Freddy Hendon of Junction City, Kansas sends in his Kansas EDC for Everyday Carry.
Old school. You have to love a guy who packs a Ruger GP-100 revolver. After all, it’s a pretty nice shooter and if you run out of rounds, it makes a pretty good blunt weapon. And it’ll still shoot great afterward.
Not only that, but I have a new and growing respect for wheel guns. Because here in Illinois, we may find ourselves down to revolvers for carry by the time our new governor and Democrat super-majorities in the Illinois General Assembly have their way with gun owners over the next four years.
The question I have for Freddy: Do you carry two speedloaders in that pouch, or four? Kudos on the reloads. But where’s your flashlight?
Freddy writes:
This is my general, all purpose EDC. Kansas is a Constitutional Carry State. As an Army Combat Veteran, I am well trained to carry a firearm.
Check it out at Everyday Carry.
Wouldn’t rock it but to each their own. I guess the sun always shines in Kansas?
Also, just because he brought it up [insert Army joke here].
I think ” trained to carry a weapon” sums it up.
Ouch.
So,.. your’e thinking trained to “operate” is a different scenario?
…hmmm…
I have heard nothing but good things about those, but I can’t imagine carrying one all day.
I’ve actually heard that comment a lot (regarding size and weight.) My GP-100 is my woods/hiking gun, and I’ll occasionally carry it elsewhere in lieu of a semi. My experience is that for being such a huge hunk of metal, I really don’t notice it when I’m out hiking for 6-8 miles at a stretch. I don’t carry it all day every day, but I’ve carried it all day in some cases. I’m using a Simply Rugged “Sourdough Pancake” holster, with a good belt from the same place, and I do think that helps. At the 4 o’clock position.
Thanks. Always best to hear first hand experience.
My 3″ loaded weighs about as much as a 5″ 1911 sans ammo.
I have been EDCing a 5.25″ Mongoose in a Andrew’s Monarch shoulder rig for over two years now. It hasn’t started getting too heavy yet. I haven’t forgot it was there like I did with the Five Seven I carried previously, though.
Welcome back, Vic…
Thanks. I finally completed my move from MN to WY and am enjoying the new environment.
I have one i inherited from my Dad when he passed on, my wife uses it as bedside. I actually shoot better with it than my S&W 686. I carry both occasionally out in the woods, and love to shoot ’em both. Little heavy for EDC, but i’ve done that, too, needs a good belt.
Like Rugers. Love Security/Speed Six. Never could warm up to GP-100. Heavier than it needs to be. But hey, if you can hump it, go for it. Damn sure gonna work. Add a flashlight and a PX and your 10-8.
Hey, keyboard commando–give me your address and I’ll send you a copy of the police report and the letter from the DA telling me the grand jury no billed me.
MY FUCKING PLEASURE.
God, this blog is a joke.
Hello Troll. Go back to that bridge.
Why purposefully choose an obsolescent and overweight firearm?
Revolvers are a good hunting / hiking sidearm for dangerous animals, but for EDC you’re better served with a modern auto of your choice.
Been in a lot of real world gunfights there, champ? Or just the ones in your mind?
Not one, thankfully.
Probably why I’m comfortable with my small single stack 9.
Of course, that 9mm still has a greater capacity, and quicker reload than that revolver.
I take you you’ve been in a gunfight? Because that’s what’s neccesary to acknowledge revolvers as obsolescent?
Some people choose to carry revolvers due to the fact that they can’t be pushed out of battery. Many defensive shootings happen at extremely close range. Being able to make a contact shot might be more important than capacity or reload time.
I sometimes carry a revolver (S&W 642) and sometimes carry an autoloader. Snubby revolvers are pretty handy, and can be fired from inside a pocket. Many of the cops I know carry a snubby revolver as their backup gun. It is the thing to have it you are rolling around on the ground with a thug.
Autos are generally superior, but revolvers have their place.
The overwhelming majority of self-defense gunfights involve only a few shots fired inside ten feet. “Obsolescent?” You do understand the difference between a .357 and a 9mm, right? Didn’t think so…
YEP. 2007. Taurus 85. Obama’s son DRT. Or, “obsolescent” in your language.
