Periodically I like to haul myself out behind the wood-shed and kick my own ass over all of the guns I’ve parted with over the years. Largely because some of those guns, once considered common as hen’s teeth, have become so valuable that I can’t afford to replace them now. I can hardly believe the prices of some guns that we took for granted back in the day.

Well, I almost did it to myself again this year. In the wake of the house fire and with the holidays coming on I looked at my S&W Model 28 and thought I should maybe part with it. I was a bit ambivalent about it, but I half-heartedly offered it for sale at a decent price. When no one bit within a reasonable time I quietly forgot the idea of selling it. I can’t tell you how glad I am that I did!

This gun isn’t the first time I’ve had a Model 28; back when I was a small-town cop I carried one as my duty weapon for a few weeks. It was big and heavy, but I was a big kid and didn’t so much mind. What I really remember most about that gun was the excellent double-action trigger and how it tamed the .357.

A couple decades on I took one in trade that had belonged to a Sherrif’s deputy. Despite its years of service it’s in fine condition and sports beautiful maple grips that fit my large hands to a T. The trigger pulls in double and single action are excellent too. They may have been worked over at one time or another, but maybe not; some of these old S&Ws came from the factory pretty sweet.

In the years since it’s been hunting with me several times and come within heartbeats of taking a deer, Unfortunately I was deep in the pucker-brush and couldn’t quite make out if it was a doe or a spike buck and had to let the shot pass.

The Model 28 Highway Patrolman is a direct descendant of the original S&W Registered Magnum, made from 1935-1941. This was the first-ever handgun chambered in the cartridge, and it was instantly prized by law-enforcement officers for its power and penetration.

The Registered Magnum was a beautifully finished and polished gun, with adjustable sights and hand-cut checkering on the top of the frame. General George Patton famously carried a nickel-plated pearl-handled 3-1/2” barreled Registered Magnum throughout World War II. Production stopped in 1941 so that Smith and Wesson could focus on the war effort, and when it resumed in the late 1940’s it was known as ‘The .357 Magnum Revolver.’ This worked just fine because it was the only one in production. It became known as the Model 27 in the mid 1950’s when S&W rationalized their naming conventions and model numbers.

The Model 27 really only had one problem; with it’s high levels of finish and hand-work it was expensive, and by the early 1950s law enforcement officers and agencies were requesting a less expensive, more utilitarian version. In 1954 S&W obliged by introducing the Highway Patrolman, which soon became the Model 28.

S&W wasn’t in the habit of creating a new model by removing features, but it worked out fine. Gone was the deeply polished blueing and the hand-cut checkering, replaced by a bead-blasted blue finish. But the essentials are still there, and at a much more affordable price. The Model 28 was hugely successful and remained in production until 1985.

We think of these guns as big guns now, but at the time they were made all large-bore guns were big. It was a function of both the physical size of cartridges like .45 Colt and .44 Special, and the metallurgy of the times. It just flat took a lot of metal to hold the pressures generated by the .357 Magnum back in 1935. Time marched on; the metallurgy and heat treat improved and it was possible to introduce the cartridge in the K frame guns like the Model 19, which gave you the power of a .357 in a much lighter and more compact package.

The trend has continued until now you can get J-Frames in this caliber, or their equivalent, from just about everyone that manufactures revolvers. These days the N-frame .357 revolvers justify their size by packing 2 extra rounds into that big cylinder, but all that mechanical complexity and careful fitting comes at a steep price.

If you fancy one of these guns you’d better get it now; just a few years ago when I got mine it was reckoned to be worth $250-$350. Now they are routinely selling at $500-$600, and typically that sort of trend doesn’t reverse itself.

I’m glad this old Model 28 didn’t become one of the guns I kick myself for selling, and I’ll keep it around for probably as long as I’m around. Yes, it’s kind of a dinosaur, but then so am I. We’ll get on just fine.

My friend Lee was a survivalist. He had armor, a full tactical vest system, military-grade weapons, thousands of rounds of ammunition, a high-tech backpack, MREs, water, military-grade survival and camping gear and just about every gimmick, gadget and gee-gaw you can imagine. He spent a fortune on all of this stuff; at one point he could have fully equipped a fire-team to operate for a month. The plan was to walk to the ‘safety’ of the countryside. There were a few slight problems with all his plans however. One, that he lived in the middle of a suburb in a major metropolitan area. Two, if he fully geared up he wouldn’t have made it a hundred feet; his health and physical condition would’t have allowed it. Three, for the last several years of his life he lived with his two adult daughters and their children. While his plans, such as they were, didn’t include them there is no way he would have left them behind. Despite all of his preparations he was, fundamentally, unprepared.

