Is it easier for beginners to learn on revolvers than semi-autos?

[Shaq]

Not only easier, but safer as well.

 

[Llama Bob]

But I'm wondering if other things being equal, like starting with the right caliber and everything, if it isn't easier for new shooter to pick up the fundamentals using a revolver.

Definitely. You can see what's going on in a DA revolver, and it doesn't do anything without you telling it to, unlike an auto.

Heavy DA pulls may be outside the strength of some young/old/female shooters however.

 

[Hangingrock]

What I have observed.

The revolver is seldom seen as opposed to the semiautomatic pistol with individuals new to shooting. I've witnessed this at a shooting association with a membership in excess of 800 members.

The striker fired semiautomatic pistol dominates with subcompacts and compacts being the rule as opposed to the exception. Occasionally you see a snub nose revolver. Again this is with new shooters.

Older more established shooters may have started out with revolvers but even they apparently have transitioned to the semiautomatic pistol.

If that's what people are using then you instruct them on what they have as opposed to what you whish or think they should be using.

 

[JohnBiltz]

Soooo, we are saying its easier to learn two trigger pulls one of them long and slow and we should teach this, the least accurate one first. Instead of something that has one consistent trigger pull such as a 1911 or Glock and then transition them over to what they will eventually use the most that has a completely different grip?

I learned on a revolver, myself because ... old, but I don't think that passes the smell test. I think you are greatly overestimating the amount of time most people are willing to spend learning something. We are not the normal gun owners here. We like to shoot. Lets be generous and say the average gun owner is willing to spend 20 hours learning to shoot, which I believe is probably way above average. Should you spend ten of it learning revolver and then start in on autos or just teach what he wants to learn? I know if I had to relearn shooting due to a health problem I would never touch a revolver.

 

[9mmepiphany]

Soooo, we are saying its easier to learn two trigger pulls one of them long and slow and we should teach this

I'm not sure where you're getting this. I haven't seen it thought out this thread.

I don't think you should ever teach a beginning shooter, who has a reasonable hand size, to shot a revolver in SA.

The advantage of learning on a revolver is that it is easier to teach correct trigger control with the DA trigger stroke. The only difference between a DA trigger stroke and a SA one is the amount of distance the stroke transverses.

that has a completely different grip

I use pretty much the same grip between my K-frame and my M&P9

Lets be generous and say the average gun owner is willing to spend 20 hours learning to shoot, which I believe is probably way above average. Should you spend ten of it learning revolver and then start in on autos or just teach what he wants to learn?

If I had 20 hours to teach someone to correctly shoot a gun, I'd spend 18 of them on trigger control.

But in the real world, I spend a bit over an hour, of a 2 hour block working on trigger control to get clients to be able to place shots into about 2" at 7 yards

 

[shootniron]

Kind of depends on the goals of the shooter.

It ain't "one shoe fits all"...for self defense, if shooter is going to use an auto, only, there is no real reason to learn on a revolver.

 

[entropy]

Kind of depends on the goals of the shooter.

It ain't "one shoe fits all"...for self defense, if shooter is going to use an auto, only, there is no real reason to learn on a revolver.

That's like saying "No use learning how to drive a stick...." You might have to drive one in an emergency someday.

It's not like the manual of arms for a revolver is very hard...

 

[9mmepiphany]

...for self defense, if shooter is going to use an auto, only, there is no real reason to learn on a revolver.

Post #30, third line

Although, I'd also be fine if you learned on a pistol with a long DAO trigger stroke...like a Kahr or SIG DAK

 

[JohnBiltz]

I think the last time I shot a revolver was 1993. It was a Ruger Redhawk. I really don't see the point in learning it anymore for most people. The idea that you should use the same grip with a revolver and an auto is an argument against learning with a revolver because you should be shooting an auto both thumbs forward.

 

[9mmepiphany]

The idea that you should use the same grip with a revolver and an auto is an argument against learning with a revolver because you should be shooting an auto both thumbs forward.

I do.

