I officially have 1,066 documented rounds through my Lipseys 5" blued half-lug GP100 w/ brass dot front sight. 765 of those rounds were Magnums, and 301 rounds were Specials. I regularly gave a normal cleaning, even during extended range sessions, but I've never taken the gun apart. There have been no functional issues whatsoever and I immensely enjoy shooting it. Would this be considered vetted enough for carry/defensive use?
I'd also like to get a hold of a 3" 6-shot .357 GP100 with dovetailed sights rather than the machined internal rear sight, but those are Distributor Exclusive models and out of stock everywhere, and they only come in blued (which I would settle for). My crazy idea is I'd like to somehow get jeans with a custom right pocket made big enough to carry said 3" GP100 in the pocket with a Mika holster. I guess I'll keep an eye out if there is another run of that Talo edition (Model # 1753).
I don't have a pic of my particular 5" on my computer right now, so a stock photo will have to suffice. As much as I love the look and feel of the smooth walnut grips, I did end up putting Hogue Tamers on for extended sessions shooting .357 Magnum. The 5" half lug barrel with the Tamers makes the revolver incredibly controllable and comfortable to shoot, though I long for the walnut grips. If this were a more dedicated .38 Special gun, I'd just leave those on.