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Bond Arms Bullpup – A Great Carry 9

May 26, 2019 by Bob Campbell 5 Comments

When we look at a new firearm, we like to know where it came from and what operating principles it is based on. The Bond Arms Bullpup is a result of Bond Arms purchasing the rights and machinery to the Boberg pistol. Before that, there isn’t a lot owed to anyone for this design.

Bond Arms Bullpup pistol with wood grips left profile
The Bond Arms Bullpup is well made of good material, reliable, and surprisingly accurate.

The pistol uses the proven locked breech, short-recoil principle but with a twist—literally. The pistol features a rotating barrel. A rotating barrel lessens the need for a heavy recoil spring and guide while controlling recoil. This is important in a very small 9mm handgun. Recoil energy is expended over a longer time span.

The barrel rotates 14 degrees during the recoil cycle as the slide unlocks and shoots to the rear. The recoil spring is fairly light, with its main function moving the slide back into battery after the spent cartridge case is ejected. As a result of this design the slide is very easy to rack. Easier than any other 9mm I am aware of.

At first glance the pistol appears to have a very short barrel. A more in-depth look shows the barrel takes up a lot of the slide. The 5.1-inch slide contains a 3.35-inch barrel. This means that the average velocity loss, compared to a Glock 19 as an example, is less than 40 fps average. That’s impressive and necessary as well as the 9mm demands good velocity to ensure bullet expansion.

top down view of the Bond Arms Bullpup mechanism
The mechanism is complicated but works well.

The Bullpup moniker comes from the pistol’s unique design. The magazine is loaded conventionally, but the front of the magazine is closed and the rear open as the cartridge feeds from the rear. A dual tongued drawbar catches the cartridge case rim and pulls it from the magazine to feed it into the chamber. This is controlled feed at its nth degree.

The cartridges must be carefully selected. The problem isn’t a blunt nose but cartridge integrity. A firm crimp is demanded. With this in mind, the company supplied a list of cartridges they have tested and offered feed reliability. Included are inexpensive training loads and top-notch defensive loads.

I am particularly impressed with the grip design. The supplied wooden stocks are attractive and offer good abrasion and adhesion. The stocks are wide enough to soak up recoil and remain slim and trim for concealed carry. The sights are good examples of combat sights. As for improvements over the original pistol, the primary improvement is in fit and finish.

top down view of the Bond Arms Bullpup slide and barrel
The pistol is innovative and well made.

The Bond Arms Bullpup is as well made as any handgun. It isn’t inexpensive, but it is innovative, and it works as designed. A big reason the new pistol isn’t as finicky as the original—the Roberg ran fine with good ammunition and proper lubrication—is that the reciprocating barrel and barrel block now feature a frictionless space-age coating. This eliminates the need to keep the barrel and locking block coated.

The take down is the same as the original using a lever to remove the slide. This lever may be turned to the six o’clock position in order to lock the slide to the rear. The slide does not lock open on the last shot, it simply isn’t practical with the Bullpup design. Be aware during combat practice of how the pistol behaves. Get a rhythm going and perhaps try to count the shots and practice tactical loads.

Sight picture of the Bond Arms Bullpup pistol
Good sights are essential for combat accuracy.

When firing the Bullpup 9, I had a pleasant surprise. This is a very nice pistol to fire. It isn’t the lightest 9mm at about 22 ounces, but recoil is decidedly light. The trigger action is very smooth. The Lyman digital scale measures 7 to 7.5 pounds on average.

Press the trigger straight to the rear until it breaks cleanly and you have a good hit. During recoil, allow the trigger to reset. The result is good control and surprisingly good combat accuracy. Most of the ammunition fired has been the recommended Winchester 115-grain FMJ, as well as SIG Sauer Elite 115- and 124-grain FMJ.

The pistol is also reliable with modern expanding bullet loads including the Hornady Critical Defense, Critical Duty and SIG Sauer Elite V Crown loadings. Accuracy is exceptional for this size handgun. The pistol will exhibit a five-shot 1.5-inch group with most loads at 15 yards (fired from a solid benchrest firing position). Of course, this doesn’t have much to do with combat shooting.

Bob Campbell shooting the Bond Arms Bullpup pistol
Firing the pistol is a joy. This is a light recoiling and accurate piece.

