My Speed Strip Reload

[JCooperfan1911]

I pocket carry this Ruger LCR .38 special when in my house and on my property doing yard chores etc. Obviously it’s not a high firepower piece but it is very convenient, and allows me to realistically follow that famous “first rule of a gunfight” with no excuses to not be armed.

I carry a reload using a Tuff Products quick strip on my belt in a Simply Rugged Most Versatile pouch. Using the quick strip (or a Bianchi speed strip) you’ll see guys (and gals) setting up their strips in various methods. Some use a dedicated 5 shot strip and carry all five rounds positioned right next to each other, some carry four rounds (more on that later) and the list goes on.

The four round reload method is designed to speed up the reload off the strip. Two rounds are placed next to each other, then a space, then two more rounds. This is a fast technique but loses you a round in a 5 shot revolver. By spacing the pairs of rounds out, it streamlines the reload and keeps that third round from binding or interfering with the cylinder, as only two rounds can be inserted into the chambers at a time.

I am using a modified variant on this utilizing a 7 round speed strip. As shown in the picture, I’ve got the 2x2 setup going but opted to keep a fifth round in the last hole on the strip. By using one of these 7 round strips, I keep the full capacity of 5 rounds while still allowing for proper spacing to avoid clearance issues that can crop up by stacking all rounds right next to each other on the strip.

If I need to quickly reload, I can just do the fast 2x2 reload method and close the cylinder with the empty chamber behind the barrel, causing the next round to be lined up and fired when the trigger is pulled. But the fifth round is there in case there’s extra time to bring the gun back to full capacity.

It fits very nicely in the Simply Rugged pouch and I like how the hinged nature of the pouch allows the strip to be quickly and easily retrieved by pulling it out and away from the body at an angle. I’ve found with other pouches the strips can get caught up as the pouches don’t have much give so you’ve got to pull it straight up and out, which can be problematic depending on your physique or clothing.

This is but one of many options for carrying a reload that you 5-shot snub guys might consider. Speedloaders are definetly the way to go for the quickest reload, but are awkward to carry and conceal due to their bulk.

Just an idea I wanted to share. Thanks all!

 

[ontarget]

Smart looks like a good idea.

 

[Rexster]

For a long while, I mostly followed Mas Ayoob’s method, carrying five, in a six-cartridge Bianchi Speed Strip. The variation was to carry just two in each strip, but that was when I had other spare ammo, in speed loaders, cartridge loops, or a 2x2x2 carrier.

Somewhere along the way, I decided to normally carry four cartridges per strip, with two spaces between the two pairs of cartridges. By then, I reckoned that it just took too long to complete the whole reload, so, I was likely to waste that fifth cartridge, if in any kind of hurry, and that if there was really no hurry, that I would simply use a second speed strip to complete the loading process with the fifth/sixth cartridges.

I have generally remained faithful to the Bianchi Speed Strips, which gradually became Safariland Speed Strips, after the merger. When I did buy a few Tuff Strips, I eventually learned that they are not so tough, at least not in my climate. (Neither brand lasts forever, but Bianchi endure for a number of years.)

 

[357smallbore]

I have Bianchi strips I load with. 5 in a row.

 

[WrongHanded]

You've laid out the speed strip well. That's optimal for a speed strip holding 5 shots in my opinion.

 

[Pat Riot]

I carry 2 Bianchi Speed Strips in my cargo pocket loaded with 5 rounds each. If wearing a jacket I will carry speed loaders. I like your idea for the pouch. Thanks for letting us know about that. Sometimes those 10 rounds in my cargo pocket get wonky and bang against the side of my knee as I walk.

 

[SwampWolf]

This is but one of many options for carrying a reload that you 5-shot snub guys might consider. Speedloaders are definetly the way to go for the quickest reload, but are awkward to carry and conceal due to their bulk.

Your method for using a speed strip is the best I've seen but I still regard the term "speed-strip" as an oxymoron, akin to jumbo shrimp or government worker.

 

[ECVMatt]

I like this approach...

https://www.simplyrugged.com/ecomme...eather-Ammo-Pouch.cfm?item_id=3857&parent=671

 

[gobsauce]

I like this approach...

https://www.simplyrugged.com/ecomme...eather-Ammo-Pouch.cfm?item_id=3857&parent=671

Y'know, I never understood why they want to charge you $20 to dye it a different color. Dyes all generally cost the same and are all applied the same way.


@JCooperfan1911 , would it too much trouble to ask for the dimensions of the pouch?

 

[ECVMatt]

Y'know, I never understood why they want to charge you $20 to dye it a different color. Dyes all generally cost the same and are all applied the same way.


@JCooperfan1911 , would it too much trouble to ask for the dimensions of the pouch?

I'm with you! Fortunately I am not a fan of the oxblood, so the tan works just fine for me.

 

[gobsauce]

I'm with you! Fortunately I am not a fan of the oxblood, so the tan works just fine for me.

Dunno why, but I'm suddenly reminded of my father telling me about his clothing when he was in the army.

"We were allowed any color we wanted, as king as it was white with blue stripes".

