PTAC USA's Bullfrog

Mini revolvers have been with us for a very long time. The first of record was the Smith & Wesson No.1 revolver, which was produced between 1857 and 1860. The No.1 was a first firearm for Smith & Wesson and the first cartridge firearm.1)  These small revolvers, and many knock off brands were very popular. Where open carry was a tradition, a mini revolver served as a easy to conceal backup. Where open carry was less typical, the little revolver as easy to conceal and ready when needed.

The resurgence of a modern mini revolver can be attributed to Dick Casull’s with design patents issued between 1971 and 1984. The designs became the successful products of the company Casull and Wayne Baker started in 1978, Freedom Arms, as well as the products of North American Arms. Freedom Arm exited the mini revolver in the early 1990’s, pretty much leaving the market to North American Arms, until recently.

PTAC USA’s Bullfrog… I always liked San Luis Obispo

PTAC USA was formed in 2015 in San Luis Obispo by co-founders CEO Steven W H Venter, Chantelle-Noelle Wenz and designer John Demko. PTAC USA currently offers two product types. The first product is the Elite Combat Pistol – ECP, which is based upon a major performance overhaul of the S&W M&P. The second product is their mini revolver, the Bullfrog, which is available in 22 LR, 22 WMR and combo configurations.

The Bullfrog is an American produced firearm from design to completed unit. The frame is CNC machined at the PTAC USA facility and all ancillary supply is locally sourced. Not noted in the spec box, the Bullfrog’s cylinder, barrel and trigger pin are made of heat treated 416 stainless steel for toughness and greater resistance to wear. 

While the politics and patriotism associated with manufacturing in America are always strong selling points, it also means that the company is close to its customers and feedback and design and manufacturing technical expertise is local to the folks who assemble and service the product and speak to customers everyday.

A practical mini revolver

It would appear that the PTAC USA Bullfrog designer started with the objectives of a high degree of concealment, with a realistic ballistic expectations, while taking on the handling challenges that exist in a firearm of this size. Subsequently, the barrel length wasn’t increased to boost velocity, which would have compromised concealment, a cross bolt safety was employed which is more positive and requires less finesse to operate than dropping a hammer between chambers as seen on other products. The G10 grips are textured, thin and flat which, surprisingly, improves handling over the typical mini revolver’s larger, more contoured type.

The frame is fabricated from 7075 T6 aluminum which is Type 3 Anodized  for a durable, flat finish. The material selection contributes substantially to the Bullfrog’s light 4.7 Oz. weight. I did not poke around inside to look closely at the internal trigger and hammer components, however, I did pull a grip and found that the Bullfrog has a traditional flat mainspring.

This top view is a good illustration of how narrow the PTAC USA Bullfrog is, the cross bolt safety when engaged and the grooved top strap that serves as a sight system. The sight system was used during accuracy testing, however, firearms of this size are typically intended for close engagement and point shooting.

Like other mini revolvers, the PTAC USA Bullfrog is a one finger hold, however the flat sided grip puts the base of the trigger finger high on the grip with the inside of the thumb on the other side of the grip applying opposing pressure. The middle finger wraps around and applies pressure flat against the lower part of the grip. In short, the shape and contour of the grip permit a solid hold and permits easy thumbing of the hammer when shooting 22 long rifle and 22 WMR ammunition.

The Bullfrog reflects good quality standards. One of my gripes about other mini revolver brands has been porous cast frames, heavy tool marks, rough contact surface with most attention paid to external aesthetics. This is clearly not the case with the Bullfrog which has a precisely cast frame, a notable absence of tool marks. Hammer down there is a small amount of cylinder fore and aft movement and a bit of rock. However, when checked correctly with the hammer cocked, lock up is tight and all play disappears.

Cylinder change over is easy with the base pin removal and insertion tight, but positive in release and engagement, cylinders roll out and drop into position cleanly. The 22 LR cylinder is marked on its face with an “L” and it has longer flutes than the magnum cylinder. Current magnum cylinder production is marked with an “M”. Cylinders are fit to the individual frame and cannot be purchased separately.

Performance

I generally don’t like shooting mini revolvers, but this time I was pleasantly surprised. A better gripping contour and service made the PTAC Bullfrog comfortable to shoot, recoil wasn’t bad, noise levels were not bad at all to the extent I could settle in and enjoy myself. Three types of ammo were fired, one type that is no longer produced, but seemed a good match to the revolver.

If I had more time I would have run some gel tests on the frangible gallery ammo, but velocity was impressive. The 22 Magnum produced the highest velocity, added the benefits of a jacked bullet and delivered the best accuracy. The groups were shot with a wrist resting on a sandbag.

Conclusions

The issue of suitability of this type of firearm and cartridges is beyond the scope of this article, however, it is being hammered to death in gun forums all over the Internet. I can say that as mini revolvers go, the PTAC USA Bullfrog is a good one and probably the best handling of those I have worked with. Will it go Hollywood and get long barreled, fat and fancy? I couldn’t say. For now, in the three configurations available, 22 LR, 22 WMR and a two cylinder combo, it should make mini revolver believers pretty happy. For further information, check out the PTAC USA web site.