Revolver vs. Semi Automatic: What Gun Should You Choose for Self Defense?
Kyle Mizokami
Security,
A debate that never seems to get old.
One of the most important roles a handgun can play is in home defense. Compact and easy to secure, handguns are ideal weapons for defending one’s own home. Caliber aside, one of the major questions when picking a home-defense gun is whether or not to choose a revolver or semiautomatic handgun. Both types have bring their own advantages and disadvantages to the debate, and knowing them will help prospective gun owners make an informed choice.
Revolvers, or “wheelguns,” have been around for nearly two hundred years. A revolver typically holds five, six, or even seven rounds of ammunition in a rotating cylinder. Modern revolvers are typically double-action guns: a single trigger pull both cocks the hammer and releases it, firing the pistol. Alternately, many handguns can be fired in single-action mode, in which the hammer is first cocked, resulting in a lighter trigger pull. Modern revolvers have steel or aluminum frames and are generally heavier, round for round, than other handguns. This both gives a revolver heft and helps to absorb recoil. A modern home-defense handgun will either come in .38 Special or .357 Magnum calibers, and guns chambered in the latter can fire both calibers of bullets.
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