What is faster? Single action revolver or semi-auto?

Question

I've seen 'six shooters' fire accurately very fast.
Like in this video for example:
http://www.break.com/index/fastest_gun_in_the_west.html

Just wondering what people that have tried both have to say.

Another thing I've always wondered about is if with enough practice it is possible to fire a full automatic glock with the same accuracy as the six shooter does in this video.

Answer 1

A "single action" revolver is one where you have to manually cock the gun by pulling back the hammer, before each shot.

A "double action" revolver is one where you can either cock the gun, as above, or simply squeeze the trigger, which will pull back the hammer in the process.

A "semi-automatic" handgun is simply a handgun which uses a clip, as opposed to a revolver.

And an "automatic" weapon is one which will fire repeatedly, simply by holding the trigger down.

So for most people, the semi-automatic handgun will fire much more quickly than a single action revolver.

EDIT: I can't believe Yahoo censors the word c-o-c-k, which is a legitimate word for preparing a revolver to fire, or for a rooster. Yahoo, that's too much!

Answer 2

If you are talking speed and accuracy probably the semi by a little; speed would be the difference though for the most part a semi-automatic is slightly more accurate the a revolver. Chamber is the same each time in a semi, revolver changes, alignment of the sylinder and bore and the clearance/gap beween cylinder and barrel all effect accuracy that not to a degree most people would notice. A full automatic rifle or pistol will never be as accurate as a semi, single action revolver or bolt action rifle for the simple eason you will be firing after the recoil and the weapon may or may not be back on target; you don't pick when the next round goes off the weapon does. Bolt action rifles have a slight edge over semi-automatic rifles but the semi has an edge in speed. That being said an experienced person with a bolt action can get the same bullets accurately into a target as an average shooter with a semiautomatic rifle. But equal experience would give speed to the semi and accuracy to the bolt by a little. The "speed shooters" with sngle action revolvers are like Olympic shooters in that genre of shooting. they practice endless hours to do it and it very much a speciality thing to the Western shooting groups and not something you would try to see. A beginner or novice shooter looking for speed and accuracy would train with a semi-automatic.
45cal-Glock makes or did make a select fire, semi or full version for military use as did Beratta, Colt, Mauser and many others for use in armored vehicles for the crewmembers to have on then to keep storage space or forgetting to grab it on the way out.

Answer 3

In most cases the semi auto is faster. There is a guy on the OUTDOOR NETWORK that can fire all 6 rounds from an old single action revolver before another shooter pops off 3 in a semi . This guy is a trick shooter so he is the exception to the rule.

Answer 4

Glocks are semi auto>And the Semi auto is faster>He is an exception>That's why it's called auto>don't have to co ck or fan the hammer>Most time firing you would aim an to aim threw the sights you couldn't fan the revolver>My kimber 45 is 7 rounds>3" barrel 24 oz loaded>Some are up to 15> Small with a lot of power>For carrying >

Answer 5

Fanning a revolver can be fast but not very accurate for the average shooter.
A semi auto can be fired fairly quickly while retaining quite a bit of accuracy.

Answer 6

I don't have the experience to answer accurately. I would BET there are revolvers that are capable of firing faster than most semi-automatic weapons and semi-automatic weapons that are capable of firing faster than most revolvers. A similar statement can be made about accuracy. The person behind the gun has at least as much influence on the accuracy as the gun itself.

Answer 7

IT depends on who's hand the gun is in. A semi-auto can be made to simulate full auto, I have seen this done with high quality 1911 models in .45, .38 super and .40 calibers. The same person could fire a single action in simulated full auto also.

Vet-USAF // IPSC-UPSA

Answer 8

It depends on the skill and speed of the shooter.

Answer 9

semi is faster the triger automatic goes back to star and you can click the triger until you are out of bullets. rebolver you got to be so fast and expert to shoot like semi-auto.