 

[westernrover]

I never had any trouble loading two at a time with a fully-loaded Bianchi speed strip. The strips bend. I saw the Simply Rugged video where this is demonstrated. I just don't see the point of skipping and leaving a space on the strip.

 

[westernrover]

Y'know, I never understood why they want to charge you $20 to dye it a different color. Dyes all generally cost the same and are all applied the same way.


@JCooperfan1911 , would it too much trouble to ask for the dimensions of the pouch?

Some leathers are drum dyed. I can't answer whether this is the difference for their product, but for example, the black and tan could be drum dyed and the oxblood might have to be dyed by hand if the tannery doesn't offer it or the crafter doesn't use enough of it to buy it that way. If they did much volume, it would make sense to buy drum dyed leather of the colors the tannery makes available. Then there is the question of how much more the tannery charges for drum dyed versus how much the crafter wants to charge for hand dying.

 

[Ohen Cepel]

Neat options if you want to add a pocket clip to a speed strip. Helps to keep it in a known location also.
RASC: Revolver Ammunition Strip Concealment - NeoMag (theneomag.com)

 

[gobsauce]

Some leathers are drum dyed. I can't answer whether this is the difference for their product, but for example, the black and tan could be drum dyed and the oxblood might have to be dyed by hand if the tannery doesn't offer it or the crafter doesn't use enough of it to buy it that way. If they did much volume, it would make sense to buy drum dyed leather of the colors the tannery makes available. Then there is the question of how much more the tannery charges for drum dyed versus how much the crafter wants to charge for hand dying.

I guess the question is, do they start with the raw veg tan leather? Or is the leather bought already dyed ?

 

[crstrode]

I never had any trouble loading two at a time with a fully-loaded Bianchi speed strip. The strips bend. I saw the Simply Rugged video where this is demonstrated. I just don't see the point of skipping and leaving a space on the strip.

Ditto.
Additionally, a speed strip with 6 or more cartridges for a 5-shot revolver is more ammo on hand - you know, for when there are more than 10 zombie killers attacking at once.
Even though I would personally never, ever drop a cartridge, some may appreciate a spare or two . . .

 

[westernrover]

I guess the question is, do they start with the raw veg tan leather? Or is the leather bought already dyed ?

I like Hermann Oak. I think it's the best veg-tanned leather there is. I don't know what Simply Rugged uses. Hermann Oak offers drum dyed leathers which are already dyed, but they are also dyed in the drum at the tannery, so the dye penetrates deeper than any hand-applied dye. Drum-dyed is the way to go so long as the color you desire is offered. Black is the color for which drum dying is the most obvious choice because the deeper stain will show less wear and fewer scuffs.

 

[gobsauce]

I like Hermann Oak. I think it's the best veg-tanned leather there is. I don't know what Simply Rugged uses. Hermann Oak offers drum dyed leathers which are already dyed, but they are also dyed in the drum at the tannery, so the dye penetrates deeper than any hand-applied dye. Drum-dyed is the way to go so long as the color you desire is offered. Black is the color for which drum dying is the most obvious choice because the deeper stain will show less wear and fewer scuffs.

I like to use the Tandy veg tan, I like all the little scars that comes with the leather. Give it a single coat of neatsfoot oil go bring them out.

 

[Speedo66]

Remember, it only takes one cartridge for a gun to be loaded…

 

[drobs]

The few times a year I carry a revolver in public (Deer Season), I prefer to have a couple speed loaders in my shirt pocket for a primary reload. I follow that with speed strips in a front pants pocket.

 

[Skribs]

For my LCR, I have a 6-round strip and just use 5 of them. I found the last round in a 5-round strip would require more force to load into the gun, because the strip isn't as flexible there. So I went with a 6-rounder.

 

[.38 Special]

I am using this DeSantis FLETC 2.0.


The ammo pouch attaches to the holster with a pair of screws. It works with speed strips - five or six rounds; the gun is a five-holer so I load strips like the OP does - and I've trained with it a bit. Even the fastest reload is laughably slow and I can scarcely imagine a situation where it would be helpful, so I took the pouch off and tossed it into "the box".

 

[plainsdrifter]

Matching belt too! How very dapper! I'd wear the speed strip pouch on my left hand side.

 

[DR505]

I would fill it up with all 7 rounds. Suppose you reload and fire off those 5 and then need more? If you had fully loaded the speed strip you would have 2 more rounds in case of emergency.

Loading like you do is akin to just putting 5 rounds of .45 ACP in my 1911's magazine. No thanks.

 

[shoobe01]

I never had any trouble loading two at a time with a fully-loaded Bianchi speed strip. The strips bend. I saw the Simply Rugged video where this is demonstrated. I just don't see the point of skipping and leaving a space on the strip.

Same, but from long before YouTube videos. Saw people do gaps, tried it, then saw no difference.

At speed when practicing back when I did carry a revolver sometimes, and I never found a speedloader holder I liked to carry so lived by a speedstrip in the pocket, I would /occasionally/ miss and line up speedstrip cartridges 2 and 3. Okay, still just topped off with two. No immediate problem.