[jyl]

I've been thinking about whether semi-autos or revolvers are more reliable.

By "reliable" in a home defense situation it seems you need both (a) the gun goes bang every time you work the bang control, and (b) you will remember how to and be able to work that bang control in the dark, when you're terrified, heart pounding, adrenalin surging (and, if applicable, that your spouse will also be able to).

Thinking about that, I don't think semi-autos are as reliable as the traditional double-action (DA) revolver.

Reliability part (a) - even the most dependable semi-autos do malfunction, even if it is very rare and often caused by shooter error (a limp grip, obstructing the slide, thumb bumping the slide lock, really inappropriate ammo, etc). I have perhaps the most reliable semi-auto out there, a box-stock Glock 19, and it has malfunctioned. Okay, only about 5 times in 14 years, but that's not zero times. I don't own a DA revolver, but I do own a single-action revolver, and it has never malfunctioned in nearly 20 years. And the consequences of a malfunction are different. If a semi-auto fails to fire, you have to tap the magazine, cycle the slide, etc. if a DA revolver fails to fire, you simply pull the trigger again.

Reliability part (b) - most semi-autos have multiple buttons and levers (slide lock, decocker or safety, magazine release) and can be in various different "conditions" (completely unloaded, loaded magazine empty chamber, loaded magazine loaded chamber hammer down, loaded magazine loaded chamber hammer cocked, etc). Even the simplest semi-auto (again, my Glock) still has two controls besides the trigger and four conditions. I've used my Glock long enough that I think I could operate it in darkness and terror. But a double-action revolver has only the trigger and the cylinder catch, and it is either loaded or unloaded. It is really simple.

Now, as a practical matter, I have guns primarily because I enjoy shooting them at the range, I like precision mechanical devices, and maybe someday the SF Bay Area will turn into a post-Katrina New Orleans. So I didn't choose my guns for "home defense", though I think the Glock would be fine. And thus I don't own a DA revolver.