Plain Precision from Bond Arms

While a little less polished on the outside, the mechanics within are just as good
and you’ll save a bundle with the new Roughneck.

Okay, they’re not as “pretty” as the regular derringers from Bond Arms, but they have the same high-quality materials and the same careful fitting inside. And consider at the price: $269 for the 9mm Roughneck, and $299 for the .45/.410 Rowdy. So, it comes down to this: show your artistic good taste or have a reliable back-up and save a bundle.

As an up-close-and-personal handgun, the Roughneck has simple, but durable, sights.

From Old To New

The old Remington Double Derringer has quite a history. It arrived around 1865; and its .41 Rimfire cartridge was mild enough to allow material and parts to be of moderate quality and size. In the 1950s, makers and importers rediscovered it, and chambered the Derringer for modern cartridges. The materials were better, but design and parts were about the same.

The imports were mostly made in .22LR, with a few in mild centerfire chambering, so usually there weren’t any problems. All imports were stopped in 1968 by a stupid federal law — apparently these handguns were just too small.

From a design standpoint, the weakest link was the barrel-hinge. In centerfire guns, sometimes the frame would crack at the top.

Another problem with the original Remington design was safe carrying with a chamber loaded. The only “safety” was a “resting-step” on the hammer, engaging the rear-end of the trigger when you moved the hammer very slightly rearward. Dropped on a hard surface, impact on the prominent hammer spur would likely break the sear tip, or the notch and fire the cartridge.

There’s no ejector, just a cut that allows you to flick out spent cases.

Bond. Brothers Bond.

The remedy for these, and other design quirks, had to wait around 125 years, and the arrival of Greg and Gordon Bond. They increased the size or the barrel pivot components. In the firing mechanism, there’s now a patented rebounding hammer, and a solid hammer-block cross-bolt manual safety.

They didn’t stop there. There’s a stronger, easier-to-operate barrel latch, and they moved it to the left side. Also, there’s a trigger guard. Some will like it for the gun-retention factor during substantial recoil. However, if you prefer the traditional look and direct trigger access, take out one screw and tip it off.

Many modern improvements aren’t obvious at first glance. For example, a piece of grit might prevent proper engagement of the barrel latch. If so, the top of the trigger will encounter the problem and prevent firing. It’s also a good reminder to clean your gun!

The Rowdy handles .45 Colt and .410 shotshell equally well.
Or, feel free to stoke it with .45 Colt Shotshells!

That’s a lot of power in a pocket-sized package.

Rowdy Roughnecks

The full-sized .45/.410 Rowdy will be familiar to most readers. So, let’s concentrate on the neat little Roughneck. The shorter 2.5″ barrel makes it very concealable. Empty, it weighs 19 oz. The overall length is 4.6″, and height 3.75″. Width at the grips is 1.1″, and frame width is just an inch.

As you can see, it’s very concealable. A pocket or purse will do, but there are several nice holsters available, one of them from CrossBreed. Sights, of less importance on a gun of this type, are a tall ramp front and a square-notch rear. Trigger pull, on my sample gun, was 6.5 to 7 lbs., with a clean break. For a self-defense piece, that’s just right. The 9mm Roughneck has no ejector, just an access cut, but you can easily flick out the cases.

At 7 yards (your assailant will probably be closer), the Roughneck will reliably deliver two quick hits, one to center-of-mass, one to the head. If the aim point remains the same, you’ll get a vertical dispersal of 3″ to 5″ because of the superposed barrels. With a high-performance 9mm load, the felt-recoil is substantial. I wore a GripSwell glove when shooting.

Regarding that vertical dispersal, you can control which barrel fires first. It’s needless to warn old hands, but maybe a newcomer is reading this. Do this experimentation with the gun empty. Look at the little pivoting part inside the hammer and work the hammer to place it in the “down” position. Put the hammer back to “at rest” position. Next time you cock it, the top barrel will fire.

When you’re just out practice-firing, wear a glove. In an emergency situation, you won’t notice the pronounced recoil. As for the appearance of these low-priced items from Bond, they are not ugly, just plain. Plain outside, but precise inside.

For more info:

www.bondarms.com

www.gripswell.com

www.crossbreedholsters.com

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