Panic bought this .45 vaquero and honestly I love it, my local shop sold their entire ruger stock this week, all that remained for my choosing was a 357 vaquero, this, and a 41 Blackhawk, people really are panic buying recently (including me)

Smith & Wesson Model 36 “ Chief’s Special “

Taylor's and co. Uberti Schofield. .38 special. Should be able to take it shooting soonish but it's a beautiful weapon for sure. Can't be happier with my birthday present to myself. Hope you folks enjoy seeing it.

If you could have Ruger re-tool and re-issue one (x1) product line of what they’ve recently discontinued, with top-shelf QC and QA; what would it be (and why) ?

My personal choice would be the SP101, but to take S&W J-frame grips… I absolutely despise the “grip stud” idea… only bad thing about it.

I got this on gun broker. Taurus 82S. Police trade in. I put the walnut grip on.

I get it, you have to cut costs, get rid of SKUs that aren’t selling, and take a practical approach to running a business. But man, there are so many heritage guns being cut that I think Ruger is risking a lot more than they realize.

So far, we’re looking at the SR1911, GP100, Super Redhawk, Redhawk, Blackhawk, Super Blackhawk, SP101, LCR, and basically their entire revolver lineup, leaving only the Wrangler. They’re also cutting the PCC and Charger lineup, the No. 1 falling-block rifle, the Model 77 and Hawkeye, and on and on.

Here’s my hot take. Aside from the LCP 1 and 2, maybe the LCP Max, and perhaps the RXM, what does Ruger really offer that makes them stand out in an already flooded polymer market?

I rarely hear anyone talk about the Max-9, and it’s competing against the P365, Shield Plus, and Hellcat, which all seem to have a lot more notoriety. The Ruger American Rifle is decent in short-action cartridges, but when it comes to long-action calibers, I’d personally be looking at a Tikka or something similar.

This is where I think Ruger is making a mistake. They’re cutting products with decades of history and brand recognition to focus even more on markets where they’re competing against companies that already have a pretty solid foothold.

A lot of these guns were around when Bill Ruger first founded the company. The revolvers and traditional rifles are a big part of what built Ruger’s reputation in the first place. People knew Ruger made good revolvers, so maybe they’d buy a GP100 or a Blackhawk and later decide to try an SR9, LC9, or EC9. That reputation carries over into the rest of the brand.

I’ll give Ruger credit for the LCP. They helped make small .380 pistols a huge market, even with KelTec already in the picture. Ruger clearly won that sales battle. But outside of that, I don’t hear much about the Ruger American Pistol, and it’s competing in a market full of established duty-size pistols that already have loyal followings.

What I don’t understand is why Ruger can’t do something similar to what they’ve done with Marlin. They clearly have the ability to keep established designs going. Why not keep at least some of these older Ruger models around in limited production, even if they aren’t selling enough to justify full-time production? They did something similar with Marlin in the early days, so why not do that with their own heritage guns?

My concern is that Ruger is so focused on cutting costs and trying to compete in the polymer market that they’re getting rid of the things that made them different in the first place.

Smith & Wesson has its revolvers. SIG has the P365. Glock has its polymer pistols. Springfield, HK, and plenty of others have their own established followings. Ruger can compete with those companies, but why walk away from the products where they already have decades of history and a reputation people recognize?

Maybe I’m missing something on the business side, and maybe some of these models just weren’t selling enough. I can understand that. But there’s a difference between trimming a few slow sellers and cutting nearly your entire revolver lineup along with some of your most recognizable traditional rifles.

Honestly, I think this is a terrible move if it means Ruger is abandoning the products that made them stand out. I’d rather see them keep a handful of these guns in limited production than watch them slowly disappear altogether.

At the end of the day, my biggest concern is that Ruger is going to end up trying to fight it out in an overcrowded polymer market while losing the heritage that made people want to buy a Ruger in the first place. If all you’re left with is another company making polymer pistols and modern sporting rifles, what really separates you from everyone else?
 

Recently inherited this Vaquero and I’m so sad to see them go! I wanted more Ruger revolvers!

My newest addition (629-5) and the lady’s newer addition (Model 67) for range day.

Got some decent rounds through both these after recently discovering my love for older used Smiths that are priced right and decided to get a group photo after cleaning them up.

I’ll definitely come back to colts one day.

Well, all the pieces are here now. Everything has been soaking and is mostly clean and rust free. I don't have a lanyard loop, but I am good at this point without it. The frame was advertised as a Victory Model. The barrel and cylinder are 38 Special. It is time for me to start assembling the lockwork. Less than $100 spent so far.

I took off the grips of my Charter Arms Undercover. I found these markings and I'm guessing they're an inspector marker and batch code?

The numbers don't align with the serial number.

From my cursory research it's an early Bridgeport era. I was wondering if anyone knew anything definitively about these.

I'm also trying to figure out why the paw (I don't know the technical name) for the cylinder stop is resetting too soon or not going down while pulling the trigger. The gun will cycle 2-3 times then lock up, sometimes so badly even pulling the hammer back won't rotate the cylinder. If anyone knows anything on that as well I'd appreciate it!

Title. I’d like if I could have a .357 with a 2 inch barrel for concealed carry that I could then swap for a 6 or so inch battle if I was going hiking. It would just be nice to have one gun I could do both with. I want a hammerless one because that just seems better. Also yes I know hammerless revolvers actually do have hammers just internally.

Uberti/Cimarron Thunderer .45 Colt 4.75". What can I shove in this thing that isn't Cowboy Action? I hear that more purpose built shit will blow this guy apart.

New toy, I picked up. Pietta 1873 great western 2 45lc posse 3.5” barrel.

None of the numbers seems to say anything when searched. Any clue what model this is? It's a 5 shot .38 Spl and appears to be a J-Frame design. I want to replace the grips and find a new holster for it. Need to know the model to get the specs. Thanks.

Looking for a convenient carry option. Which would you recommend?

Picked myself up a birthday present. Smith and Wesson Model 1917, born June of 1918. Not too bad, unfortunately I believe it’s been cerakoted cause it feels too smooth to be parkerized. The other issue is when I close the cylinder it spins until I cock it. Needs a good cleaning but I’m happy with it.

Came across a very clean looking Ruger Security Six today while window shopping. My father had a redhawk i shot as a kid, and so did my grandpa. Seemed only fitting I grab a Ruger wheel gun as well.

Does anyone have any idea why some holster makers (ANR and Havok, for example) offer holsters for J-Frames and L-Frames with optic cuts but have no options for K-Frames? Also, does anyone have any IWB or OWB holster recs for K-Frames with optics? Thanks 🙂

Not for sale.

Won the .38spcl for $290 on GunBroker, great deal. Went into my shop to do paperwork for it, saw the .357mag on the pegboard for $250. I could hardly believe it; I walked out with both.

Now I'm wondering how to tell my fiancee... 🤔