The semiautomatic pistol is the most popular handgun today, and the National Shooting Sports Foundation tells us that some 26 million new gun owners have joined our ranks since 2020. Many of them are a bit short on hand/upper body strength and have trouble racking the slides on autoloading pistols.
Fortunately, we have a new generation of them expressly designed for the slides to be easier to retract…and just as fortunately, they have us old farts who can show them how to outsmart the older designs, too. Here’s a video on that topic, courtesy of our friends at The Polite Society Podcast:
I remember you teaching that FOREVER ago! You also pointed it down for barricade use, and using gravity to throw an empty/dead round out. Not to mention pointing to the ground.
All very nice of you to point out solutions to make semi-auto handguns more user-friendly. I’ve always appreciated your training and advice. Even so, I’d like to see you advocate for the obvious alternative: the tried-and-true revolver.
1. Manual-of-arms: The vast majority of those of us who want to carry are not cops, guards or soldiers. Nor are we mechanically adept. (By good fortune, I’m pretty adept.) Most people who need to learn, train, and then actually use a handgun in the face of imminent threat would be better off with a revolver whose manual of arms is trivial compared to that which is adequate for semi-auto use.
2. Capacity: Most revolvers accommodate 5 rounds. My model LCR in .32 Magnum accommodates 6. That is adequate for most self-defense scenarios. The majority of such cases don’t involve driving off a pack of wolves. I acknowledge that you have left in the wake of your career numerous “dissatisfied customers” and that justifies arming-up to defend against a heightened level of threat. That’s not my case; nor the case of the vast majority of armed citizens. We don’t need a 7th round, a double stack, or even a speed loader to respond to a low-probability event that can likely be dispensed with in 5 or 6 rounds.
3. “Safety”: Revolvers (virtually) never have a safety to inhibit an accidental or negligent discharge. Various models of semi-autos have this feature. But these “safties” are more/less effective and complicate the manual-of-arms. A single-action revolver (i.e., with an exposed hammer with no double-action capability) HAS the EQUIVALENT of a “safety”. It’s very intuitive. Very conspicuous. A manual-of-arms training that any novice can easily learn from the outset of his/her training. (And remember, many of our lady friends are less interested in investing their time in training-to-arms.) I acknowledge that it may take as much as an additional second to cock the hammer if ever I need to use my revolver in self-defense. I accept that trade-off because I’d rather have the lifetime peace of mind against an accidental/negligent discharge vs. the remote possibility that the extra second would make a difference in my self-defense effectiveness when needed. For me, and most of us, the probability of an AD/ND is vastly higher than that of being mugged. Which hardware choice provides each carrier the greater peace-of-mind? The vastly more important decision is a carry configuration that allows one to “present arms” swiftly when necessary. It’s NOT the extra second needed to cock the hammer once the decision to fire has been made. Vastly more important is the comfort level of building and maintaining a carry practice with which one can grow to be comfortable with. Better the single-action-only revolver you carry than the semi-auto you will only keep at home.
4. Theory vs. Practice: I readily acknowledge that the considerations I argue for are merely theoretical in a hardware market where there are few Single-Action-ONLY revolvers offered that lend themselves to carry. I solved this problem by thinking-outside-the-box. I bought a Ruger LCRX from a gunsmith. I asked him to convert it from Double-Action to Single-Action-ONLY before he delivered it to me. This model is about as light and compact as any effective semi-auto might be. In .32 Federal Magnum, it offers me four different bullet+powder-charge ammunition options to suit my taste in the power/recoil dilemma. My choice might not be optimal for many other people desiring to carry; but, it’s probably not the only attractive option available.
Regards and thanks for all your advice and training.
i have carried the S&W EZ 9 for a few years now, extremely happy with it. zero malfunctions in about 7,000 rounds…
I can still run the slide on my Glocks but getting it off for cleaning and maintenance is a challenge.
Good work here, Mas. You do great job o maintaining deliberate and obvious movements to make the displayed moves very clear. This is a rare skill.
BUT… when you are handling a dark or black piece o equipment and wearing a black shirt the item being demonstrated is swallowed up by the black pit behind it. Might I strongly suggest wearing a medium tan or perhaps a light blue colour. This will make the sentre o attention stand out much more obviously.
(yeah, I’ve done a consideble bit o video and still imaging…..)
Always eager to learn more out o your vast experience.