Loading 5 in a revolver
- Thread starter docwharden1881
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Jim Watson
Member
All I could find on the subject in Taurus literature was
"The Taurus 856 revolvers have a swing out type cylinder with six (6) chambers, turning around a central axis which allows you to fire six shots."
Nope, not unless I had an old single action where I had to.
I had an 856...can you show me the page? I definitely don't remember that, and it would make no sense with a transfer bar. But I may have not read the manual, and who knows with taurus. Maybe it's generic revolver manual from when at some point they made an old school single action or something.
It would just be super weird to make a big deal of updating the model 85....to the 856 BECAUSE of the sixth shot. That was their while gimmick. Basically same size as the 85 bit with an extra shot.
bigpower491
Member
Most of mine have transfer bars, so I'll load them full. My Freedom Arms, if I'm carrying it afield, always carried on an empty chamber. That's only 4
Jim Watson
Member
Yeah FA is weird. There is a manipulation of the 83 hammer that is supposed to get it into a safe condition, better than old quarter cock, but then they say to load 4. The 97 has a transfer bar.
bigpower491
Member
Well it states in the owners manual, at least 7 times(or more) not to carry on a loaded chamber, so I reckon it must be good advice
RetiredUSNChief
Member
If I'm shooting, my Colt SAA gets all six holes filled.
If I'm carrying my SAA in the holster, it'll be loaded with 5, hammer down on the empty chamber.
This is because it doesn't have a transfer bar or other mechanism to keep the hammer from potentially falling/impacting the primer of a cartridge below it. And yes, I realize the hammer on the Colt SSA has a "safety notch" position, but it's NOT robust enough to trust if the gun were dropped.
If I'm carrying my SAA in the holster, it'll be loaded with 5, hammer down on the empty chamber.
This is because it doesn't have a transfer bar or other mechanism to keep the hammer from potentially falling/impacting the primer of a cartridge below it. And yes, I realize the hammer on the Colt SSA has a "safety notch" position, but it's NOT robust enough to trust if the gun were dropped.
nofendertom
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If you carry the revolver with 6, I would think you would want to practice with 6.
page 8 or 9, maybe referenced on other pages too, but yea - it is just a general carry recommendation they make for all their revolvers.
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Jim Watson
Member
I know. Timid/liability averse bunch.Well it states in the owners manual, at least 7 times(or more) not to carry on a loaded chamber, so I reckon it must be good advice
HAMMER SAFETY POSITION - In this position, the hammer is slightly back and away from the receiver, and you will see a slight gap between the hammer and receiver. (See Figure 5)
When the hammer is in this position, the safety bar is physically positioned between the hammer and receiver to prevent the hammer from hitting the firing pin. When the hammer is in the Hammer Safety Position, pulling the trigger has no effect.
The hammer can be placed in the Hammer Safety Position from other hammer positions by performing the following steps, in sequence:
The rest at page 10 https://ia802208.us.archive.org/29/items/manuals.content.like.stevespages/freedomarms_83.pdf
Carl N. Brown
Member
I have two 5-shot J-fames and that's my practice too.
OP
OP
docwharden1881
member
As a general rule I will load 5 with the old actions, on a very rare occasion 6 if at the range. I don't trust the safety notch b/c of the fragility
I tend to load 5 in the Vaquero, though with the transfer bar/hammer block 6 would be perfectly safe
I guess I just feel better knowing there is an empty chamber underneath the hammer
(You can't teach an old cowpoke new tricks or so it has been said. Lol).
I tend to load 5 in the Vaquero, though with the transfer bar/hammer block 6 would be perfectly safe
I guess I just feel better knowing there is an empty chamber underneath the hammer
(You can't teach an old cowpoke new tricks or so it has been said. Lol).
CraigC
Sixgun Nut
With single actions, it's five rounds, universally. I am closing in on 100 single actions and only 20% of them have transfer bars. IMHO, it's a good habit to treat them all the same and be in the habit of loading five beans in the wheel. I run them fast and reload them fast and want it to be second nature, done without conscious thought.
DA's I load the cylinder full.
DA's I load the cylinder full.
