It was a long held belief that the revolver was more reliable than a semiautomatic pistol. In this article we look at the merits of this claim, especially when it comes to choosing one to put in your bug out bag. Modern Semi-automatic pistols have come a long way.
Simplicity and Ability to Work on Your Handgun
Looking at them from the outside, a revolver is a little more simple than a semiautomatic. There isn’t a slide catch, a safety, mag release, etc. There’s the cylinder, the trigger, and the hammer. That’s about it. Most people see a revolver and know how it works without any thought. That being said, a person can be up to that same level with a semiautomatic pistol in about 5 minutes. They aren’t all that much more complex than a revolver.
A semiautomatic pistol has more exposed moving parts, however these parts are fairly simple and its not all that hard to completely dismantle a gun like the Glock below. It’s fairly simple. If there’s a failure in a semiauto, its usually a tap and rack job and you’re back in the fight.
A Revolver on the other hand has really complex internal parts, see the picture below. I’ve heard it described as being more like working on a clock than like a Glock. There are a lot of springs and intricate moving parts. That being said, like a good clock, a well built revolver shouldn’t really have to be opened up all that much, if at all. If a revolver does break though, it is generally pretty catastrophic.
Rounds count
A double stack semiautomatic can have 2-3 times the amount of ammo as a revolver. It’s not even close. Even single stack semiautomatics, like the 1911, can hold 8 shots or more. A 22 revolver can sometimes hold a couple more rounds than the traditional 6, but it still doesn’t compare to the semiautomatics, especially when you can buy a longer magazine to put in a gun like a Glock.
Having the extra rounds is a force multiplier. You have the ability to stay in the fight longer without having to reload. Additionally, magazines are easier to reload than revolvers. If you train, you can get really good at reloading a revolver with a speed loader, but you’d need to carry several speed loaders just to have the same amount of rounds as a fully loaded Glock 19 with just one spare magazine (38 shots). You’d need just over 5 speed loaders to compete with that. The semiautomatic wins this category hands down, and we haven’t even begun to discuss how you can buy extended magazines that can shoot 20, 30, or even more rounds.
Leaving it loaded
There is an argument that leaving a semiautomatic loaded is bad for the springs in the magazine. I read recently though that modern metallurgy has gotten to the point that this isn’t really an issue. The real wear on the springs comes from constantly going from compressed to decompressed. Essentially, they only get worn out from use. You can also put a little less strain on the springs and magazine components by putting less rounds in the magazine. If it takes 15 rounds, load 13 or 14.
The real danger of leaving a semiautomatic loaded is in the magazine feed lips and follower. These can warp, bend, and split. I have seen this happen before, but haven’t had any experience with magazine components going bad or not.
Revolvers are time tested, and definitely have the ability to be left loaded though. There isn’t any question about if it’ll fail just from letting it sit, provided it hasn’t rusted or had any other external force act on it.
Ammo Versatility
Revolvers are much less picky about the type of ammo you feed it. You don’t need to worry about it cycling and loading a new round. I wouldn’t go so far as to say- if it fits, it ships, but it’s much more forgiving. This makes revolvers a great gun to learn to reload for. Revolvers can also often take multiple types of ammo. For example, a 357 can also take 38 special rounds, and a 45 LC can take 45 ACP, and 410 as well.
Additionally, you could reload recover rounds with black powder and have it still function well. I can’t say the same for a semi automatic pistol, especially after more than one magazine. Black powder would gum up a semiautomatic pistol really fast.
Reloading in general is significantly easier for a revolver as well, if only because the casing isn’t ejected from the gun after every shot. The same thing that makes a revolver slower and less versatile to reload also makes the ammo easier to reload, so there’s the trade off. Either way, I would also definitely recommend that you have one of these hand loaders in your bug out bag. The ability to make your own ammo for whichever gun you choose will make you much more versatile and able to survive if SHTF, and these hand loaders allow you to do it in the field, without a fancy press or big reloading setup.
Rifle compatibility
One of the most popular things about a revolver is that it can work with a cowboy rig. There is a lever action rifle for most of the revolver caliber rounds. Think 357, 44, 45, and 22. Lever actions also are considered pretty reliable guns, not to mention they’re just fun to shoot. Lever action pistol round rifles are also popular deer hunting guns in the South, East, and Midwest.