Lee was a wonderful, intelligent, nice person and a great friend. I never got his obsession or how his plans could be so completely out of step with reality. Eventually I came to understand that he was a survival hobbyist, living a fantasy rather than preparing for a potential reality. As much as we loved him he was, unfortunately, ‘that guy.’

OK, we’re not all survivalists as such, but if you’re reading this chances are you’ve thought about calamity and what you’d do in a break-down of social order.  There is no one good answer of course; we all have different situations and circumstances, and different sorts of events might impact us. There are simple, sensible things one can do, and hopefully our thinking and preparations, such as they are, might give people some useful ideas.

Here in Seattle a natural disaster is probably the most likely scenario for a break-down of services. The city is on a fault-line, we could experience a Lahar from Mount Rainier, sometimes we have fairly serious storms… a natural disaster could disrupt services for days or even at the extreme weeks at a time.  In combination with social factors a general social breakdown is possible. Unlikely, but possible.

Linda and I have discussed this at some length. Where we live is far enough from downtown that it’s very likely we would survive a catastrophic event that affected the city, but we’re too deep in the urban area to flee after the fact. Also we have dogs; they are our family and they would have to be disposed of before we could move out and we don’t want to- especially for a crisis of limited duration.

Another consideration is that we’re in our fifties and in relatively poor physical condition. Fleeing on foot is seriously not an option; we wouldn’t get far and wouldn’t be able to carry much. So unless we have enough warning to pack the van with what we need and the dogs we’re probably not going to be able to flee. In the unlikely event that we do have sufficient warning we have contingencies in mind, but for the most part realism dictates that we’re going to have to hunker down and try to ride it out.

So- the events we are planning for involve a breakdown of services (and possibly social order) lasting several weeks, after which services and social order will gradually be restored. Anything else is either unsurvivable for us in this location or will have to be played by ear; in either case the preparation we are making won’t hurt.

So, what does that entail? Food and water for starters. OK, forget all the survivalist BS. You don’t need specially sealed and prepared survival rations or sterilized distilled water. You just need to keep soul and body together until things start running again. That’s pretty easy; we have a bargain market nearby and when I am shopping I grab a few cans of whatever is on sale. Yes, canned food can be a little short of nutrition and high on sodium. But it’s cheap, readily available, keeps practically forever and does not require cooking. It also tends to contain a lot of liquid which helps to stretch out the water. By grabbing a few cans at a time we get variety and can build up stocks without breaking the budget. Meat will be a bit in short supply as that’s more expensive, but hell, we eat too much meat as it is.

Water is easy too. Turn on the tap and there it is. Clean out empty pop or juice bottles, fill them with water and freeze some of them. The frozen bottles not only thaw and provide potable water, but when the power goes down they can be shifted to the refrigerator and keep things cool long enough to consume all the perishables. The others can simply be stored. Yes, I know, they leach chemicals into the water that have negative long-term health effects. Frankly if we need them we’ve got bigger problems, they are free and readily available, and you can cycle fresh water into them a couple of times a year. Don’t forget the hot-water heater; forty-five gallons of potable water right there.

So what else is needed? Fuel? Start stashing propane bottles for the camp stove and a few good-sized bags of charcoal for the barbecue. If the opportunity to cook is there and it seems prudent that should cover it. As long as we’re mindful of ventilation issues the stove can be used as a source of heat too. Candles are cheap and easy, but you do have to be mindful of the fire danger. Candle-lanterns are a good option; they’re cheap and they help limit the fire danger. No, they don’t throw the levels of light we’re accustomed to, but enough to get around without tripping over the furniture. We have a couple of propane lanterns for camping that can be pressed into service at need.

What about weapons? A lot of people stock military-style weapons and thousands of rounds of ammunition, super-advanced high-tech handguns, knives, swords, big wrenches and god knows what else. Frankly if we need that stuff we’re probably doomed anyway. We have firearms and more ammunition than we are likely to be able to survive needing; we can even arm neighbors if necessary. That’s a whole other discussion though. Suffice it to say we feel OK with what we’ve got.

What about forting-up? Let’s face it, our house isn’t bulletproof and there is no reasonable way to make it so. If we come under serious assault by an organized force we’re cooked. There is no way whatsoever to stand off a determined assault so it makes no sense to try. Attempting to fortify our home would call the attention of just such people. A far better option is to work with out neighbors, be vigilant and keep a low profile. Fight if we have to, but avoid the necessity if possible.

