Periodically, firearms magazines run articles proclaiming the wheelgun to be "dead" or "obsolete" (or questioning these same proclamations). While it's true that firearms technology (and personal defensive training and theory) have progressed since the revolver was de rigueur, the wheelgun, particularly in its snubnosed package, rem women's coats ains one of the most effective self-defense weapons one may carry. There are multiple reasons for this. While pocket automatics and slightly larger but still compact autoloaders have eclipsed snubby revolvers in the minds of many, there are compelling reasons to make a snubnosed revolver your daily carry piece.
First, snubnosed revolvers are very reliable. This is a function of the technology used. A well-maintained, properly timed revolver is objectively less likely to jam than an automatic, because there are fewer moving components involved. The cylinder simply rotates the next round into position; there are no feeding or ejecting issues to consider. This also means that a snubby revolver can be fired repeatedly through a pocket or a coat in an emergency, whereas an autoloader would likely fail to cycle properly after the first shot in similar circumstances.
Second, a revolver allows the citizen to carry a variety of defensive loads, ranging from hollow points to wad cutters to a variety of other specialty ammunition, without worrying that changing ammunition types or bullet shapes might cause the weapon not to cycle. Again, because the rounds need not be fed from a magazine up a ramp into the chamber, the revolver offers much greater versatility. No automatic can be trusted with ammunition that has not been tested in it and cycled repeatedly through it, whereas almost any live round will fire through a revolver with each pull of the trigger.
Third, a revolver, if it is to be fired in double-action mode, can be carried loaded and ready without any sort of safety mechanism involved (other than the internal hammer block of modern revolver designs, of course). The long double-action trigger stroke provides plenty of resistance to prevent accidental firing of the weapon (vital when the operator is under stress). The cylinder can be carried fully loaded without concern for accidental discharge (unlike some pocket autoloaders, whose operators may be tempted to carry them with the chamber empty for added safety during pocket carry). This means that in a self-defense situation, the snubby revolver can be drawn and immediately fired without the need for disengaging safeties or other delays.
Fourth, and finally for our purposes, a snubnosed revolver offers considerable power in a relatively compact package. While the run-of-the-mill .38 Special cartridge may not be anything remarkable, it is at least adequate for personal defense. When you upgrade to +P defensive ammunition, you've got an extremely effective round at your disposal (though it does kick like the proverbial mule when fired in so small and light a gun, particularly in the aluminum-framed snubbies). Five rounds of +P hollow point ammunition will be more than sufficient for most self-defense scenarios (though one can always "game out" doomsday confrontations in which five rounds are not enough -- there is no point in such defeatism, for we must prepare for likely scenarios within reasonable parameters).
Obviously for day to day personal defense, the more compact your handgun the more able you will be to carry it concealed and to carry it comfortably. While the snubby revolver is a bit chunkier in cross-section than most compact or pocket automatics, the benefits it confers in firepower, reliability, and versatility of ammunition make it worth the extra thickness. To best take advantage of the snubby's draw-and-shoot design, its vital to avoid adding extra delays to your carry strategy. What this means is that the snubby is best carried in a holster, and that holster should be of the friction fit type.
A friction-fit holster is any holster -- Kydex, leather, even plastic -- that retains the weapon without any sort or retaining strap, snap, or other hindrance. A quality leather inside-the-waistband holster that retains the gun without a retention snap is a great choice, for example. If you can place the (empty) gun in the holster, turn the holster upside down (over your bed, just in case), and shake the holster from the barrel end without causing the gun to fall free, your weapon will be properly retained in daily carry (though you must test it out over a few days to be sure). Such a holster allows you to position the snubby on your belt line for a consistent draw that is free of obstructions. You can thus draw, point, and pull the double-action trigger, yielding the fastest possible response time to a self-defense situation.
With a snubnosed revolver in a friction-fit holster tucked into your waistband under a shirt, you are well-armed in even hot weather. Spare rounds can be carried in speed loaders or, for a more low-profile alternative, in flat, linear speed-strips. While it may not be as sexy or even as modern as any of several contemporary compact autoloaders or pocket pistols, the snubnosed revolver is a practical, reliable weapon of self-defense. You should consider seriously whether this concealed carry package can work for you. It does for many armed, responsible individuals just like you.
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