Are We In The Middle Of A Revolver Renaissance?

[BillSWPA]

Exactly. Because nothing can make you feel good about facing a rifle armed aggressor, besides a being in a tank with high explosive rounds.

You should certainly choose a gun that you feel comfortable with.

I've stated here before and I'll do so again in this thread -

If you carry a compact handgun 90% of the time, 99% of your training should be with the compact handgun. A lot of folks carry J-Frames and don't shoot them a lot. It's a disservice to yourself if you carry a J regularly, but don't shoot it and dryfire it most of the time.

If someone wants to cite a P-F Specific Phenomena, it's that folks here actually practice with their snub .38s at least regularly. That said, a J-Frame, and in particular the Airweight and Scandium guns, are expert's guns and have to be vigorously trained with to the nigh exclusion of all other weapons. I carry a snub revolver oh 85-90% of the time, 95% of my practice is with a snub revolver, because of that.

While I agree that it's tougher to shoot a snub at longer distances, I'm confident in my ability to make hits at 25+ yards with an Airweight J-Frame, because I practice that type of shooting at every single range session.

While I agree re: pistol v. rifle, what would at least make me feel less bad is the best sights and best trigger I can get on that handgun to place an accurate shot on the problem. While DA revolver triggers are a very mature technology at this point, and the sight situation for revolvers is improving, this is where a semiauto may have some real advantages.



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[Tom Duffy]

Short stroking is an operator error, unless you’ve monkeyed with the action.

I found the Ruger SP101 to be very easy to short stroke when shooting fast. Never managed that with a Smith and Wesson. Operator error or not, people might want to choose a make and model that is less inclined to facilitate operator error.

[Stephanie B]

So what is the revolver choice? Ive only got jframes and never shot any other revolver.
Im assuming the j for pocket but what would you choose if you carried on the belt? And which position?

Depends on your body shape, overall mass, clothing styles, what holster material you prefer, and so on.

I've got a JMCK AIWB holster that I bought to carry a 3" M65. Sometimes, I stick a 4" M64 in there.

[TGS]

While I agree re: pistol v. rifle, what would at least make me feel less bad is the best sights and best trigger I can get on that handgun to place an accurate shot on the problem. While DA revolver triggers are a very mature technology at this point, and the sight situation for revolvers is improving, this is where a semiauto may have some real advantages.

Eh.….as someone who thinks most people in this thread are just participating in a circle jerk and coming up with reasons to justify carrying an objectively less capable gun simple because they like them, I think it's fair to say that this isn't a good criticism for revolvers.

My vintage S&W Combat Magnums have fantastic sights on them, just as good as any semi-auto. If in a vacuum where my only concern whatsoever was placing an accurate shot on a problem and I could choose any gun from my safe, it would 100% be one of my 2.5" Combat Magnums.

Life not being a vacuum, and my worldview on how I might have to use my pistol, I opt for a double stack semi-auto instead. I own my revolvers for pleasure, but I've carried them without complaints when the need arises.

@BehindBlueI's, as for good guys running out of ammunition, I vaguely remember an individual (off-duty police officer) who found himself at the feet of a bank robber shooting people, drew his j-frame and put all 5 rounds into as respectable hits as we could expect for an individual, and the shooter was undeterred and killed him with an execution shot after the "good guy" was injured and unable to easily reload his gun. I'm not sure if that sounds familiar to you. We could also extrapolate the same from the NCIS Special Agent at the Navy Yard active shooter who had a P239 and no reload, and ran out of ammo.

The fact they're off-duty or plainclothes LEOs shouldn't be used as a strawman that it's somehow less applicable to a private citizen. The situations were identical to what a private citizen could find themselves in....but private citizens tend to make up a lot less engagements given the amount of guns carried in public by good guys used in shootings are overwhelmingly carried by cops.

[BehindBlueI's]

@BehindBlueI's, as for good guys running out of ammunition, I vaguely remember an individual (off-duty police officer) who found himself at the feet of a bank robber shooting people, drew his j-frame and put all 5 rounds into as respectable hits as we could expect for an individual, and the shooter was undeterred and killed him with an execution shot after the "good guy" was injured and unable to easily reload his gun. I'm not sure if that sounds familiar to you. We could also extrapolate the same from the NCIS Special Agent at the Navy Yard active shooter who had a P239 and no reload, and ran out of ammo.

