Revolvers might seem old school—even obsolete to some—but there’s still plenty of life in the trusted design. The double-action revolver, which hasn’t changed much in more than 100 years, is still tops when it comes to versatility, power and ammo compatibility.

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Concealed Carry Revolver

While the revolver continues to be popular with many people concerned about their personal defense, there isn’t much instruction nowadays about how to use them to their best advantage. There are several reasons why a revolver is still a good choice for home defense and concealed carry. Here are some to consider.

1. Reliability

Modern semi-autos are pretty reliable, but they’re still dependent on recoil to function properly. Absorb some of the recoil by bending your arm or loosening your wrist when you’re diving for cover, or touch the slide on something that impedes its movement, and your semi-auto might jam. A friend of mine had his usually reliable duty Glock jam after the first shot when a bad guy was swinging a club at him. The bad guy got hold of my friend’s gun and would have killed him, but fortunately he couldn’t figure out how to clear the malfunction.

2. Versatility

I can load my revolvers with heavy hunting loads, hot defensive hollow points, tame target wadcutters and even shotshells and they will fire in any combination without a problem. If a round doesn’t fire, I can simply pull the trigger again. With a .357 or .44 Magnum, or .454 Casull, I have a wide power range and a great selection of bullet weights. I can load powerful rounds in those calibers as a backup when hunting or hiking. Yet, if I head into town for dinner, I can swap out the heavy hitters for .38 Special, .44 Special or .45 Colt cartridges, respectively, and turn my hunting sidekick into a defensive sidearm.

3. No Heavy Recoil Spring

Semi-autos can be a challenge, not just for the elderly, but for anyone with arthritis or a hand injury because of the necessity to manipulate the slide. That’s not a concern with a revolver.

4. Simplicity

Loading, firing and unloading a revolver can be easier for those who aren’t everyday gun fanatics. You know the mantra on a semi-auto: Drop the magazine, pull back the slide to eject the one in the chamber, etc. You do it right 1,000 times. But if just once you reverse it and work the slide first and then drop the magazine—oops, you’ll still have a round in the chamber. (That, of course, is why you should always visually inspect it.) A revolver is easy. You can see whether it’s loaded or not by looking between the rear of the cylinder and the frame. Loading and unloading automatically incorporates a visual aspect.

5. Easy Cleanup

With a revolver, you don’t have empty brass to sweep up after a range session. That’s especially convenient if you save your brass to reload it. Also, you don’t have to pull the trigger first to field-strip a revolver or disassemble it for routine cleaning.

6. Trigger Options

If your revolver has a hammer spur, you have the choice of two trigger pulls. That’s a real plus if your handgun does double duty as a survival gun for taking game or if you need a precise shot at a rabid animal that’s getting too close to your family pet.

This article is from a past issue of Personal Defense World magazine. Grab your copy at OutdoorGroupStore.com.