If you want something equivalent to a .357 mag, 10mm exists.
The closer the baddy is, the more you think rapid fire would be helpful.
Also, notice I said obsolescent. The revolver is well on it’s way to being obsolete. But it’s not entirely there.
I don’t think revolvers are going anywhere anytime soon bro, there’s still a high demand for them. Have you ever shot one? There’s just something about them that’s…..Cool!
Guys, you’re arguing over apples and oranges. 9mm, 38 spl, even if they are +P. .40, .45. They are handgun calibers! That’s all! Woefully inadequate for what you want them to do. True I believe in bigger, deeper holes, but if you know you’re going to a gunfight, and don’t have any choice, take a rifle. The only reason to have a handgun is that they are handy.
Something being cool doesn’t mean its not outdated.
My m1917 Remington is cool, but obsolete.
And yes, pistol calibers usually leave something to be desired. But with a auto, you get better follow up, which helps with the caliber issue.
GH, I don’t know how old you are, but even assuming you’re a young man, they will patting your grandchildren in the face with a shovel before revolvers turn to rust.
CH. Wait! You have an obsolete 1917? Can I relieve you of that burden? I have a few dead presidents laying around even after paying for a wedding a couple of weeks ago. I even have a few of those modern plastic pistols I could trade if you’d rather.
No. cgray hasn’t been in a gunfight either. Probably never even an armed confrontation. He’s probably just theory.
Thus far my situational awareness and command presence have kept me out of anything close to a gun fight. But I’ve worked hard to increase my survivability should one get forced upon me.
Thus far, I’ve only cleared leather once in public (came close to drawing a couple of other times) and pointed at someone once inside a home. I’m just fine leaving things at that.
Mmm, No…funny thing, when a wheelgun doesn’t go bang, you just pull the trigger again, when a semi doesn’t go bang, you go through a series of procedures in the hope it’ll go bang…
Or, if you carry a DA/SA auto, you can pull the trigger again.
Not that a tap rack bang takes much time.
Good ammo that doesn’t misfire is always good too.
Perfect timing, been talking to my LGS about rugers lately. This could be my next purchase, 4 inch 7 shot there’s a blued version to. I like this gun, kudos.
Tell me how obsolete you think a revolver is when you’re soaking up the hollowpoints being spit out of one. Revolvers, double action and single action, as well as semi-autos, double action and single action, were developed a century ago. Although, double action autos were a step back in technology. Even striker fired pistol technology is decades old. So is ballistics. Though, bullet performance has improved. That said, the same thing that put a man on the ground in 1919 is the same thing that puts him on the ground in 2019. Nothing really changes.
It is so very hard to divine the probabilities of the situation you may need a weapon for. Some of us are more comfortable with a revolver and that comfort is worth a lot. I shoot better with my revolver than I did with my P226, S&W 6906, H&K P7M8 (which I loved dearly), Colt Gold Cup, and my much appreciated Five Seven. I suspect that the six shots will likely be sufficient for a situation that is not likely to even happen. The Mongoose gives me a perhaps irrational but still very real warm fuzzie feeling. I suspect that the the earlier the shot is in a fight the more important it is. The long barreled .357 with very good ammo delivers probably more damage per hit than than a 9mm, all other factor being the same. The gun is heavy enough that my follow ups are as quick as any of my autos except the 5.7. The 5.7 is of course much faster but the barrel is so light that my shaky hands move it all over the place – I now only like that gun with the suppressor on to add inertia to the barrel. Sure a high capacity 9mm is likely the sweet spot for gun efficiency for the majority of shooters. Some of us are just not part of that majority though, or at least we figure we’re not. I’ll likely never use my EDC to defend myself but I will for sure get that warm fuzzing feeling every day from carrying a gun I like and am extremely comfortable with.
One never knows. JUST YESTERDAY i stopped at a red light and this rough looking guy hops out of the passenger side of the pickup in the lane next to me and comes running up to my truck. I instinctively reached for my handgun as i rolled down the window with my other hand. He says “just want to pet your dog man,” referring to my Catahoula Bulldog Molly, who had her head out the window in the back seat of my Super Duty (The Great White Buffalo). The guy looked drunk, but i’m like, “oh, OK.” He’s lucky he didn’t lose a finger (Molly is a good girl, but somewhat distrustful of strangers), and traffic moved on, me with it. All this being said, you never know what some asshat is gonna do and i was glad i had my piece handy.
