GP100 impressions
- Thread starter id64
- Start date
Here is an article I clipped off "Chuck Hawks" review of "Hand gun for Home Defence".
My apologies if my posting mostly refers to Home Defence Guns rather than the actual revolver, GP-100.
However, Chuck mentions GP-100 in the bottom lower of his review under double action revolvers where he praises it as one of the best home defence hand gun.
I do own a GP-100 Stainless in 4.2 barrel & is a very accurate & impressive gun to own. I have changed the front sight with high viz which really helps in acquiring target much quicker.
I hope that this review will contribute to your findings as well.
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Cheers,
http://www.chuckhawks.com/handgun_home_defense.htm
To those who prefer to see the actual review without going to Chuck's website, please see below for the copy paste of the article.
(Please note that I have only copied the Revolver Section of his article so as not to make it lengthy but to emphasize his review. However, for those of you who want to read the whole thing, please click onn the link above).
Handguns for Home Defense
By Chuck Hawks
Single action revolvers
The single action (SA) revolver must be manually cocked before the trigger will fire the weapon. These are the traditional "western" style guns, such as the Colt Single Action Army and Ruger Blackhawk. Such guns are relatively slow to reload compared to a double action revolver (not important in typical home defense situations), but are reliable, powerful, accurate and deadly when the whistle blows. Incidentally, an empty SA revolver is faster to reload from a box of ammuniton than an autoloading pistol. Most SA revolvers can be visually checked for load status by looking from the side at the cartridge rims through the cylinder/recoil shield gap. (This does not apply to revolvers with recessed chambers, however.) Their "plowhandle" grip shape fits most hands exceedingly well, making accurate fire relatively easy. They can be fired rapidly from a two handed hold by cocking the piece with the thumb of the off hand. Do not attempt to "fan" a single action revolver.
I regard SA revolvers as entirely satisfactory for home defense in the hands of shooters familiar with the type, but reasonable familiarity is required. I learned to shoot with a single action revolver and for about 20 years I relied on a 6.5" Ruger Blackhawk .357 Magnum (stoked with medium velocity loads) for home defense. As I write these words, Jim Fleck is using a Ruger New Model Super Blackhawk .44 Magnum with a 5.5" barrel as his primary home defense gun. He keeps it loaded with CCI Blazer .44 Special ammo using 200 grain Speer Gold Dot bullets. This potent load is easy to shoot in the big Ruger revolver.
Ruger New Model single action revolvers use a transfer bar ignition system and are perfectly safe to carry or store with the cylinder fully loaded. To load, unload, or check a New Model Ruger, simply open the loading gate and rotate the cylinder. No hammer manipulation is necessary until you are ready to fire the gun; only then do you #### the hammer. These are the simplest and safest of all single action revolvers to use and the best for home defense.
"Old Model" (or "three screw") Rugers and all Remington, Colt and similar reproduction single action revolvers must be loaded so that an empty chamber ends-up under the lowered hammer. This is not difficult to do, but it requires a degree of operational competence. To rotate the cylinder for loading/unloading, the hammer must be thumbed back to the "half-####" position. Because it requires a competent user, a traditional single action revolver is not the best choice for the homeowner who is unfamiliar with the type.
Double action revolvers
The all-around best choice among handguns for home defense is a double action (DA) revolver with adjustable sights. These are the typical "police" style revolvers, such as the Ruger GP100 and Colt Python. Double action revolvers may be thumb cocked, just like a single action revolver, and fired by a light pressure on the trigger. This is generally referred to as shooting "single action" and it is the most accurate way to deliver aimed fire.
They may also be fired by a single long pull on the trigger, which first cocks and then releases the hammer (trigger cocking or "double action" shooting). Trigger cocking requires a longer and much heavier trigger pull, but a shot can be delivered quickly with one hand without manupulating any controls on the gun. DA fire can be delivered very rapidly at near contact range. It is sufficiently accurate for close range shooting (out to perhaps seven yards) in trained hands. However, remember that accurate shot placement wins gunfights and it is much easier to shoot accurately in single action mode.
Double action revolvers are very safe, simple to operate, relatively easy to shoot accurately and extremely reliable. They are safe to carry or store with the hammer down on a fully loaded cylinder. They can be checked by merely swinging out the cylinder. All cartridges or spent cases can be ejected simultaneously with the ejector rod. They can be reloaded quickly if a speed loader is employed and are the fastest of home defense handguns to reload from a box of loose cartridges, should that become necessary. For the average homeowner, as well as the expert pistolero, a DA revolver is hard to beat for home defense.
