Single Action Revolvers

[JimP]

After shooting a while I must admit really like single action revolvers. Of course Ruger has the Blackhawk which is Very nice. I have owned a Blackhawk and a Bisely. Nice guns. There are Freedom Arms, the Colt SAA, USFA and the Uberti guns. What do you think of these guns in terms of quality?

I cannot remember where I read it, but somewhere I read that this generation Colt SAA was better than that generation and serial numbers before/after were the best. Confusing. I also read something about the throat being over sized so that they might not be accurate(?).
I have read great things about Freedom Arms, except the prices.
USFA guns are a bit of a mystery to me. Nice quality but no longer made. Better vs not as good as the Colt SAA...
Uberti guns seem to have overall good reviews.

What single action guns do you like the most?

best,

Jim

 

[ADP3]

The finest handgun that I've ever owned was a Freedom Arms Model 97. You cannot imagine a better handgun. They aren't cheap but they are outstanding. Newer (last 6 years or so) Colt SAAs are great guns. Much better fitted than early 3rd Gens. Check out the Gunblast review. If it's a .45 Colt SAA, load Remington .454 RNL 255 gr. bullets for the best accuracy. USFA makes a great Colt copy. Every bit as good as the Colt and better than many.

Rugers are good guns. They aren't quite as refined as the others can be but they can be turned into a revolver that rivals them and they are far more versatile. I no longer have any Colts or FAs. What I do own are Rugers. They are tougher than Colt's, USFAs and Ubertis and if one gets stolen I'm not going to cry like losing a Colt or FA - I'm still going to cuss if I lose one though.

Best Regards,
ADP3

 

[contender]

By a good margin, the Freedom Arms are the top of the line in quality for any production SA revolver. But, you pay for their quality, and it's worth it.
Rugers are pretty good, but the attention to detail they recieve isn't nearly as good as FA. But, again, Rugers cost much less.
Most of us have found that we can afford a good Ruger, spend a little on it & it will become a much better SA revolver.
I can't speak for the Colt or Uberti SA's as I do not own any.
If this helps,,, most custom SA gun builders start with a Ruger & work from that,,,!

 

[TheDude]

Aside from Rugers, I've owned a few BFR's and found them to be excellent.

 

[flatgate]

Well, this IS The Ruger Forum!

OK, OK, I have a couple of Freedom Arms 5 shots, too. :roll:

flatgate

 

[AKDRSS]

Can't add much about the Freedom Arms comments. There is nothing that beats them as far as quality for a production revolver. The precision at which they are built is amazing. But as you know, they are pricey. Currently it takes about 6 months to order one with prices close to $3,000 if you add an octagon barrel and a couple of options. I only own one but would like more

However, in my limited experience with BFR's they are a better choice for a hunting revolver. First there is the price. A new BFR in 475 Linebaugh or 500 JRH will set you back about $900-950. In the bigger caliber such as the 475 or 500 they really should be sent off to get the grip modified which is another $300.

Why do I think the BFR's make a better hunting revolver? They are built really well with tight tolerances, but not so tight you have to worry about dirt or grit stopping things up. They are just as accurate as any FA's as well.

Some will scoff at these prices and say they can get a Ruger for a lot less. Yes, thats true. But once you handle, cycle and shoot one of the BFR's or FA's you will understand why they are worth the money.

 

[PO2Hammer]

I've owned 4 Blackhawks/Bisleys over the years. Good guns, but they never quite satisfied me. Always at least one issue with each gun, misaligned chambers, gawd awful triggers, over torqued barrels, thread choked.... I love the design, just not the execution.
Ruger double action guns have proven to be much better for me. Had a Redhawk in .44 Rem mag, great gun, really ticked off that I sold it. Now I have a GP100. Very happy with that. Super accurate with all 6 chambers, best trigger I've had on a Ruger, very nice machine work.
In single actions the only one that was worth the money to me is my F/A model 97.
I paid $1,425 for this back in 2000, worth every penny.

 

[Hammerdown77]

That right there is a beaut! Wish they cost $1425 now...

 

[AKDRSS]

Here is my Freedom Arms 475 Linebaugh.
http://s26.beta.photobucket.com/editor?image=http%3A//i26.photobucket.com/albums/c148/snowwolfe/FA1-1.jpg&detailUrl=http://s26.beta.photobucket.com/user/snowwolfe/media/FA1-1.jpg.html?filters[media%5Ftype]=image&sort=3&o=1

 

[PO2Hammer]

Very nice, love the octagon barrel.

 

[Ted]

May be because I am old I prefer old Ruger Blackhawks. My favorite being an old flat top 44. Next would be 3 screw Single Six . I have a Uberti Evil Roy that I got new for $700. All of the custom stuff is done to it before you get it. Excellent workmanship and trigger.


