Suggestions for Cowboy Single Action Style Revolver?

I shot a pair of Ruger Bisley Vaqueros for SASS. Love the Bisley grip and hammer spur. If you are considering SASS, keep in mind that if you want a lever action rifle in your chosen pistol caliber, .45 is not period correct for the rifle. It is acceptable for SASS, just not historically correct.

I recently purchased a couple new SAAs to add to my collection. I currently have a Ruger Blackhawk Flattop .45 convertible 4 3/4" (or whatever Ruger's barrel lengths are), 2 Uberti Cattleman II's in .38/.357 in 4 5/8" (with the evil retractable firing pins), a Uberti Remington 1875 outlaw 5.5" in .45 Colt, and more recently a couple Uberti SASS pro short strokes in .38/.357.

When I was shopping for the new SAA's, I really had my sights set on either a couple Ruger New Vaquero Bisleys or the SASS consecutive serial number set. I mean I was about to push the "order" button the night before. Those Bisley's are so nice looking! However, I decided to wait and go to the LGS the next day to just handle them. Well, that was the turning point. Maybe I'm too used to the Colt clones, but the Rugers just felt too heavy and awkward for me. And I'm a Ruger guy! I probably own 6 other Rugers, but the Vaqueros just don't do it for me. I think they're gorgeous looking, but they don't fit me.

I only bring all this up to echo what other's have said, to handle and possibly shoot a variety of guns before you settle on your purchase. I know the OP said he may not necessarily be getting in CAS, but if your local range has a SASS club or you know someone that shoots, go out and just try a bunch of whatever they are shooting. Tell them you just want to see what it's about. They'll probably try to get you to come back, but they'll certainly let you shoot whatever they have. Especially if you bring your own ammo That way you can try before you buy.

Actually, if you compare the spec sheets between the Colt website and the Ruger website for .357s in the 4 3/4 inch variety the Vaquero is three ounces heavier. The Colt is 40 ounces and the Ruger is 43 ounces. The difference may be less or more on the .45 models. You pays your money and you takes your pick.

Yap, you can have better looking and tougher or . . . . a little heavier Ruger! Lol!!

Mike

For strength and durability the Ruger Vaquero in 45 Colt would be the best choice. It is close in size to the original Colt but differs greatly in the mechanical aspects. The Uberti1973 series is probably the closest reproduction to the original Colt 1873. The Pietta replicas are not as true to the original as the Uberti but is close enough that only the purist would notice or care. These are well built and attractive guns that function well and won’t break the bank. They are ideal for Cowboy loads for plinking as well as SASS completions.

jdavis123 said:

For strength and durability the Ruger Vaquero in 45 Colt would be the best choice. It is close in size to the original Colt but differs greatly in the mechanical aspects. The Uberti1973 series is probably the closest reproduction to the original Colt 1873. The Pietta replicas are not as true to the original as the Uberti but is close enough that only the purist would notice or care. These are well built and attractive guns that function well and won’t break the bank. They are ideal for Cowboy loads for plinking as well as SASS completions.View attachment 830103

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Actually these days with the changes to the mechanism of the Uberti's, the Pietta's are closer. That's why I bought the CImarron Frontier.

If you are serious or curious about Cowboy Action Shooting do a search for SASSnet and click on forums. The SASS Wire is the place to look and you don’t have to be a member to join the forum. You can ask questions or just search for what you are interested in. Fantastic bunch of folks on the Wire.

If you want a fun gun and you’re not do serious about SASS then I would recommend the Blackhawk as well. The New Vaqueros are nice, but I prefer the original Vaqueros but they do not make them any longer. The New Vaquero is lighter and feels more like a Colt SAA.

What ever you pick I hope you enjoy it.

Well, here's a look inside a "Ruger" slayer!!

Its a S.S. Remington with torsion sprung action and is totally bullet proof!!

Mike

Howdy

As someone who has been shooing the cowboy game for almost 20 years, allow me to make a few suggestions.

First off, if you are thinking of getting into Cowboy Action Shooting, and buy a revolver with adjustable sights, such as a Ruger Blackhawk, you will be limited to shooting in those categories which allow adjustable sights. If you buy a revolver with fixed sights, such as a Ruger Vaquero, you can shoot it in any category.

Probably the best bet for the new single action shooter is a Ruger New Vaquero. Ruger stopped producing the 'original model' Vaquero in 2005 and replaced it with the New Vaquero, which is still in production. The 'original model' Vaquero was a beefier gun than the New Vaquero. It used the same frame size as the Blackhawk series, and with its stouter frame and more massive cylinder it could handle stouter loads than the current New Vaquero can. Do not be mislead by what you may read some places. Although the New Vaquero will not take the old Ruger Only loads, It is completely safe to shoot with standard SAAMI spec ammunition. It does not need to be limited to anemic 'cowboy loads'.

Current catalog price for a New Vaquero is $829. I have no idea what the current street price is.

The New Vaquero at the top of this photo is chambered for 45 Colt. It is pictured with a 2nd Generation Colt Single Action Army to illustrate how similar they are in size.

It is true that the internal mechanism of a Ruger single action revolver is very different than the old Colt mechanism. What you get in a Ruger is a mechanism that uses coil springs instead of the leaf springs in a Colt style mechanism. Leaf springs can break, coil springs do not.






