What new Ruger would you like to see in a limited special run?

[Berettaco]

I’ll take a RSM in 404J and 7x57

 

[Nevada Mike]

Ruger No. 1 in 25-'06 medium weight 26" barrel with upgraded wood.

 

[Cohle]

There are quite a few shotguns with a tang safeties being sold today. They would be out of production if they were inherently less safe.

I didn’t mean to imply they were unsafe, but merely that I don’t see Ruger making even a limited run of something they abandoned 30 years ago. But Smith & Wesson is making more revolvers without the Hillary hole, so anything is possible.

 

[rdog]

I didn’t mean to imply they were unsafe, but merely that I don’t see Ruger making even a limited run of something they abandoned 30 years ago. But Smith & Wesson is making more revolvers without the Hillary hole, so anything is possible.

The Ruger American has a tang safety.

 

[JimP]

Without reading through all of the comments, how about a #1 Tropical in 404 Jeffery

 

[Hunter-Habib]

I think that a Ruger Hawkeye in .318 Westley Richards would be really lovely.

 

[rdog]

I think that a Ruger Hawkeye in .318 Westley Richards would be really lovely.

What a great idea, may be an OUT OF AFRICA special edition, no muzzle break, good wood ebony tip . banded front sight , express rear & bbl band front sling swivel. then convince Starline to make brass.

 

[Hunter-Habib]

What a great idea, may be an OUT OF AFRICA special edition, no muzzle break, good wood ebony tip . banded front sight , express rear & bbl band front sling swivel. then convince Starline to make brass.

I like it ! And a laser etched image of Maryll Streep & Robert Redford on the magazine floor plate.

 

[odonata]

I think that a Ruger Hawkeye in .318 Westley Richards would be really lovely.

What a great idea, may be an OUT OF AFRICA special edition, no muzzle break, good wood ebony tip . banded front sight , express rear & bbl band front sling swivel. then convince Starline to make brass.

If I count @rdog's reply as an actual vote, then the 318 WR passes the 9.3x62 in popularity with six votes. While it does have a nostalgic appeal & it would be unique, the problem would be 50 hunters with new rifles & no brass. If everyone wanted ~200 rounds then the scavenger hunt for 10,000 pieces of brass would a significant challenge. It looks like Hendershots is loading it for $239/box so somebody must have made some brass recently.

 

[DrBob]

A few days ago, @MontanaGrant started a thread about the Ruger African in 450 Bushmaster that was made exclusively for Randy's Hunting Center in Michigan. This thread eventually devolved into a discussion about what it would take to have a special limited run of rifles made for a group of people (like us!). So I sent RHC an email to ask that question and here is the response I got:

Darryl,

We work very closely with Ruger on exclusive rifles for our company. Generally they require between 75 and 100 firearms (same model and caliber), but we believe that they would run a minimum order of 50 rifles.

Please, let us know which model and caliber you are considering.

Best regards,

Randy’s Hunting Center

So there you have it. We need to specify a Ruger rifle model, a single caliber and 50+ of us would all agree that we would part with the money to make that happen. Is this possible? I don't know but my guess is it could be a challenge to come to a consensus. But I thought I would at least pose the question just because I was personally curious to see what your responses would be.

For the sake of this particular exercise, here's the "rules":

1. If you would buy a Ruger No. 1, specify the calibers you would be willing to purchase. You can get more detailed if you like about stainless, blued, RSI, barrel length, etc. But the main goal is just to see if there is at least one chambering that a significant number of people would purchase. Also keep in mind that at least 49 other people are going to need to agree with you. So while it might be tempting to list something esoteric, you might want to include something with commercially available ammunition on your wishlist as well.

2. If you would buy a Ruger Hawkeye African, specify the calibers you would be willing to purchase. Remember that Ruger magazines for the rifles they have been producing lately are 87mm / 3.4" so specifying the really large African calibers may not be practical. Since I'm a left-handed shooter, if that's what you want, mention that as well. I'm assuming the majority of responders will be right-handers but obviously I'm wondering if there's anyone out there like me.

To get the ball rolling, I'll go first. If this is going to be a special limited run, then I'm not really interested in getting a common chambering that is readily available in current rifles. But that's just my personal feeling:

Ruger No. 1 Tropical: 404 Jeffery

Ruger No. 1 RSI: 303 British

Ruger Hawkeye African (LH): 7x57 / 275 Rigby (my top choice by far!)

But I would also spend money to help my fellow southpaws by purchasing any of the following:

Ruger Hawkeye African (LH): 22 Hornet, 257 Roberts, 6.5x55, 7x64, 35 Whelen or 9.3x62

So here's your opportunity to put in a request for something missing & to see how that compares with the other forum members. If this thread produces a meaningful number of responses, I'll tally the totals in a later reply. Maybe start a followup thread with a poll if it appears there might be a doable choice. If the response is anemic, then that will satisfy my curiosity as to the feasibility of this endeavor as well.

Ruger had an aborted attempt at the 404 but had problems. It would be good to revisit and make. Alas, making a good double would be a challenge but worth it.

 

[PerH]

I think that a Ruger Hawkeye in .318 Westley Richards would be really lovely.

