Speed strips?

[crows]

I'm fond of the Bianchi Speeds Strips when it's not practical to carry a speed loader. I load six rounds in the strip and it fits perfectly in the watch pocket of my Wranglers.

I can retrieve them quickly without having to look down. Works for me!

I started using the watch pocket of jeans for speed strips 29-30 years ago, with the jeans I wear I can get two in there no problem. My pants are loose enough I can carry a couple of speed loaders comfortably as well.
I used to carry a couple of speed strips in the back pocket of my uniform pants on duty. I think sweating on them daily through the summer contributed to the rubber hardening.
Also as mentioned no matter what device for a reload a person carries the most important thing is practice.

 

[Model 15-4ever]

I follow Ayoob on this...

My condolences.

 

[Model 15-4ever]

Bianchi Speed Strips are made of a neoprene type rubber that will degrade somewhat over time and use. Loss of the tab or tearing around the cartridge head recesses is normal wear and tear...

I've been using these loaders for almost 50 years.

Some posters here think these loading strips are like gold bars and should last forever. They are a relatively cheap product - in all senses of the term - and not designed for a lifetime of use. Regular practice, and carrying them loaded, will degrade them.

Having said that, I agree that the Bianchi brand, even the current crop, are more durable than the Tuff Products. I've had numerous examples of the latter dry and crumble to pieces over the course of a few years. The larger calibre models seem more prone to this - I now replace the .44 calibre versions every year just to be safe. The 5-shot .38/.357 models seem far more durable.

 

[stansdds]

The watch pocket in my jeans is the perfect spot for speed strips and my 640-1 is either in a DeSantis pocket holster or an IWB holster.

 

[Matt_X]

Stick with the old 6 round Bianchis? I’ve been looking at the kind that have the rounds spaced in pairs. (Need to recheck the manufacturer.). Do they work better? Tad faster?

Zetasix's "Sym-strip" is a symetrically 2-1-2 strip with a tab on each end. The advantage is that it doesn't matter which end you grab from a pocket, or which end you put in a carrier or pouch. Disadvantage is that its slightly longer than a normal 2-2-1. In my experience, practice with 2-1-2 means the 2-2-1 is no longer 'automatic'.
https://zetasix.com/product/sym-strip/

So I'd say with whatever you go with -equal spaced- 2-2-1 or 2-1-2 some adjustment is needed when switching.

I like 38Chief's creativity for holders. I like to keep the cartiges protected and well as out of possible view. Some leatherman sheaths work pretty well and have a snap button closure that can be opened easily with one hand.

 

[jimmyj]

I CCW speed strip and speedloader. also I cheat and carry a "New York" reload. (old guys and old habits)

 

[Matt_X]

Why limit yourself to speed strips that holds or 6 rounds.
There are examples that hold 8 or 10.
Just because your gun only holds 6 rounds doesn’t mean you have to carry 6 round strips and nothing more.

Because the general assumption is the strip will have to be dropped in the interest of speed rather than repocketed.

 

[Old cop]

I’ve carried a J Frame since my ‘68 rookie year and use the old speed strips in the watch pocket of my jeans. Two speedloaders are in the center console of the car and I still have a six round side-by-side dump pouch from my early ‘70s detective days.

 

[maxfam]

As another poster stated, nothing is perfect.

 

[cmansguns]

Speed strips for me - 50 + years of CC

I always carried the 6 round speed strips for Model 36, then M-60, then M 637. I also watched the Masood video many eyars back and adopted his 2 rounds, 1 blank, 2 more for quicker speed using one speed strip only.

I OWB belt carry on stiff gun belt at 3:30 usually in S&W leather with one speed strip in each front pocket. Haven't ever had trouble with printing or accessibility, even when going with 6 rounds for Model 64 when wanting to carry that gun.

Yes....the tabs do indeed wear, but the strips have always been pretty economical as far as I could tell.

