By B. Gil Horman

In the late 19th Century, American gunsmith Henry Deringer invented and became famous for some of the most commercially successful pocket guns of all time. His products did so well that his name, eventually misspelled as “derringer,” became synonymous with any pocket-size single- or double-barrel pistol. Perhaps the most famous double-barrel cartridge loading pistol to receive the derringer moniker is the Remington Model 95.

Remington’s compact two-shot over-under pistol was available from 1866 to 1935. It’s the same little gun that’s so often seen jumping out of boots and vest pockets when cowboys and card sharks just can’t get along at saloon card tables in the classic Old West movies. Bond Arms of Granbury, Texas, has taken this venerable 19th century pistol and redesigned it for 21st century concealed carry, resulting in one of the most compact and powerful pocket pistols available….

At the Range
For this shooting session, three new guns from the Bond Arms 2012 catalogue were tested. The first two are the new Mini models. Both pistols use the cowboy-style frame with no trigger guard and the brand new 2 1/2-inch Mini barrels. The Mini features a .45 Colt only barrel and an engraved rosewood grip. The Bond Girl Mini is fitted with a .38 Spl./.357 Mag. barrel and a Bond Girl pink synthetic pearl grip. The third pistol in the test set is the new USA Defender featuring a 3-inch .45 Colt/.410 barrel, a removable trigger guard and an engraved extended rosewood grip. All three guns showed an excellent level of fit and finish, and they all fired a variety of ammunition without any malfunctions….

View the full article: http://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/bond-arms-derringers-review/

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