As I have been making my way through the Cave to collect 50 crystal shards, I've had to make some tough decisions about level 22 weapons I had to leave behind in favor of rocket launchers, and make tough decisions about whether to swap my electrocution SMG for a slightly superior SMG without elemental damage.
 
Amidst all of this, I managed to stumble upon a Stabilized Repeater that deals 30 damage and an accuracy rating of 85. I have been in a little bit of a dilemma lately, but this topic is just to discus the viability of Repeater pistols at higher levels, even when the damage output is close in spec to weapons in your loadout. I was trying to figure if I should trade my 95 rating accuracy rifle for this lightweight, fast Repeater, and I can't really decide if it's a good decision or not. I have two SMGs that fire plenty fast, but I've sold all of my Repeaters before this one in favor of better weapons.
 
What is your take on Repeater pistols? Can they stand up to the damage and reliability output of SMGs and rifles, or are they just better used at lower levels to make room for bigger and badder guns?

I used the repeater pistols a lot early on, but at a point they just seem way underpowered compared to the other weapons. Having said that, I was playing with some guy tonight that was about a level 17 using some sort of automatic repeater pistol that was working pretty well, so I guess there may be a few pistols worth using at level 20+, but they are very rare.

the pistols get replaced with revolvers as the game progresses 

" the pistols get replaced with revolvers as the game progresses  "

You find so many weapons anyway, that by the time you're able to use that item that was 4 or 5 levels above you, you'll have found so much better stuff, or soon thereafter, find so much better stuff. You're constantly replacing your weapons. Unless you're within like 2 levels, I wouldn't worry about it. Or if it's particularly rare, with nice looking stats...

Of course it depends on what character you are playing, but repeater pistols are just fine at higher levels. However, since revolvers and repeaters share the same single proficiency, theres no reason to only use one type. Damage wise, it will always seem smaller than other weapons, most of the time at least, so it usually comes down to the damage being at least tolerable for you and the level of the item, and the other stats on the weapon. I mained Lilith, and I just hit level 50 tonight, and I had a good repeater pistol for a while. Anything that deals good elemental damage for her is great, so it works well.
 
One of the bosses later in the game does drop a repeater pistol with a lighting property to it, its very powerful, and shoots differently whether you are sighting it or not..there definitely are some powerful repeaters, it all comes to preference..just never expect them to be the top in the damage for the most part, all depends on what you look for

" One of the bosses later in the game does drop a repeater pistol with a lighting property to it, its very powerful, and shoots differently whether you are sighting it or not..there definitely are some powerful repeaters, it all comes to preference..just never expect them to be the top in the damage for the most part, all depends on what you look for "

I have been carrying around this one repeater that does like 42 DMG for a while now, but I don't think I've actually used it since I picked up the Bloody Justice revolver.

Repeaters have been completely useless for me so I've just avoided them altogether.

Repeaters are not necessarily worth anything, but burst repeaters and machine pistols are both absolutely insane (especially with elemental mods) at close range. They are the embodiment of spray'n'pray, and although they're not the most accurate, they're fun as fuck and damn powerful (they make up for lower damage with ridiculous speed). Give one a try if you pick one up or find it cheap. You might be surprised.

" There was one great repeater early on in the game (can't remember which boss dropped it, but it had fire damage and a blade on it) biut since then it's all about revolvers. I would assume that the chance of coming across a really amazing repeater exists.  My problem is that I play largely with combat rifles (level 23, same quest as the OP) and the one I have does 71 damage, but that still seems weak on enemies that are at the same level as me, especially bruisers. My proficiency is maxed out, and I'm most comfortable with them, but if they don't start kicking more ass soon, I'm going to have to switch to something else, but I have no idea what "

Even though this topic has been stagnant for about four days, I wanted to bring an update into this:
 
The Repeater that I picked up in the Cave looking for the crystal shards, I kept with me for the remaining two or three levels and used it pretty regularly. Since I generally end up right in the face of my opponent during battle, beside Sledge's Shotgun, this weapon was absolutely perfect for close-range combat.

Another thing I find is that Repeaters which have elemental attacks are really good for quickly doing some elemental damage. I used a repeater with a x3 shock element in it for quite a while until I was around level 25.

I too used repeaters early on but i've now started to avoid them.   
I use shotguns for point blank range, smgs for close-range (great for getting crits if you have a scope) and combat rifles for mid- to long-range.  My fourth slot is for whatever fun stuff i want to play with at the time :) 
 
But yeah, I've found they are not terribly useful and I'm a little disappointed when I open a chest full of 4 repeaters :| 

On my second playthrough I was struggling in Old Haven a little. Hadn't come across a decent weapon in a while and was getting massacred by the armoured lance troops. Stumbled on a blue corrosive repeater in a weapons case and proceeded to cut down every enemy in the zone. It wasn't terribly powerful but it had an insane rate of fire making for lots of crits and the ticking corrosive damage killed more troops than my shots did. I think it's all a matter of having the right weapon at the right time so don't just dismiss repeaters off hand if they have interesting properties.

I got a lvl 24 orange SMG that lasted me till I got to lvl 50. It kills all human enemy types with little effort and I used shotguns for the spider-ants, rakks and scythids. No repeater I have found can put out as much damage as the SMG, or any weapon for that matter.

" Repeaters have been completely useless for me so I've just avoided them altogether. "

I found the repeater pistol Jeff had in the Quick Look... the one with infinate bullets. I find that comes in handy in some sections. Seeing as I don't ever have to reload.

The issue I have with Repeaters, is their best use is at close range where you can spray all of your targets for quick damage. I find they aren't very usually if you're trying to attack from medium-long range. You end up wasting an entire clip and not hitting as much.

I find that since I am a Siren, using repeaters that have strong elemental effects can be better than revolvers, although as I stated in the "Best Weapons" thread, my favorite gun was a level 15 purple revolver with 3x Electricity.  The problem with repeaters with too high a fire rate (I have an orange level 19 req with 70 rounds) is that accuracy goes completely out the door if you go full-auto for a moment.  I prefer SMGs for that heavy concentration of fire and use repeaters to purposely ignite, electrocute or corrode a target enemy.  Since they fire more bullets, they seem to have a greater chance of causing elemental effects than a revolver.  Each type of enemy is weak to a different elemental effect, so that's what I use to decide what weapons to carry and use in each given situation.