revolver accuracy

[white eagle]

do you think that it is possible that a person can shoot a double action revo better than a single action revo ?
I have noticed that I can shoot the super redhawk better ,more accurate,than my super blackhawk
I do not believe that its the cartridge because the former is a 480 Rug and the latter is a 44 mag
curious :?:

[Love Life]

Yes. I am the same way. Even on a DA revolver I shoot more accurately in double action than using single action.

It took me a lot of lead and 2400 to master the single action in 454 casull. I am so used to DA shooting that I have to make a serious effort to not use too much pressure when shooting in either single action or with a single action revolver.

You just have to retrain yourself. Gives you an excuse to shoot more!!

[jh45gun]

I prefer SA I have always been better at that than DA Just because the SA Ruger is SA does not mean it as accurate as the DA one. I had a 44 mag Blackhawk I bought used and it shot patterns instead of groups. My first BH which I now regret I ever traded off shot great. Who knows maybe a different BH might shoot better then your RH.

[subsonic]

Anything is possible, but I'm betting what you are doing with both guns is about the same.
If there is a difference, it's likely related to how your trigger finger and the trigger interface. One may line up more naturally for you than the other with the pad of your index finger. It may be that you are getting too much finger on the trigger of the SA.

[Lloyd Smale]

I shoot equaly well off hand shooting double or single action. Ive shot 10s of thousands of rounds off hand double action though and even then it still takes a da gun thats been worked over to give a smooth trigger pull.

[44man]

I shoot both the same. The SRH can be more accurate then a SA because more care is put into building them. But it is close and not a worry.
Gun fit can mean a lot depending on your hands. There is also the tendency for letting the SA "roll" or to hold it too loose.
Attach an LED to the end of the barrel and shoot near dark as a movie is taken so you can see the goofy pattern going all different heights and torque caused sideways movements.
The light should always stop at the same place and that takes a firm hold.
You can stretch a thread above the barrel just above the normal barrel rise. See how many times you break it and where you hit.
Have some fun, turn it into a game, yet you will learn.
Another thought I have is that the .44 can be harder to tweak accuracy from when loading the ammo. I have even more trouble with the .357 yet the .357 max was easy.

[ReloaderFred]

This question harkens back to the days when PPC was one of the most popular pistol shooting venues. Almost all PPC shooters shot their 50 yard rounds double action, including me. The 7 yard, 15 yard and 25 yard rounds were required to be fired double action, with the option of shooting the 50 yard rounds either double or single action. Almost every top shooter I knew shot their 50 yard targets using double action.

With practice, double action is very, very accurate, especially with a pistol that has a very smooth action. In fact, the longest successful pistol shot I ever made on a coyote was with a S&W Model 66, 2.5" barrel, double action at 111 yards.

Hope this helps.

Fred

[Piedmont]

I think most of you guys have misunderstood the original poster. I think he is shooting both revolver types in single action.

If that is the case, yes, I shoot the DA a little better and think it is the more upright grip. Colt made the Bisley for target shooting and it is a longer, more upright grip.

[OuchHot!]

If shooting both in SA mode, I shoot a double action revolver (smith or colt) more precisely. Part of it is the grip and maybe part of it is the lock time and hammer momentum. If shooting a DA revolver, I always shoot more accurately in SA mode. I do have some well tuned DA revolvers (Andy Cannon, and so forth) but it still does not compensate for my SA bias. I shoot olympic pistol quite a bit and that likely affects what I expect of a trigger.

[sqlbullet]

Lately about the same. I do remember many years ago when I started shooting that I would shoot the 629 about the best of any handgun in DA mode. I finally figured out it was becuase the nature of the DA trigger style tends to remove the effect of flinch since you are never quite sure when it will break. Since I conquered my flinch (usually) I no longer notice much difference.

[white eagle]

I think most of you guys have misunderstood the original poster. I think he is shooting both revolver types in single action.

If that is the case, yes, I shoot the DA a little better and think it is the more upright grip. Colt made the Bisley for target shooting and it is a longer, more upright grip.

yes that was the premise of my question :grin:

[shooting on a shoestring]

In my opinion, its fit between the shooter and the gun. For me, two single actions, a Single Six and a .36 Remington clone shoot very good. Three Blackhawks...not so much. The difference is the fit between my grip and my grip frames. In DA guns, K frames and J frames do it for me. N frames don't. So if the gun fits shoot it. If not, trade it.

[Larry Gibson]

If single action firing it takes a little longer for me to get used to the longer and heavier hammer throws of the SA revolver if I'm used to the shooting the DA revolver single action. After years of both I found if I had been shooting the DA revolver quite a bit single action and then shot one of my SA revolvers I was more accurate with the single action revolver. However it didn't take much (20-30 dry firings) with the SA revolver for me to be as accurate with it as with the DA revolver. Making the reverse transition required only a couple dry firings though. I've met others with the same transition needs, others that it didn't matter and others that could shoot one or the other better. I think it has a lot to do with grip consistency and proper trigger pull on both.

Larry Gibson

[bobthenailer]

IME i can shoot better in the single action mode, than in the double action mode , I dont do too bad i just have more flyers , ive done alot of double action shootin with revolvers in steel plate & bowling pin & action shooting type matches over the years ,

[98Redline]

I am just thinking out lout here but it seems to me that a DA with a tuned action would tend to give you the most accurate shots. Here is my thinking on this:

On a DA because the trigger travel is so much longer and the trigger tension is constant, it allows you to produce a more consistent grip tension. It is the grip tension that provides consistency from shot to shot.

On a SA or DA in SA mode, it is up to the shooter to ensure that their grip is the same without any "run up" so to speak.
I find that on my SAs, I need to be very conscious of my grip tension to keep my accuracy levels up. This often leads me to abandon a shot and start over with the correct grip tension.

[shotstring]

Assuming everything else was equal between the two guns quality wise, the DA revolver should have a slight advantage because of the hammer more than the trigger. SA hammers are almost always heavier than DA triggers and usually have further to travel as well. Impact of a large, heavy hammer should cause enough vibration to change point of impact just enough.

The same argument holds true in a slighter different way with the Sharps hammer rifles vs the Hi Wall rifles with no hammer. Hi Wall always has the advantage - at least on paper.

That being said, expert shooters have won championships with SA as well as DA shooting against each other, both pistol and rifle. So the difference is moot if someone is good enough to hold steady in spite of a minute technical advantage.

[stubshaft]

It's not the weight of the hammer as it only strikes the firing pin or the primer. It is the difference in lock time.

[Bret4207]

I know I shoot a DA revolver better than an SA. But then, I've put zillions of rounds through a DA Smith and relatively few through my SA's. It's like any tool, the more you use it the better you get with it.

[softpoint]

I have both a Super Redhawk and Blackhawks. Lock time of the double action can play a part. The heftier barrels of the SRK can make a difference. But then, both my Freedom arms revolvers, one in .454 and one in .44 magnum are single action and outshoot the Rugers by a considerable margin, so precision manufacture probably makes the biggest difference.

[Larry Gibson]

It's not the weight of the hammer as it only strikes the firing pin or the primer. It is the difference in lock time.

The heavier hammer has the longer lock time. Most SAs also have a longer throw that increases lock time also. And.....the heavier hammer blow can disturb the shot....that's a well known fact with both handguns and rifles. Some can tell the difference, some can't. Just some of the smaller things that add up which "makes the difference". Getting used to one type of action or the other doesn't take much so I'm not really sure which is more accurate when shooting single action, the DA revolver or the SA revovler?

Larry Gibson