Mas,
I have to admit I have a few gun related prejudices. A big one is that I think as a modern defensive handgun, revolvers are obsolete. Autoloaders just seem to have so many advantages that it seems silly for someone to be using a revolver for the primary purpose of self defense any more. For the size and weight (at least empty) they allow for vastly more ammo capacity of at least equivalent, or likely more effective, rounds (thinking specifically of .38 vs 9mm with this statement.) This applies both both snubby or duty size revolvers compared to their autoloader equivalents. And there are other issues beyond just this (think reloading.)
This thinking sometime leads to debates on forums (this or other.) What I get back is mostly that revolver advocates feel the revolvers are more reliable, both in general and in specific situations. My answer to the general situation is that if revolvers are so much more reliable, why have the entire law enforcement and military communities moved to them? No one seems to have a good answer for this.
But I also hear about specialized situations. Two come up fairly regularly. One is that in contact shot situations, a shooter will jam the gun into the body of the target before pulling the trigger, knocking it out of battery. The other is that a revolver can be fired without drawing, through a pocket, specifically a jacket pocket, without jamming. So after all this verbiage, here's are the actual questions. First, are these real situation, that actually come up in defensive shootings, and on anything even vaguely like a regular basis. Second, if/when they do happen, have you heard of gun stoppages in autos happening because of them? Third, would you consider either of these when selecting a gun, especially for concealed carry. I would guess the answer would be "no" to all of them, but I have no where near your experience.
These would appear to be situations that no one would even think of trying to collect statistics on, so all we have to go on are anecdotal reports. And given your background, you're more likely to get more of these than anyone. Feel free to comment on anything I've said in here (the general auto vs revolver thing), including the specific questions posed. I have actually seen test done on these situation where a revolver did seem more likely to function correctly (specifically the shooting out of the pocket situation.) But again, is there any real likelihood that situation would come up?
Any thoughts on the subject appreciated. Thanks
I have to admit I have a few gun related prejudices. A big one is that I think as a modern defensive handgun, revolvers are obsolete. Autoloaders just seem to have so many advantages that it seems silly for someone to be using a revolver for the primary purpose of self defense any more. For the size and weight (at least empty) they allow for vastly more ammo capacity of at least equivalent, or likely more effective, rounds (thinking specifically of .38 vs 9mm with this statement.) This applies both both snubby or duty size revolvers compared to their autoloader equivalents. And there are other issues beyond just this (think reloading.)
This thinking sometime leads to debates on forums (this or other.) What I get back is mostly that revolver advocates feel the revolvers are more reliable, both in general and in specific situations. My answer to the general situation is that if revolvers are so much more reliable, why have the entire law enforcement and military communities moved to them? No one seems to have a good answer for this.
But I also hear about specialized situations. Two come up fairly regularly. One is that in contact shot situations, a shooter will jam the gun into the body of the target before pulling the trigger, knocking it out of battery. The other is that a revolver can be fired without drawing, through a pocket, specifically a jacket pocket, without jamming. So after all this verbiage, here's are the actual questions. First, are these real situation, that actually come up in defensive shootings, and on anything even vaguely like a regular basis. Second, if/when they do happen, have you heard of gun stoppages in autos happening because of them? Third, would you consider either of these when selecting a gun, especially for concealed carry. I would guess the answer would be "no" to all of them, but I have no where near your experience.
These would appear to be situations that no one would even think of trying to collect statistics on, so all we have to go on are anecdotal reports. And given your background, you're more likely to get more of these than anyone. Feel free to comment on anything I've said in here (the general auto vs revolver thing), including the specific questions posed. I have actually seen test done on these situation where a revolver did seem more likely to function correctly (specifically the shooting out of the pocket situation.) But again, is there any real likelihood that situation would come up?
Any thoughts on the subject appreciated. Thanks