I just don't place my thumb in the path of the sideblast from the cylinder/barrel gap

 

[Plastikosmd]

for me, it is easier and safer.
teaching the a new shooter the concepts of gun safety, checking to see if loaded, loading etc is much easier IMHO with a revolver to start. A new shooters (esp. with little mechanical knowledge) can be a challenge. I have found that it can be confusing in the beginning, esp with the variations in function out there. Once I have the concepts drilled in, then moving to the semi is easier imho. I also like to use the revolver to work on flinch, if it starts. ymmv

 

[shootniron]

The only difference between a DA trigger stroke and a SA one is the amount of distance the stroke transverses.

There is a LOT more difference between the 2 triggers, than travel distance.

But, teach your students how and with what you want...I don't care.

 

[Odd Job]

I have taught a lot of people to shoot handguns. In my experience the revolvers are easier to start with: no magazines to load, no slide to rack, no slide stops and safeties and take-down levers, no slide biting your thumb, and so on and so forth. Anyone who had a cap gun already knows how it works.

Exactly!

 

[pblanc]

There may be more controls and concepts to deal with on a semi-auto pistol but I think most people can achieve acceptable trigger control for accuracy at self-defense ranges much more quickly with a stiker-action pistol than with a double action revolver.

 

[Varminterror]

I've been a handgun instructor for almost 20yrs, irrefutably the easiest way to learn handgunning is to be taught the proper fundamentals and mechanics by a qualified instructor in a structured learning environment.

When the shooting actually starts: Starting with a full size, target style 22LR pistol is far and away the easiest for new shooters (Think Ruger Mark I/II/III/IV, S&W Victory, Beretta NEOS, Browning Buckmark, S&W 41).

The manual of arms really doesn't make that much difference, in the way I instruct at least. Recoil and muzzle blast DO seem to make a big difference though. I'd rank trigger resistance second (light and crisp SA vs. heavy striker vs. long and heavy DAO), followed finally size and sight radius as 3rd most critical for ease of "instructability". Most folks in my classes have had trouble with these 3 things. Starting with a 1) low recoil, low blast handgun with 2) an easily managed SA trigger, in a 3) full sized platform makes it a lot easier.

 

[Darkstar888]

Experts always lean toward a revolver for ease of use for beginners. In my opinion learning your way around a specific semi auto is simple enough that I'd go with whatever the shooter was most interested in learning.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[RX-79G]

The primary advantage of revolvers for beginners is that the loading process is not automatic and that there is only one place the ammunition can be inside the mechanism. This greatly decreases the chances of an ND.


Separate from that, every newer shooter should spend some quality time with a quality DAO trigger. DA revolver shooters never complain that a 7 pound striker trigger is "unmanageable".

 

[CopperFouling]

I've started two people shooting. Both times, I used a Browning Buck Mark in .22 Long Rifle. When they graduate to centerfire, I believe that I will start them with a Smith & Wesson 686 with light .38 Specials so that they don't acquire bad habits. Oh, and they'll be shooting single action. It takes a long time to become proficient with double-action revolver triggers, in my experience.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

What are you trying to teach?

If you're teaching safety and precision shooting, then a revolver is fine. If your emphasis is self-defense, then shooting a revolver double-action is more difficult than shooting a single-action automatic.

 

[RX-79G]

If you're trying to "teach self defense", attempting to master a DA trigger will teach more trigger control in a short period than shooting a lot of SA.

What they choose to carry after that will be served by the time they spent with a long, firm trigger pull.

 

[Warp]

Revolvers: Easier to learn function and be able to administratively load, unload, and "field strip" and clean

Semi-Autos: Easier to learn to hit the target (especially since I view this from a defensive perspective in which case the revolvers are not used in single action)

A double action revolver, either strictly double action only or with strict instruction against ever cocking the hammer, is definitely the more ND-safe option.

 

[Hangingrock]

The first pistol I fired was a 1911A1 at Parris Island and later on qualified expert with it. Shooting a handgun is only as difficult or easy as you make it.

 

[pezo]

The grip angles complement learning the proper grip and reloading a cylinder is often confusing...no, I don't know why.

. Because they don't know which of the holes to first start putting the bullets into.

 

[C0untZer0]

The other thing I noticed is that my daughter, who is a lefty, has a much easier time with a "righty" revolver than with a right-handed semi-auto

 

[rskent]

9mmepiphany

That invitation to flinch is rivaled only by starting with a 1911

Interesting. I would think a person would be less likely to flinch with a big heavy gun.