Single action VS Double action

[snakespit]

Single action VS Double action

Sooner or later I would like to have a revolver. I have come to the conclusion that I would like it to be in the 44 Magnum. I have my eye on the 44 Blackhawk from CDNN for 369.99. This seems like a good price for this gun. I can't seem to find on Rugers web site, the 44 flat top with the 6-½ barrel.

I really don't know anything about revolvers. I have no need for one but I like their lines and mechanics. I have only shot one or two. They were both double action. If I understand right all Blackhawks are single action? I don't know if I like the idea of having to pull the hammer back for every shot. Why would someone want a single action? I understand pulling the hammer back for the first shot. But for every shot this seems unnecessary.

Enlighten me please

 

[Cholo]

It's simply a matter of preference, I own both. Even my DA's I shoot 99% SA. Buy what you like. I do...

 

[JHRosier]

snakespit,

You obviously didn't grow up watching tv westerns.
Single actions, well they are just the way things should be made.
I can't even imagine the Lone Ranger with a Glock and it makes my head hurt to try.

Seriously, the single action revolver is a American tradition.
It is simple, strong, and more than fast enough for most outdoor activities, Oh!, I forgot graceful.

Jack

 

[45Colt_Man]

Well I guess it depends on what you want it for. I have a bunch of Rugers all are single action. They will do everything I ask of them and I like the looks. Personal opinion but I have never seen a double action I would like to buy. Have no problem with double actions just not my cup of tea, and yes there are certainly some nice ones out there to be had. I just have a narrow selections of guns that I like, such as lever actions for rifles and single-actions for revolvers. Guess I was born a hundred years to late.
Like Cholo says most double actions are probably shot single action a lot of the time. But sometimes they come in damn handy for the double action featue. Never seen a gun I didn't like. Just have my preferences, good or bad.
I don't think you can go wrong on that .44 from CDNN excellent gun and price. :lol:

Dana

 

[Driftwood Johnson]

Why would someone want a single action?

Howdy

Firing a revolver in single action mode is almost always more accurate than firing one double action. When firing double action you are compressing the hammer spring as you pull the trigger through a very long pull. That means you are exerting enough pressure with your finger to fully compress the spring. It is very difficult to keep the gun steady while yanking the trigger that much. With the hammer already cocked in single action mode, all you are doing with the trigger is pulling it back ever so slightly to release the hammer. The hammer spring has already been compressed, so it only requires light pressure on the trigger through a very short pull to release the pent up energy of the hammer spring. Very generally speaking, double action pulls are up around twelve pounds or more, single action pulls are down around three pounds or less. So accurate shooting is usually much easier in single action mode.

Why a single action revolver, when double action has been available for so long? Mostly it is just the romance of them. When I was a kid, Hoppy and Roy and Matt and Sugarfoot and Paladin and a whole bunch more cowboys regularly visited our living room through the magic of TV. Shooting single action revolvers brings back that romance.

As a matter of fact, it is probably all those TV cowboys that were responsible for the revival of the single action revolver in the first place. Colt stopped producing the Single Action Army in 1940 to free up production capacity for the 1911 Govt model semi-auto just before we entered WWII. At the end of the War, Colt probably had no intention of reintroducing the old revolver, they did not think they would sell many, and their prewar sales just before stopping production bore that out. But along came a young man named Bill Ruger, and around 1955 he offered up a little 22 caliber single action revolver, and they sold like hot cakes. He could not keep up with demand, and I'll bet a lot of that demand was caused by all those cowboys galloping through all those living rooms. Don't forget, that TV was still a luxury in a lot of households right after the war, but it was sweeping the nation. Ruger followed up with his 357 Magnum Blackhawk shortly after, and Colt got the message because in 1956 they reintroduced the SAA. They have been making it ever since.

The other thing about a single action revolver is the internal lockwork ( the parts that make it work) is much simpler than all the parts required to make a double action revolver work. That's why they are called double action. The lockwork allows the revolver to function in two completely different modes. Take apart a S&W sometime and you will see what I mean. There's a lot of parts in there.

Don't get me wrong, I love all my old S&W double action revolvers, and I have a whole passel of them. I love shooting them double action style too. But there's nothing quite like earing the hammer back on a single action for every shot.

And you would probably be amazed how fast a single action revolver can be shot. I know cowboy shooters who can empty a cylinder faster than most shooters can empty a semi-auto.

 

[demo_slug]

what about a pump action shot gun? or a lever action rifle or a bolt action rifle? all single action. its just not a big deal.

in a self defense situation the only drawback in my mind is reloading.

 

[DGW1949]

Even a DA revolver has to have it's hammer back before it will fire. And yeah, the hammer must be pulled back for each shot. Think about it.
Whether or not a DA faster to use than a SA depends entirely on the skill level of which shooter is using which.

Get whichever action style you want but don't go into it thinking that one will make you a better/faster shooter than the other. Only practice will do that.

Just my 02 .

DGW

 

[StanMemTn]

Sooner or later I would like to have a revolver. I have come to the conclusion that I would like it to be in the 44 Magnum. I have my eye on the 44 Blackhawk from CDNN for 369.99. This seems like a good price for this gun. I can't seem to find on Rugers web site, the 44 flat top with the 6-½ barrel.

The guns being sold by CDNN are leftover guns from when Ruger issued 50th Anniversary versions of their .44 mag and .357 mag Blackhawks. They are excellent guns at a very goo d price.

I have a .357 from CDNN and couldn't have been happier with how it all turned out. I understand that some folks who buy the .44mag version go on to change the gripframe out for another of Ruger's standard Blackhawk gripframes as the recoil of a .44mag can reportedly be a handful with the Anniversary (Colt Peacemaker sized) gripframe, YMMV.