That being said, there have been more and more carbine semiautomatic rifles chambered in 9mm, 40, 45, etc. AR 9mms and a blast to shoot. Putting these pistol calibers in a rifle gives you a little more range and accuracy, but the revolver rounds just do better in a rifle than the semiautomatic rounds, generally speaking. A 45 long colt is just a bigger round than the 45ACP. There’s no way around that. The extra powder is benefited by the longer barrel and longer burn time more than the smaller cased ACP.
Accuracy
First off, it should be said that you’re going to be more accurate with whichever gun you practice with. I can outshoot most people who own really nice compound bows with my cheap bow and arrow because I spend hours practicing with it. Whichever gun you go with, you’ll want to become extremely proficient with it. That being said, bare bones, a revolver is generally more accurate than a semiautomatic. When you pull back the hammer back on a revolver, especially on a double action revolver, it usually greatly lightens the trigger pull weight, allowing you to be more precise without having the action of pulling the trigger throw off your shot. Revolvers generally have longer barrels. All of these are generalizations, I fully acknowledge this. You can have longer barrels on semiautomatics as well.
Semiautomatics conversely are more likely to have a rail for accessories. Having a laser or a red dot sight on your pistol will certainly help with accuracy. Most revolvers aren’t set up to allow these accessories, and they certainly help, especially on a pistol that you don’t shoot all the time.
Stealth
It’s more common to have a threaded barrel on a semiautomatic pistol. Most people shooting a revolver aren’t as worried about that. A suppressor or “silencer” doesn’t completely eliminate all the sound from the handgun, but it does usually lower it quite a bit. You’ll still probably be heard by people a half mile to a mile away, but probably not by people who are 2 or 3 miles away.
Environment Considerations
Another problem with revolvers, especially if you live in a wet or humid environment, is that they have a lot more metal parts, especially small intricate metal parts. Revolvers are all over in the wild west because its a lot more dry there. It’s largely desert, and things don’t rust as much. I personally moved from the west to the Midwest, and just the humidity in the Midwest was enough that I needed to clean and oil my guns every couple months, or put them in a moisture controlled safe. Most modern semiautomatics have a lot more plastic and composite components. There are less parts to rust internally as well.
You also need to consider- will this pistol be used more for hunting or for self defense? What percentage of each am I anticipating as I bug out? If I’m bugging out into the western mountains, away from people, planning to do a lot of hunting, I’m going to go with a 357 revolver. If I’m going to have to go through a few cities or urban areas as I’m bugging out, I’m going to probably go with a semiautomatic pistol, likely a Glock, with a big magazine. You want to choose the best tool for the job at hand, and the tool that will keep working in the environment you are in.
Cost
A good revolver generally costs a lot more than a good semiautomatic pistol. I have had cheap revolvers come apart in my hands, and I wasn’t able to fix it. I’ve also shot a really nice Colt that’s been in my family for a couple generations and with essentially no maintenance, that gun keeps on working. That gun is also now valued at almost $5,000. For that same price, I could buy about 10 Glocks. You can pick up a good revolver for around the price of 2-3 Glocks, but I would be extremely hesitant about buying a revolver for much less than that (with the exception of the Ruger Wrangler, and a couple other 22 revolvers).
How complete is your bug out bag?
A handgun is important, but there are more important things you’ll also want to have in your bug out bag as well. It won’t do you a lot of good if you don’t have first aid supplies, food, water, or if you freeze to death before you’re ever in a position to hunt or defend yourself. See our full Bug Out Bag Checklist to make sure you’ll have everything you’ll need in a bug out situation.
The winner-
I would rather bug out with a really nice revolver because I don’t live in a big city, I reload ammo, and I prefer revolver rounds for hunting more than semiautomatic rounds. I admit, I’ve shot both high quality and low quality revolvers. I’ve had a bad revolver fall apart in my hands while shooting it. I’ve also shot a really nice Colt that was stupid accurate.
If I were in an urban area, or an area where civil unrest was likely, I’d likely go with a Glock instead. It’s proven, and there are parts all over. It’s an extremely common gun. If I had to have just one handgun, good for anywhere in the world, and couldn’t have a rifle to back it up, it would be a Glock though. See our full list of specific guns we’d recommend in our article Best Handgun for Your Bug Out Bag.
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