Not sure what counts as real world purpose, but I picked one up a while ago just for fun. Seems like a decent purpose to me. I have carried it in an IWB holster some times when walking fences, etc. in case of a snake encounter, but have never had to actually use it for that. Happy to just let them be and walk around as long as they aren't under the front porch where my kid plays.
They are just cool, and built like a tank. I like simple mechanical things and the bond arms certainly qualifies. I have never taken it to the range without having a fun conversation about it with someone.
Mine started as a 9mm roughneck, and I have a .357 4.25" barrel also. I like it with the longer barrel and would like to get a dedicated .45 colt 4.25" barrel too. I hated the "palming a golf ball" feel of the grips, so I grabbed a cheap set of extended grips and shaped them down to something more like a j frame hogue. Finally, I pulled it apart and did some polishing on the internals to smooth up the action a bit. Probably because it was a roughneck, the finish work inside left a bit to be desired. I swapped in a lighter mainspring which made a huge difference in the effort needed to pull back the hammer and lightened the trigger a bit. I can very easily and quickly cock it with one hand. Note-it took some tinkering to find a weight that did not result in light strikes. If you have plan to CCW or something, I would strongly recommend against that. Definitely a cowboy action/range toy modification only!
With the long barrel, it is actually decently accurate for what it is as long as you know which barrel you are firing. The barrels are not well regulated, probably about a 10" difference in POI at 15 yards. Other barrels may be better (or worse) I have no idea.
Long story short, cool for what they are and well built, but certainly not the most effective firearm design available in 2021. Real hoot to shoot though, and that is enough purpose for me.