How to Open a Revolver Cylinder: S&W, Ruger and Colt All Do It Differently

Before you touch anything

Opening the cylinder is how you make a revolver safe, so the safety habits come first, not after.

• Treat it as loaded until you have looked into every chamber.
• Muzzle in a safe direction the whole time, including while the cylinder is open.
• Finger off the trigger and outside the trigger guard. On many double actions, the latch won't work properly if the hammer is cocked or the trigger is held back.
• If the hammer is cocked, don't try to open the cylinder. Lower the hammer safely following the manufacturer's manual, with the muzzle pointed safely, or ask someone experienced to help.

Revolvers come in three basic loading designs: swing-out cylinders, fixed cylinders with a loading gate, and top-break frames. Most modern double actions are swing-outs, and that's where the brand differences live.

Swing-out cylinders: the common part

On a swing-out revolver, the cylinder rides on a hinged arm called the crane (some makers call it the yoke). When the latch releases it, the crane and cylinder swing out of the frame, almost always to the left. That's why right-handed shooters usually work the latch with the shooting thumb and push the cylinder out with the support hand's middle and ring fingers.

The generic sequence is:

1. Hold the revolver in your shooting hand, muzzle safe, finger off the trigger.
2. Operate the latch (direction depends on the brand; see below).
3. With the support-hand fingers, push the cylinder out to the left through the frame window.
4. Tip the muzzle up and press the ejector rod to clear the chambers if anything is in them.
5. Look into every chamber. Count them out loud if it helps.

Smith & Wesson: push forward

On Smith & Wesson J-, K-, L- and N-frame double actions, the cylinder release is the checkered thumbpiece on the left side of the frame behind the cylinder. Push it forward, toward the muzzle, and push the cylinder out with your support-hand fingers.

Smith & Wesson guns use a combined center pin and ejector rod to lock the cylinder, which was an early improvement over Colt's first swing-out design. That's part of why the latch pushes forward: it's moving that center pin.

Ruger double actions: push in

On Ruger's GP100, SP101 and Redhawk families, the cylinder latch is a button on the left side of the frame behind the cylinder. Press it in, toward the frame, and swing the cylinder out.

Ruger's GP100 locks its cylinder in three places: at the front and rear of the crane and at the bottom of the cylinder opening, using a latch on the crane rather than at the end of the ejector rod. You don't need to understand the mechanism to use it, but it explains why the Ruger latch feels different from a Smith. Ruger's newer LCR and LCRx use their own latch design, so check the manual if you're new to one.

Colt: pull back

On Colt double actions, including the Python, King Cobra and Anaconda, the cylinder latch on the left side of the frame pulls back, toward you. Then swing the cylinder out as usual.

Two other Colt quirks are worth knowing. Colt cylinders rotate clockwise when viewed from behind, while Smith & Wesson and Ruger cylinders rotate counter-clockwise. And Colt's first swing-out double action, the Model 1889, had no center pin locking the cylinder, which Smith & Wesson improved on. Different heritage, different latch.

If you're switching between brands, practice the latch on an unloaded gun until your thumb remembers which way to go. Our Python vs 686 comparison covers more of the handling differences.

Single actions: the loading gate

Single-action revolvers like the Colt Single Action Army, its replicas and Ruger's Blackhawk and Vaquero don't swing out. The cylinder stays in the frame, and you reach the chambers one at a time through a loading gate on the right side. (On Colt designs, the right-side gate made loading easier on horseback.)

Traditional Colt-pattern guns

1. Muzzle safe, finger off the trigger.
2. Draw the hammer back to the half-cock (loading) notch. Uberti's own description of its 1873 Cattleman: the hammer moves back to half cock and the loading gate swings downward.
3. Open the gate and rotate the cylinder by hand, one chamber at a time.
4. Use the ejector rod under the barrel to push out each case.
5. Check every chamber as it passes the gate.

Ruger New Model single actions

1. Muzzle safe, finger off the trigger, hammer down.
2. Open the loading gate. On Ruger's New Model guns, that alone frees the cylinder to rotate; you don't use half-cock.
3. Rotate, eject and check each chamber through the gate.

Ruger's Vaquero adds a reverse-indexing pawl that Ruger says makes loading and unloading easier. Our single-action loading guide covers the load-five sequence for traditional guns and the full manual of arms.

See the Ruger Blackhawk .45 Colt at Ammunition Depot or browse the full revolver category.

Top-breaks and oddballs

A top-break revolver hinges at the bottom front of the frame. Release the latch (usually at the top rear of the frame, in front of the hammer) and tip the barrel down; an extractor lifts the cases as it opens. Top-breaks were common in the late 1800s and are mostly reproductions and antiques today. If you have an original, have a gunsmith examine it before firing.

Some mini-revolvers, like North American Arms' tiny .22s, remove the cylinder entirely for loading. Follow the maker's manual exactly; those designs have their own safety notches and routines. Our NAA mini-revolver guide covers them.

Closing it without damage

Hollywood flicks cylinders shut with a wrist snap. Don't. The crane is the weak point of a swing-out revolver, and slamming the cylinder closed by flicking the gun can bend it over time, which throws off the cylinder's alignment with the barrel.

Instead, push the cylinder gently back into the frame with your support-hand thumb and fingers until the latch clicks. Then rotate the cylinder slightly by hand until it locks into place. That's all it takes.

If you're inspecting a used gun, this is also when you check lockup and end shake. Our used-revolver inspection guide walks through it, and our cleaning routine shows what to clean while the cylinder is open.

Editorial note: This is an independent editorial overview built from manufacturer specifications, retailer listings and published sources. We have not performed hands-on testing of the products discussed, and nothing here is a performance guarantee. Verify specifications, compatibility and the law where you live.

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