70s revolvers were the most common duty weapons in LE. Semi-autos were relatively rare and most departments discouraged their use, or limited them to Colts and Brownings only! So I started with a S&W model 19 4" for a duty weapon and a model 19 2 1/2" barrel as a off duty gun.

But during my time in the military (69 -71) I fell in love with the 1911 and have owned ad carried several different makes and models. I rarely carried the 1911 as a duty weapon, but have carried one as a EDC and shot many rounds in competition.

So I will have to say that I have carried both extensively down through the years. I favor revolvers, but I have no problem carrying a 1911 and several other types of semi-auto that I own.

As to hypothesis 1. I grew up shooting revolvers and was not exposed to center fire semi-autos until I was grown. I don't shoot either type of gun more than the other these days.

Hypothesis 2. I will have to agree that I find revolvers easier to use, and easier to teach a novice to use. As far as reliability, I have not found that a well made, well maintained semi-auto is inherently less reliable than a well made, well maintained revolver.
 
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