Ted

 

[JimMarch1]

Ruger mid-frame SAs from 2004 forward (starting with the first New Vaqueros) have a revised cylinder making process whereby each chamber is done one at a time with the same bit/reamer set. This eliminated mis-matches between chambers and otherwise improved the cylinder accuracy and alignment.

This process transitioned to the large-frames (SuperBlackhawk, most Blackhawks) in 2007. You can ID these revised guns by looking at where the "lawyer's warning label" is: under-barrel means new, side-barrel means old.

This same change to the barrel warning happened on the mid-frames but doesn't mark any engineering change.

There are exceptions. The very first large-frame to get the new cylinder process was the 2006-era "50th Anniversary 44Magnum Flattop Blackhawk", the one not marked "Super". The first ones had a side-barrel warning but still had the improvements.

You will have less problems, or at least odds of less problems, with an improved-cylinder gun.

 

[Rclark]

What single action guns do you like the most?

Pretty much settled on Rugers. My favorite in my blued .45 flattop convertible with 5 1/2" barrel from Lipseys. Second up is the blued .44Spec Flattop 5 1/2". Then comes the original Vaquero, and so on.... Every time I think about getting a Colt SA, USFA SA, or Freedom Arms ... the price just drives me away. I was just at a gun show and the prices were ridiculous. I can buy several good Rugers for the price of one Colt (leave them for collectors).... Especially, when I know my Ruger revolvers shoot better than I do, there isn't much 'incentive' to 'upgrade'... A one hole group is a one hole group regardless of what brand of revolver it is shot out of. And my Rugers will last a lifetime. I do wish Ruger had stuck with the 'Old Model' action without the transfer bar as I like that action. My Ruger Old Army is just like it should be, as is my little Colt SA .22 . Yes, with a Ruger you do have sometimes 'work' on them a bit (polish this, change a spring, fire-lap, ream cylinders, etc.) ... But nothing a person can't handle him/her self or have done and there is good Ruger service if required. I consider tinkering just part of the fun of revolver ownership.

 

[DGW1949]

My experience says that;
Overall, Ruger SA's are the best bang for the buck. And they are tough enough that with just a little care, one could pass them on to their grandkids.
Colt SA's are over rated for what you actualy get. Pretty guns though.
Uberti made some very good SA Army's during the hey day of CAS, mostly because a couple of the big vendors who marketed them demanded various changes from their older designs. The ones that I've had were all run perty-dern hard and held up much better than the Colts that I've had. Since then though, the Old Man died and the kids sold the company. Maybe the newest ones are still as good, maybe not....dunno. I do know that people often confuse the Beretta-design with the Uberti design, but the two are not the same. And do note that I am specificaly refering to their SA Army-clones here, NOT their various Remington, S&W, or other SA clones.
FA's?....never owned one, or even held one, so I can't say.
If I had plenty of money to thow at a revolver, I'd buy an unaltered USFA in a heartbeat. Leastways, one of the newer ones that weren't made from Uberti-supplied parts. Not sayin' that the older USFA's weren't good guns too, just sayin' that if I wanted a Uberti, I'd buy a Uberti.

And while we're discussing SA revolvers as they pertain to Uberti, before plunking down big bucks for a Colt cap 'n ball SA, be aware that a lot of them are actualy Uberti's that Colt bought unfinished, and then either finished by themselves, or farmed out (to Iver Johnson) for finishing. I could be wrong about the "a lot of them" part though. It could be that they all were.....dunno for sure....mostly because I long ago lost interest in Colt and unfolding the drama of it all.

"Single action revolvers" can be a deep subject, eh?

DGW

 

[AKDRSS]

I must of had really bad luck with all the Rugers I've owned since 1970 because not one of them came close to shooting as well as the couple of Freedom Arms I've owned. Besides, it is not just about accuracy of the FA it is about how a revolver makes you feel. The seams where the different metal pieces are mated together are perfect. They are a marvel of engineering.

Rugers are a great buy, no doubt about it. They shoot pretty good and can be slicked up easily. In the last year I purchased a Lipsey 5.5 Bisley 45 Colt, Lipsey 3 3/4 44 Bisley, SP101 .22, Single 10 and a Single 9.

But the Freedom Arms simply oozes quality. Cocking the action is like feeling and hearing how a fine swiss watch was built by hand. Expensive? yes, but anything of quality is. Wished I had the extra money to afford to buy more. At some point in the near future I am going to spring $3,000 for there .22 revolver with a octagon barrel.

 

[Bob Wright]

On another forum someone remarked that Colt's closest competitor was out of business. I countered, most facetiously, that Ruger was still in business.

When taken to task for my remark, my response was that neither had been able to come up with this:

Not near a thousand dollars in this, and I'll match it against any other out
where the bullet does its work.

Bob