Ruger Talo GP100 – Every Day Carry 357 Magnum

Estimated studying time: 10 minutes

Some might imagine the revolver days are numbered, however in actuality, wheelguns are nonetheless a superb alternative for EDC. Snubnose revolvers have been in any case the unique hid carry gun. Not too long ago Ruger teamed up with Talo Distributors to create an unique variant of Ruger GP100 that may be a fantastic instance of a contemporary snubnose.

Talo GP100 – A Trendy Snubnose

This Talo GP100 contains a 2.5-inch barrel, compact rubber grip, inexperienced fiber optic entrance sight, and adjustable rear sight. It’s compact as it’s stable. The GP100 is a medium-frame revolver and constructed like a brick outhouse, which means it’s bigger than the standard .357 Magnum snub nostril and a bit chunky. By, hey, there’s extra to like and hand onto, proper?

The Ruger GP100 was initially designed to face up to the pounding from full-power .357 Magnum masses; constructed to final by means of 1000’s of rounds of magnum ammo with no cracked forcing cones, stretched frames, or different harm from magnum ammo. The fact is most shooters will run 38 Particular ammo on this gun for coaching and cargo .357 Magnum cartridges for self-defense. Over-engineering the revolver is wise for longevity, however the finish consumer is left with a cumbersome revolver. That’s not essentially a foul factor as I came upon.

Talo GP100 – A Very Distinctive Revolver

Like different Ruger DA/SA earlier than it, the GP100 is exclusive from revolvers from different revolvers as a result of it makes use of a one-piece body and will be simply field-striped. The hammer and set off meeting is designed to be simply taken aside. Revolvers usually are not usually simple to disassemble, however Ruger made it simple to fully take aside the revolver for an intensive cleansing.

Revolvers from Taurus, Colt, Kimber, and Smith & Wesson all use a two-piece body with a facet plate. Ruger revolver frames are forged, not solid like an S&W, so they’re characteristically heavier and thicker. A singular characteristic of the GP100 when it was launched in 1985 was the grip body, a peg designed to accommodate all kinds of grips. The GP100 additionally makes use of a hammer switch bar to forestall an unintentional discharge if the revolver is dropped.

For my part, Ruger and Talo did a great job of making an attempt to make a compact revolver out of Ruger’s medium dimension GP100 revolver. The Ruger appears to be like a bit portly and weighs in at 36 ounces unloaded. As I came upon the load of the revolver was an asset. The Ruger was a snug gun to shoot even with sizzling magnum masses.

Chubby And Transfer To Love

Like I mentioned the revolver’s weight is an asset to assist cut back felt recoil, however it additionally takes extra effort to tote the revolver. I might have favored to see a number of ounces shaved off by rounding the sides of the body and barrel; perhaps some fluting within the body. I do know that I’m being an armchair engineer, however I do suppose some extra machining might have been finished to make the revolver even higher and extra manageable for conceal-carry.

The two.5-inch barrel permits for an extended ejector rod, which makes it simpler and quicker to dump empties from the cylinder. Ruger tapered the underneath lug for smoother re-holstering. The steel end is deep blue with a contrasting stainless set off and hammer. Precisely what I anticipate from Ruger.

Compact Grip Fills That Hole

The compact rubber grip is user-friendly. It fills your hand and is brief; sized proper for conceal carry whereas nonetheless offering recoil discount when pounding away with magnum ammo. The rubber was a bit catchy on skinny masking clothes. Checkered wooden inserts present texture on your palm and provides the revolver a extra conventional look. Ruger presents bigger grips and there are many aftermarket grips for the GP100 mannequin sequence if you wish to swap them out. For EDC I’d maintain the equipped grip. The grip permits for a excessive maintain and fills the hole between the rear of the set off guard and grip entrance strap. With magnum revolvers that hole can jam the joint of the center finger in your firing hand, making it uncomfortable to shoot magnum rounds.

HiViz LiteWave Entrance Sight

The HiViz LiteWave inexperienced fiber optic entrance sight presents a vibrant inexperienced dot that’s simple to see and quick to choose up in recoil. The entrance sight is dovetailed into the highest of the barrel and will be changed by pushing the entrance sight plunger in with a small punch and sliding out the sight. It is a good characteristic particularly if you need a unique entrance sight. You may also get alternative pipes in white or purple. The rear sight is adjustable for windage and elevation. The rear notch has a white define. In use, the fantastic white define will get misplaced while you give attention to the inexperienced dot. I would favor the notch within the rear sight to open up a bit so I can see extra gentle on the edges of the entrance sight, particularly for quick taking pictures. These sights labored properly.

