SHOT Show 2022: Heritage Goes Pint Sized with the Barkeep Boot

Updated 25 months ago

Heritage Manufacturing is one of my favorite companies. They produce a good product at a very fair price point. They make some fantastic 22 LR and 22 Magnum revolvers, and they’ve recently experimented with going big and small. From revolver rifles with 16-inch barrels to the Barkeep with its little 2-inch fella. At SHOT 2022, Heritage showed the Barkeep Boot and proved they could shrink the Heritage Rough Rider even more.

The Barkeep

The Barkeep

The Barkeep came out last year and was the shortest Heritage Rough Rider. The Barkeep was based on a series of classic revolvers with shortened barrels that gained names like the Shopkeeper, the Sheriff model, etc. Heritage released a 3 and 2 inch model of the gun.

To make the little fella so short, they had to eliminate the ejection rod, meaning the user would need to remove the rounds with a rod or thumbnail. The 2-inch Barkeep looked to be about as short as you could make an old west-style revolver until the Barkeep Bot came along.

The Barkeep Boot

Heritage did everything possible to shrink the Barkeep Boot except change the frame. They trimmed the barrel to a mere 1 inch, which is almost nothing. They completely lopped off any kind of sights, and admittedly sights might not be that useful with such a short barrel.

The Barkeep Boot

The grips are trimmed and formed into a Bird’s head style that cuts corners and makes some drastic reduction. The Barkeep Boot feels rather nice in hand, and I don’t have many complaints. The hammer and trimmer are nice, the 22LR cylinder can be swapped for a 22 magnum cylinder, but that might be a bit much.

What’s It Good For?

Absolutely nothing! Well, kind of. The Barkeep Boot isn’t very practical. It won’t make a good woods gun or even a good target pistol. 22 LRs typically make solid small gun hunting revolvers and good pest removal options, but the Barkeep Boot lacks sights, and that’s a big deal.

Heritage Barkeep

About the only thing it would be good for is plinking. Without a doubt, it will be fun to shoot, even if it’s not accurate. That’s fine, these guns are super cheap, and sometimes guns can just be fun. The Barkeep Boot is a fun gun. It’s fun to look at and will likely be a blast to shoot.

Heritage is producing several models of the Barkeep Boot in a variety of configurations and colors. This includes different finishes and grip styles. Look for them to ship later this year.

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It's not the size of your gun, it's how you use it.

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