Danao MPC Teardown: Why This 5.56mm Revolver Fails as a Defense Gun

A revolver that fires 5.56×45mm rifle ammunition sounds like a bad idea on paper, and according to Jonathan Ferguson, it mostly is in practice too. In a video from Royal Armouries, the firearms expert breaks down the Danao MPC, a six-shot revolver built to take AR-15 ammunition, and walks through why its unusual design creates more problems than it solves.

Key points

• Origin story: Ferguson explains the Danao MPC was built by the Workers League of Danao Multipurpose Collective, formed in 1994 to legitimize the cottage gun-making trade in Danao City, Philippines.
• Odd engineering: The long cylinder is sized for rifle-length cartridges, with a staged extractor and a double cylinder-latch system needed to handle rimless 5.56mm rounds.
• Rough build quality: Ferguson points to crude machining, an uneven barrel crown, loose fitment, and a total absence of proof marks on the sample he examines.
• Pressure and ballistics concerns: He notes 5.56mm runs around 55,000 psi, a serious ask for this lightly built action, while the short barrel robs the round of the velocity needed for proper bullet tumbling and fragmentation.
• Bottom line on utility: Ferguson argues the MPC is worse for self-defense than a standard .38 Special revolver, and has no place in military or police use.

Quick take

This is a curiosity piece more than a buyer's guide, but it's a useful reminder that chambering a gun for a hot rifle cartridge doesn't automatically make it more effective. Ferguson's rundown of the MPC's pressure and barrel-length problems is the kind of detail that explains why oddball guns like this stay oddball guns.

Watch the full video: Royal Armouries