Revolver for Competition

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BananaChiu

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I am trying to find a revolver before the gun ban, but I have no idea what I'm looking for that's compliant with IDPA, IPSC, and ICORE. I am confused with all the 6, 7 & 8 round rules.

Let's say I get a SW627 (if i can find one), am i not allowed to do IDPA? or do i just load 6 out of the 8 rounds? and that will probably slow me down on reloads right?

and I am reading the IPSC rule book that if i have 7 rounds even if i use 38/357mag, it is considered minor. Only a 6 chamber revolver be considered major? So I am using .38 and and can't make major and have 1 less round count than the 8 shot guys? Is it really a big disadvantage to go with a 686 plus?

I know in ICORE. A 8 round is in limited and open dvision, would I be in a disadvantage if I get a SW686 plus? Or would be be better to stick with a 6 shot 686?

i'm so confused I don't know which to pick lol. I need to make up my mind soon before it's too late. If someone can shed some light to this, it would be great.
 
BananaChiu said:
I am trying to find a revolver before the gun ban, but I have no idea what I'm looking for that's compliant with IDPA, IPSC, and ICORE. I am confused with all the 6, 7 & 8 round rules. Let's say I get a SW627 (if i can find one), am i not allowed to do IDPA? or do i just load 6 out of the 8 rounds? and that will probably slow me down on reloads right?
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For IDPA, from the 2022 Division Equipment Appendix:

A.5.5.7 Revolvers must be loaded to the division capacity of 6 rounds in the cylinder. Higher capacity 7 and 8 round revolvers are permitted, but may only load 6 rounds.
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Using an 7 or 8 round revolver absolutely would cause problems for reloading, and as far as REV division goes, that's where the key to competition lies (in your reload times) IMHO.
 
CV32 said:
For IDPA, from the 2022 Division Equipment Appendix:
Using an 7 or 8 round revolver absolutely would cause problems for reloading, and as far as REV division goes, that's where the key to competition lies (in your reload times) IMHO.
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For the same reason one will need a 8-rounder in IPSC and it has to take the moon clips (speed loaders, e.g. 627 are somewhat slower). AND because most IPSC stage designers don't bother to make stages 6-round friendly, the major PF 6-rounders (e.g. 625) will be at a big disadvantage.

You could shoot 627 in both IPSC and ICORE. Though 929 taking 9mm moon clips is more competitive in both IPSC and ICORE and that is the gun most people are shooting. But apparently those won't work for IDPA due to 8 round restrictions.
 
I personally use a S&W 929 that is modified for IPSC

shooting major is NOT as important as having the 8 rounds on a moon clip
 
For IPSC the biggest advantage to shooting Minor (not just in Revolver, but also in eg. Classic) is access to more rounds per reload and being able to shoot stages faster due to needing to reload less often. Less recoil lets you shoot faster and more accurately and hit more Alphas, which is the point of the game. The only advantage to Major is the extra point out in the Charlie/Delta part of the target, but if the extra recoil put you out there the advantage just cancelled out. If you want to top the Revolver standings a tuned S&W 929 and a bunch of moon-clip holders on your belt would seem to be the route, but any centre-fire revolver with speedloaders or moon-clips will get you in the game.

Playing a game with a max-6-rounds rule with a larger-capacity revolver would be a problem because you'd have to ensure you loaded to time the first live chamber properly and not have to inadvertently dry-fire your way to your ammo. So it's going to slow you down.

A revolver rated for .357 Magnum will happily shoot .38 Special all day, so you have that flexibility. It's not a semi that wants a steady diet that matches its recoil spring.
 
So.... Go with higher higher chamber. Preferably 8 shot. 6 shot is out of the question I guess. I'll just use my 92x performed defensive for IDPA, or whatever plastic guns that's coming my way.

The problem is finding the 627. I kinda want 38/357, since all my other pistols are in 9mm.

Do you guys think the 686 plus with 7 shots would put me at a great disadvantage against the 8 shot counterpart?
 
BananaChiu said:
So.... Go with higher higher chamber. Preferably 8 shot. 6 shot is out of the question I guess. I'll just use my 92x performed defensive for IDPA, or whatever plastic guns that's coming my way.

The problem is finding the 627. I kinda want 38/357, since all my other pistols are in 9mm.

Do you guys think the 686 plus with 7 shots would put me at a great disadvantage against the 8 shot counterpart?
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Sixguns are still a wonderful thing to have and shoot, even if the modern games have left them scrambling to catch up with higher capacity pistols. In addition to IDPA, you could look into PPC as a sport that happily uses six-shot double-action revolvers.

If all your other pistols are in 9mm then finding a 929 has the advantage that the same ammo inventory feeds them all. Also, the shorter round-nosed round in moon clips will slap into the cylinder faster, and 9mm is easier to find and afford at the store, and easier to reload if you go that route.