The gun
My personal home defense gun is a .38 Special Colt Diamondback. This is a medium size DA revolver with a 4" barrel and fully adjustable sights. I consider the 4" barrel a good compromise for a home defense handgun. It is better than a longer barrel for retention at close quarters and much easier to shoot accurately than 2-3" barrels. The ballistics for factory loaded revolver ammunition is typically derived in 4" barrels.
For use at night, I like a nickel finish or a polished stainless steel finish on my home defense revolver. The silver finish makes it easier to see and point the gun at night. Its fully adjustable, target-type sights make the Diamondback very accurate in decent light. The Diamondback fits my hand well for both SA and DA shooting and it is a very high quality revolver. Unfortunately it has been discontinued and a Colt Diamondback in good condition is expensive on the used market. However, it is well worth the price.
My choice in home defense ammunition has evolved over the years. These days, my home defense revolver is normally loaded with Federal Premium .38 Special +P 129 grain Hydra-Shok JHP ammo. I prefer the .38 Special to smaller rounds due to its superior stopping power and to larger rounds, such as the various Magnums, because it produces less muzzle blast and flash, an important consideration in dim light.
Conclusion
Whatever handgun you choose for home defense, become completely familiar with it. Make it a point to practice at reasonable intervals. A handgun can potentially save your life and the lives of your family. However, it isn't the weapon per-se that gets the job done, it is the person behind it. Skill and determination, reinforced by regular practice, will carry the day. Remember that, as Bill Jordan pointed out, there is no second place winner in a gunfight.
My apologies if my posting mostly refers to Home Defence Guns rather than the actual revolver, GP-100.
However, Chuck mentions GP-100 in the bottom lower of his review under double action revolvers where he praises it as one of the best home defence hand gun.
I do own a GP-100 Stainless in 4.2 barrel & is a very accurate & impressive gun to own. I have changed the front sight with high viz which really helps in acquiring target much quicker.
I hope that this review will contribute to your findings as well.
Cheers,
http://www.chuckhawks.com/handgun_home_defense.htm
To those who prefer to see the actual review without going to Chuck's website, please see below for the copy paste of the article.
(Please note that I have only copied the Revolver Section of his article so as not to make it lengthy but to emphasize his review. However, for those of you who want to read the whole thing, please click onn the link above).
Handguns for Home Defense
By Chuck Hawks
Single action revolvers
The single action (SA) revolver must be manually cocked before the trigger will fire the weapon. These are the traditional "western" style guns, such as the Colt Single Action Army and Ruger Blackhawk. Such guns are relatively slow to reload compared to a double action revolver (not important in typical home defense situations), but are reliable, powerful, accurate and deadly when the whistle blows. Incidentally, an empty SA revolver is faster to reload from a box of ammuniton than an autoloading pistol. Most SA revolvers can be visually checked for load status by looking from the side at the cartridge rims through the cylinder/recoil shield gap. (This does not apply to revolvers with recessed chambers, however.) Their "plowhandle" grip shape fits most hands exceedingly well, making accurate fire relatively easy. They can be fired rapidly from a two handed hold by cocking the piece with the thumb of the off hand. Do not attempt to "fan" a single action revolver.
I regard SA revolvers as entirely satisfactory for home defense in the hands of shooters familiar with the type, but reasonable familiarity is required. I learned to shoot with a single action revolver and for about 20 years I relied on a 6.5" Ruger Blackhawk .357 Magnum (stoked with medium velocity loads) for home defense. As I write these words, Jim Fleck is using a Ruger New Model Super Blackhawk .44 Magnum with a 5.5" barrel as his primary home defense gun. He keeps it loaded with CCI Blazer .44 Special ammo using 200 grain Speer Gold Dot bullets. This potent load is easy to shoot in the big Ruger revolver.
Ruger New Model single action revolvers use a transfer bar ignition system and are perfectly safe to carry or store with the cylinder fully loaded. To load, unload, or check a New Model Ruger, simply open the loading gate and rotate the cylinder. No hammer manipulation is necessary until you are ready to fire the gun; only then do you #### the hammer. These are the simplest and safest of all single action revolvers to use and the best for home defense.
"Old Model" (or "three screw") Rugers and all Remington, Colt and similar reproduction single action revolvers must be loaded so that an empty chamber ends-up under the lowered hammer. This is not difficult to do, but it requires a degree of operational competence. To rotate the cylinder for loading/unloading, the hammer must be thumbed back to the "half-####" position. Because it requires a competent user, a traditional single action revolver is not the best choice for the homeowner who is unfamiliar with the type.
Double action revolvers
The all-around best choice among handguns for home defense is a double action (DA) revolver with adjustable sights. These are the typical "police" style revolvers, such as the Ruger GP100 and Colt Python. Double action revolvers may be thumb cocked, just like a single action revolver, and fired by a light pressure on the trigger. This is generally referred to as shooting "single action" and it is the most accurate way to deliver aimed fire.
