Bond Arms Roughneck, WoW-oooOOOuch!

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I purchased it a while ago in 45ACP which wasn't bad at all then thought I'd like a different barrel for it. Considered 38/357 but decided on 327 Magnum since I can load/shoot several different cartridges through it.

Started with 32 S&W Long and was pleased at how fun the Roughneck was to shoot.

Next up were some 32 H&R Magnums. Spicy but manageable.

Then came factory 327 FM 85gn JHP. Wow! they were beyond hot.

Lastly were some 327 FM 100XTPs that I hand-loaded with 12 grains of Accurate #9. Hard to explain the sting without being banned, but here it is three days later and my hand is still numb.

I'm now rethinking that LCR 327 I was wanting.


 
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You'd have a bit more grip frame to hang onto with an LCR, but I bet those full .327 loads would still recoil and blast quite a bit in one.
 
I have a very similar American Derringer in 357. Recoil with 125 STHP 357's is very manageable, but the barrels print 17" apart at 25'! Across (or under) a card table, it probably wouldn't matter!

Ivan
 
Why would anyone want one of those when there are much better alternatives on the market. Slow to get into action, heavy, inaccurate, only 2 shots, etc. Guess the only attraction is all the various calibers available but if you can’t hit anything with it, what does it matter?
 
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I have shot a bunch of Derringer type guns over the years and found they are just not my cup of tea. Too much recoil, very stiff triggers, 2 shot capacity, not very accurate, lengthy to reload, - nope - not for me. In the same size and even less weight there are now many other and better choices IMHO.
 
chief38 said:
I have shot a bunch of Derringer type guns over the years and found they are just not my cup of tea. Too much recoil, very stiff triggers, 2 shot capacity, not very accurate, lengthy to reload, - nope - not for me. In the same size and even less weight there are now many other and better choices IMHO.
Click to expand...

There apparently is some appeal to derringers in general but I don't know what that might be, especially when you consider many of the comments in these posts.

I had a High Standard .22 Magnum derringer many years ago. Near dusk one evening right after I bought the gun, I fired it twice at a big target. I was pretty close to the target and don't remember whether I hit it or not. The fireball from the end of the barrel was enough to keep me from ever firing it again.
 
I have one with 9mm, .45 ACP and .357 Magnum barrels.

They are not for every one and they are also a handgun with a a couple small useful niches, but:
- I sometimes carry one as a back up in a pocket or ankle holster; and
- in the woods carrying one in a pocket holster lets me carry a couple rounds of snake shot, without having to change the load in my primary revolver.

A slightly larger/longer set of rubber grips for the Grizzly does a lot to tame the recoil when using full power .357 Mag loads.

A good .38+P load is also very effective with less recoil, and of course with shot shells recoil isn’t a big deal at all.

As a self defense handgun it only offers two shots. But let’s be realistic here. No, it wont address 100% of the potential defensive handgun needs, but let’s put that in context:
- 95% of the 2 million or so armed citizen defensive handgun uses per year do not result in the handgun even being fired. The assailant recognizes he’ll get shot if he persists and he leaves for greener pastures.
- In the 50% where the handgun is fired, and in the smaller subset of those where the assailant is actually shot, 50% of those assaults are ended with that one shot.

In that context more than 1 round is needed in only about 2% of all defensive armed citizen handgun uses.

Armed citizens are not LEOs and they should not be going into dark and scary places trying to find and apprehend bad guys. And ideally they’ll use some common sense and situational awareness to avoid situations where they may actually need to use a handgun in the first place, let alone need a 17 round magazine and a couple spare magazines.

FullSizeRender_74btF2X3JCigXdV7stjzr6.jpg
 
On a separate note when you consider that a good short barrel .38+P load will get the job done for self defense, the advantage of the .327 federal over a .38+P isn’t so much more energy as it is 6 rounds of .327 Mag in a normally 5 shot J frame sized revolver.

But how often is that 6th round really needed?

Is the extra energy worth the extra recoil and slower follow up shots?

And in a 2 shot derringer, what’s the actual benefit of a .327 Magnum over a .38+P?
 
The benefit in my mind of getting the 327 chambering is easier recoil for practice by shooting 32 S&W.
I like the idea of a Derringer as a reloader. I'm considering getting the new 22 rawhide and getting some barrels to shoot other calibers I reload. Just something to use as a backup, or when taking the dogs out or picking up the mail.
I have a LCP Max with 10+1 of 380, I have a Beretta 21A with 8 rds of 22LR, and I have a 340pd with 5 rds of 38+p or 357 if I'm so inclined. All of those weigh less than a Bond Arms derringer, much quicker to get into action, and will do the same job at only slightly bigger (and even that depends on the derringer barrel length). But there is something fun about a derringer, and about throwing a big bullet into a target with a gun I can hide in a pocket. I think anyone carrying them as a primary is doing themselves a disservice.
 
Over the years I've owned 3 derringers. Two High Standards in ..22 Mag and a Remington .41 RF. The first HS was my Onion Field gun on the job. It was meant to survive a frisk and be used at contact distances, but it also would put both rounds in the head of a B27 target at 7 yards. The alternatives at the time were .22 or .25 autos and the HS was flatter, lighter and more reliable for a second shot. I foolishly let it go but bought another that placed its shots about a foot apart. By then a Remington RM380 replaced it with negligible extra weight and bulk.

The .41 is a novelty. I fired 2 shots and retired it, but both were inside the 9 ring at 7 yards.

Honestly, the only use I can see for a derringer today is in a large bore with snake shot or a .22 on a trap line (does anybody still do that?).
 
This is the only over-under derringer I've ever owned or shot. I suppose if you can pop the perp in the face with it, it would be discouraging enough.

John



This isn't a derringer, but it's a single-shot pocket pistol. I fired this "Liberator" only once in deference to its age. At a range of 3 feet, the bullet did hit the target - sideways!

John

 
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A few years ago I ran onto one of my High School teachers . He had one in 357 . I asked him , what it was good for ? Now understand I wasn't being a smart aleck , just a serious question . He looked at me for a moment and replied " a gun fight in a phone booth " . I thought that about said it all . Regards Paul
 
rockquarry said:
…

I had a High Standard .22 Magnum derringer many years ago…The fireball from the end of the barrel was enough to keep me from ever firing it again.
Click to expand...

To be fair, my KEL-Tec PMR-30 shoots out an AMAZING fireball, even with the much longer barrel than any derringer.

Sam
 
My sole derringer over the years was a Mattel Shootin Shell in the belt buckle format.

Used the same caliber shells as the pistol: you flexed your stomach muscles to fire it from the belt, as I recall...?

Recoils was mild, to say the least!:rolleyes:

Cheers!

P.S. Those were the days when you could have taken it to school for Show & Tell and not be marched to the principal's office and sent to the school psycho!:eek:
 
Bond makes a 6" barrel for 357, 10mm, and 45/410. That gives you probably the same velocity reading you would see from a 5" 357 revolver, 5" 1911, and more than you'd see out of a single action 4.75. Not good for much since you only get two but that's pretty interesting in concept to me.
 
I shot an American derringer in 45/70 at one of the muzzleloader shoots mainly because They all knew I like and shoot big bore heavy recoil firearms. So this thing was new and unfired and the owner claimed He really got it for show. So I shot it, both barrels. It stung and thumped, but nothing unrealistic. Told the crowd any Wuss could shoot it. Next shooter dropped it, third put it in His other hand and shook His shooting hand while turning the air around Him blue with His language. And just like that the fun was over. I think the owner went to His grave with the gun unfired by Him.
 
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