Saw this online. Made in 1971? Three -sceew Single-Six.
Why does this Single-Six have a polished aluminum frame? Factory? Rare model?
- Thread starter ArizonaTea123
- Start date
Not rare not factory.
Some people do that.
Ruins them as far as I am concerned but others will disagree.
Some people do that.
Ruins them as far as I am concerned but others will disagree.
Yaworski
Hawkeye
I've thought about doing that to mine. Most of the black is worn off the grip frame and being all shiny silver would be cool.
Air-cooled
Single-Sixer
Didn't all Ruger Single-six revolvers come with steel grip frames over the last 60 years?
looks good to me, and yes its very practical, and "lasts", just don't use a stone wall or a rock, for a "rest", plays hell with the bottom of the grips frame.......
...yes holsters and rings on your fingers will do a number on any grip frame, steel or aluminum.......
...yes holsters and rings on your fingers will do a number on any grip frame, steel or aluminum.......
contender
Ruger Guru
As noted,, not factory & commonly done by folks who want a different look or to finish removing the black to get a uniform finish.
And to answer Air-cooled,, no,, not all of the grip frames over the last 60 years were steel. Only a select few models have steel grip frames.
You can get a good detailed description by going to the GunBlast link.
And to answer Air-cooled,, no,, not all of the grip frames over the last 60 years were steel. Only a select few models have steel grip frames.
You can get a good detailed description by going to the GunBlast link.
Air-cooled
Single-Sixer
Specifically referring to Single-six revolvers (not single action as a whole).The gunblast reference cited above is not clear as to when the single-six .22 went to steel. Ruger currently advertises their single-sixes as all alloy steel. Sorry if I'm not picking up on something.
BoggusDeal
Single-Sixer
I’m certainly no expert but I don’t ever recall a Single-Six with a steel gripframe other than the baby Vaqueros in .32 Mag and stainless guns.
GasGuzzler
Hawkeye
I would not call that polished. I'd say they got two thirds of the way towards a polished grip frame. Way too many scratches, dullness, and sanding marks to be called polished. Below are some of my examples. After I did these I found beat up ERHs and polished them and sold them on eBay a few times until I had an issue with a customer that took the fun out of it.
I have done several such projects. The first was on my 10/22 that originally came with a plastic trigger housing. Found and bought an older metal one. Stripped it, sanded the texture off, and polished. Probably 40 hours of work.
I did an OMSS grip frame and ERH too. BIG difference though ... the grip frames and ERH's are anodized, comes off with old school oven cleaner. The trigger guards and barrel bands are "painted" (more likely powder coated)... way harder to strip.
Grips frames are almost all aluminum. It's the cylinder frame the specs are referring to as steel.
And you can treat steel the same way. In fact, it's by far the easiest to polish. My Blackhawk has a Bisley hammer fitted to a regular grip frame and the screws and pins as well as the eject rod handle/knob are polished steel. Put them straight to the buffing wheel and the bluing comes off and a hard chrome look appears.
I did that to my 2015 Super single-six. The finish on mine was perfectly fine, I just did it for the two-tone look. Mine had the painted or powder coat finish and was in good shape but I just did it for the two-tone look which I like. I used paint remover and then polished it out with some Mother's Mag Wheel polish. I was surprised when I did mine because there were some imperfections in the finish which you couldn't see when covered with paint but could when you stripped the paint off. I don't have a picture after I finished it but looks just like others shown in this thread. I actually purchased a stainless steel grip frame from Brownell's for it but never got it fitted to suit me so gave up on it and kept the polished aluminum grip frame on it. Attached is a picture of it wearing the stainless steel grip frame on it.
"Ruger currently advertises their single-sixes as all alloy steel."
Whoever wrote that ad copy is a cotton headed nitwit who doesn't know what they're talking about, if that's the case.
Whoever wrote that ad copy is a cotton headed nitwit who doesn't know what they're talking about, if that's the case.
The 22LR Single-Sixs at the top of the photo both have steel frames. They also came with the LR Cylinder only. Limited edition and overpriced, but they are nice.
I got this 357 cheap because someone had scratched a drivers license number on the bottom of the GF. An hour worth of polishing and I have that old school cool look.
Single-Six MAIN FRAME -- the part that holds the barrel and cylinder and working parts-- is made of really good steel.
The GRIP FRAME -- the part with the removable side panels, serving as the "handle" of the gun -- is made aluminum.
The EJECTOR ROD HOUSING -- the part that encloses and supports the ejector rod -- has been made of either steel or aluminum, depending on when the gun was made.
The exceptions: the Single-Six Lightweight model has a main frame made of aluminum, and there have been a couple of special issues having steel grip frames.
By far, the vast majority of Single-Sixes have had steel main frames and aluminum grip frames . . . except for the all-stainless-steel models.
Current update . . .
The recent new models called Wranglers are Single-Six lookalikes, but have aluminum main frames and a zinc alloy for the grip frame.
The Super Wranglers have a steel main frame and the same zinc grip frame as the standard Wrangler.
The GRIP FRAME -- the part with the removable side panels, serving as the "handle" of the gun -- is made aluminum.
The EJECTOR ROD HOUSING -- the part that encloses and supports the ejector rod -- has been made of either steel or aluminum, depending on when the gun was made.
The exceptions: the Single-Six Lightweight model has a main frame made of aluminum, and there have been a couple of special issues having steel grip frames.
By far, the vast majority of Single-Sixes have had steel main frames and aluminum grip frames . . . except for the all-stainless-steel models.
Current update . . .
