I stopped at a local gun shop that I hadn't visited in awhile and found that the proprietor had just purchased a large collection so I took a brand new in box Blackhawk convertible 45 LC/45ACP from 1974 home with me. It still had the plastic ring on the cylinder with all the paperwork and shipper box. Now I don't own any unfired guns but am truly tempted to leave this one in brand new condition. What to do?
Ruger Time Capsule 1974
- Thread starter Klondike Mike
- Start date
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BULL'S-EYE
Blackhawk
They're excellent shooters. I bought one just like it made the same year back in the early 90's...I quickly and without hesitation put it to use. But foolishly, a couple of years later I traded it for an OM .357 shorty, which I still have...But I wish now that I'd have traded something else instead.
Armybrat
Buckeye
Nice score!
contender
Ruger Guru
Excellent score there!
While the NM's don't get the same attention that the OM's do,, one of that vintage, with all the stuff, would be hard to shoot if it were here. The NM action will cause the dreaded "cylinder ring" which in my opinion was the biggest screw-up with the changes in the action design. It COULD have been prevented by a little adjustment by Ruger back when.
But, not everybody can afford to buy a gun & relegate it to "safe queen" status.
While the NM's don't get the same attention that the OM's do,, one of that vintage, with all the stuff, would be hard to shoot if it were here. The NM action will cause the dreaded "cylinder ring" which in my opinion was the biggest screw-up with the changes in the action design. It COULD have been prevented by a little adjustment by Ruger back when.
But, not everybody can afford to buy a gun & relegate it to "safe queen" status.
Nice find, I am in the shoot it camp and enjoy
Hondo44
Hawkeye
Whenever someone with an unfired gun asks the question "What to do?", my answer is always, sell it to someone who wants an unfired gun to collect, especially one like yours with all the paper and box!
Make a few bucks on it, then go find one already fired and enjoy the heck out of it!!
Make a few bucks on it, then go find one already fired and enjoy the heck out of it!!
Green Frog
Single-Sixer
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2011
- Messages
- 201
I'm a Philistine... I'd have to shoot it! My kid brother got the 45 Colt (only) version of the same gun, and I found an orphan 45 ACP cylinder. He made his own "combo" model. Shoots great!
Bullthrower338
Single-Sixer
- Joined
- Feb 1, 2022
- Messages
- 360
The only reason I have unfired guns laying around is that I haven't got a chance to shoot them yet or have multiples of the same gun. I have the same mentality with guns that I do with cloths, as soon as I like something they decide to "improve" it. So I have many things that will go out of style long before I wear them all out. This especially applies to brass and underware!
If I wanted unfired guns, I could go buy a bunch and just put them up in the safe. Then in 50 years I could still have unfired guns. I don't do that. I buy them to shoot. That's like buying an old car that is pristine and just parking it.
This subject comes up often. Folks say we oughta shoot everything we own. Well, that's in some cases like saying the Mona Lisa oughta be hung at the corner bar, so folks could enjoy her.
I go to (gun) display shows and marvel at guns, their artistry, and see many examples of models that have been kept pristine. Once they're used, you can't get that back. I'm glad there are models put away as show pieces, not unlike pieces in a museum.
I am guilty of locking up guns to never be used, at least not by me, and the next caretaker of these guns will hopefully appreciate these guns have been kept in the dark for decades, and continue their preservation.
I understand anybody that owns anything can very well do whatever he wants with his possessions. But some folks just can't understand that many of us see things from a different perspective, for different reasons.
Some of my guns are everyday shooters, while simultaneously I might have the same model put away, left unfired or at least in the condition I received it.
I wont attempt to convince anyone otherwise, any more than I'll be convinced that it's somehow sacrilege to own a fine firearm and maintain its history for future generations.
I go to (gun) display shows and marvel at guns, their artistry, and see many examples of models that have been kept pristine. Once they're used, you can't get that back. I'm glad there are models put away as show pieces, not unlike pieces in a museum.
I am guilty of locking up guns to never be used, at least not by me, and the next caretaker of these guns will hopefully appreciate these guns have been kept in the dark for decades, and continue their preservation.
I understand anybody that owns anything can very well do whatever he wants with his possessions. But some folks just can't understand that many of us see things from a different perspective, for different reasons.
Some of my guns are everyday shooters, while simultaneously I might have the same model put away, left unfired or at least in the condition I received it.
I wont attempt to convince anyone otherwise, any more than I'll be convinced that it's somehow sacrilege to own a fine firearm and maintain its history for future generations.
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I recently bought the Interarms Virginian Dragoon Silhouette 41 Mag. that was listed on this site. It is a 1983 vintage and had never been fired. I thought about it for a week and then took it to the range. Guns are made to be shot. Unless it is a one-of-a-kind special commemorative or some other historically significant piece. there is no reason not to shoot it.
I know there are people out there who have rooms full of never fired guns, but I am not one of them. I admire those that do not fire them and just own them to appreciate the craftsmanship. But, I think you can admire the craftsmanship in a fired gun just as well. As long as a firearm is kept in good clean condition I don't see anything wrong with shooting them. I have a few that only get shot once every few years and others that get used a lot. I appreciate what went to making them all regardless of how much they have been shot.
I have an 1812 Harper's Ferry musket that I know has been shot, not by me, that I have to admire how well those guns were made with the technology available at the time.
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