Police Service-Six .38 Special

The Ruger Police Service-Six in .38 Special doesn't seem to be particularly common. My wife rescued this one from an LGS about two years ago. I spent some time cleaning, sanding and polishing, then added a re-contoured set of old Jay Scott zebra wood grips. The old Ruger has the best trigger among our Security/Service -Sixes and shoots dead on with 158 gr loads.

Nice work and a nice piece of history. Wish Ruger would bring back the Six series.

I wouldn't call the .38 Service-Six uncommon. It was actually a very popular choice among agencies that required a .38-only revolver and especially true when a new hire had to buy their own gun. Rugers cost a lot less than S&W or Colt. Also remember the era when this gun was born. Many Liberals chastised departments that issued the .357 Magnum. It was "too powerful" and used "deadly hollowpoint bullets." Blah, blah. But in some places it worked. Look how long it took NYPD to issue HP's. They didn't get effective ammo until after the transition to 9mm! The .38-only business must have been pretty good for years. It wasn't that long ago that Ruger discontinued the .38 GP-100. Smith still catalogs their Models 10, 64 and 67.

Regardless, thumbs up for a nice find. The redone grips look sharp.

Very nice. I've got the same gun but mine is beat up and cosmetically needs work. But the action and timing are great on it. It is extremely accurate with 158 gr loads as well.

I have the blued 4" in .38 and have been looking for a stainless 4" but can't find one.
Wish you had some before pictures, looks great.

Gorgeous gun........sure wish I had one like that!!!!! I am starting a little collection of .38 Specials (to shoot) and so far only have a GP-100 .38 Special 3". Was thinking about a SP101 .38 special but am drawn to those darn Six Series.

QB,

The dearly departed -Six family of revolvers was in a class by itself. As much of a S&W revolver guy as I am, for any .357 Magnum use I prefer the Sixes. They are amazingly strong for their size, capable of handling heavy handloads that would wreck a K-frame in no time. (Ask me how I know. :wink: ) As a .38 Special they are essentially unbreakable. My brother had a 2-3/4" Speed-Six .38 that had several tens of thousands of rounds through it without the slightest mechanical issue. Most of those were 158-gr. + P equivalent handloads. He'd still have it today if it hadn't been stolen.

Beautiful!

I have the exact same gun, a 1982 production .38. All I did to it was add a T-Grip and some red paint to the front sight. DA pull is heavy but smooth and its a great shooter

From my notes, I would say a GF-84 is very uncommon!! I have only had the GF-84H (heavy barrel) reported between 162-17329 and 162-19677 and the GF-84HP (heavy barrel with Pachmayr grip) between 161-74481 and 161-77752. If your gun does not fall within these ranges, please send me a PM.
Most of the Service Sixes in .38 Special were blue, so the stainless .38's in a Service-Six are pretty tough.
Then there was a small batch of GF-84's that went to the New York City PD, in the serial range of 162-4044x to 162-41689.
Chet15

chet15, PM sent. Reporting a GF-84H with a much earlier SN.

Ill have to check the number on my .38 Service Six, I didn't know they were that rare. It has the heavy barrel but earlier style "shallow" rear sight.

Timbo22 said:

chet15, PM sent. Reporting a GF-84H with a much earlier SN.

Click to expand...

Me too ......

Hmmm... my GF-84H is in the 159-682XX range. :shock: (Have Ruger letter confirming it, too)
Terry T

157-40XXX with heavy barrel.

I really appreciate everyone's postings about the double action Six series. I learn something new with each one and especially enjoy the photos. Those are beautiful examples steamloco76, stantheman86 and exlogger.
So not to be rude, I'm sharing what I PM'd chet15 about my GF-84H. The s/n is from 1980, 156-306xx, and is stamped "LEX P.D." on the left hand side. I bought it last year, gun only, and it came with Pachmayr gripper grips that were ripped and unservicable, so I replaced them with some standard wood grips. I'm going to send Ruger a request for a letter and I'll share what I find out.
Tim

I appreciate the comments about the Police-Six. It was a bit homely when my wife bought it. Had a pretty ugly set of standard wood grips on it and lots of light surface scratching. Looked to be a "drawer gun". Serial number is 162-54XXX. I have a Smith & Wesson model 64-1 heavy barrel also, and given the choice between the two, I'd carry the Ruger hands down.

I have my new Darling - Police Service Six .38 Special Cal.
I bought it last week from a second-hand 6000, - CZK (approx 233, - USD).
It is the last year of production (prefix 162 - / 1988 year) and in excellent condition.
I think I bought a good ...

My old .357 Service Six, which is now owned by one of my sons, dates to 1977 or '78. The gun is still as tight & crisp as new. The frame finish has turned to a nice shade of plum color.

Mine is a stainless Police Service-Six in .357 Mag., Serial Number in the 157286XX range. Unless I'm after hogs, I just load .38+P in it. Very accurate revolver with the 4" barrel. My young grandsons love to shoot it with the .38s in it. For them I mount the original wooden grips. When I am using it, I put some larger rubber Hogues on it. Great gun.