I don't recall the bank robbery thing, but I don't doubt it happened. Like I said: For random crime, I am well satisfied that the difference between 5 shots and 8 shots and 10 shots is negligible in all but the rarest of incidents. If you can carry a double stack, by all means do so. I carry my 17M daily outside of the narrow exceptions I already listed. I also get not everyone can or wants to adjust their clothing and/or lifestyle around doing so. If I get spotted carrying a gun the results are...nothing. It's not going to impact my career, social standing, or freedom. I am not uncomfortable carrying a duty sized gun and my wardrobe easily supports doing so. I get not everyone checks all those same boxes, though, and the revolver remains a 99%+ solution for the scenarios folks in low threat environments with no reason to be targeted specifically (crazy ex- stalking you, etc.).

[TGS]

I don't recall the bank robbery thing, but I don't doubt it happened. Like I said: For random crime, I am well satisfied that the difference between 5 shots and 8 shots and 10 shots is negligible in all but the rarest of incidents. If you can carry a double stack, by all means do so.

Hmmm. How many of you guys in this thread carrying revolvers are carrying it with the threat of random crime being your motivator?

By “random crime” in this context, for sake of discussion can we define that as relatively petty, common street crime (armed mugging, carjacking, etc) as opposed to “sentinel events” such as an active shooter or terrorism?

[blues]

Hmmm. How many of you guys in this thread carrying revolvers are carrying it with the threat of random crime being your motivator?

By “random crime” in this context, for sake of discussion can we define that as relatively petty, common street crime (armed mugging, carjacking, etc) as opposed to “sentinel events” such as an active shooter or terrorism?

Well, I only carry a revolver at home, or walking distance from home...so that would apply to random crime.

I carry a semi-auto once I set foot in a vehicle to head to town or further abroad. That also applies primarily to random crime.

[Stephanie B]

I live in a ban state. If I'm going to carry a service-sized gun, I'll go with a 1911 for the same reasons that I would have in the late 1990s.

For a compact gun, I find that a round-butt revolver conceals better for me. There's no hard edges to show under a t-shirt.

If I find myself in the middle of some flavor of terrorist who has a long gun, I'll do what I can, if I can, but in medical parlance, those are zebra attacks. I am home most evenings before dark; I don't go to places where there are stupid people acting ignorantly.

[45dotACP]

I live in a ban state. If I'm going to carry a service-sized gun, I'll go with a 1911 for the same reasons that I would have in the late 1990s.

For a compact gun, I find that a round-butt revolver conceals better for me. There's no hard edges to show under a t-shirt.

If I find myself in the middle of some flavor of terrorist who has a long gun, I'll do what I can, if I can, but in medical parlance, those are zebra attacks. I am home most evenings before dark; I don't go to places where there are stupid people acting ignorantly.

My state is technically not a ban state and there's something they say about how the CCW law overrides local mag capacity bans, but all the same, I carry a 1911 to not run afoul some legal nonsense if I get noticed and a cop asks to talk to me about it. Which seems more probable than me having to cap a dirtbag.

That and I shoot a 1911 considerably better than most other autos and compete with a 1911...so it's just more familiar.

That said...there's just something about 1911s and J frames, because a 638 tends to play backup to the 1911.

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[Trooper224]

Hmmm. How many of you guys in this thread carrying revolvers are carrying it with the threat of random crime being your motivator?

By “random crime” in this context, for sake of discussion can we define that as relatively petty, common street crime (armed mugging, carjacking, etc) as opposed to “sentinel events” such as an active shooter or terrorism?

I haven't carried a revolver for almost twenty five years. All of mine, and I have more than a few, are fun/cool guns that I simply enjoy shooting. I also like to keep my skill set well rounded. I think a revolver is a tactically inferior tool to a semi-auto. However, I recognize that people will make their own choices no matter how much they're lectured with a, "coulda, shoulda, woulda" type of approach. I also recognize that many people are mechanically incompetent and a point and shoot weapon with simple administrative handling, regardless of capacity, may just be the best thing for them. If someone will only carry a J frame, I'd rather help them optimize that choice rather than berate them for it.

I do agree that some here may simply like a revolver and are trying to justify it with something more than, "I like it." That happens to be a perfectly valid answer and an honest one I'd like to hear more often, but one that doesn't jive with the switched on, pipe hitting mentality here at P-F.