Carry whatever will get you to the other side.-30-
Yup. Far too many gunnies are geared like hillary, nancy and kapo bloomberg. Do it my way or you’re not worthy of life.
Just curious – generally speaking, how does the trigger on the GP100 (or SP101, etc.) compare to typical S&W offerings? About the same? Rougher? Better?
My experience has been the Smiths are smoother. Depending on when they were manufactured. Puma Smiths suck. And I wouldn’t cross the street for a free Smith with that trigger lock shit. That said, I have at least a half dozen pinned barrel, recessed chamber, Smiths that I love.
What is a “Puma Smith”? Thanks
Smith was once owned by a South American conglomerate named Puma. Quality control sucked. They’re revolvers were rough as a cobb. Back in the late ’80s, early ’90s as I recall.
Their revolvers. Damn spell check.
Bangor Punta.
They were not as as nice as the 50s and early 60s S&Ws but were nicers than the 80s. And nothing is as smooth as the pre-war S&Ws with their long actions. Companies rarely figure out how to make funs nicer, they figure out how to make them cheaper. “Improvements” almost always mean “we combined two processes and shaved 1.50 off the cost of production.
S&W had a hard time meeting demand in the late 60s and through the 70s. They spent more time on the 29s and 19s but even the model 10s and 13a are pretty nice. The were always backlogged and Smith often sold for more than their retail price. In 1975, I ordered a Smith 27 and was told to might be nine months to wait for one. I bought a model 28 and called it a day.
You do see some problems with big law enforcement orders that have been surplused. Grips tend to be too square with little fitting and rounding, the actions are not fitted as well. A lot of time parts have been replaced by armorers with improper fitting.
A flat spring Smith with any use or polish will beat most other DA revolvers. Coil springs in Rugers and V springs in Colts tend to stack as you finish the trigger stroke. Most guns can be polished and smoothed to improve the pull. Smith’s are the easiest (IMO) to make slick and give the best results. Dont know about the new Smith’s, I will not buy one with the hole. They are dangerous.
Bangor Punta was an American Company that owned S&W.
They also owned most of Taurus. They allowed Taurus access to Smith and Wesson tech and specs. Taurus makes a pretty good copy of Smith and Wesson but you can see the difference when you look at the guts. Taurus uses many cost-cutting methods than can cause problems.
Sean G, I sold my 686 5yrs ago (stupid). It had a really nice trigger right out the box, my buddy’s GP was a little stiff. Now after all the rounds it’s smooth, comparable i’d say from what I remember of my smith. Hard to go wrong either way, both feel better than the taurus 627 I have now for sure.
Sean G.,
Triggers on Ruger GP100s are very good, although definitely not excellent. I happen to have one and I took the time to polish the various trigger component surfaces and install ever-so-slightly lighter springs. Now the trigger is even better. Is it as good a nice Smith & Wesson revolver? I don’t know since I have never shot one. Keep in mind that GP100 revolvers are overbuilt and nearly indestructible which makes up for the trigger performance in my opinion.
For reference the stock (factory) trigger on a Taurus Raging Bull revolver is outstanding and definitely better than Ruger GP100s. If someone that you know owns a Raging Bull, you can check its trigger and have a sense that a Ruger GP100 will not be that good without some major gunsmithing.
Thanks, all!
At first glance I thought it said “Freddy Kreuger.” What pocket dump would HE have?!
Duh! knives of course, I doubt he’d carry a lighter thou.
I’m glad I’m not the only one.
Love the gun Freddy, but you need to visit Altamont. – https://www.altamontco.com/pistol-grips/ruger/gp100/
I was lucky enough to find a used 6″ blued GP100 with these grips for sale at my LGS. They are smaller than the standard contoured grips as shown in the pic – allows me to get a tighter, firmer grip & in turn helps with the heavy DA trigger pull. It’s a good revolver as stock; it’s a GREAT revolver with the altamont grips. Plus being used resulted in the action being smoothed out already when I bought it (which was all of 5 min. after first seeing it in the display case).
