Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Accuracy of Pistols vs. Revolvers

It will be a rare semi-auto that can compete with a FA or like built custom revolver.

Ed,

Bullseye! ( Pun intended) . Until I owned one and shot it a lot. I never really would have believed the potential of a revolver. But FA revolvers are at another level. I'm sure other revolvers can shoot well, but the FA I own is by a margin better then any other handgun I've shot.

I used to tinker and measure handloads and tweak and play with them to achieve the best I could. After the FA revolver I realized it was not the loads! This revolver just digests ammo and puts them accurately in the same place all the time. It makes loading on a Progressive so much nicer now. No more tinkering just crank out the ammo and the FA revolver sends them where I point.

You can pretty much take this to the bank. It perfectly outlines the difference between centerfires and rimfires.

Eh - I think you have that opinion because you haven't looked at the right rimfire revolvers. The fact that S&W and Ruger don't make any "bargain" revolvers also skews this issue. But I have a Taurus 94 that will keep right up with my MKIII Hunter and my Buckmark, when fired single-action. And how else would you fire a revolver when firing for long-range accuracy? And the 94 was priced a little less than a basic blued MKIII target. Before anyone pipes up with "Taurus handguns are junk", I don't see any difference in quality between the 94 and comparably priced Ruger and Browning pistols.

This is the rub. Semi-autos dominate all competition, and have for some time.


For absolutes in revolvers, yes, FA is the best. It's almost a custom gun. Mine (FA model 97 .22LR/.22mag) came with a test target from the match .22LR barrel that was under an inch @ 25 yards-10 shots!
But the stars of competition for .22LR dominance are not normally found on dealers shelves. We're talking Hammerli,Pardini, etc. These are semi-autos.

There's a reason FA doesn't dominate this. Accurate as they are, they're harder to shoot and probably not as absolutely accurate.

I think the same would apply to centerfires, as well. I have a S&W Model 629 custom shop that I've had trigger work done on that's sweet as candy to shoot. But if I would ever compete, I'd use my SIG X-5 or P210.

Maybe off the dealer shelves, in guns most of us buy, accuracy is nominally "better" with revolvers. But I really doubt that too.

It just depends on the models in question.

For example, hard to better the accuracy of the S&W Model 41, though I also tend to agree that some stock revolvers (especially of somewhat older vintage) will beat most autos for accuracy.

I was going to say back in the 70's when I was bull's eye shooting the S&W Model 41 was the gun to beat. The military specified the Ruger with 5" bull barrel because it duplicated the Ruger bull barrel with the built in suppressor that military was using for special combat situations. For the civilians they always used the Model 41.

It ain't all that rare for a large bore SA custom or FA to shoot inside 2" at 100 yards in the right hands. This I personally know and some do better. Tell me of a semi-auto that will consistently do the same?

Camp Perry?

Auto's always!


But, the most accurate handgun I ever had was a 8 3/8" K22 masterpiece. 1970's vintage. It's brother the 48 is very close also. Same vintage.

The K22 would outshoot my Mod 41 most of the time. Sight radius had a lot to do with it.

Big bore revolver by far. BFR is best, next is a toss between Ruger, DW and S&W. The SBH, SBH Hunter, SRH and others are good for 1/2" at 50 meters with open sights, red dots and scopes. Sorry, I leave out the Freedom because not all shoot. Let me show. SBH off hand at 100 yards with cast.
Same gun at 200 benched, Ultra Dot.
BFR in .500 JRH at 50 yards working loads.
Average groups, .475 BFR at 50, 100 and 200 yards, can shot twice at 100.
BFR .500 JRH, shotgun shell at 100 yards, Ultra Dot.

.22 pistols? Ruger or any quality semi will beat a .22 revolver but a few S&W K22's will equal. Freedom .22 is good.
Ruger slabside at 25 yards, 10 shots and I messed up the last shot.

Iron sighted, at the ranges shown. I suspect my Les Baer will do as well or better, but it also cost 3x as much, too...

Nice shooting, Tex.

Do you know about the forcing cone erosion issues with Lil Gun? Not trying to critize but help. Hate to see a great shooting 44 like that get ruined.

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/7909618/Lil_Gun

Maybe this was a one time lot of lil gun causing the issues. I'd like to find out as it is a very accurate powder in most everything I've used it in. I find 4227, H110/296, and V110 accurate too, but lil gun has always seemed to provide the most velocity with accuracy more consistently across a wide range of calibers.

I am not a great shot with a hand gun but do shoot a few tricked out 1911s. out of the box my revolvers shoot way better..smith colt DW. but I must say I have a beretta 92 that will hold it own
for me it is more fit and feel. I don't shoot semi autos as well as revolvers. the big grip on the 92 is closer to revolver feel and I have more controol

Huh?

I started messing with lil gun in .357magnum, mainly because you were getting top end velocities with lower pressure. Then i read about the forcing cone issues and kind let it sit on the wayside. Still not sure.

Yeah, right.

Freedom Arms one of the most consistently accurate revolvers ever produce, that statement tells the limit of his knowledge. Dumbfucktitude runs rampant on the internet it seems

jwp475-


yup!

Every gun is different , example smith and Wesson kit gun in 22 LR versus model 41 semi auto ,, the model 41 will eat the kit gun alive ,where as take a older model smith 17 revolver and put it against say one of the less exspensive smith semi's and the opposite is true