[hawkeye1]

I have been wanting to get a single action revolver. I like the Ruger Vaquero, but recently looked at a Beretta Stampede at the local gunshow. Has anyone had any experience with the Beretta. It looks like a well made revolver and is slightly smaller than the Ruger, and just a bit cheaper. I have Beretta autos, so I know the Beretta is quality, but have not had one in a revolver. Anyone have any insight?

good shooting

[Ghost Tracker]

The transfer bar system in the Ruger models make it perfectly safe to carry all 6 chambers loaded. I think the Beretta is a more authentic copy of the Colt SAA, making it unsafe to carry with a live round under the hammer. As for the quality of the Beretta Stampede, I've heard nothing but good reports.

[MCgunner]

I would push that Beretta aside and go straight to the Ruger. The Ruger may not be SAA authentic, but it's a strong, reliable gun. I'm not a cowboy shooter, though, and my Rugers have adjustable sights, built stronger, and are called "Blackhawks". I really never had the desire for a Vaquero. To a guy like me, it's a step backwards to take the adjustable sights off. I'd trust the Ruger more, though, if I was into the cowboy game thing. And, there are no shortage of Ruger revolver smiths out there when you start to get serious about the game, not sure about Beretta.

[Old Fuff]

I think the Beretta is a more authentic copy of the Colt SAA, making it unsafe to carry with a live round under the hammer

Not so... The revolver is made by Uberti - who are now part of the Beretta empire. Like the Ruger, the Stampede features a transfer bar safety, but combined with older Colt SAA style lockwork.

Beretta put a lot of money into Uberti, moving them into a new factory with the latest state-of-the-art tooling. Consequently product quality is up to Beretta standards.

[raveneap]

I opted for the Ruger New Vaquero in .357 mag and have never regretted the choice. I have several Beretta semi-autos and their quality is second to none but have no experience with the Stampede. IMO you won't go wrong with the New Vaquero.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v77/raveneap/DSC00212.jpg?t=1203952887

[Ghost Tracker]

Whoop! My bad, I wasn't aware the Beretta featured a Transfer Bar. I'm glad I underlined the word "think"...thanks Old Fuff.

[Harve Curry]

I think I'd buy the New Ruger Vaquero.

[Old Fuff]

Actually, for a "shooting gun" chambered in .357 Magnum I'd go for a Ruger 2nd. Issue .357 Blackhawk Flat Top because I prefer the adjustable sights, given the large number of different .38 Special and .357 Magnum loads that shoot to different points of impact.

Between the Beretta Stampede and Ruger "New" Vaquero, it's a matter of which you like best. I consider both of them to be quality hardware. Given some past complaints I'd pick either the Beretta or Ruger in full blue finish rather the blue and (fake) case colored. The Blackhawk is full blue anyway.

[Jim March]

The Beretta is a close "size and heft" copy of the Colt SAA, but with a transfer bar safety. Beretta ordered Uberti to make them at Uberti's best quality control level and with the safety.

The Ruger "Old Vaquero" (really just "Vaquero") is scaled up and built on a 44Magnum-class frame.

The "New Vaquero" (it's real name) is scaled back down to Colt SAA (or Beretta Stampede) size. So that gun and the Stampede are really very, VERY similar. The NewVaq fixes a "bug" in the previous Ruger SAs - on a NewVaq the cylinder bore lines up perfectly with the loading gate on each "click" same as the Beretta (or a real Colt).

The Beretta is a damned respectable gun. We're not seeing quality control complaints (in stark contrast to the Taurus Gaucho, the other "transfer bar SAA near-clone"). I've examined some and the transfer bar design is sweet - big fat deep thing that's unlikely to break...better than the Ruger which can snap on really high-shooting-volume guns once in a great while.

Here's the differences:

* Handling: the reloading drill on the Beretta involves putting it in half-cock first same as a Colt. It's a more traditional setup. The Ruger's reloading drill involves opening the loading gate with the hammer full down, which isn't traditional. The Ruger system is faster though, by a bit: you touch the hammer one less time on a Ruger during the reload drill.

* Strength: man, hard to say. Probably damned close between NewVaq and Stampede.

* Parts swap and modifications ability: this is where the Ruger takes off and runs. Parts from much of the rest of the Ruger SA product line can swap to the NewVaq: grip frames, hammers, triggers for starters. Want a Bird's Head or Bisley grip? Want a Ron Powers drop-in action set (hammer/trigger)? Want a lower SuperBlackHawk hammer? My NewVaq wears one that I dropped in myself. Bisley hammers are even lower and will fit with minor filing - still a home-brew-compatible job. There's also the Belt Mountain tighter base pins available, custom cylinder blanks, etc. Even the barrels from the larger-frame series screw in, last I heard.

Customer service: Beretta isn't too bad these days, but Ruger rocks.

Quality control: the Ruger mid-frame SAs include the NewVaq, the 50th Anniversary Blackhawk 357, the Montado and a few other special runs. They are some of the best-made guns, on average, that Ruger has ever made since at least the early 60's. They're running tight gaps and no signs of mal-formed cylinders. A new cylinder making process drills each bore one at a time in sequence with the same bit. The large-frame SAs were notorious for being drilled all-six-at-once with variances between bores. With the mid-frames, that is simply NOT happening - all cylinder bores are well formed, right on spec or very close and all identical. I doubt Beretta is going to top the quality of this series and it's not that likely they'll match it.

Upshot: I bought a NewVaq 357 and couldn't be happier. But buying a Beretta Stampede isn't "stupid" (unlike the Gaucho!) and some variants have turned up fairly cheap at CDNN. I would pay $100 more for a Ruger versus the Beretta but then again I like modifying my guns :).

On edit: I agree that the Ruger "fake case color" finish is a bad joke. Buy stainless or one of the special run all-blue NewVaqs if possible. But this can also be an issue on the lower-end Berettas. Fake-case-colors are a bad idea, wear fast and in some cases don't protect against rust well enough.

[ArmedBear]

I'd buy the Beretta over the Ruger -- not normally, but at the moment.

Call CDNN and find out why. They're selling Beretta Stampedes for under 400 bucks a pop, even in the CCH and charcoal blue, and the stainless versions.

I have a Uberti that I really like. Put some Wolff springs in it and it feels perfect. It has no transfer bar. If you don't care about the transfer bar, it's a well-made and inexpensive revolver that does feel and work like a SAA.

IMO if you DO want a transfer bar (i.e. a modern revolver) and you don't shoot CAS, get a Blackhawk and the benefits of a more modern gun. SAA sights suck.:)

That would be my general-purpose suggestion: Uberti SAA replica, or Blackhawk. Obviously, the Beretta and New Vaquero are made in the same factories, so I have nothing against either of them. I just think that a Blackhawk is a great modern SA, and Uberti offers a great SAA replica that shoots straight and doesn't break the bank.

[Virginian]

I have two made by Uberti owned by Beretta Cimarrons and two Vaqueros. The Rugers will likely outlive me, but the Cimarrons feel like a Colt SAA. And I love Ruger, but there is nuthin' like a Colt SAA. The feel, those four clicks. Magic for 135 years.
Oh yeah, with these particular guns, the Cimarrons outshoot the Vaqueros ! I admit that is not a rule.

[Jim March]

The NewVaqs usually out-shoot the "Old Vaqs".