Vaquero shoots 4 inches left at 20 yards...

The barrel is on crooked, it happens. :shock:

When a gunsmith gets this situation to fix, they start with pulling the barrel, re-chase threads (CF & Barrel), check the CF for square and adjust if necessary, and re-cut the barrel shoulder. They also check and fix the muzzle crown.

I had a gun w/ the same problem, it came back perfect, from my gunsmith. :wink:

What Ruger does to fix this? They don't discuss their process & procedures. :roll: They do tend to try and remedy problems and most are satisfied with the customer service. good luck

Mine went to Ruger twice and was no better for it.

I refused to dump a dog on someone else so I kept throwing money at it. Ended up having adjustable sights added, later selling it for half what I had in it. I should have cut into pieces from the start and thrown them away.

Gee, all kind of possible outcomes. Really wish it had just arrived in good order. A call to Ruger in the works. Need to create a few targets to show.

Well you could pick up one of those laser bore sighters and install it in the barrel and see where it's pointing when you aim at a small target. I did that one time in the long hallway of my house.

tacotime said:

Exact same model in 45acp shoots dead center. The 45LC shoots consistently 4 in. left.

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Exact same model? What does that have to do with your gun shooting .45 Colt 4" left? Does your gun shoot .45 ACP dead center or to the left? :?

I saw this thread earlier,, and waited a bit to respond.

I too had a very accurate Vaquero in 45 Colt, that shot tight groups. yet,, they were consistently low & left.
I had a very good handgunner whom I respect shoot it,, WITHOUT letting him know what I'd been experiencing. He shot a nice tight cluster, yet it too was low & left.
He accused me of "setting him up." I replied I wanted an honest evaluation of the gun.

Well, I decided to gently mill about .010 off the side of the groove, and tried it again. Worked like a charm. I then regulated some ammo to fix the elevation issue.

A trip to Ruger is a good idea too.

In my case,,, I knew how tight my gun shot, and didn't want to mess that up.

Cholo said:

tacotime said:

Exact same model in 45acp shoots dead center. The 45LC shoots consistently 4 in. left.

Click to expand...

Exact same model? What does that have to do with your gun shooting .45 Colt 4" left? Does your gun shoot .45 ACP dead center or to the left? :?

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I've been wondering the exact same thing...it's an extremely important piece of the puzzle.

What bullet weights would be of interest as well.

2014 3.75 birdshead .45LC with factory WIN 250 gr LRNFP cowboy load at 750fps.

New data. The 45LC cylinder shoots 2 inches left in the frame of the exact same model in 45ACP, as does the 45ACP cylinder. In the 45LC frame, both the LC and ACP cylinders shoot 4 inches left. The cylinders dropped in with correct timing and showed no function issues.

↑ Well that sure cleared things up :mrgreen:

So your Model 5154 shoots 2" to the left and your Model 5153 shoots 4" to the left. Sounds like both guns need to go back to Ruger, they will correct the accuracy issues...providing they can duplicate your results.

I would like to shoot the gun with a Ransom Rest, but the local range does not have one. And since the unit apparently requires correct grip inserts to hold the gun, I don't see inserts listed for a birdshead grip. Maybe it could use the regular square butt grip, but that suggests the grip would not be fully supported and subject to movement, fouling the test...

There is something wrong with the gun, either the barrel was not machined correctly or the frame. Send it back and have them correct it. Don't accept a gun that is returned with the sights drifted/adjusted all the way to one side in an attempt to compensate. I have had more than a few Rugers, Marlins, Mossbergs, Astras, and other brands of handgun/rifle/shotgun that had this same issue. It is unacceptable and the manufacturer will correct it if you are polite and persistent. One way to make a determination that is independent of ammo and shooter is to put a good laser bore sighter in and see how far off the windage is. Good luck.

Might try shooting it left handed just for fun, See if a different grip affects it,.

I've seen this before. If Ruger won't fix it, a competent gunsmith can turn in the barrel and "regulate" the gun to zero. Not a DIY project.

There will be some further testing... and it will include some funky grip holds. Once the condition is beyond doubt, to the factory it goes...

Is this your first revolver with birdshead grip frame? Could be that style grip doesn't fit well with your hand.

daveg.inkc said:

I was told Ruger test them for windage, elevation at 15 yrds.

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And accuracy, as well. Their standards are, as noted earlier, somewhat more lenient than many of us would prefer.

The question has been posed, if a birdshead grip produces a different pattern tendency than a western regular square butt grip.

I could see some logic behind the answer being yes (although not so much in the case of this 45LC, if you read my post on 2/19). The round backstrap could roll off (or up) the various bone structures in the hand on recoil and there is less area on the front side for the fingers to brace. But that could be said of any S&W round butt or the other round butts out there, and I have not seen much talk about making aiming allowances just for round butt frame guns.

Anyone have a lot of birdshead experience?

tacotime said:

Anyone have a lot of birdshead experience?

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Well I have a pair of them one a Ruger and the other a Uberti.
The Ruger is a .45 ACP and the Uberti a .45 Colt.

I can say that the Ruger seems to have a thicker feeling grip and is heavier as compared to the Uberti/Colt
I shoot them about as well as my other plow handle type grip guns.