They may also be fired by a single long pull on the trigger, which first cocks and then releases the hammer (trigger cocking or "double action" shooting). Trigger cocking requires a longer and much heavier trigger pull, but a shot can be delivered quickly with one hand without manupulating any controls on the gun. DA fire can be delivered very rapidly at near contact range. It is sufficiently accurate for close range shooting (out to perhaps seven yards) in trained hands. However, remember that accurate shot placement wins gunfights and it is much easier to shoot accurately in single action mode.
Double action revolvers are very safe, simple to operate, relatively easy to shoot accurately and extremely reliable. They are safe to carry or store with the hammer down on a fully loaded cylinder. They can be checked by merely swinging out the cylinder. All cartridges or spent cases can be ejected simultaneously with the ejector rod. They can be reloaded quickly if a speed loader is employed and are the fastest of home defense handguns to reload from a box of loose cartridges, should that become necessary. For the average homeowner, as well as the expert pistolero, a DA revolver is hard to beat for home defense.
The gun
My personal home defense gun is a .38 Special Colt Diamondback. This is a medium size DA revolver with a 4" barrel and fully adjustable sights. I consider the 4" barrel a good compromise for a home defense handgun. It is better than a longer barrel for retention at close quarters and much easier to shoot accurately than 2-3" barrels. The ballistics for factory loaded revolver ammunition is typically derived in 4" barrels.
For use at night, I like a nickel finish or a polished stainless steel finish on my home defense revolver. The silver finish makes it easier to see and point the gun at night. Its fully adjustable, target-type sights make the Diamondback very accurate in decent light. The Diamondback fits my hand well for both SA and DA shooting and it is a very high quality revolver. Unfortunately it has been discontinued and a Colt Diamondback in good condition is expensive on the used market. However, it is well worth the price.
My choice in home defense ammunition has evolved over the years. These days, my home defense revolver is normally loaded with Federal Premium .38 Special +P 129 grain Hydra-Shok JHP ammo. I prefer the .38 Special to smaller rounds due to its superior stopping power and to larger rounds, such as the various Magnums, because it produces less muzzle blast and flash, an important consideration in dim light.
Conclusion
Whatever handgun you choose for home defense, become completely familiar with it. Make it a point to practice at reasonable intervals. A handgun can potentially save your life and the lives of your family. However, it isn't the weapon per-se that gets the job done, it is the person behind it. Skill and determination, reinforced by regular practice, will carry the day. Remember that, as Bill Jordan pointed out, there is no second place winner in a gunfight.
Last edited:
archerynut
Regular
- Location
- Calgary, Alberta
More picture with 92F sister
I want to get this on a peice of photo-paper and frame it. i'm at a loss for words to describe...
Go ahead, you got my permission.
P.S. Actually, I can email you the high res picture for print if you want.
island pacific in Edm. i will guess ....
easyrider604
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Greater Vancouver, BC
Back in the summer of '07, I rented a GP100 at the West Edmonton Mall range. 50 .357 loads later, I was in love. No hits outside the 10 ring from the nearest distance all the way to the range's max, perhaps 15 -20 meters? Had to have one bad, and found a new 6 incher with the old style wood insert grips, in early '08 at Reliable Gun.
Johnn Peterson
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Chemainus B.C.
Same grips as on my blued 4" on the bottem of post #2??
P&D shows they have a blued 4.2" GP100 in stock $630 New.
NorthCoastBigBore
CGN frequent flyer
- Location
- Northwest BC (Rural) 103-I-##
I picked up a whole shooter's pack direct from Wolff for my GP100. The difference is night and day.
My first pistol in the late 90's was a Gp 100 blued 6in bar. It was a great gun. I sold it to buy a ruger stain with a 4.2 bar. When they first hit shore they were a lot more money than now. I like my new Ruger now but I still wish I would have kept that 6 in one. I have a RedHawk with a 8in bar and it works great. My model 29 is a safe queen and my model 10 gets shot a lot If you buy a Ruger you won't look back. Full power house loads I shoot single action and the trigger is just fine
"Like I said in my earlier post - easily fixed with a $9 spring from Wilson Combat, and your still way under the price of a S&W compared to the GP100."
This sounds like a great idea. Can you tell me more? Can a guy with 10 thumbs do this?
Similar kit available for the SP101?
This sounds like a great idea. Can you tell me more? Can a guy with 10 thumbs do this?
Similar kit available for the SP101?
what he said
I went on the "wilson combat" site and searched for GP100. Nothing came back.
