Bond Arms is not just for sportsmen.

Several months ago we posted the article on the Bond Arms “Texas Defender”. We got a call from Gordon Bond of Bond Arms several weeks ago. He was very pleased with the reference business that he had gotten from Carryconcealed.net. Gordon then asked us to test out the new Snake Slayer and let him know what we thought. Not only did he send one in, he had Carryconcealed.net engraved in the barrel. I will have to tell you that that was one of the coolest gestures anyone has ever done for me. Having my company name engraved on the barrel was a very classy gesture from a great company. Let me tell you that when working with gun manufactures, the attitude of the company starts at the top. We have been very privileged to work with the Bond Arms company and all of their employees reflect the positive attitude of the Bonds. Knowing that your life is on the line, and that the CCW gun you pick is backed by people who care plays a large part of my decison to carry a particular brand of handgun.

When I was picking up the Snakeslayer at the local FFL, the owner had indicated that they had been selling a ton of them to outdoors men. One even picked one up for a backup side arm while fishing in bear country shortly before I picked mine up. The flexibility of the Snakeslayer being able to shoot .45 Long Colt,.410 Shotshells or slugs is very important when considering this well made derringer for a backup or a companion in the back woods.

Bond Arms as a company has taken the derringer to a new level by adding the accessories that add to the flexibility of the handgun and bring the Snakeslayer from the backwoods to the serious concealed carry individuals. Pictured on the right is the driving holster. It has a Velcro flap that folds through the belt and back over the holster for a secure fit on the hip. The position is great for drivers and the holster held on the left side or cross draw is great for the driver, as the seat belt does not interfere with the draw. Also pictured is the Snakeslayer on the bottom and the Texas Defender on the top. The 3 inch 410 shells and the .45 Long Colt rounds are also shown. While going through the tests and wearing the Snakeslayer I used the shoulder rig, driving rig and strong side holster. We also used a leg holster that was designed for a small revolver and worked great. We are getting the specification to Gordon to help with some of the future accessories offered by Bond Arms.

As a long time 1911 carrier in a shoulder rig, and strong side holster, the lighter weight of the Snakeslayer was a nice change, while still carrying a handgun with enough stopping power.

Snakeslayer Specifications as tested

Shooting Tips for the Bond Arms Derringer

While going through the testing, and talking with Gordon Bond, we found several tips that will help shorten your learning curve with the Bond Arms Derringers. The trigger actually pulls back and down. If the trigger is pulled straight back, the trigger pull is about 11 to 12 pounds. If the shooters pulls down and back in the same motion the trigger pull drops to 3.5 to 4 pounds. This is significant with the short barrel of the Snakeslayer. That helps keep the barrel from being pulled down and lowering the shot.

The second major trick is to cycle the Derringer to ensure that the bottom barrel fires first. The lower barrel has the recoil that fires directly back into the shooters palm. You can tell which barrel the Derringer is going to fire by looking at the hammer and the moving portion of the hammer. In your right hand make sure the Derringer is unloaded and pull the hammer back. The moving hammer selector will be above the rounded portion of the back of the heel if the upper barrel will shoot first. If it is shooting the lower barrel first it will be below the curve. Because the Derringer is a solid handgun the recoil is lessened. When shooting the second or top barrel, place the Wing or Blade about the distance between your knuckles and your elbow lower than your target. This is because the top barrel has a little difference in how the kick handles. Using this technique we were able to get consistent groups using .410 slugs as well as .45 Long Colt hollow points. When using 3 inch .410 shot shells it does not matter as anything in front of your target zone is hit.

We had fun testing the Snakeslayer at the United States Shooting Academy. Bret Kennedy, Director of Marketing, came over to see how our testing was going. We took the opportunity to put Bret right on the line and see what he thought about the Bond Arms Derringer. His first comment was “Wow”. Bret’s second comment was this was an outstanding backup handgun. He would know about guns being the Marketing Director for a 7 million dollar shooting facility. Kyle, one of our Active Duty Marine Testers was also on hand and was shocked to see that there was not one square inch that was not hit when the B27 target was shot from 15 feet. Pictured on the left you can see the holes in the B27 target. Kyle noted that because the Bond Arms Derringer was so well made and solid that the recoil was not noticed, and using the shot shells made hitting the target “Fisher Price Easy”.

The workmanship of the Snakeslayer is typical of the Bond Arms derringers. It is by far the best derringer on the market today. It is easy to use and has such great engineering that the gun will last several lifetimes. This is the one gun that every outdoorsman with a CCW permit should own. It is flexible enough that every serious CCW permit holder should have as a back up or as a primary handgun when discretion with power is required.

Bond Arms Newest Member To The Family

Bond Arms is not stopping with the Snakeslayer. They have just announced the Ranger. The Ranger is a must own, way cool, package that includes the Ranger with the star handles and a “Driving” holster. This has to be one of the best anti-car jacking defense guns manufactured. It would compare with the Taurus Judge. The main difference would be the size. The judge is a great “anti-car jacking” gun, but it is significantly larger. We have found that there is a correlation between the size of the gun and whether or not it is carried. A large cool gun that is too big to carry does not do any good when it is left at home.

The Bottom Line

Bond Arms has taken the Derringer to the next level. It really is “Anytime Anywhere” as a solid back up CCW handgun, or a discrete handgun with attitude. When you order a Bond Arms Derringer, do not forget the holsters. The holsters are quality and complete the total CCW package for those with legal CCW Permits.

Happy Trails and Keep the Lead Down Range. Clark - Carryconcealed.net

About Bond Arms

BOND ARMS, INC. is located in Granbury, Texas and manufactures the award-winning Bond Arms derringer –The company tag line is "the finest in double barrel protection."

This 6-time CASS (Cowboy Action Shooting Society) world champion was originally organized under the name Texas Armory. The company became incorporated as Bond Arms in 1995 and was licensed by the BATF as a firearms manufacturer and dealer.