Every once in a while I see a
new revolver shooter (meaning someone who has only owned or been trained to shoot semiauto pistols) either bring a revolver through a qual/training range, or express an interest in trying one.
It usually means there's a steeper learning curve involved before they can really start running the revolver. Sometimes it's the grip shape, sometimes the heavy DA/DAO trigger, and sometimes it's the lack of a magazine and having to open a cylinder and individually load charge holes.
Lots of folks who transitioned from revolvers to pistols, and then let their revolvers lay neglected in their safes for some years, may require a little bit of a refresher, but those skills seem to quickly return for many of them in short order.
As an instructor, I'd much rather transition a revolver shooter over to pistols than vice versa.
Properly acquired and practiced DA revolver skills seem to often make for "better" all around handgun shooters.
As an armorer, I'd much rather have to detail disassemble & repair many different makes/models of pistols than a S&W DA revolver.
As a S&W revolver armorer, however, there are fewer repairs typically required under normal circumstances and conditions of usage, and fewer wearable parts to inspect and replace as preventive maintenance. Revolver springs,
if of factory spec, tend to last a long time.
Owner/shooter neglect may adversely affect the optimal functioning of many types of pistols sooner than with revolvers.
Owner/shooter-induced stoppages related to grip issues seem more likely to occur with pistols than with revolvers. Things like improper slide manipulation, thumbing the slide, freedom of slide travel, etc.
Improper handling & manipulation can introduce problems regardless of whether it's a pistol or a revolver, though.