 

[Brian Parrish]

ASP

John Correia at Active Self Protection, his YouTube channel, still says that no armed citizen reloads under fire. He says if YOU ever do that, you "will be the first armed citizen ever to have done so." He did a study of how many rounds were "needed" analyzing many years of thousands of videos including all the ones he watched for show prep but never included on his channel. He showed very few that needed six rounds, none more. It is not round count, but the first anatomically significant hits that matter. He shows one recently where a revolver guy "needed" all six rounds, but that is debateable.

If you are carrying a revolver, are you going to do what amounts to a "mag dump"? A cylinder dump? Or are you going to fire once and assess? Are you going to double tap and then assess? Is there any way to know what you are going to do when you are in the fight of your life, for your life?

I had to quit watching the "mag dump" videos on YT, because it is so disheartening. It does not instill confidence in LEO's, y'know? Most people will just thrust the weapon in the general direction of the threat and run the trigger until it occurs to them to stop.

This actually works to save lives!!!

It works so well so often, that I believe in tempering my comments on such subjects as caliber, especially.45ACP versus 9mm, spare mags, barrel length, carry position, etc., etc.
It works so well so often that you must understand that when you are practicing reloads, you are preparing for the worst-case scenario. Yes, if you are ready for the worse thing, a fortiori, you are ready for the better thing.

(Here is an anecdote, which does not prove anything but does illustrate my thinking
There were two officers pursuing a perp who wrecked his car and jumped out shooting. Happens a lot. Both cops jumped out and started shooting, emptying five 17 round magazines, between the two of them, at the man who emptied his pistol at them.
They were about a car length apart.
Nobody was hit.
He was arrested successfully and prosecuted successfully.
This is a total win in my book.

Please correct me. I write on the internet to give people an opportunity to contradict me. That is how I learn.

Kind Regards!
BrianD

 

[Sistema1927]

I send a request to Zeta asking if they would consider making theirs for .32. Here is the response:

Hi (Sistema),

I really like the 32 magnum. We met with Smith and Wesson and their distributor, Lipsey, at SHOT Show this past January. They were both very excited about seeing a Zeta6 speedloader for their new 32 magnum. But since the January show, only crickets. No word from S&W or replies to our emails.

So, while we want to enter the 32 caliber market, we must continue to wait until we see some support from manufacturers.

Michael
--
Michael Lyle
Zeta Industries

I'm scratching my head wondering why they need help from either S&W or Lipseys. Are they expecting them to be their customer? If they "really like the .32 Magnum", and "want to enter the .32 market", why would they need assistance from either S&W or Lipseys?

Am I missing something?

 

[biku324]

Data from manufacturer's specs would be my guess. Gun and ammo builders.

 

[stansdds]

John Correia at Active Self Protection, his YouTube channel, still says that no armed citizen reloads under fire. He says if YOU ever do that, you "will be the first armed citizen ever to have done so."

That may well be true, but I look at a reload in the same way I view the fire extinguisher I carry in my vehicle. I don't plan on using it, but if I ever need it, it's there. And yes, I have had one occasion where I did have to use my fire extinguisher.

 

[Matt_X]

John Correia at Active Self Protection, his YouTube channel, still says that no armed citizen reloads under fire. He says if YOU ever do that, you "will be the first armed citizen ever to have done so." He did a study of how many rounds were "needed" analyzing many years of thousands of videos including all the ones he watched for show prep but never included on his channel. He showed very few that needed six rounds, none more. It is not round count, but the first anatomically significant hits that matter.

.... Is there any way to know what you are going to do when you are in the fight of your life, for your life?

...

This actually works to save lives!!!
... Yes, if you are ready for the worse thing, a fortiori, you are ready for the better thing.

...
Please correct me. I write on the internet to give people an opportunity to contradict me. That is how I learn.

Kind Regards!
BrianD

I'll give this a shot, but I think your point is key to why having extra rounds is prudent. We can not know exactly how we will react when a situation unfolds. We can train and practice mechanical skills. But even in combat there are examples of soldiers who freeze or get excited the frst time in spite of all their training, and sometims soldiers with experience who freeze or get excited. We see performance in sports varies all the time. It's a mistake to assume it will be different in emergency circumstances that call for mental and physical response.


