RG Revolvers - "Real Good" or "Rough Going"

[Gun Master]

I know that RG's are considered "cheap" revolvers, but how good (or bad) are they ? The Blue Book said they were "plain and utilitarian" , and represented "good value" but "not collectable". I would be interested in hearing personal experiences others have had with RG's, good and bad. Are they good, bad, or just plain ugly ? How is their function and reliability ?

 

[CraigC]

RG Revolvers - "Real Good" or "Rough Going"

Revolving Grenade.

Not quite that bad but they are certified junk.

 

[Willie Sutton]

Pretty much the definitive Saturday Night Special, with the thing that they do most reliably is to sink to the bottom of the river when tossed off a bridge in order to dispose of them. Best bought for $25.00 and turned in for $50 at any gun buy-back program.

In other words, they are junk.


With that said, they are not unsafe to shoot. Just... why bother?



Willie

.

 

[oneounceload]

Really Garbage

 

[Gun Master]

RG (Retro-Grade?)

Are they made of potmetal or steel ? Did any break, bind, blow up, or bow out ? Anybody with real experiences, not conjecture ?

 

[newfalguy101]

I have owned a couple.

Poor, poor quality, overall.

I do have a single action .22 that functions, but, isn't real purty, I also had a .38 snub that was a real piece of junk, horrid fit n finish, lousy trigger, and overpriced even though it was really really inexpensive

 

[Ron James]

To start off into the firearm field Rohm took their 22 blank starter pistol, drilled it our to 22 Short and put in on the market. The RG 10 retailed for as little as 10.00. They didn't blow up per say, but the sights fell off and the guns would very quickly go out of time and spray lead. Next came the RG 11 in .22LR, Just a little better, at least the sights didn't fall off. By this time The Rohm's had such a bad reputation that when they tried to build better guns the smell lingered. Their later guns ,the Model 34,38 and so on were inexpensive utility guns, you got what you paid far, a very inexpensive firearm made of alloy that looked good but if shot on a regular basis quickly revealed a number of broken parts. They were good to throw into a tackle box or glove box for that one time " what if " moment but far from being a reliable gun. Yes I have had a couple of Rohm's, in .22 .32 and 38 Special, but only because they were either given to me or they were so cheap I couldn't pass them up. Needless to say, I have none of them now. Rohm is no longer in the firearm business but they still make their blank starter pistol

 

[BSA1]

Rumor has it that in the past they made good throw down guns.

 

[ACORN]

First gun I owned was a RG 22lr. single action. No functional issues. I can't remember what the accuracy was like. I was constantly cold bluing it because the original finish was thin.

 

[rcmodel]

Not quite that bad but they are certified junk.

This!

Anybody with real experiences, not conjecture ?

ME Me Me!!

I used to repair & time the new ones a local shop bought by the case 40 years ago.
Just enough to get them to work well enough to sell them as new & working, not new and not working.

Some were good, some were so bad it took a lot of time to make them right, out of the box.
Soft parts, ill-fitted parts, broken springs after a little use, etc.

The ones you still see around must have been the good ones back then, if they are still working.

But they are like a box of chocolates.
You never knew what you were going to get.

rc

 

[hardluk1]

Pot meat wonder guns. Wonder they don't maul or kill the owner.

 

[Deaf Smith]

RG Revolvers - "Real Good" or "Rough Going"

I'd say 'Real Rough Going."

But they are good guns for your OPPONENT to have!

Deaf

 

[witchhunter]

I had one, the worst I have ever seen, don't stand next to it when some one is firing one. Mine peeled lead at the cylinder gap due to bad timing.

 

[DT Guy]

Years ago when I was an LEO, we had a suicide who'd put a .38 RG in his mouth and shot himself-twice.

Turns out the barrel/cylinder gap was so great that the velocity of the bullet was so reduced that the first slug only made it through the roof of his mouth, and the second had to drive it in farther and finish the job.

Larry

 

[Kiln]

Most of what you'll read online has been blown out of proportion. I do agree with the poster above that said that the earlier guns repurposed from blank guns ruined their reputation. None of them are really great guns but most of the later ones (avoid the RG10 and RG14) were decent enough.

