Old Revolvers

The Ruger Vaquero is a 6 shot single-action revolver manufactured by Sturm, Ruger. It is based on the .357 Magnum New Model Ruger Blackhawk frame that was introduced in 1973. It comes in blued steel, case colored, and a gloss stainless finish (the latter gloss stainless finish is intended to resemble closely a 19th Century nickel-plated finish), all of which are available with wood, hard rubber, simulated ivory or black micarta grips and fixed sights. It arose with the popularity of Cowboy Action Shooting from which came demand for a single action revolver that was more traditional in appearance.

Design details

The Vaquero is a New Model Blackhawk with old-fashioned fixed sights consisting of a front blade and a notch milled into the frame at the rear. It also has other more traditional details in the shape of the frame. Its replacement, the New Vaquero, manages to look even more traditional by returning to the size and shape of the original Colt Single Action Army, which is somewhat smaller than the New Model Blackhawk. The New Vaquero has been popular in Cowboy Action Shooting, as intended, but is also popular among general shooters. The Vaquero is currently available in .357 Magnum/.38 Special and .45 Colt, in multiple barrel lengths. Its finishes are mirror-polished stainless steel that looks like a 19th Century nickel finish, and blued with a mottled-colored frame that looks like 19th Century case hardening. New Vaqueros come with checkered black plastic grips, which look similar to the checkered black rubber grips Colt used in the late 19th Century.

Variants

Two major variants of Vaqueros exist. The "Old Vaquero" was marketed from 1993 until 2005, and was slightly larger than the Colt Single Action Army. The New Vaquero, produced from 2005 to the present is closer to the dimensions of the Single Action Army. Unlike original Single Action Army revolvers, the Old and New Vaquero are safe to load all 6-cylinders, having a transfer bar design; additionally, the New Vaquero and Old Vaquero variants permit reloading by simply opening the loading gate, thereby freeing the cylinder to rotate freely, without pulling the hammer into the half-cock notch. Vaqueros have only 2 hammer positions: fully down, and fully cocked.

Old Vaqueros are built to safely fire higher pressure 45 Colt ammunition than the Black powder chamberings, having significantly thicker cylinder walls than other revolvers. Many reloading manuals contain Ruger-only recommended handloads that are considered unsafe for use in other than Ruger Blackhawk, Redhawk, Thompson/Center and Ruger Old Vaquero model revolvers. Ruger New Vaquero model revolvers, having thinner cylinder walls, are not considered safe for use with the Ruger-only loads taken from the older editions of these manuals.

Three grip variants also exist for Vaqueros. The standard grip is very similar to the grip on the original Single Action Army revolver. The Bisley variant incorporates the target grip that was incorporated on the Bisley variant of the Single Action Army revolver that was intended for target shooting. The Bisley grip is also better suited for users with larger hands, having a longer frame that better fits larger hands. Users with smaller hands may not find the trigger to be comfortable to shoot on Bisley variants, by reason of not being able to place their trigger finger properly on the trigger, the trigger being located further from the grip. The third variant is the Birdshead grip, similar to the pattern found on the Colt Lightning and Thunderer models.

History

The Vaquero was introduced in 1993 to meet the growing demand for quality modern firearms used in the growing sport of cowboy action shooting.

In 2005, Ruger introduced the "New Vaquero" which incorporated a smaller frame, based on Ruger's XR-3 grip frame, making the pistol closer to the size of the original single action revolvers used in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Calibers

• .357 Magnum/.38 Special
• .357 Magnum/9 mm Convertible
• .38-40/.40 S&W Convertible
• .44WCF
• .44 Magnum
• .45 Colt/.45 ACP Convertible
• .45 Colt

See also

• Ruger Single Six

References

1. ^
2. ^ Ruger’s New Vaquero Single Action Revolver

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