And that would be a Exellent jungle cartridge also , especially with Rhino bullets .

 

[wvfred]

I think I would buy a Hawkeye African in 458 win if it were available.

 

[IvW]

No. 1 in

450 No.2 3 1/2" NE
375 H&H Flanged Magnum
300 H&H Flanged Magnum
7x65R
7x57R
6.5x57R
22 Hornet

 

[358 Norma]

I wouldn't mine seeing the African offered in 358 Norma mag, I would definitely buy one!

 

[Huvius]

I find the responses very interesting.
Many of the "I would buy one" responses are for Rugers that already exist and readily available on GB and other sites.

Maybe that's driven by the desire for a new in box rifle, or the possibility that a special would hold and increase in value more than a used one, not sure.

In my opinion, Ruger's biggest failing with their commercial offerings and the reason why these distributors find success in the specials, is that Ruger had a habit of mis matching the chambering to the rifle configuration particularly in the No.1.

22" barrel on a No.1 - no thanks!
218Bee with a 26" barrel but the 9.3X74R has a 22" barrel - so dumb.
Some 45/70 No.1s had 26" barrels while the rest had 22" but I don't think they offered it with a 24" barrel - why?

My point is that with a "one size fits all" action and butt stock, the only place to tune the platform is in barrel length and profile as well as fore-end wood.

So, my choices would be:
No.1 "African Classic" series
450NE
450-400 3"
375 Flanged Magnum
400-350 Rigby (or a 400-360 but that's too close to the 9.3X74R - I'd like a 9.3X74R with a 26" barrel and honestly would prefer that to the 350)
All with 26" barrels, express sights and upgraded wood with horn fore-end tips.

In the Hawkeye "African Classic"
375 Rimless Express (aka 9.5X57 Mannlicher)
350 Rigby rimless
30'06 with a twist for 200-220gr bullets
Again, wood upgrade and express sights. Maybe even with a No.1 style quarter rib as the integral rib on the original Express 77s would push us out of the price range target.

The issue with the Hawkeye platform and in keeping with the "classic" theme is that there just aren't many rimless big bore cartridges from the era which will fit in a 77 action.
Maybe a 404 with a shorter neck but that isn't real for the era but the short Hornady 45-70s aren't either and they did that...
500 Jeffery? I don't want extra weight added and I don't think Ruger ever offered a barrel heavy enough to do it right.
I agree that resurrecting the RSM wouldn't happen simply based on cost and I for one will not buy one for the price they would command.

I think these would be pretty cool and, as with the Boddington series, don't underestimate the desire for some to own the full range.

 

[PerH]

29 inch 6,5x55

 

[ThreeJacks]

I find the responses very interesting.
Many of the "I would buy one" responses are for Rugers that already exist and readily available on GB and other sites.

Maybe that's driven by the desire for a new in box rifle, or the possibility that a special would hold and increase in value more than a used one, not sure.

In my opinion, Ruger's biggest failing with their commercial offerings and the reason why these distributors find success in the specials, is that Ruger had a habit of mis matching the chambering to the rifle configuration particularly in the No.1.

22" barrel on a No.1 - no thanks!
218Bee with a 26" barrel but the 9.3X74R has a 22" barrel - so dumb.
Some 45/70 No.1s had 26" barrels while the rest had 22" but I don't think they offered it with a 24" barrel - why?

My point is that with a "one size fits all" action and butt stock, the only place to tune the platform is in barrel length and profile as well as fore-end wood.

So, my choices would be:
No.1 "African Classic" series
450NE
450-400 3"
375 Flanged Magnum
400-350 Rigby (or a 400-360 but that's too close to the 9.3X74R - I'd like a 9.3X74R with a 26" barrel and honestly would prefer that to the 350)
All with 26" barrels, express sights and upgraded wood with horn fore-end tips.

In the Hawkeye "African Classic"
375 Rimless Express (aka 9.5X57 Mannlicher)
350 Rigby rimless
30'06 with a twist for 200-220gr bullets
Again, wood upgrade and express sights. Maybe even with a No.1 style quarter rib as the integral rib on the original Express 77s would push us out of the price range target.

The issue with the Hawkeye platform and in keeping with the "classic" theme is that there just aren't many rimless big bore cartridges from the era which will fit in a 77 action.
Maybe a 404 with a shorter neck but that isn't real for the era but the short Hornady 45-70s aren't either and they did that...
500 Jeffery? I don't want extra weight added and I don't think Ruger ever offered a barrel heavy enough to do it right.
I agree that resurrecting the RSM wouldn't happen simply based on cost and I for one will not buy one for the price they would command.

I think these would be pretty cool and, as with the Boddington series, don't underestimate the desire for some to own the full range.

Regarding barrel length, I do not think Ruger made a bolt action .30-06 with a 24" barrel. I am hoping for one in the Hawkeye African. They did make a 24" Lipsey No. 1 recently.

 

[Huvius]

Just thought that on the smallbore "African Classic" No.1 a 6.5X63R (6.5 Dutch) with a nice slim 26" barrel with a twist for the 160gr bullet.
That would be nice!