I got an email the other day, asking in effect “why revolvers?” I dashed off an answer (with so many emails demanding a response, it’s hard to write essays for each one.) I always feel that I haven’t done the subject justice, so here is yet more about why I choose the round gun over the flat one.

Why revolvers? Because I like them! I like their lines, their reliability, their accuracy, their power; I like their history, and that they are prototypically “American” firearms. (I like lever action rifles for that same reason.)

I like revolvers because they can be made to fit the hand in a way a slab-sided pistol rarely can. I like them because of their almost Zen-like operation: the cylinder goes ’round, the gun discharges, and when the operator wishes, the process is repeated. I like them because you can see what’s happening; because they are easy to load and unload.

I did not come to these opinions quickly or easily, you understand. When I was a kid, all the other kids wanted a Colt “Peacemaker” and a Winchester ’94. Not me – I looked in the Sears catalog (yes, they carried guns when I was a kid) and dreamed of owning a .45 auto and an M1 carbine. I was definitely a contrarian from the start!

It wasn’t until my advanced years that the lure of the revolver affected my soul. (Though, as I’ve related in past posts, it was more of a challenge to my ballistic manhood than an intellectual appreciation. Introspection came later.)

-=[ Grant ]=-