So, lets review Mr. C's assertion. I'll posit that it carries a faulty assumptions. First, that his videos reviews capture all the defensive gun usages that have occurred. That's just ridiculous even though video is more common now than two decades ago, it is not in many locations and it certainly was not in the past. Nor is it always shared. To be correct his statement should be if YOU ever do that on video, you "will be the first armed citizen ever to have done so that I've seen."

Second, that a reload 'under fire' is the only time a reload will be needed. After the immediate threat has been stopped, but before help arrives, making a reload could be very prudent. This is true whether you're in an urban area - where help is going to be relatively quick, or in a rural area, or way out in the wilderness.


I'm not sure where the 'anatomicly significant hits' fits in. My understanding is that many defensive gun usages involve no shots fired. And another signifcant percentage involve 'psychological effect' - the attacker is stopped or flees when either fired at or hit in nearly any manner. I guess his point is that 5 shots should be enough, point taken. But that's not an arguement for whether having a reload available is prudent. Its akin to saying that situational awareness should ensure no shots are needed. That's true. But some still think it is prudent to be prepared to respond to deadly force.

 

[Erich]

I don't carry revolvers much these days, but I have a variety of mechanisms for reloading them faster than one chamber at a time. Here's some stuff recycled from an old post I made here.




Nothing is faster for my LCR than a J-Clip-R - wow, it works GREAT. Rounds go right in and the rubbery plastic peels right off. That LCR is fast to reload with these.


Because they're not easily distinguishable from the J-Clips, I put the yellow tape on so I know what's what and don't carry the wrong one with the wrong gun (I store the J-Clip-Rs with the LCR, but still.)


Not so with the J-Clips in the J-frame. The rounds seem reluctant to slip into the chambers and the plastic seems less pliable. The rounds strip off, but less readily. I'm faster with a Safariland Comp 2 . . . and even with an HKS, believe it or not.


The J-Clips seem to work better for me in an SP-101 than in a J-frame, FWIW (they seem to fit the chambers better and faster) - and that's where I'm using them right at the moment.


The K-PAK is what a speed strip should have been in the first place: blop, blop, close the cylinder and you're back in the game. Wow, they're fast, with either the Rhino or the Speed Six. You can see from the photo above that they're not especially obtrusive for carry and they're a LOT faster to load than an old fashioned Speed Strip.


I have played around more with the CK Tactical Ripcord loaders since I wrote them up (feel free to search here; I don't care to take the time), and I actually find them faster than the K-PAK with the Rhino. The Speed Six is fast with the K-PAK, but I think the Safariland Comp-2 is faster. Maybe not the HKS, though.

Things to remember as we go into the future: these things are wear items - plastic becomes brittle and stiff and speed strips break.

 

[Chuck Edwards]

When I'm carrying a .38 or .357 revolver, I always have a speed strip. When it's a K/L/N frame and occasionally with a J frame, I've got a speedloader as well. The speed strip is there to top off the gun after an incident, at least in theory. Thankfully, I haven't had to do that outside of training/practice. I hope I never have to do that for real.

Tom Givens is a trainer of some repute. I've taken two of his classes. He has upwards of 70 students who've had to use their pistols in a defensive situation. None of them have had to reload during their gunfight, though some shot to slide lock.

 

[Sistema1927]

Data from manufacturer's specs would be my guess. Gun and ammo builders.

I bet that I could find everything that they would need in five minutes on the interwebs. And if I couldn't, 10 minutes with a caliper on a cylinder and a round of ammo.

 

[BB57]

I'm fond of the Bianchi Speeds Strips when it's not practical to carry a speed loader. I load six rounds in the strip and it fits perfectly in the watch pocket of my Wranglers.

I can retrieve them quickly without having to look down. Works for me!

I’ve found the K-Pak also fits the watch pocket in a pair of jeans quite well.

 

[Sistema1927]

Update on my communication with Zeta concerning producing their products for .32.

They say that they need some help from S&W and/or Lipseys in promotion since they need to be assured of selling at least 1,000 units to break even on their production costs. I told them that I would buy 4 each of any style that they produce, so you guys need to step up and buy the other 996.