Seems like everyone who gets a mitt on my GPs loves the Altamont grips, regardless of their glove size. Those Hogues are awful, IMHO.
If you’d like to lighten that trigger (DA and SA) a bit, Wolff and Wilson Combat makes spring kits for ~$10. I dropped from #14 (stock) to #10 on the hammer springs and #12 (stock) to #8 on the trigger return springs. Feels like it takes a good pound of both pulls. I’ve heard the #9 hammer springs can result in occasional light primer strikes. Anyway, there’s a number of You Tube vids to figure it out. Figure about 45 minutes for your first time spring swap.
LOL, I thought you meant Altamont Kansas, lol, a grocery store, a convenient store , tire shop, post office a school ( Silo Tech) and a Black dude that fly’s a Rebel flag.
If you are fond of revolvers, the GP100 in 357 should make you an extremely happy camper. YEP, only 6 rounds then reload but 6 – 357’s will right a load of wrong, right now. I personally prefer an autoloader (45acp) but YMMV.
Well they’ve got some 7 shot GP100s out now. Only downside is they’ve got ‘7 shot’ engraved on the side and I think it looks a little gaudy. No need to sound if you’re homeward bound.
Yep, and the model # for the blued version is 1776. I want it.
I know I’m old school. Revolvers should hold five rounds if a J frame Smith. Six for all others. Yeah, I’ve tried them. Just don’t feel right.
Well that and I’ve never been in a shootout that I couldn’t get out of with 6 rounds of full bore .357 before, and all my speed loaders and speed strips are the 6 round variety anyway.
Got a holster for that there revolver?
Hmm… Hendon doesn’t sound Mexican…
Racial profiling is a No No. Your probably the type of guy that buys razors for a Mooslims birthday present.
That is a chunk of iron to tote these days.
I like Ruger not never cared for the GP series. The Speed Six is a great gu and I like the SP101.
The GP just always felt clunky even compared to an N frame Smith.
The lighting and background on that photo are awful. Really makes it hard to see things well.
That’s a more practical EDC to me. I know a bunch of you guys carry flashlights, could you tell me why? Me I’ve never seen the need for one in a defensive gum use that a civilian would encounter. I have been in 1 street gumfight( got shot in the ankle crawling under a car for cover), bullets flying, and there was no time for flashlights, ink pens or field notes. It’s also a reason I went with a Semi automatic pistol, I had a revolver at the time, and ran out of bullets real fast. As far as revolvers going out of battery, I kept my wife( now deceased) from shooting a druggy friend of mine for being an asshole by grabbing the cylinder , man she was squeezing hard I could feel the cylinder trying to rotate. Gees we were wild back then.
No flashlight here. I have enough junk to carry around with keys, wallet, phone, gun, reload, knife and random miscellaneous stuff. I keep flashlights in both my vehicles and around the house, of course, but that’s it.
Possum, you seem to have led an interesting life. I don’t doubt a word you say.
I’ve got cheap penlight that I’ll carry if I go out and it comes in handy. Looking at the guts of a gun or just to get some light in a spot that interior/exterior light doesn’t give.
I carry a small flashlight that gets used daily. About as much as my knife. Mostly work related…..
I’m with you on the flashlight. I don’t want to mess with that shit while out and about, and my eyes aren’t so bad that I can’t see an attacker coming at me. One less thing to dick around with seems like a solid strategy to me.
If you get the right holster (a good pancake is a winner) a GP100 is a great gun. I carried one for a number of years.
Plus, if you can’t hit your target with six shots you can always beat it to death.
Got myself a Ruger GP100 Wiley Clapp 3″. Replaced the full sized grips with Ruger Lett grips for better concealability.
And no, I don’t carry a speed loader reload. I carry a Ruger LCR snubbie as a New York reload.
The best carry holster I have found for my 4″ GP 100 is the Galco Vertical System. Either left or right handed and I never know it is there. Use the similar system for my KLCR. Just need to ware a button shirt for concealment.