Hey guys, does anyone have one of these yet, or heard of it?

This revolver reload device can be carried flat, but wraps into a speedloader, then you pull start it to release the cartridges.

Wrapid Loader

Interesting, definitely one of those products I would want to test before paying $50 for.

Nope

I want to keep my hands close to the gun during reloads. Not pull one away.

Reminds me of a flat folding speedloader first developed in the 1920’s if memory serves. I attend an annual event called the revolver round up, and one of the lecturers has a table full of various loading devices that have been tried over the years with varying success. It seems the final defaults despite a lot of other designs out there are either HKS or safari land. Speed strips ( bianchi or tuff products)

First time poster who just signed up; sorry if I don't really know how these are usually written up. I'll have to split this up into several posts, because of the new account character limit.

I figured that I'd be beta testing such a new product, but I ordered one anyway because the concept seemed neat, and I've always had to carry my speed loaders in a vest pocket. The only revolver I own and carry is a Chiappa Rhino 3-inch, so it was probably a gamble just hoping that the loader would fit the cylinder at all, but it does. Just for reference, I've been using Safariland COMP-2 speedloaders with no problem, so if your gun can fit those, it'll probably fit the Wrapid.

It arrived today, and I've spent a few hours playing around with it.


Positive thoughts:

For first impressions, it seems like a solidly-built little device, for what it is. It's all metal and doesn't feel "cheap". But it is pretty intricate, with at least six springs and a bunch of moving parts and joints, like clockwork. I'm curious to see how it'd hold up in the long-term, even if the initial quality seems pretty good.

The "pull to release" mechanism confused me at first, but after actually doing it just once or twice, it actually feels very natural/intuitive to me. Slightly slower than simply pushing down with a COMP-2, but not to a huge extent. All it takes is a smooth tug that moves your hand about 4-5 inches, then you can drop it and close your cylinder.

Loading it is pretty easy once you figure out how far open you need to hold the spring-loaded coil while you slot the rounds in. I've had trouble with certain speedloaders and moonclips in the past that would only really work with either .357 magnums or .38 specials, but thankfully the Wrapid will load either caliber just fine.

The "holster" doesn't print very much, and is (most importantly) a non-threatening shape. Definitely miles better than any other speed loader holster/holder I've ever wasted my money on.

As for negatives:

The biggest weakness IMO is that it does not hold the rounds in formation very tightly. They're free to wiggle around, so all 6 rounds rarely smoothly go into the cylinder chambers all at once. You have to try to hold them in place and jiggle them around so that they'll all be lined up to go in. This really hurts getting a consistent reload, because most of the time you're looking and feeling around to see which of the 6 rounds is the one that's not quite positioned correctly. Not really the kind of thing I'd ideally want to worry about in a CCW emergency reload situation. When you're lucky and all six go in on the first try, it's just as fast as anything I've used. But most of the time, you're not that lucky. With some practice, I'm already definitely faster at it than a speedstrip, but certainly slower than a COMP-2.

Another point of concern is that when you pull to release the rounds, you have to pull with a quick and even motion, or else the last round will not deploy. From what I can tell, each section of the loader will release the round it's holding when the spring-loaded joint becomes hyper-extended against the spring tension. Every other section has other adjacent sections to leverage upon, which assists the unloading. The last section does not and probably opens entirely off of momentum. So if your pull isn't smooth, the last round won't deploy, and no amount of tugging will convince it to drop out. You'll have to go back to unwrapping the coil by hand to get that last round out, which would be silly to do in a defensive situation.

Finally, a QC matterl: From the very first time I loaded it, I noticed that rounds had a tendency to just fall out of one of the little sections in particular. I took a good look and realized that the little retaining clip that holds the rim of the cartridge for this particular section was bent outwards just a tiny bit. I pressed it back into place with a big allen key, and now it works fine.

Lastly, some personal nitpicks/thoughts:

Just a very minor thing, but the "holster" that comes with the Wrapid has just a loop to slide your belt into, and not a clip like you'd see on a kydex holster. I'm the kind of guy who likes to grab my CCW and snap the holster onto a belt I'm already wearing before I walk out the door. But if I wanted to put on the Wrapid holster, I'd have to remove my belt. Minor annoyance.

I'm slightly concerned about the retention of the Wrapid within its holster. You can hold it upside down without it falling out, but a couple of solid shakes while upside down will dislodge it. Not sure if it has a chance of falling out while CCWing; I'll have to wear it all day for a few days to find out.