Triple-Locking Cylinder

The cylinder latch on a Ruger is pressed into the recoil protect to open the cylinder. It operated easily. There was some very slight cylinder wiggle however nothing out of the extraordinary. The GP100 makes use of what Ruger calls a triple-locking cylinder that’s locked into the body on the entrance, rear, and backside. The entrance is locked to the body on the crane by way of a entrance latch, and the rear by way of the ejector rod. Ruger says the bolt, what they name the cylinder latch, helps lock the cylinder in place for extra constructive alignment. From my perspective, it locks up tight as a secure.

The set off is broad and clean, and the hammer spur is broad with toothy checkering for a certain grip when cocking it again. The DA set off pull was exceptionally clean and the pull weight measured 12 kilos however it felt lighter. There was little felt stacking. In SA mode the set off broke at 4.1 kilos, which is sweet for a protection revolver. Earlier than precise vary testing, I dry-fired the Ruger in DA set off mode to turn out to be accustomed to the set off pull. The Ruger set off in DA was exceptionally clean and slick, and I didn’t have any points short-stroking the set off. The firing pin is housed within the body and the GP100 makes use of a switch bar security system. The set off must be totally to the rear to permit the hammer, switch bar, and firing pin to fireside a spherical.

Set off Time With The Talo GP100

A .357 Magnum revolver is as a lot sensible as it’s versatile since it’s appropriate with each .38 Particular and .357 Magnum cartridges. Beginning on the gentle finish of the spectrum I ran Speer Gold Dot .38 Particular ammo loaded with a 125-grain GDHP bullet. For .38 Particular +P ammo, I used Blazer 125-grain HP ammo. And for .357 Magnum ammo, I used Aguila loaded with a 158-grain JSP bullet.

The 158-grain bullet is a candy spot and the unique load for the .357 Magnum. This bullet weight can also be quite common for .38 Particular and .38 Particular +P masses. One factor to notice is that the .38 Particular and +P masses printed increased on the goal when utilizing the identical goal level because the .357 Magazine ammo. This is because of bullet velocity and muzzle flip. My finest 5-shot group at 15 yards measured 2.29 inches with the Aguila .357 Magnum. Finest with the Speer .38 Particular ammo was 2.81 inches and the Balzer finest measured 2.35 inches.

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The common accuracy was 2.5 to 2.8 inches throughout all ammo which is ok for self-defense conditions. The magnum ammo produced 436 to 475 ft-lbs. of vitality and the 38 Particular produced 228 ft-lbs. The +P was in between. As a comparability, the muzzle vitality from a 3.5-inch barrel 9mm will produce about 230 to 270 ft-lbs. so the 9mm is on par with some .38 Particular masses however takes the again seat with .357 Magnum masses.

Accuracy Train

For velocity taking pictures, I moved to 10 yards and carried out Invoice Drills by firing on the 8-inch circle on a tombstone in DA mode as quick as I might whereas nonetheless being correct. This train pushes you to that time the place an excessive amount of velocity with the set off may cause a miss on the goal. The GP100 is straightforward to regulate. I fired extra strings mixing magnum, +P, and commonplace ammo and thought the felt recoil was very tolerable as a result of grip and the load of the gun. The Ruger is the gun you wish to shoot in case you are doing high-volume coaching. Empties have been simply ejected with no points.

Specs For The Talo GP100

Mannequin 1790 Caliber: .357 Magnum Motion Kind: DA/SA Capability: 6 Total Size: 8.0 in. Barrel Size: 2.5 in. Most Width: 1.5 in. Weight Unloaded: 36.0 oz. Grip: Rubber w/laser checkered wooden inserts Entrance Sight: Publish, inexperienced fiber optic Rear Sight: Adjustable notch Set off Pull Weight (DA): 12 lbs. Set off Pull Weight (SA): 4.1 lbs. Security: Inside switch bar MSRP: $920

The Ruger/Talo GP100 is comfy to shoot, however much less comfy to hold, making it a little bit of a compromise. If you’d like a great self-defense, fight revolver, this Ruger/Talo GP100 ought to be in your shortlist.

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