Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Ye Olde Semi-Auto vs Revolver Reliability Debate #357.45

Well...there ya go.

I had a Ruger Redhawk 44 mag that wouldn’t rebound the hamer when fired. This happened in Alaska on a fly in and drop off hunt.
Revolvers aren't fool proof. Plus if bullets jump crimp Revolvers are then tied up and have had this happen more than once

I have a number of revolvers and a number of autopistols. I use both with pretty good regularity. I know my way around the inside of revolvers and autos pretty well. As a tool and die maker, having built, worked with and on mechanical devices pretty intimately I guess I have my own perspective on these things. I tend to think of double action revolvers as more akin to instruments and automatics as industrial equipment. Both have their particular requirements with regard to proper ammunition. Revolvers, in my experience, require a higher degree of cleanliness and maintenance for complete functional reliability. As also mentioned earlier, You don't do much work on a revolver without tools. Most autopistols can be taken down far enough to get at anything that might be a problem without tools.

In the final analysis, I am perfectly comfortable going forth with any of the handguns I use on a regular basis, revolver or auto. If I were looking at heading out into the boondocks for an extended period of time, living out of a pack, I'd probably take something like my Glock 20 with a few spare springs and parts and whatever few tools necessary to replace about anything conceivably necessary.

I have carried both for work. And spent many a day on the range as an instructor. Either one can fail, but as pointed out may be easier to get a semi=auto back in business with minimal tools.

Yeah, lightweight revolvers are ammo sensitive. Generally speaking, you either have to use mild loads using lead bullets or stick with jacketed bullets only.

Heck, I had a crimp jumping incident once using a four inch, all steel, S&W Combat Masterpiece. It was during a timed, combat style, match, too, so it really ruined my score. Ammo was Sellier & Bellot 158 grain lead round nose. Same stuff that had that issue with my Airweight. I think I've had it with that brand for that load.

Went through 2 pages & got lots of good info, and I agree with about all of it but no one addressed the safety on the plastic guns! Do you carry the gun condition one (loaded hot) with no safety when you are out in the woods bumming around, hiking, fishing, etc. Both of my S&W M&P's have safety's on them, I wouldn't have bought them without a manual safety.
After many years of shooting USPSA revolver I'm pretty sure I witnessed quite a few more jams, malfunctions with semis than I did with revolvers. I think almost all of these lead right back to either gun maintenance or poor reloading practices. Several were observed when the shooter was shooting a stage weak hand only.
[img]https://i.imgur.com/NBlBBqsh.mp4[/img]

Something to think about!!

Dick

I'm with you on the manual safety......

I put a manual safety on my Sig 365......

I have a Sig 320 XTen with a manual safety, didn't come that way. Was pretty easy to add it.

I also have a FN 510, and searching around on the internet I see a fire control manual safety for a FN 509, it's going to cost me $70 to find out if I can add that to my FN 510.

Tell me about adding that safety to the XTen.

https://www.sigtalk.com/threads/manual-safety-x-ten-converted.434127/





https://www.modguns.com/sig-mechanics/sig-mechanics-sig-p320-x-series-manual-safety-jig-kit-2430

https://www.modguns.com/sig-sauer/sig-sauer-p320-manual-safety-parts-kit-720

Cost about $140. $90 for the parts, $50 for the jigs.

If you're not handling your pistol it should be stuffed in a quality holster that covers the trigger guard.
If you're gun is in your hands your trigger finger shouldn't be on the trigger unless your sights are on your target.
Basic gun handling trumps mechanical safeties all day long, regardless of pistol type/design.

Oh, thanks, Captain Obvious. We would have never thought of that!

Thank you, molly.

Well I'm still trying to learn something here, not trying to start an argument in any way. So you more experienced guys with the semi's, take me to school. I was hoping Blue or Mackay would chime in, I know both of them have shot & carried a great deal, and I'm sure several others have as well that I don't know about.
I know of 2 times where the gun handler shot himself in the leg & both times it was on holstering the gun. The gun wasn't empty & the shooter was trying to get his gun back in the holster & neither could see the holster & after poking around a couple of times they managed to grip the trigger & ran a 9mm down their leg.

Dick

That is a people problem, not a gun problem. I worked on an incident in which a guy was drawing his single action Ruger Blackhawk .45 and fired a round which went through his thigh from the outside of the leg and cut the femoral artery as it worked its way through to exit on the inside of his leg. He bled to death while on 9-1-1 trying to makeshift a tourniquet and stop the bleeding. He passed before help arrived. That isn't a firearm issue, that is a gun handler issue.

The semi-autos are so reliable that almost all people on Safari use semi-auto rifles. Same with hunters going after big bears.

Face it. The reason for semi-autos is for large magazine capacity because most can’t hit a side of a barn with a pistol and with enough bullets flying maybe ine will hit close enough.

In the the time I shot pistol silhouette I never saw one person shoot a center fire semi-auto at steel.

It’s like the M-16, pray and spray.

Semi auto rifles are used almost exclusively for hunting the most dangerous game, men.

Besides that obvious fact there is the consideration that they generally aren’t chambered for traditional large bore African “safari” cartridges. Coupled with the fact that they are not legal to bring into many places safari’s take place. As far as big bears go, I saw plenty of people in Alaska using BARs and even a few of the junk Remington autoloaders.

Don’t forget that for the most part semi auto rifles and pistols have vastly different operating systems that make them work. Traditional auto loading pistols are generally much simpler systems than auto rifles.

Shooting pistol silhouette probably didn’t see a large number of auto pistols most likely due to the cartridges they chamber not being good choices for 200 yard shooting. You won’t find many people carrying Contenders or 10” Super Blackhawks for CCW, either. But shooting a bear or a mugger at 15 feet is a little different ball game, mechanical accuracy isn’t nearly so important as mechanical reliability. Also probably no loss of life or limb will result from a FTF at a silhouette match.

What about all the Bullseye guns built on 1911s? Or S&W 52s? Are they for spraying and praying with their huge magazines?

I suppose you are clinging onto your 1873 Springfield Trapdoor .45-70 for a defensive rifle. Good on ya!

Bet you shot bullseye too....

Your welcome...so school me on the why of adding/after market mod. a manual safety.
Better than factory? or...

Again? If you haven't decided it's good for you by now, I'm not going to change your mind - nor do I care to. For me, it's not a disadvantage on some guns. That's all that matters to me. I don't care what matters to you.