Good luck with your decision; if you can find any way to try out a single action before buying, I think you'll just "know.". That sounds cheesy, but I think it's true.

-Stephen

 

[maxpress]

Size/weight is another major factor. i insist on at least a .44/.45 when i am in the great outdoors. you just cant get a steel six shot double action in the 40oz weight range with the thinner profile of a single action that lets it sit so close in to your body so it dosnt flop around. 7oz or a 1/4inch bigger cylinder may not seem like much initialy but it alot after 6-8 hrs pulling 4 cord of wood out of forest for the ol wood stove.
i watch westerns but my guns are "working guns" i guess im just not nastalgic. that being said most guys that use single actions can empty them as fast as a double action. im talking accurate aimed fire from 15-100yrds not machine gunning it into a 2ft by 2ft target at 7 ft.
as far as reloading i would hope A) i wouldnt need more than six 250gr bullets at 1200fps. my probable chance of survival isnt good if it takes that much anyway. B) i could make it to the truck to get my shotgun by the time i was empty.
as mentioned above accuracy is a major point to. i can drop a coyote at 100yrds with a blackhawk without trying. with a double action im just not that good and it takes to long to stage the trigger.

thats just my take on it. i have owned double action .44 mags in the past but i always put them on, got the truck loaded, and decided to go back in and trade it out of the safe for a single action
best regards
chris

 

[Wild Bill '67]

Hard to beat a big bore Blackhawk for strength and utility. Plus the looks and just plain fun to shoot. And this is coming from a S&W N frame fan.

When it comes to CCW, neither Redhawk, Blackhawk or N frame S&W make for good pocket holster guns anyway so just get something you will enjoy shooting.

For $369.99 from CDNN I would jump on that before they are gone.

 

[gunslinger_h]

The one advantage that I find that the single action has over the double action is first shot accuracy, especially under duress. The single action points like the finger does and give a much better instinctive first shot. Double action is faster to load, has a faster lock time and trigger time, etc., but for that first shot, the one that counts, I have seen nothing beat the single action for speed and accuracy. My opinion only of course. Hank.

 

[SAA]

I like the way a single action handles the recoil.
The rolling recoil of the single action makes it much more pleasant to shoot in larger calibers, however it can be tricky to find a consistent grip when shooting it with one hand only.

Single actions are prettier too.. 8)

 

[demo_slug]

if I've fired more then 6 shots of 45 colt in self defense in my house, I've probalby missed and killed at least 3 neighbors and a dog.

each shot has to be on target. has to be. its your responsiblity, if you can't do it, then don't pull the trigger. and buy a shotgun.

 

[Pinecone]

Snakespit, If your going to "hunt" and "plink" with it "only", then I would recommend a good single-action. As mentioned above, that first shot is plenty accurate with no added tention needed to pull the trigger therefore better accuracy. On the "other" side of the coin, if I have two "bad" guys bearing down on me at close quarters, I'll take a double-action every time. Better odds of survival!..................Dick :wink:

 

[Ale-8(1)]

All the above is true, for sure.

There's also a certain amount of . . .

Ford vs Chevy

9mm vs .45ACP

Ginger vs Mary Ann

. . . going on here.

I'd suggest you try each and see how they "feel" to ya. Most of us end up with one (or more) of each.

JMHO
:mrgreen:

 

[Hastings]

I know a lot of people prefer to shoot double action revolvers primarily in the single action mode, but I prefer double action over single action. When firing a single action revolver, I find I take longer to get back on target because I need to hold the gun on target thru the longer hammer fall. With double action revolvers, when shooting double action the process is more of a rhythm where I time the sight alignment with the trigger pull so that they coincide. This doesn't work for me with a single action. I know the description is simplistic, but the difference is hard for me to describe. The difference is easy to see, though. I shoot much tighter groups with a double action revolver shooting double action only. I guess I'm a bit of a oddball in this regard.

That doesn't mean I dislike single actions, though. The roll under recoil, and cocking the hammer back are both very satisfying, and hipshooting with a double action revolver just doesn't cut it. Plus the single actions stand up to heavy magnum loads better due to the center-pin's more robust connection to the frame.

They are definitely two different creatures, with different reasons to love each. A single action Ruger Vaquero or Blackhawk in a low-slung holster is intoxicating, but so is a Smith N-frame 45acp or 45colt da revolver with Ahrend finger-groove grips, fired quickly at a pack of menacing coyotes at 30 yards. Fortunately, I have two hands so I can carry one of each.

 

[gunslinger_h]

Hastings, you are not an oddball with this. I have worked with many who shot better double action. The primary reason being that they cannot anticipate the recoil, so they do not flinch. When I find myself beginning to flinch, I will take a DA Smith out and bang away with it. Brings me back on every time. There are other causes, but the anticipation causes the hand to squeeze before the finger does, and double action helps to stop this. My experience only of course, Hank.

 

[Specs]

All the above is true, for sure.

There's also a certain amount of . . .

Ford vs Chevy

9mm vs .45ACP

Ginger vs Mary Ann

. . . going on here.

I'd suggest you try each and see how they "feel" to ya. Most of us end up with one (or more) of each.

JMHO
:mrgreen:

I like all of the above just fine. Why limit yourself?.

 

[Jayhawkhuntclub]

Single action all the way.

 

[Specs]

Like others here when I had a DA revolver I shot it SA most of the time. Double action is a nice option though, because you can use speedloaders and still shoot single action style if you prefer. I only have 2 Ruger revolvers, both single action.