Carmoney

A longer barrel swings fine if it is a light profile. Regardless, I would definitely choose the 8-shot model.

I quit using the term "Nazi RO" after being confronted by a moderator who informed me that such a reference can be offensive to people of German descent.

and now you know.....the REST of the story!

Correct, but the practical reality of that would be pretty much inconsequential. As we all know, the way the classifier system works, classifier scores with artificially low HFs wind up getting tossed out by the computer anyway. I think simply adjusting the HHFs with the assumption they are being shot with 8-shooters would be the best solution to the problem.

Scenario 1: You're staying minor, as declared, assuming your ammo makes at least 125 p.f. when you run back through chrono. Scenario 2: You will need to re-chrono, and if your ammo only makes minor, you are scored minor for all stages, whether already shot or not. You will be limited to 6 rounds between reloads because you declared major. If you forget and fire a 7th round without reloading, you get moved to Open. Big match, or little match--doesn't matter. Assumes approval of R.M.

Lots of names missing from the list......including Miculek, Walsh, Griffin, Wolfe.....what's up with that?

Calling us "statistically insignificant" might not have been the most gracious choice of words, Kevin. However--I must admit I understand what you are saying. You're right--revolver shooters have been pretty much insignificant in USPSA lately, particularly at major matches. The 8-minor rule change was conceived in an attempt to save a division that was clearly dying on the vine. Whether USPSA executed the concept in the smartest manner is certainly debatable, but it was a good-faith attempt by good people to do a good thing for our game. I have been to one major match this year with my 8-shooter, and I immediately caught flak over the classifier thing, the instant I showed up on the first stage. Like it was my fault that USPSA took the lazy way out! As for me, I don't give a shit about the entire classifier system--I've always felt that it's wrong to pass out trophies and prizes to a bunch of mid- or low-level shooters anyway. But I bow to the majority and realize that my feelings about "participation ribbons" are probably statistically insignificant. I also agree with your suggestion that we not make any of this personal. I am going to do my very best to take that to heart.

Honest to God.......I think everybody needs to take a deep breath here.....there is absolutely nothing about this situation that is going to create a "paradigm shift" in the sport, and there is no reason to be PTFO at anyone. That is exactly the kind of uproar that a few people wanted to create. They want to see this animosity. Seriously, please just relax. None of this is going to have any kind of meaningful impact on anybody's division. I say this not as a revolver shooter, but as a very dedicated USPSA shooter who shoots many more matches in the other divisions than I shoot in Revolver.

Really? Your tone in the other discussion thread, and in your open letter to USPSA, is pretty derogatory toward us. You're entitled to your opinion, of course--but you might want to consider the possibility that you're being manipulated.

Once you have some experience, you can tell if there is a problem with the moonclip or the loaded rounds by simply dropping the loaded moon into the cylinder. The feeling of a good loaded moonclip dropping home is unmistakeable. The whole "roll check" ritual is really not necessary. I quit doing it years ago. It's best to have enough loaded moons to get through an entire match day. Drop check the moons the night before, and you will have no problems.

Yep, the rule has morphed significantly. Unintended consequences to let revolver shooters go to a match and decide which gun they want to shoot . Ill conceived. There's a reason you're in a big upheaval over this, Sarge. You're reacting exactly as you are supposed to react--by getting irritated with the revolver shooters instead of recognizing that USPSA took the lazy way out of solving the classifier issue.

Every SS Nationals has been run by the same guys who ran the SS Classic for years. Everybody who has ever shot the match knows they make damn sure the stages are 8-round neutral. They are not going to willingly allow a 10-round 9mm pistol to win that match (although it has almost happened by accident once or twice).

Mike, What is the supporting rule that makes him wrong would be my question? If you declare a division with capacity requirements then start shooting and violate the capacity requirement, you are in open. That's pretty clear cut. I get that for a standalone revolver only match the rule it is not convenient, but it is consistent. I suspect Amidon would probably agree with jay's interpretation. sean I'm not saying he's wrong. But Jay's always pretty sure of everything he says. Know what I mean?

Maybe find a different sport. Like USPSA. Or maybe abide by the rules! Ah yes, the constantly-changing, subjectively-enforced, rules.

Why don't you try it and see if the 8-shot guys really eat your lunch? And if you decide it's too much of a disadvantage, dump the 625 and get an 8-shooter! They're readily available, and there's a decent market for 625s on Gunbroker and the S&W Forum, and elsewhere. (627s are really fun to shoot--and they translate better to ICORE and steel matches.)

Maybe find a different sport. Like USPSA.

Well, we had a vote right here on this forum, didn't we? Hardly scientific, I'll grant you, but it was probably the most viewed thread on the Revolver Forum ever, and gave us a pretty good indication of the weight of support behind the rule change to allow 8-minor.

If so "many" were opposed to the rule change, it never would have happened. The truth is that the vast majority of wheelgunners supported it.

Many shooters in Single-Stack Division do that routinely. Probably more SS shooters simply decide ahead of time which gun sounds more fun to shoot, and they simply stick with that option. For example, I shot SS 1911s throughout most of 2012--most of the time I shot 10-minor, without any big advance analysis of the stages. I didn't worry too much about whether that option was the absolute most competitive--I just knew it would be more fun for me to shoot. The only match I intend to seriously check out first is Nationals. I would prefer to run my 8-shot rig, but if they make the stages favor 6-major (and they just might), I will run my 625 instead. Otherwise, I plan on shooting my 627s the rest of the season. Way more fun, at least for me.

Just because Jay said that with an authoritative tone doesn't necessarily mean he is right. But presuming he is RM at Nationals again this year, we can assume that's the way the rule will be enforced there. Thanks for the heads-up. I would not count on Nationals favoring the 8-shot. If there was ever a time where they might decide to keep the 6-round revolvers in play, it will be at PASA at a stand-alone Nats where it won't affect the other divisions. Just like they make sure the 8-major SS 1911s always have the advantage over the 10-minor SS 1911s.

The discussion on this question has been underway for a long time. Stage design is the single most important factor. For matches where the stages are built in mostly 8-shot arrays, the 8-shot is clearly the most competitive choice. For better-designed matches with more mixed challenges, the 8-minor and 6-major options become much closer to parity--with the 8-minor still probably having a slight advantage most of the time. The 6-major revolver gets major scoring (a lot bigger deal than most hard-core revo guys realize), better action on steel poppers, and is slightly faster on average to reload. The 8-minor revolver gets you two more rounds between reloads (certainly a big deal also), and less recoil. You can't quantify the difference between the two platforms without factoring in the biggest variable--stage design.

You guys have seen the video of Bill Zeller shooting a USPSA match with a Webley top-break and .45 ACP moonclips, right? I can't find it on Youtube, but maybe Bill will see this and post a link....

Here's a pic of the Bulldog. Jeff Cooper always said this is the best pocket revolver ever made. I think he might've been right.

While they're at it, I wish somebody would re-introduce the old Webley British Bulldog with modern metallurgy capable of safely handling .45 ACP.

Factory 400-gr. Hornady ammo chronoes an honest 1000 fps from my Ruger Alaskan .480 snub. That's nuclear, folks! I even have a concealment holster for it.