Honest Outlaw names the 5 guns that let him down most in 2026

Chris from Honest Outlaw runs his annual rundown of the firearms that let him down most in 2026, and he's careful to frame it right off the bat: these aren't bad guns, they're guns he had high hopes for that fell short once he actually ran them.

Key points

• Bodyguard 2.0 Compt with EPS Carry: Chris wanted an optic-ready version of his favorite .380 carry gun, but pairing the slide with the EPS Carry produced repeated malfunctions he couldn't trust for daily carry.
• High Point HP15: this sub-$500, American-made 16-inch carbine should have been a budget AR win, but it malfunctioned repeatedly for Chris, his wife, and his nephew, suppressed and unsuppressed alike, with mediocre accuracy to match.
• Springfield XD Mod 4: billed as an update over the Gen 3, Chris says the trigger, texture, and ergonomics still lag well behind rivals like the CZ P10 and Canik lines.
• Taurus RPC: an interesting $1,000 roller-delayed pistol caliber carbine on paper, it malfunctioned on the very first round and kept failing roughly every three rounds in testing, even after Taurus inspected and returned it.
• Honorable mentions: the Smith & Wesson FPC in 5.7 and the Nighthawk Alphahawk both get a pass from the main list but still draw criticism for reliability and value, respectively.

Quick take

This is a blunt, experience-based gripe session rather than a lab-test teardown, but Chris backs every complaint with actual range time and specific failures, which makes the frustration land.

Watch the full video: Honest Outlaw