While actually forting-up isn’t practical it seems prudent to have some stout sheets of plywood on hand to use to limit access to the house. These are pretty cheap and can be bought one at a time. These would be put up inside the house behind the curtains of certain windows. This allows us secure the house somewhat without announcing to the world that there are things here worth the effort of trying to get them. We have a rechargeable drill and long wood-screws on hand for household use and maintenance, so mounting the plywood will not be a problem.  These will not make the house impenetrable, but they will make it more difficult to get in. More importantly it will make it very, very difficult to access our house by stealth.

There are a thousand other things, but they can mostly be acquired piece-meal without making a capital investment. A good industrial first-aid kit. Some compress bandages and tampons ( a great field expedient for bullet-wounds.) We have a wind-up radio in the shop. LOTS of tools. I also have a fully insulated workshop with limited access for storage or to put people up in if necessary. A water-purification system could be useful.

I suppose the point is that prepping for a worst-case scenario doesn’t need to cost a fortune or be an all-consuming obsession. Think about what you have and what you might need. Keep it simple. Above all be realistic- what is likely and what is survivable? What are your physical limitations, and what can you really do?  Keep your feet on the ground, use your common sense and think. There’s no guarantees in life, but you can increase your chances without going overboard… or going broke.

In my youth I was one cutting-edge dude. IPSC was hot and I had a sweet custom Detonics Scoremaster .45.  The 1911A1 and it’s variants were king among serious combat pistoleros. I went from that to a custom CZ75 clone with a slide-profile compensator, stippled grips and frame and all the bells and whistles. Cutting-edge stuff, and I was the first police officer in the state to carry a comp-gun on duty. I was also one of the first people to run a Glock 17. Yet even then I respected and recognized the utility of the revolver; my back-up was a custom Chief’s Special, DAO with a bobbed hammer and a trigger-job by Tim Bacus. The main reason was that in a pinch I could hand it to any other cop and they’d be able to operate it.

Over the years I’ve owned and fired a lot of guns. Seriously, a lot. The 1911A1 in it’s various incarnations has remained a favorite- I’ve probably put over forty-thousand rounds through different versions. I’ve had Browning High Powers, CZ52s (in both 7.62 and 9mm,) PPKs, PPs, Makarovs, Glocks, CZ75 clones etc. but I always came back to the 1911s.

I’ve never been a ‘revolver guy’ or a ‘semi-auto guy;’ I’ve always been a ‘gun guy.’ Along the way I have owned and carried numerous other guns in different circumstances, many of them revolvers ranging from .32 to .44 Magnum. I absolutely love  the Single-Action Army (in .45 Colt, thank you very much.) I still remember my Ruger Speed Six .357 fondly, and though I’m embarrassed to admit it I’d love to have my Astra Jovino Terminator .44 Magnum snubby back.

I stopped carrying daily many years ago (for reasons we need not go into,) but now I am going to renew my Carry Concealed Pistol permit (for reasons we also need not go into.) I own a number of fine modern handguns and a quite nice 1911A1, yet I find myself leaning towards revolvers as carry pieces. What am I, some kind of dinosaur? Well, yes, but that’s not entirely why I find myself considering the revolver. There are many reasons, and some of them actually make sense.

In all honesty I am good enough with handguns that pretty much anything that fires an adequate bullet will do for me. That being said the first reason for a revolver is simple; I like them. That’s a compelling reason, but it’s not the only reason.

Then there is the manual of arms. All modern revolvers (and most antiques) share a common manual of arms. A very simple one at that. Open gun, dump empties (if any,) fill the holes with cartridges, close and you are ready to go. All speed loaders and strip-loaders operate identically. Regardless of the size and details of the gun you go through exactly the same motions. Even with weird guns like the Chiappa Rhino it’s the same set of motions. Yes, the manual of arms for a 1911a1 is so deeply burned into my brain it’s practically a reflex at this point. Modern automatics are all at least broadly similar and I can easily train to accommodate their individual quirks. But with revolvers I pretty much don’t have to- there really aren’t any real differences. Taurus revolvers work like S&W revolvers work like Ruger revolvers work like Colt revolvers etc. OK, the Colt’s and Rugers have very slightly different cylinder releases. No prob- I wasn’t planning on a Colt or Ruger in the stable any time soon.