Firing offhand, it isn’t difficult to keep a full magazine in the X ring well past 10 yards. I executed the 10 10 10 drill, modifying it to 10 10 7. Ten yards, 10 seconds, and seven shots. The pistol stayed in the 8- and 9 ring. This is good performance. The pistol demands attention to detail, both in maintenance and in handling.

The Bond Arms Bullpup comes with a heft list of advantages foremost of which is its small size. Yet the pistol retains a full length, for a compact, pistol barrel and offers light recoil and excellent accuracy. This isn’t a handgun for the slightly interested. For the demanding shooter it is a top-notch piece.

Among a very few concealed carry holster makers offering a suitable concealed carry rig for the Bond Arms Bullpup 9 is Alien Gear. The soft backing coupled with a rigid Kydex holster makes for good comfort and a sharp draw. There isn’t another holster that I know of, offering a better balance of speed, retention, and comfort along with real concealment.

After reading this article, what is your impression of the Bond Arms Bullpup? Have your fired it? Share your answers in the comment section.

Bond Arms Bullpup pistol in a black Alien Gear holster
The pistol carries well in this Alien Gear holster.
top down view of the Bond Arms Bullpup mechanism
The mechanism is complicated but works well.
Bob Campbell shooting the Bond Arms Bullpup pistol
Firing the pistol is a joy. This is a light recoiling and accurate piece.
Bond Arms Bullpup pistol with wood grips left profile
The Bond Arms Bullpup is well made of good material, reliable, and surprisingly accurate.
top down view of the Bond Arms Bullpup slide and barrel
The pistol is innovative and well made.
Sight picture of the Bond Arms Bullpup pistol
Good sights are essential for combat accuracy.
group on a green silhouette target
This is a group fired from a solid rest at 15 yards.

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Filed Under: Pistols Tagged With: 9mm, Alien Gear Holsters, Bond Arms, Bullpup, Critical Defense, Critical Duty, Hornady, pistol, SIG Sauer Elite ammunition

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Val Trevino says

    May 31, 2019 at 7:51 pm

    I would very much like to try this pup out
    Looks good, but I really want to know if I like it
    I really think I will
    I have followed this technique for a while now

    Reply
  2. Joe Lo says

    June 11, 2019 at 7:57 pm

    I have put many rounds through mine. A quality piece.

    Reply
  3. Virginia says

    April 20, 2020 at 7:18 am

    I love mine, easy to rack, easy to load, easy to shoot, accurate right out of the case, comfortable. Just need a holster so I can carry

    Reply
  4. Greg says

    May 24, 2020 at 2:42 pm

    I just bought mine at the Armory on Friday. I’ve completely read the manual, and watched so many vids before I even bought the gun, I think I know the gun inside and out.

    Got home and loaded up the mag, racked in a round, dropped the magazine, added the +1 round to the mag and stuck the mag back in. Dropped the mag again and racked the gun to empty the round from the chamber and the side won’t rack back. After tryin it a couple more times I finally got the slide to rack and got the round out. Wasn’t pleased about that. Got out the Snap caps and loaded it up again and loaded the mag up with 5. Racked the slide, chambered a snap cap, dropped the magazine and tried to rack the slide to eject the snap cap. Nope. Same thing as with the live round. The Slide won’t rack the round out. The barrel rotates about an 1/8th of an inch and the slide won’t go back any further. Really bumbed about it. Gonna take it back to the Armory tomorrow and see what the deal is. With my luck, they will probably have to ship it back to Texas for repair…I’m keepin my fingers crossed but, we’ll see…Damn…

    Reply
  5. Tony Graham says

    July 18, 2020 at 6:48 pm

    Bought this a year ago. Took it to the range and fired off the 7 rounds two times. I did not try loading the 8th round. Worked flawlessly with the 7 rounds.
    The pistol is really a well manufactured machine. The racking of the first round is really the easiest that I have ever experienced with a semi auto. I have Kimbers, A Walther and a Beretta Nano. I thought they all were decent until I shot the Bullpup.
    The trigger is different, almost like a revolver, but once you settle in, it is really fun to shoot. Glad I bought it, well worth the money.

    Reply

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