Favorite Single Action Ruger??

Single Six in 32 H&R Magnum,6"barrel. It is a tack driver. I reload for it.

My 1976 Single Six Convertible (6.5" barrel) and this in .45 Colt:



Dan

My favorite is an old style Birds Head grip SS Vaquero in 45 colt and 3.75 inch barrel.

The grip feels good in my hand ( I don't shoot much more than cowboy loads though ) and it balances nice with that length of barrel.

I need to get some nice grips for it and I think I will replace the stock hammer with a SBH hammer because it has a lower profile than the stock hammer.

Not made anymore but they are available.

Would love to have a stainless bird's head Vaquero in .44 special with a 3" barrel and the ejector rod removed, grind away the ejector rod hole on the frame so the right side has the same profile as the left. (store keepers?)
Add a low profile hammer and you would have the ultimate pocket SA revolver.

Someday.

I like my Bisley Blackhawks chambered in .45 Colt. They have sequential serial numbers and came with .45 ACP cylinders too. Power Custom kits made them even better.

That's easy. My 1972 Ruger BH 3 screw. Just love the sound when I pull back the hammer.

My 5.5" Stainless OLD Vaquero in .45 Colt.

A tough call but I have to choose a 4 5/8 inch Blackhawk .45 convertible, one of the newer ones with slimmer grips and the barrel lettering under the barrel instead of on its side. Favorites handgun, period.

Gotta comment, though, on 1858's gorgeous pair of 5 1/2 inch Bisley convertibles. Those certainly make my short list.

Few guns are prettier than my buddy's new Blackhawk stainless w/rosewood grips, .327 Mag.

You need a Single Six, might as well get the convertible, and a Blackhawk, pick your favorite caliber.

Make mine "old" models. Unadulterated ones.

If I had the money, though, I would just buy Freedom Arms revolvers.

I've fired old model vaqueros, nm vaqueros, and nm blackhawks. Best one for me was Old model bisley vaqueros in .45 colt. I just sold my 2 blackhawks recently and they were fun to shoot but haven't competed in CAS for a few years so mainly they just sat there.

kludge said:

Few guns are prettier than my buddy's new Blackhawk stainless w/rosewood grips, .327 Mag.

You need a Single Six, might as well get the convertible, and a Blackhawk, pick your favorite caliber.

Make mine "old" models. Unadulterated ones.

If I had the money, though, I would just buy Freedom Arms revolvers.

Click to expand...

Save up, they are worth it. It may take awhile (it did for me) but I wouldn't trade this masterpiece for anything:



Dan

Since this is my only one, I'll go with it. I do love it. It's a tank and it's very accurate. It's also the only gun I own that's never fired a factory round.

1858...

That is the most beautiful picture I have ever seen of a pair of Blackhawks. I just can't keep from staring at them.

Nice, very nice.

Dan

TXHORNS said:

Whats better about the older models specifically?

Click to expand...

No frustration on loading and unloading... especially unloading.

With an old model you open the loading gate, place the hammer in half cock and turn the cylinder until it "clicks", pull the ejector rod and the empty cases are ejected.

So it's "click, pull, click, pull, click, pull..."

With the new model it doesn't line up on the click, it's "somewhere" in between.

So it's "click, pull, nope, turn, pull, nope, turn, pull, got it, click, pull, :banghead:, turn, pull, :banghead:, turn, pull, got it, click, pull, , turn, pull, got it..."

So it's "click, pull, click, pull, click, pull..."

Click to expand...

Yep, yep, yep. You can operate an Old Model or Colt-style sixgun so much more quickly and easily than a New Model Ruger. Except that the flat-tops and New Vaqueros have the reverse indexing pawl that does solve that problem. Old Models also have much better triggers. A crisp 2-3lb trigger on an unmodified Old Model is common.

kludge said:

With an old model you open the loading gate, place the hammer in half cock and turn the cylinder until it "clicks", pull the ejector rod and the empty cases are ejected.

So it's "click, pull, click, pull, click, pull..."

With the new model it doesn't line up on the click, it's "somewhere" in between.

So it's "click, pull, nope, turn, pull, nope, turn, pull, got it, click, pull, , turn, pull, , turn, pull, got it, click, pull, , turn, pull, got it..."

Click to expand...

That's what the Power Custom kits are for. I have new triggers and hammers in both of my Blackhawks shown above. Actually, when that photo was taken, only one of them had the kit installed. Anyway, they now function in the following way. To load, open the gate and rotate the cylinder to load each chamber. To unload, pull the hammer back to the half cock position, open the gate and eject each round or empty case. All chambers are in perfect alignment with the ejector rod. What I can't do is open the gate first, then pull the hammer back to half cock.

I think it was CraigC who provided details on how to do this to a new model without buying the Power Custom kit. For me, the kits were worth it since they came with nicely polished hammers and triggers and I can uninstall the kit if I wanted to sell the revolvers.

Gary A and bergman, thanks for the nice comments.

Go with the Single Six. My fav single action

I own a 357 Ruger Blackhawk, 44 mag. Super Blackhawk & a 45LC Vaquero, but my favorite and the one I carry while hunting, even when deer and hog hunting as a sidearm is my Single Six 22. It has dispatched countless cottonmouth, copperhead and rattle snakes. Not to mention coons, squirrels, possum and wood rats. Probably the most accurate revolver I own and certainly the most cherished. Thats my 2 cents worth.
Good Luck.

I agree with Kemper, I own (and love) a SBH .44mag but the one that see the most woods time is my Single Six .22 convertable.

"Old model" .45 convertible with 4 5/8" barrel.

I only have two Ruger SAs. First was a New Model Blackhawk in .41 Mag, 4 5/8 barrel, great gun, bought it because of the caliber. Second is the 50th Anniversary Blackhawk in .357. I like the size a lot better than the larger Blackhawks. Both are great guns. Right now I have the hots for one of the Davidsons Vaquero "Montados", the 3" barrel with the lower hammer spur. It looks like a neat knock-around gun. Keep shootin'

This is a good thread. I have a 44 mag BH 5.5" barrel, an old 22 convertable made in 1961. A new single six 22 convertable but my absolute favorites are the pair of 32 mags both with 5.5" barrels. You really need to handload to get the most out of these. Plus just be able to afford to shoot them.

I am still hung up on the idea of a "trail gun" for small game hunting and a plinker. I guess its a carry over from all the Guns & Ammo articles by Jan Libourel and others that I used to read back in the early 80s when I first started shooting and buying handguns.

I do handload for the 32 mag and also cast my own bullets. That makes it pretty cheap to shoot. I also have shot loads for snakes. These are my "do all" guns.