Limit to revolver length?

Is there a limit to the length of a revolver before it gets unmanageable shooting one hand?  I realize this is subjective and dependent on strength but generally when does the increased sight radius have diminishing returns?

My understanding is that the old S&W 8 3/8 barrel length was the longest allowed by the rules limiting sight radius. I owned an 8 3/8" model 29 and never had an objection to its balance but it was not used in a BE environment. Personally I like a 5" heavy barrel on revolvers but either a 4" or 6" are just fine. Just as someone commented that a 6" long slide 1911 is harder to control I think the ideal revolver length is somewhere in that 4-6" length.

kwixdraw wrote:My understanding is that the old S&W 8 3/8 barrel length was the longest allowed by the rules limiting sight radius. I owned an 8 3/8" model 29 and never had an objection to its balance but it was not used in a BE environment. Personally I like a 5" heavy barrel on revolvers but either a 4" or 6" are just fine. Just as someone commented that a 6" long slide 1911 is harder to control I think the ideal revolver length is somewhere in that 4-6" length.

Good point.  I remember that comment or discussion about the 6" long slide now.  Thanks!

With my 6" K-38, I really need to pay attention to my follow through--the bullet is so slow to get moving that if I'm sloppy and I move while the bullet is still in the barrel, the shot goes someplace fishy.  I would think that it gets more difficult with the 8 3/8" version.

Hi Beeser

I think one of the fellas here recently wrote to me that he made master with a 4" tube on a revolver.

I agree with Rob that follow through must be very good when barrel length increases.  It takes awhile for target loads to exit the barrel.  If you relax too soon after the shot, your shots tend to go high.

Paul

Back in the pre-red dot days of BE. Bomar and others used to make front sights that extended out past the muzzle an inch or two to get that sight radius without the barrel and slide length of a long slide 1911. I suppose there were advantages to the sight radius and disadvantages to the slender support  for the front sight. Maybe some of our really senior guys could comment on this. I only fired a few shots through such a set up and hadn't the experience to evaluate it back then anyway.

longer the barrel the more time to screw up the shot, so just long enough to be accurate is best

My dad borrowed a friend's 8-inch K frame once or twice to intimidate/joke with the competition. Said he never really shot any better with it than the 6-inch he was using at the time, and the 6-inch really brought no more points than the 4-inch .357 he started with.

Iron sights, BE & PPC.

So, I would conclude that for most decent shooters, the 8-3/8 is okay and any common "limit" for 1-hand shooting is beyond that.