I wonder why Ruger doesn't....

[btaylor73]

I emailed ruger recently and told them that at least one customer would like to see the sp101 brought back. It would be nice to have an sp101 that doesn't have such and expensive diet. I hope things have changed enough with peoples money situation that Ruger would possibly look at bringing them back. Maybe they could sell more of them. Lets all email them and put a bug in their ear!

 

[BCRider]

I'm not sure we really need an alloy .22 other than maybe for the short barreled "kit gun". The present SP101 lineup weighs in at between 25 to 28 oz. That's already pretty light. And I think most of us would prefer our guns to be all steel.

One possible option to lighten them up and that would be .22 friendly is to mold or mill down the side plates and maybe the straps by a little to remove about 2 to 3 oz more. And of course a .22 sure as heck doesn't need the mass of the big underlug barrel shape that Ruger uses.

And lets not forget that as a training gun only enough metal should be removed that it retains the overall balance of the center fire versions. But considering the smaller bore this would mean thinning the barrel down by a fair amount. Or maybe an aluminium barrel body with a steel liner? That would keep the look without resulting in a heavy barrel. But what this would do to manufacturing costs may hurt more than help..... oh, wouldn't it be fun to be one of the consultants on such a project...

 

[Fishslayer]

It had very poor sales. Same reason they dropped the .32 H&R version.

Probly because it was a $500+ .22 revolver. It doesn't need the beef. Polymers seem to be all the rage. Seems like a material made to order for a low cost .22 wheelgun.

Maybe if they could get it to around $250-$300...

Course, I have NO idea what they sold for, just guessing.

It's rare to see a DA .22 for under $300 used. Well... it's rare to see a DA .22 FS period. The old S&W .22's in good shape are into (sometimes WELL into) four figures.

There's an old H&R Sportsman 9 shot top break I've been drooling over but just can't justify the $350 they want for it.

 

[GunsAreGood]

That is funny you bring this up. I just had this conversation with a Gun shop employee a few days ago. It was just a little small talk. We both agreed that Ruger should definitely add a DA/SA revolver to the family. I know I would buy one.

 

[TexasBill]

I'd love to see a SP101 in .22 LR (or .22 Mag). Talk about a great little kit gun and perfect for hikers and campers. I currently use either my Walther P22 or my .38 J-frame loaded with snake shot but a .22 DA/SA revolver would be dandy. Smith has some, but the prices are a bit steep, even at the discounters.

 

[BCRider]

posted by fishslayer;
There's an old H&R Sportsman 9 shot top break I've been drooling over but just can't justify the $350 they want for it.

GOOD GRIEF! ! ! ! IT HAD BETTER BE NIB FOR THAT PRICE ! ! ! ! !

I recently got an older Sportsman 9 for the lofty sum of $150, shipping included. It has the funky plum "blueing" that I've seen on some of the period guns or that someone tried to re-blue at some point. At least that's what the shop owner says happened. But I've got an Iver Johnson with the same plum color blueing.

The LCR derivation would be an interesting one. And it SHOULD keep the cost down a bit. GIven that the LCR is a 5 shot we may have to content ourselves with a 7 shot cylinder for .22. But while it would be a utilitarian sort of thing I wonder how many would want such a "cheap" gun. .22 shooters often have long term relationships with their guns and there's already enough older off brand options if someone wants something really cheap. I suspect an SP frame offering would be more accepted despite the slightly higher price. At least I know I'd drop money on an SP derivation where I'd shrug my shoulders and move on if it was a hybrid like the LCR.

 

[ChefJeff1]

I like my sp101 .22 a lot. I would like it better if it was lighter and had better sights. Any maybe a 22 mag cylinder like the heritage arms.

 

[atomd]

There's not much of a selection of DA .22 wheelguns out there overall I don't think. In the shops around here I see tons of .22 autos but for wheelguns I see maybe a single six and maybe a taurus or a rough rider....if any. The S&W DA .22s are sorta pricey for a .22 and people seem to either love or hate the Taurus ones.

 

[BlkHawk73]

Bring this back, bring that back...these are still out there and available folks. Most whine and cry about prices anyways so save a few dollars and buy used. So what if you're not the one to put every mark on it. If these were oh so needed, where was everyone when they were available? If it's oh so much a "must have", spend the $ and have one built.

 

[swiftak]

BCRider, I don't have a camera, but its real smooth, and you can fire all six shots in DA without the gun even wavering.
I think its a fairly heavy gun for a 22 revolver, but I like it like that because its real easy to control. Also very accurate.

 

[22lr]

Ive got a buddy who has a 22lr SP-101. Fun plinker but im not a big fan of 22lr in revolvers, but maybe im just jealous that I don't have one......

 

[BCRider]

Thanks Swiftak, that's the sort of info that makes it all the more important that Ruger see the light of reason and re-introduce at least a .22 version again. But since .22 is a caliber that just BEGS to be shot in quantity it would be nice if they upped the capacity to 8 or 9 if they'll fit in the cylinder.

I like the idea of a spare cylinder that holds .22WMR as well. It would certainly jump the price up over the single load models but I suspect the sort of folks that would want the gun would happily pay the premium to get the Convertable model.

 

[19-3Ben]

I wish they'd bring back the .22LR Sp101 as others here have said, BUT I want it in a 7-8 shot model. I don't see what that couldn't be done without changing the cylinder width.

 

[BCRider]

The cylinder will easily hold more than 6. The .22 round has so low a pressure that it isn't a factor at all. Just the need to modify the internals to step the hand through 45 or 40 degrees instead of 60 to get the 8 or 9 shot positionings. And even though the cylinder only holds 5 rounds of .357 if you saw the small size of the cylinder in the 9 shot Iver Johnson and 9 shot Hi Standard Double 9 that I've got you would know that the 5 shot SP diameter would hold 9 easily. Now it MAY be an issue for the .22WMR. So if we drop back to 8 shots to possibly give the metal a little more to hold onto the rounds with that may not be a bad option.

 

[Daizee]

like this? :-D

It would make a great 8-shot, and that would lighten it a bit.



-Daizee