Bravo Company MFG (BCM) released their original Gunfighter Charging Handle (GCH) a few years ago, and while my initial thoughts were that it would be a gimmick, once I had the chance to actually use it my opinion changed quickly. The changes which matter were more than just a latch, they were internal and redirected the force of the latch into the body of the handle itself. Less twisting was a benefit, but no snapped roll pins and broken handles was the key design element.
Moving forward to today, BCM has done a quiet redesign of the GCH in all three sizes. The initial feature which stands out is the new back end. The redesign extends down a bit on the underneath, as well as swoops up and around the rear of the receiver. While this makes for a streamlined appearance, it may also help to some degree if you are using a suppressor in the prevention of gas blowback. We spoke to Paul Buffoni, Bravo Company MFG CEO, about this, and he said its possible that it may help with gas to a small degree, but there is no diversion channel and that was not the intent of the change. We did notice that the wider/ thicker backside provides additional space to grasp if you are pinching with the thumb and forefinger. He commented the latch had been changed from the original based on user feedback where some people complained about pinching their fingers. I'm using the original GCH on my duty weapon, and have never had that as a problem. The top edges have also been angled down, which seems largely cosmetic, but the argument could be made that less straight edges are better.
The materials and specs have stayed the same, and perhaps most important to some people, the price hasn't changed either. While the Gunfighter 4 has been shipping for months, the smaller and larger (#3 & #5) are just recently shipping.
Link to original review found here.
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