The only revolvers I load with 5 are the early "old model" Rugers and all Colt manuf. SAA's. Smith and Colt DA/SA revolvers get carried with six, tho, like Rio, 38 Spl, and 308 Norma, I do occasionally load five to preserve the symmetry of my ammunition boxes and the uniformity of my group size/and chrono tabulations. Best regards, Rod
All of my revolvers have a safety system where one can fill the cylinder. Most are DA/SA revolvers. I have a few modern Rugers with the transfer bar.
If I ever got an old style SA revolver such as a Colt SAA, I load it six at the range but never carry it. I have enough other revolvers that I would not need to subject the Colt to that kind of service.
But, I might change my mind if I ever get an old style single action revolver. (Doubtful
)
If I ever got an old style SA revolver such as a Colt SAA, I load it six at the range but never carry it. I have enough other revolvers that I would not need to subject the Colt to that kind of service.
But, I might change my mind if I ever get an old style single action revolver. (Doubtful
)
The FA Model 83 is a 5 hole revolver with a "Safety Bar"(hammer Block) however, the instruction manual states this revolver must only be carried with the hammer down on an empty Chamber!
I question this with a well known Gun Smith and was told that there is a very small window where this Safety Bar can be missed and can have a potential to fire if control of hammer is lost.
And I would like to add...
If you are keeping any revolver loaded and not in your possession such as in your home and there is a fire, any loaded chamber in line with the barrel can fire with the same velocity as a trigger fired gun.
When I was safety officer on a fire dept.
I would always ask about loaded guns in building, cars and Hey! ATV's.
A good friend had his side X side catch fire and a loaded handgun was on it, he had 2 grandchildren with and they all layer down in field until fire was out a long time.
And an auto loader may reload after a cook-off.
Gregor CGVS
Jim Watson
Member
You do this routinely?
CajunBass
Member
I do the same thing. I'm that guy at the end of the line who only shoots five times. I don't do any single-actions anymore, but even with the one semi-auto I've got, I only load five. Why? Because that's what I want to do. And I hate to get to the end of a box of ammo and have two left over.
Now the revolver I carry get's six.
armoredman
Member
Modern revolvers I carry are fully loaded. My single action would be with 5, as Uberti said even with that "floating firing pin" safety you should still carry five...but I doubt I will ever carry it anywhere but to and from the range.
Ethan Verity
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At the time they introduced the safety notch, and I imagine for many decades thereafter, it was viewed as a perfectly safe means of carrying the revolver with all 6 rounds loaded. It was likely viewed as an improvement over the cylinder notches of previous cap and ball models, since the cylinder is now locked via the bolt. A hammer safety notch is the same system that lever action rifles had at the time as well, before the cross-bolt safety became popular. Colt ads of the time instruct to fully load the gun, and put the hammer into the safety notch. Even today it's probably safe, but obviously not worth the risk. We know better today.
Jim Watson
Member
There really isn't enough room. Rims are very close together in a SAA and the rounded firing pin against the bevel of the rim will cam it right out because there is no bolt holding it. I think Driftwood Johnson illustrated that.
The "safety pin" on a Colt C&B is pretty small and subject to getting battered down, less secure than the notch on a Remington cylinder. There were some C&Bs made with 12 stop notches so that the cylinder would be locked between chambers.
RetiredUSNChief
Member
Yes. Very clearly the first notch (safety notch) was intended to be a safety, by design. And I'm good with that, as far as it goes.
However, it's not a very robust safety. The notch itself has a width of about 0.15" and the sear (integral with the trigger tip) is not much wider than that, at 0.16"...and the tip of the sear itself is significantly narrower. Narrower, as in 0.04" or less in fact.
I said "I'm good with that, as far as it goes" because this isn't a modern firearm. We can't apply blanket judgement on these matters with a firearm designed and built literally a century and a half ago. Safety concerns then were not what they are today for a number of reasons, and much of what we take for granted simply did not exist "way back when".
The trigger guard, for example, as a standard feature on firearms is not really all that old. It started to come into common use in the 17th century with matchlock rifles.
Anyway, back to the Colt SAA...it ain't very robust and is very easy to damage/break by even a fairly mild wack to the hammer. And definitely if it were to be dropped hammer down, under the full weight of a 2+ pound revolver.
Most definitely a "we know better today" thing.