38 Special was one of the last black powder cartridges designed, so it has twice the space inside it needs now that we're using smokeless powder and you have to very carefully not overfill it and it's difficult to see and confirm that down the long opening. The flip side is that long ago some enthusiastic shooters asked if they could load right up on smokeless and got .357 Magnum as their answer (a modified cartridge that isn't safe on most older .38 firearms) so if you have something rated to handle .357 you can shoot some of that when you want to go kablammo louder and still go back to lighter .38 loads later. But these both are harder to find in stores and more expensive than the popular 9mm.
 
old303 said:
Sixguns are still a wonderful thing to have and shoot, even if the modern games have left them scrambling to catch up with higher capacity pistols. In addition to IDPA, you could look into PPC as a sport that happily uses six-shot double-action revolvers.

If all your other pistols are in 9mm then finding a 929 has the advantage that the same ammo inventory feeds them all. Also, the shorter round-nosed round in moon clips will slap into the cylinder faster, and 9mm is easier to find and afford at the store, and easier to reload if you go that route.

38 Special was one of the last black powder cartridges designed, so it has twice the space inside it needs now that we're using smokeless powder and you have to very carefully not overfill it and it's difficult to see and confirm that down the long opening. The flip side is that long ago some enthusiastic shooters asked if they could load right up on smokeless and got .357 Magnum as their answer (a modified cartridge that isn't safe on most older .38 firearms) so if you have something rated to handle .357 you can shoot some of that when you want to go kablammo louder and still go back to lighter .38 loads later. But these both are harder to find in stores and more expensive than the popular 9mm.
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The 929 is not that cheap closing in close to 2k. I am a little turned off with Jerry Mickelick name on it lol. I rather have mine on it haha, but ya I'm this political climate. Finding something specific is difficult. I just thought finding a 686 world be easier than finding the 627 and 929. I need to be very lucky.

I heard that GP100 is coming in next week .. But that's also a 6 shot. I much prefer SW with their forged frame rather than the case frame of the Ruger.

Decisions decision.
 
Best to think of a 929 as a frame. The gun itself needs a lot of work to make it truly competitive. Though to be honest there isn't many places you'll shoot against another Revo shooter. I last took mine out in April?

And as for sharing ammo across platforms, that is not really true. First off any work to the trigger necessitates Fed100 primers seated correctly. And then the crimp needs to be overcrimped like crazy. My load for the 929 involved a .358 165gr coated lead projectile that when crimped left quite the indent. And it's 1.185" long. The 929 is 9x21 (something to do with Italian ammo laws *i think*). That round will only work in the 929.
 
MikeyScuba said:
...Though to be honest there isn't many places you'll shoot against another Revo shooter. I last took mine out in April?
...
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Hint. Burlington Club (BRRC). First Tuesday of the months is an IPSC revolver day. Has somewhat decent turn out. Signup is on PractiScore.
 
Right now I wouldn't want to think about a trigger job and ultra-light springs until I saw Federal 100 primers back in the stores. Better to keep it able to feed factory ammo for the present.

Does the 929 headspace on the moon clip? That might let them bore it out to fit 9x21 while still handling 9x19, just as other revolvers handle .38/.357 or .45/.454.

Anytime us reloaders have more than one gun in a caliber, there's the approach of doing a common-denominator load that works anywhere versus fine-tuning to some corner of the performance envelope in a particular firearm, and especially in competition it's often the latter that wins.
 
I'm not that advance into thinking about reloading. I got lost really fast when you started talking about reloading lol. I was just thinking of using factory ammo. I just want to give myself options, so whenever something fun comes up... I'll have a gun that's right for the occasion.
 
BananaChiu said:
I'm not that advance into thinking about reloading. I got lost really fast when you started talking about reloading lol. I was just thinking of using factory ammo. I just want to give myself options, so whenever something fun comes up... I'll have a gun that's right for the occasion.
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BTW, many factory .38 ammo brands don't make required PF for ICORE and IPSC... The 9mm is kinda the opposite that way.
 
So, here’s my 2 cents for what it’s worth. I’m mostly a CAS shooter and have been for 30 years almost. I occasionally shoot ICORE and PPC. Little bit of 3 gun. When I’m not using my single action revolvers, I use a S&W model 19 with HKS speedloaders. The slowest way to reload, or so I’ve been told. I usually finish middle of the pack based on the fact that I’m a relatively good shot. I know I can’t win but am there to have a little fun. If you’re trying to be the champion then everything that’s been said is good advice. If you just want to have a bit of fun, then find a revolver and run with it. The clock is ticking apparently. Over and out.
 
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