The recent new models called Wranglers are Single-Six lookalikes, but have aluminum main frames and a zinc alloy for the grip frame.
The Super Wranglers have a steel main frame and the same zinc grip frame as the standard Wrangler.
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Looks like it came with the old XR3 and grips rather than the XR3-RED original GF
The one on the bottom came with XR3 GF, rubber grips and a 51/2" barrel which I prefer non are factory original.
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Hondo44
Hawkeye
Single Sixes use alloy grip frames from the 1st year 1953 to the present with very few exceptions for special models. (The Colorado Centennial came with a stainless steel grip frame for example.)
The XR3 size was used through 1963, followed by the XR3-RED size, 1/8” longer space horizontally behind the trigger guard.
Alloy grip frames were originally anodized using black coloring until around 2000, then the factory switched to black powder coating, a baked on finish that’s much more durable. It’s not cerakote finish which is used on the Wrangler models for the entire gun.
The XR3 size was used through 1963, followed by the XR3-RED size, 1/8” longer space horizontally behind the trigger guard.
Alloy grip frames were originally anodized using black coloring until around 2000, then the factory switched to black powder coating, a baked on finish that’s much more durable. It’s not cerakote finish which is used on the Wrangler models for the entire gun.
contender
Ruger Guru
"Specifically referring to Single-six revolvers (not single action as a whole).The gunblast reference cited above is not clear as to when the single-six .22 went to steel. Ruger currently advertises their single-sixes as all alloy steel. Sorry if I'm not picking up on something."
Ok, as you can see by the many posts above,, alloy material has been used for MUCH longer AND on most .22 Single-Six revolvers since the beginning.
In 1953,, Bill Ruger introduced the Single-Six and it has the XR3 grip frame. An alloy frame. It stayed that way until 1963,, when they introduced the XR3-RED grip frame,, and it too is alloy,, and was used on the Single-Six revolvers.
They have kept alloy grip frames pretty much on most models except for some of the ones listed above,, especially the stainless models.
The GunBlast article may seem unclear,, because they also used the alloy g/f's on the OTHER SA handguns as well. There were a few exceptions on certain models, and such,, but again,, most of the Blackhawks have an alloy grip frame.
Hondo was posting as I was typing!
Ok, as you can see by the many posts above,, alloy material has been used for MUCH longer AND on most .22 Single-Six revolvers since the beginning.
In 1953,, Bill Ruger introduced the Single-Six and it has the XR3 grip frame. An alloy frame. It stayed that way until 1963,, when they introduced the XR3-RED grip frame,, and it too is alloy,, and was used on the Single-Six revolvers.
They have kept alloy grip frames pretty much on most models except for some of the ones listed above,, especially the stainless models.
The GunBlast article may seem unclear,, because they also used the alloy g/f's on the OTHER SA handguns as well. There were a few exceptions on certain models, and such,, but again,, most of the Blackhawks have an alloy grip frame.
Hondo was posting as I was typing!
Armybrat
Hunter
The anodized grip frame finish on my SS is almost gone after shooting & handling it for 66 years.
It has never occurred to me to polish it at all.
Hondo44
Hawkeye
Once the alloy grip frame is polished it won’t stay shiny unless it’s clear coated or clear anodized, or it will oxidize and become dull. If it were mine I’d replace it with a blued steel or a polished stainless grip frame or have it powder coated in black.
GasGuzzler
Hawkeye
It's not just polish. You'll have to strip it first then sand it with varying grits of sandpaper until it is uniform. Then the polish. If you use a bench machine like me, the polish part takes about two hours, way less than the stripping and sanding. If you polish it by hand it will take many hours (to get good results).
Yes but 30 seconds with a cotton tee shirt and no compound makes them shiny again if not coated. This probably varies by region and weather.
That gray frame on the original old models is normal, and does not detract from the value or the collector appeal.
Do whatever you want to a new model, or a damaged OM, but I would not do anything to this nice original RSS.
You have a family heirloom there!!
Cheers,
Jay
Yeah, I have the same situation on my 1962 S-S and I consider it a sign of a well-used and well-maintained old gun . . . my first Ruger,
Just an update, I wound up putting the stainless steel grip frame back on my Super Single-six, I decided I was just being too particular. I never had an issue with my polished aluminum grip frame tarnishing, and I didn't use wax or anything on it.
bisleyfan41
Blackhawk
To limit confusion by some well-meaning people above, there are 2 different alloys being discussed which can be confusing. "Alloy" is being used in different ways.
The ALLOY STEEL which the OP sees quoted in current Ruger literature refers to the cylinder frame, barrel, cylinder, and various small parts of the Single Six.
The "alloy" that Contender referenced in his post is an ALUMINUM ALLOY which Ruger uses for their grip frames and ejector rod housings.
Both are alloys. One of steel. One of aluminum.
The current blued Single six has a steel cylinder frame with aluminum grip frame and ejector rod housing.
The ALLOY STEEL which the OP sees quoted in current Ruger literature refers to the cylinder frame, barrel, cylinder, and various small parts of the Single Six.
The "alloy" that Contender referenced in his post is an ALUMINUM ALLOY which Ruger uses for their grip frames and ejector rod housings.
Both are alloys. One of steel. One of aluminum.
The current blued Single six has a steel cylinder frame with aluminum grip frame and ejector rod housing.
GasGuzzler
Hawkeye
As does 99% or more of all Single Sixes of all time.
It takes years for this to happen. I have one I polished 25yrs ago and it still looks the same.
Hmmm, I done this one in the late 80's... And, she be as shiny as ever. 
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