What you'll get with an RG is a gun in the Heritage Rough Rider quality range, which is to say that they can be hit or miss. Some work great forever and some go through a couple hundred rounds and then start shaving lead. They're mostly zamak with steel parts where they're needed like the trigger, hammer, cylinder, barrel, and some of the small parts as well.

I've got two of the RG23 revolvers that still work fine but I've only put a couple hundred rounds through each of them. My cousin's RG23 got shot a couple thousand times, which inspired me to buy the ones I have.

Truth is that most of their later guns were not that bad, they just weren't that good either.

 

[dfariswheel]

Back when they were still being sold, we said that "RG" stood for "Rotten Gun".

 

[stressed]

DT,

Poor guy. RG even caused him suffering in trying to end it all.

Saturday night special. Jennings, bryco, raven of the revolver road.

Only SNS I've ever owned was a DD lienad .410 derringer and an LEO detective buddy referred to it as a "hooker killer" to be stuffed in the belly and fired, or fired into the face. Hell, with a 3" shell loaded there was probably about a 1/3" of barrel. Spread birdshot and buckshot in massive groups.

Moral is, stay away IMO.

 

[Kiln]

Years ago when I was an LEO, we had a suicide who'd put a .38 RG in his mouth and shot himself-twice.

Turns out the barrel/cylinder gap was so great that the velocity of the bullet was so reduced that the first slug only made it through the roof of his mouth, and the second had to drive it in farther and finish the job.

Larry

Cylinder gaps aren't that bad on their later guns, which all of the centerfire ones were. More likely, if the aforementioned story is even true, is that the ammo was to blame for the failed suicide.

 

[Archie]

From the time they were 'available'...

The standing comment on those revolvers was: "It's a little light for a fishing weight and salt water will dissolve them in time."

 

[Bush Pilot]

Not a lot of love around here for the RG, wonder why LOL

 

[DT Guy]

Cylinder gaps aren't that bad on their later guns, which all of the centerfire ones were. More likely, if the aforementioned story is even true, is that the ammo was to blame for the failed suicide.

Well, since I saw him dead with the revolver in his hand, I'm pretty sure it was a suicide. Unless you're calling me a liar?

And the cylinder gap was wide enough to put a nickel (we were low-tech) through it, and it was, indeed, a .38.

So your supposition and generalization about the quality of a gun you didn't examine is very interesting, and apparently completely wrong.


Larry

 

[nulook45]

RG guns

Well Rg made several revolvers and a semi auto .25acp as well i can tell you the RG10 truely was a peice of trash . Pulled the trigger in a standard vel. .22 short and launched the barrel down the road . still worked just no barrel . Rg 38 waqs my next one worked great was reasonably accurate ran 4 boxes of .38 wadcutters in it and made manstopper loads for the bedside drawer its still there 20 years later still works great . Tried the RG23 in .22lr i have shot literaly 2 thousand rounds thru it i even carry it from time to time . downside to it is even tho it is still timed . the flame cutting is begining to cut thu the frame at the cylinder gap . the . 25acp i had 2 weeks kept jamming on me had to get rid of it i cut it in half and tossed it off the bridge . There ya go personal experience

 

[sgt127]

I have one. It feels like a cap gun that shoots .22's. I used to see them all the time in hooks cars, invariably in a Crown Royal bag. I would have sworn that RG's and Raven .25's were actually sold that way.

I have seen them with wiggling barrels. Missing barrels. They may skip chambers or light hit. They shave lead. They are really pretty awful little guns.

That said, I've seen people shot with them, so, they do occasionally work.

 

[Confederate]

Well, since I saw him dead with the revolver in his hand, I'm pretty sure it was a suicide. Unless you're calling me a liar?

I went to Fort Marcy with a friend a short time after they found Vince Foster's body. While discussing the various absurdities over that "suicide," we began clowning around. My buddy said, "The Park Police could have found Vince Foster dead, in a straight jacket hanging feet first from a tree and shot six times in the back with an empty revolver lying under him with no fingerprints on it...and they would have looked the situation over for about an hour and concluded, "Clearest case of suicide I've ever seen in my life!"

 

[tarosean]

I actually have a 22short model. I dont recall how it ever came to be in my safe. I refuse to ever shoot it, even though its a diminutive round.

Course Im not very keen on having to remove the cylinder just to load it.