Overall, I think it's definitely a conceivable option to carry a reload for my revolver when I don't feel like putting on a vest for the extra pockets to shove a traditional speedloader into. But if I were to ever need to use it in a defensive setting, I think I would 100% wish I had a regular speedloader with me. But in that scenario, having any extra ammo at all would be most important, and having a Wrapid on a vest-less day would certainly beat having no spare rounds to begin with.


I'd really, really be interested if the company comes out with fixes for the bigger issues I've described. If that happened, I'd buy a new one in a heartbeat at this price. For right now, I think it's a decent new option with definite weaknesses and advantages, but for me it's not the kind of perfect, new solution that completely and instantly replaces my conventional CCW speedloader.

Hope this helps!

Wow, great write up! I'm curious to try one out too, even after your review. Thanks!

Double tap

Glad you found my thoughts useful! I hope my review didn't come across as too negative, because I'm definitely happy I got it. It's an interesting design, and I'll probably end up carrying it at least semi-regularly. I do hope that it's successful enough to convince the manufacturer (or other competitors) to look into making improvements, because making speedloaders carry-able is definitely lacking in the industry right now, I think.

I'd rather have one for a 5 shot J-frame, sold without the leather pouch and without the huge pull ring.

Basically I'd be looking for something that can be more concealable, preferably concealed flat in the coin pocket of jeans

Looks really neat.  I'd like to try one, but my revolver is a 686+.  If they release a 7 rd I'll buy one to try.  It would be awesome if it were somehow moonclip that had the same store flat ability. I known that's probably not possible with existing cylinders and cuts, but would be an improvement over carrying round speed loaders and moon clips.  I hope the sell enough to continue developing.

It would be nice if someone made a kydex pocket holder for it or a kydex mount for your belt. Something that you can take one and off easily. I hate having to run things through loops on my belt. A double kydex holder would have about the same foot print as a kydex single stack mag holder so it would be rather flat and easy to conceal.

I was going to buy two to try out, but they were sold out.

So it's like a snap bracelet, but for ammo

I don't know, I am so used to transitioning the gun to my left hand then manipulating the speed loader with my right hand. Trying to align and put than in left hand would throw me off.

I have carried 2 of them for over 6 months now...

Pros and cons:

Cons......
It only comes in .38/357
It only comes in 6 round and now they offer a 5 round version..... Which has worked flawlessly in my J frame cylinder (bodyguard .38).
It has lots of moving parts.... But so far after 6 months that has not proven to be an issue.
It does not work with aluminum cartridges.... Only brass and nickel plated.
It works with steel cased ammo but not smoothly at all.... But if you are carrying steel rounds for defense you need to prioritize you spending.
It takes practice (like everything gun related) to master using it quickly.
Half of my types of snap caps cant be used to practice with.... You are better off using whatever ammo you carry to practice.... Obviously be careful.

Pros.....
It works.... Like every time with higher quality ammo.
It carries as flat as a speed strip
After lots of practice I can load with it faster than my regular speed loaders....Except for the SL variant which will always be the fastest (same site sells them too)
Its tougher than it looks or feels.... I have pulled hard on it when trying steel ammo and when I put a round in crooked and it is pretty darn strong.
It stays put in the leather holster. Although at night I take it out and leave it curled up to save any spring tension.
After 6 months my 2 original ones (which I got on ebay for a small fortune) have not lost any spring tension
KazTac.com sells the whole set up with holster for 50 bucks..... I payed 60 for the loader and 20 for the holster EACH on ebay.
They now have a 5 round version, but it costs an extra 10 bucks because it is "machined" from the original 6 round ones and they charge for the labor.

If you like to carry a 5 or even better a 6 shot revolver concealed like I do its pretty awesome. I wouldn't reccomend it for range time....Unless you are using that time to practice with it. Otherwise the SL variant is the fastest and best IMO.

Thanks for the report! I plan on getting one, but have some other stuff I need to buy first. Same for the SL speedloader.

Kinda strange that this thread has two brand new first time posters discussing this speedloader.

shitty moon clip with extra steps

Probably not a coincidence.

Rarely is, but there was just an article on TFB about it, a writer for which started the thread. It may just be sufficiently unique to have made a few people extra curious.

That thing is really cheap looking and not a new design. I have one of these in the link. It works really good and has a spring to fold flat and spring open when pulled from a pouch.

https://www.gunauction.com/buy/10043461