Yonder comes a sucker(me).

[twerpymoon]

I got schnooked. But good. It's my own fault. I know better, but lust and cash money clouded my senses. (Just like that June night in '75, but that's another story.)

I'd been wanting a 4 5/8ths three screw .357 for a long time. Last week I spotted one at a gun show. A crowded and dimly lit show I might add.

I asked the fellow if I might look it over. "Sure nuff", he says. "Ya don't see too many of them there babies any more", he says. "I'll knock off 75 bucks if ya got cash money", he says. I'm trying to give it the once over while getting bumped and jostled by all the guys asking for AR mags and .223 ammo.

"I'll take it", says I. The little voice in the back of my head is saying "Let's not be hasty". The big voice in the front of my head is saying "Shut up! I want out of this joint before another unwashed, nacho breathed, flabby jowled face is stuck over my shoulder asking for .380 ammo".

I take it the R doesn't stand for "Rare".

"Would you take the tie wrap off?" says I. "Cain't. Show rules." says he.

And the most inexcusable, amateur, slap myself in the face thing is I didn't notice it has Silver Eagle grips! Doh!!!

Oh well. I've done more stupid things before, and I'm sure it won't be the last. One small consolation is it shoots pretty good.

Stay tuned for my next post of today's gun show fiasco. I'm a slow learner.

twerpy.

 

[tek4260]

Nope, not rare. Retrofit lol. Now you need to find a parts kit to return it to original You will end up with a much better trigger! Nice plum on that Ruger by the way!

 

[GasGuzzler]

Not the end of the world, right?

 

[BearStopper]

Shouldn't be too difficult to find some original lockwork to unconvert it. Then you got a good excuse to use it as a basis of customization for something like color case hardening, etc. A Ruger 3 screw on that frame size is the ultimate pack everywhere do all gun and should be challenging for you to attempt to wear out. Besides, if you hadn't yet overlooked something important like that on a purchase before then you probably haven't been buying enough. I recently made a giant error on a nearly $2000.00 gun that left me red faced and only saving grace was exchanging it for two guns that were really worth two grand even though they were not needed in my collection. It happens and I am guessing you probably aren't too deep into it anyways.

 

[Kanook]

That R can and is hidden. Looks better than a billboard on a barrel.

The $75 you saved will getthe parts you need to make it right.

The first 4 5/8 357 that I bought came from the factory as a 6 1/2. That is harder to tell than just pulling a gfripframe.

 

[contender]

Ok, you got a shooter grade 3 screw. It has been converted. You can correct the conversion with a set of original parts.
As for the "R" under the mainframe,, that's Rugers way of marking the gun when they do the conversion.
Original grips can aslo be had. (XR3-RED)

 

[twerpymoon]

C'est la vie. The sun came up this morning. I'm in it at $550.00 OTD. On the high side in my opinion, but we've already seen what my judgement results in.

It also had some kind of nasty paint on the grip frame(which I did notice), but some acetone and a little patience cleared that right up.

twerpy.

 

[BlackEagle]

It is a good candidate for a .44 Special conversion!

 

[twerpymoon]

It is a good candidate for a .44 Special conversion!

I'm not drinking that Kool-Aid. No offense.

The way it is I don't feel bad carrying it in this spooty old holster I've had laying around for years.

It also joins it's older brother.

twerpy.

 

[BlackEagle]

It is a good candidate for a .44 Special conversion!

I'm not drinking that Kool-Aid. No offense.

The way it is I don't feel bad carrying it in this spooty old holster I've had laying around for years.

Yeah, it sounds like you've had your fill of Kool-Aid. But it would be a shame to mess up that nice holster by letting that old Blackhawk rub off on it :lol:

 

[twerpymoon]

That's not the nice holster. I've got another that doesn't have any character to it.

twerpy.

 

[Joe S.]

dont look bad. i agree, a little on the high side but thats ok too since you werent buying to make a profit off of it.

and it will sit nicely inside that holster!

 

[BlackEagle]

Speaking of character, nice Flat Top! I love my broken in Flat Tops.

 

[Mike Armstrong]

Don't you case color that plum frame! (The Prune Police will get ya!).

Look at it this way: 1) You got a nice story out of the deal; everybody (else) likes a "there but for the Grace of God, go I" tale. 2) you can have the fun of hunting up the conversion parts--parts hunting season is NEVER over! 3) Guilt free customizing and shooting (Except for the plum frame: I hear the PPs waterboard plum defacers with prune juice....). 4) You just kept a bunch of us other suckers from making the same mistake; now you're a Ruger martyr/hero!

 

[radicalrod]

Well I will also admit to making the same mistake just "once"....that's my story and I am sticking to it :lol: :lol: :lol:

Too bad it was an almost consecutive pair of 357's.....all as I saw was numbers :!: :!: :!: Later I realized both had been perverted..... RR.

 

[twerpymoon]

All in all, it could have been a lot worse. The barrel could have been pitted, ejector rod housing screw stripped out and epoxied, cylinder pin bent, etc. And as a wise man I know once told me, "You can't pay too much, just too early!"

Now if I could just ignore the voices in my head that berate me for even considering going to a show with ready cash and leaving with same.

twerpy.

 

[andyo5]

I have been burned a couple of times at gunshows, both times on guns that looked fine but, as I later discovered, had functional issues.
Once, I was examining a High Standard Supermatic Citation and asked the seller if it functioned properly. "I don't sell junk!", he replied. I bought it and discovered next day at the range that it did not work properly. I have become 'gun shy' (pun intended) regarding gun show purchases. There is a reason why the previous owner wanted to get rid of the gun, and you don't know that reason. Blowing it off through a dealer at a gunshow is the perfect cover for someone with a bad gun who does not want to be associated with the sale of it. The gun show dealer, assuming you can actually locate him after you find out the gun is bad, will probably say that it was in good shape when he sold it and you are the one who messed it up.
And a used gun that I could not even cock the hammer and try the trigger....forget it!
I have not bought a gun at a gun show for years.
If I want a new gun, I just go to a particularly large local shop with great prices. No need to gamble.

 

[GasGuzzler]

We're all proud of you for being lucky enough to have a local store with a plethora of perfect and cheap units for sale.

 

[twerpymoon]

I said it was my own fault. Some of us like to pull the dragons tail even if it results in being burned sometimes. It can go both ways. The next show I came out for the better on a fairly rare Flattop .44. Yin, Yang.

twerpy.

 

[andyo5]

The intent in my previous post was to share your pain, so to speak; since I have also been burned as well at gun shows.
But it looks like it was interpreted as rubbing salt into the wound.
I am sorry to see that it was taken that way.

 

[twerpymoon]

The intent in my previous post was to share your pain, so to speak; since I have also been burned as well at gun shows.
But it looks like it was interpreted as rubbing salt into the wound.
I am sorry to see that it was taken that way.

No worries. I took no offense. My impression was that you were so soured on shows that you quit going.

A bad thing about these interwebs is that the written word doesn't convey the nuances that a spoken word can. Plus, facial expressions and body language are lacking. I suppose that's what them little yellow faces are a surrogate for.

twerpy.