In addition, all Ruger single action revolvers built since the mid 1970s have a transfer bar. This means the hammer never touches the firing pin. When the hammer is cocked the transfer bar rises up to a position where it can 'transfer' the energy of the falling hammer to the frame mounted firing pin. When the hammer is in the at rest position, the transfer bar is withdrawn and the hammer cannot strike the firing pin. This makes Ruger single action revolvers safe to carry fully loaded. Old time Colt shooters know that it is only safe to carry a Colt style single action revolver with an empty chamber under the hammer, in case the gun should fall to the ground and land on the hammer. This photo shows the hammer of a New Vaquero cocked, and the transfer bar has risen so that when the hammer falls, the transfer bar will transfer the energy of the hammer to the frame mounted firing pin, discharging the firearm.






If you want adjustable sights, by all means get a Ruger Blackhawk. This is my old 45 Colt/45 ACP convertible Blackhawk I bought way back in 1975. It came with two cylinders, one chambered for 45 Colt, the other chambered for 45 ACP. To tell you the truth though, I have far more revolvers, both double action and single action, with fixed sights than with adjustable sights. Most guys will tell you adjustable sights allow you to adjust the sights for whatever round you are shooting. In truth though, I know very few shooters who bring a screwdriver to the range with them so they can readjust the sights as needed. Most bring the gun to the range, set the sights, and then never adjust them again. Me included.






Uberti has been making replicas of the Colt SIngle Action Army for a long time. They started around 1959 making a replica of the Colt Navy Model, then branched out into cartridge guns. I bought this Uberti Cattleman used probably close to 20 years ago. It is chambered for 45 Colt. This one is almost identical to a Colt inside, with the same basic mechanism, although the leaf spring for the hand was changed to a coil spring. One less spring to be a potential problem. Just like a Colt, these guns did not have a transfer bar in them, so they are only safe to carry loaded with five rounds with the hammer down on an empty chamber.






I changed out the leaf type spring for the trigger and bolt to a wire spring, so I would not have to worry about that spring breaking.






Don't get me wrong, the old leaf springs are not guaranteed to break the first time out, but they do break on occasion. Here is a broken bolt/trigger spring from one of my Colts. Yes, it broke in the middle of a match. That is why I always bring a pair of Ruger Vaqueros with me as backups to every match. I once spent the lunch break at a match changing out a broken hand spring for a fellow cowboy.






Regarding the current crop of Uberti Cattlemen, the mechanism has been changed very recently. The new ones have a retractable firing pin in the hammer. When the trigger is pulled, the firing pin moves forward to strike the primer of the round in battery. When there is no pressure on the trigger, the firing pin retracts and cannot strike a primer. The jury is still out on this model. I had a chance to fire one last year, and it had a problem. Every once in a while it would not fire when the trigger was pulled. Most of the time it fired, but not every time. This revolver did not belong to me, so much as I wanted to I could not tear it apart to see what was wrong. I suspect there was a burr in the channel where the firing pin slides forward, restricting its movement, but not being able to take it apart I could not say for sure. The owner sent it back for service, I have not heard what the result was.

Anyway, the new Uberti single action revolvers with the retractable firing pins start at $689 according to the catalog. I have no idea what the street price is.



Piettas. These have also been around a long time. It used to be that Piettas ran second to Uberti as far as quality was concerned. That seems to have changed in the last few years and Piettas have gotten much better. Piettas still have the old fashioned Colt style lockwork, so they must be carried loaded with five rounds, with an empty chamber under the hammer.




Colts.Might as well mention Colts while I'm at it. This pair of 2nd Gen Colts is my usual Main Match pair of pistols in CAS. Both are chambered for 45 Colt. I only shoot them with Black Powder. I of course only load them with five rounds, but that is all that is allowed in CAS not matter what brand of pistols you have.






Here is another 2nd Gen chambered for 45 Colt that I picked up recently.






The Colts being made today are what is called the 3rd Generation. Colt has been in financial hot water for a long time now, and has seriously cut back on the number of Single Action Armies they are making. It is tough to find one, and quite frankly, I think they are over priced. The Colt website shows the current price of Single Action Armies of all versions at $1799.00. It also lists them all as out of stock.



United States Firearms. These were a serious competitor for Colt. The quality was just as good as Colt, some say they were better. At one point Colt lowered their prices to be competitive with USFA. Unfortunately USFA was owned by a guy who treated it more as a hobby than a serious business, and he closed down production a number of years ago.


The new kid on the block as far as American made single action revolvers is Standard Manufacturing. This company has been around a while making a variety of different firearms, but they recently ventured into the single action market. All indications are they are very high quality. The list price is $1895.00.

One more thing.

Although the venerable 45 Colt is the often top on everybody's list when they think single action revolvers, most of the really fast guys in CAS shoot revolvers chambered for 357 Magnum. They shoot very lightly loaded 38 Specials, so they can revolver quickly from recoil.

I don't care about shooting fast, so I don't worry about recoil.

Sour Kraut said:

Thank you Driftwood for that educational post. I really appreciate the detailed input!

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and awesome photos also.

Thanks Driftwood, for the excellent post.

I am a ruger fan for sure....but I like my Uberti too.
About half the $$.

I wish colt would speed up production of the mk3 models... Overpriced though they may be I really want a pony on my .45LC shooter.

Current production .45 Colt Vaquero in whatever finish and barrel length you prefer is my recommendation.