Another issue is reliability, and this applies on a number of levels.  Yes, I know the drill for clearing an auto like it’s second nature- but isn’t it better not to need that drill? With a revolver you pull the trigger and it goes BANG. If it doesn’t you have the fastest possible method of proceeding; simply pull the trigger again. Revolvers do malfunction- but the odds of having a malfunction serious enough to disable the gun are statistically insignificant. Modern semi-autos are very good and very reliable but they still do occasionally malfunction.

An area of reliability that most people don’t think of is operation. Revolvers are dead-simple. In the ham-fisted moment of waking, or when fine motor control dissolves under the lash of an adrenaline dump you can’t accidentally drop the magazine, or fumble a safety, or grip the gun badly and cause a limp-wrist malfunction or get your hand caught by the slide. Training will relieve these issues it’s true; but with the revolver they aren’t issues. If you get the gun in your hand and a finger on the trigger it will go boom. They can also be reliably fired from inside a coat or jacket pocket. Yeah, you aren’t going to get target accuracy, but most civilian self-defense scenarios happen at contact distance. Speaking of contact distance you can fire a revolver even with it jammed into your assailant’s body.

Revolvers are also available in potent calibers in compact packages. This is more true of autos than it was even a decade ago; really compact 9mms, .40 S&W and .45 are readily available and not expensive these days, but still. Wait a minute Tinker- are you saying that .38 Special is a ‘potent’ caliber? Yes, I am. For a long time .38 Special has been the ‘weak sister’ of service calibers. But in recent years bullet design has come a long way, and standardized tests with modern .38 Special, even in standard velocity loadings, show performance very comparable to other service calibers. Funnily one of the best performers from snub-nosed .38 Specials is a load that has been around for decades- the 158gr. lead SWCHP. With soft-lead standard velocity loads it’s performance is impressive from a 2″ barrel. In +P form hard-cast lead works even better- though at the cost of slower follow-up shots in a light-weight gun. Of course revolver calibers aren’t limited to .38 Special- they can commonly be had in .357 Magnum, or rather less commonly in calibers ranging from .22 Magnum to 9mm to .45 ACP.

Another beauty of the revolver is that when it comes to ammunition they are thoroughly agnostic. FMC, hollow-points, soft-points, high-powered, low-powered, they just don’t care. If it fits it will go bang. Hollow points for self defense, soft-points for wildlife or game, cheap fmc or cast lead for target practice– it’s all good.

OK, but what about capacity? Even most of the smallest compact service-caliber guns carry six rounds in the magazine and one in the chamber. Some carry as many as ten to twelve rounds. OK, ya got me there.  Semi-autos carry usually carry more shots. They reload faster too. Maybe not a lot faster, but faster.  What about that, Tinker?

I don’t care.

No really, I don’t care. When I was a cop the trade-off of a potential for slightly less reliability was offset by the need for a lot of shots. I was part of a rural police department and could not count on my back-up arriving in a timely manner. We also had survivalists, white supremacists, pot farmers and all manner of unsavory sorts within our jurisdiction; a protracted fire-fight was actually a possibility. By choice I carried a 16-shot 9mm comp-gun with two spare magazines of hollow-points and an extra magazine (carried separately) full of some potent armor-piercing ammunition. For a while I also carried the compact version of the comp-gun (which held another twelve hollow-points and could use the same magazines as the comp-gun) as a back-up before I switched to the Chief’s Special. If I were police officer today I’d probably carry a Glock. But I am not a cop or a soldier anymore.

I’m a civilian. For civilians the overwhelming majority of uses of a gun for self-defense do not result in a shooting. When shooting does happen an average of three shots are fired. These encounters generally occur at ranges of three to five feet. I’ve reviewed rather a lot of accounts of civilian self-defense shootings and I honestly cannot recall a single one where the shooter needed to reload. I’m sure it has happened but the odds seem to be overwhelmingly against it. So five to eight primary shots without reloading seems adequate for any situation I’m likely to encounter. If it isn’t I’ll take cover and reload. Let’s face reality though- I will most likely live out my days without ever having to fire another shot in defense of an innocent life, mine or another’s. This begs the question, ‘Then why carry at all?’  That, my friends, is a whole ‘nuther question for a whole other post.

So do I recommend everyone and their sister Sally dump their semi-auto in favor of a revolver? Of course not, nor am I saying that it is foolish or risky to bet your life on a semi-auto. I’m simply pointing out that it’s not insane to choose to carry a revolver. They have been, and remain, a valid and effective tool for self-defense. It’s up to the individual to determine what works for them, and to train with it so that they are an asset rather than a danger to themselves and others.

Hey, speaking of the twenty-first century where’s my damn jet-pack?! There were supposed to be jet-packs!