Ruger Hawkeye Triva

[mavoris]

Ruger Hawkeyes were not always in demand as they are today.

In the mid to late 60's, I worked at a gun and athletic supply store in Fremont, Ohio. Ruger had discontinued the manufacture of the Hawkeye and closed out the last produced to various supply houses. One day I went to work and found eight of the Hawkeyes needing inventoried. The store cost for them was $35.00@. I marked them for sale at $75.00@, retail being $87.50. They were slow movers. It took a while to get rid of them.

I did take one home for myself. I got some ammo and went to a local shooting spot to try it out. The Hawkeye would not fire reliably. The hammer fall was lack luster and I believe the ammo was primed with rifle primers. I did not reload at that time and finding the Hawkeye not to be reliable, moved the it down the road. I remember that it lacked the heft of a traditional single action revolver.

In retrospect, do I wish that I would have kept the one that I took home let alone the other seven. I sure do. But!

To put things into perspective, though, a brand new in the box Colt Single Action Army could be had for $125.00.

I do remember the last of the Ruger 44 Mag Flat tops, made from the last existing parts, being available in the later 60's. We never got any at the store that I worked but a store called Wassermans had at least one. Can't remember what they were asking for it. I handled it but opted for a Super Blackhawk instead.

Marty

 

[KWYJIBO]

To put things into perspective, though, a brand new in the box Colt Single Action Army could be had for $125.00.

Wow! Just think--if you'd pulled together enough money to buy a dozen or so SAA's and put them up somewhere safe, they'd each be worth at least 10 times that much today.

But...
Still not a very wise investment. To put things in sharper perspective, if you'd taken that same money and invested in a fairly safe fund of some kind--say, something with an 8% annual return, today you would have roughly 60 times your original investment!

That's the trouble with guns--they don't compound! (Although, I've tried to convince my wife that they reproduce. Leave two or more of them alone in the safe long enough and new ones appear. That's the only explanation, because I haven't been buying them!)

 

[flatgate]

What an interesting story! Yes, if we all would have had the foresight.....

flatgate

 

[Danjet500]

I remember the old Fremont Athletic Supply store. I bought several guns there in the 70's. In fact, I still have my 10/22 that I purchased there. Like so many other gun stores, it is now gone and has been for some time.

 

[Danjet500]

Hey, Mavoris, what was the name of the gun store down on Tiffin Street? I remember buying a few down there too.

 

[mavoris]

Danjet500,

It has been decades since I have been in Fremont. I am hazy on the street names and locations. I do believe that the gun store you are referring to is Wassermans. In the mid to late 60's, Tiny Wasserman was in a wheel chair due to the affects of diabetes. Maybe that will be familiar to you. Also, his wife was a rather large imposing lady with blond hair. She is not one that you would forget if you had encountered her. Gunsmithing was part of their business. Tiny did some of the smithing and then a fellow by the name of Bob Bruce, after Tiny was wheel chair bound. When Tiny died, his wife and her new husband ran the store for a period of time and then closed it down.

Times change, not always for the best. Fortunately, fond memories do not. This reminiscing has been fun.

Marty