Bond Arms ‘Rough’ Derringers

BOND ARMS HAS BEEN manufacturing high quality, robust, double barrel handguns in Granbury, Texas since 1995. Resembling a Remington Model 95, Bond Arms handguns come in a variety of popular and beefy calibers making them a durable defensive handgun option for close quarters.

But with the high-end quality, you have to pay to play. Many of the Bond Arms can carry a price of $550 to $1,000. Until now.

The Bond Arms “Rough and Rowdy” and “Roughneck” models are listed at a surprisingly low price point of $269 and $299. These budget-friendly versions are available in .45LC/.410 with a 3-inch barrel for the Rowdy, and a 2.5-inch barreled Roughneck in either .357 Magnum/.38 Special, .45ACP or 9mm.

Like all Bond Arms handguns, the barrels are completely interchangeable. This can be done in just a minute with an 1/8-inch hex wrench. Bond Arms offers several different calibers, from .22LR to 10mm in lengths from 2.5 to 6 inches. It’s a very simple yet creative design giving the user many future options.

The cost savings of these budget models is primarily from minimal clean up and deburring at the factory. Yet the pistols I had looked great to me. So, the higher end ones must boast of museum quality because these look plenty finished for a defensive pistol.

You load a Bond Arms handgun by unlocking the action with your thumb and swinging the barrel over the handle. This can feel awkward for the safety conscious shooter because in theory you just flipped the muzzle to point toward you. After inserting two rounds and locking the barrel back into place you can cock the hammer back.

The pivoting hammer is unique. Each time the hammer rises and falls it has a block that pivots on a cam allowing it to strike either barrel. The barrels will have a different point of impact evident even at close range.

So, if you want your rounds to hit closer to your point of aim you might need to check and slowly cycle the hammer to strike the appropriate barrel next in order to be on target. However, this also gives you the option to have two different cartridges ready to rock. For instance, you could have a Winchester PDX1 Defender in the top barrel, and a Sig .45 Colt in 230 grain HP for the second shot.

The trigger takes a bit of practice. If you attempt to pull directly to the rear with your finger up high the hammer might never fall. But as the owner manual states, you should pull back and downward from the end of the trigger to activate it. When fired correctly, the trigger falls right under five pounds of pressure.

The hammer has a cross bolt safety. However, this is not meant to be carried “cocked and locked” nor to be used for dry fire. It is designed to be used as a safety while loading, carrying, and when using the internal trigger lock function.

On unloading the Rowdy in .45LC or .410, an ejector releases the spent casings or shells from the chamber. The 9mm Roughneck I have does not include an ejector because the cartridge is rimless. However one casing always came out on its own. Then I could use it as a tool to pry the stuck casing loose.

Because of the design of the derringer, you will feel the full impact of the recoil. If you fire the lower barrel first, the muzzle won’t rise as much because of the very low bore in your hand. Watching some Cowboy Action Shooters, I found they like to simply hold the trigger and fan the hammer. This might be a handy technique to practice.

By the manual’s own admission, these tiny pistols are not designed for long range engagements and are most practical within seven yards. I test fired mine from 15 feet and got a two-inch group with HSM 115 grain ammunition. I found about a four-inch point of impact difference from the top barrel to the bottom.

I imagine the .410/.45LC Rowdy is the most popular model. Winchester PDX1 shells with three copper plated discs and 12 BBs gave a very interesting and devastating pattern that would be very effective at bad breath distance.

That’s exactly what these are designed for—close quarters bad breath distance defense. A .410 shell fired from six feet scattered #6 pellets within a 20-inch spread—an excellent tool to dispatch a slithery serpent.

The Bond Arms handguns might not be for everyone and every situation, but mine sure were a hit at range day. Everyone wanted to shoot the little guys. If you want to know more about the entire line check them out at www.bondarms.com

 

Email Dustin Ellermann at ContactUs@fishgame.com

 

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