I typically try to pick up a rifle or handgun I think will offer several areas of interest to write about; the gun, shooting, reloading and maybe hunting. Lately it’s become more and more difficult to locate a rifle to write about. In fact, the most recent three rifles selected were unavailable.
Through four large California gun stores I was unable to locate a Weatherby Ultra Lightweight in .240 WM, a Remington Mountain rifle in .25-06, or a Winchester Model 70 classic compact in .243. Not exactly a collection of exotics and, in fact, I probably could have more easily purchased a Holland & Holland double.
I was in the middle of a discussion over at newsguy.general, on the NewsGuy News Service, when one of the participants showed an interest in a Ruger revolver. We thought it might be interesting to get an outside perspective on what it’s like to purchase a firearm today, in an area outside of California. So NewsGuy put up $400 toward the purchase of a new Ruger revolver, in exchange for a report on the subsequent events.
This individual is a long term gun owner and enthusiast, and basically started off looking for a .44 Ruger to go with an existing .44 mag rifle. The following story is in her words, unedited or modified in any way. An asterisk preceding a name indicates the name was changed. The intent of the story was not to point to a company or shop, but rather as an overview of what a consumer’s experience might be.
Feather
I happened upon a post in the newsguy.general newsgroup from Joe, who was bemoaning the fact that his wife could out-shoot him with his new Ruger, and offering to sell it, cheap. I think he was joking, but I responded anyway. After a few barbs back and forth, Joe made me an offer. $400 towards any new Ruger of my choice, if I write an article on buying it and my first range experience with it. What would any self-respecting girl do? I jumped at the chance. This should be easy, right?
I had decided I wanted a Ruger Single Action Revolver in .44 mag or .45LC, but deciding what I wanted, and getting it, are two very different things. What follows is the story of my attempt to get a new firearm, and an embarrassing account of my shooting ability. Grab a coffee folks, this is going to be a bumpy ride.
Monday morning we start out on our gun hunt. The closest shop is *JB’s Guns. I explained to the older gentleman behind the counter that I wanted to see all the Ruger SA big bore revolvers they had. He presented me with a Taurus .38 snubbie. A very pretty little lady’s gun, gold plated trigger and highly polished rosewood grips. Not quite what I asked for.
*Rocky’s Sporting Goods was the next stop. They had a Vaquero an hour before, but had just sold it. I asked for the most current Ruger catalog, but they only had one, and were not about to give it away. I thumbed though it and pointed to a Vaquero in .44 mag, and asked the cost. We all know the suggested price is not the real price, and I wanted to get an idea of what sort of wallop my pocketbook was about to take. The two young men behind the counter then proceeded to explain to me that I wanted to order from a certain company because they offer a lifetime warranty to the original purchaser, even though they charge a lot more. Uh, guys? I’m buying a Ruger. I’ve dealt with Ruger before. They offer the same sort of warranty, free. Even if you are the fourth owner.
*Sports World was next. This is a combination gas station, convenience store and gun shop all rolled into one. The owner has a very serious hate on for banks and credit card companies, so anything you buy from him had better be paid for in cash, or prepare to get a long lecture, and pay a much higher price. All the firearms in his display cases are marked as New or Essentially New. I wanted to ask exactly what Essentially New meant, but frankly, I was afraid to. I’d questioned to this man before, and it was not an experience I cared to repeat. He’s fine when you want to buy something, but questioning him only brings about an angry tangent, and no real answer. However, he did have a Ruger Vaquero in .45LC. This was the sort of thing I was looking for, so I spent a few minutes checking it out, but I really wanted to see a few different models to compare them.
No other shops were open on Monday, but Tuesday was a bit better. We headed out to see *James, the owner of a small gun shop on the outskirts of town. James is a retired police officer and military man. He’s into hunting, cowboy action shooting, and taking life easy. His shop is supposed to be the best place to buy firearms in the area. There are no signs on the door, the listing in the yellow pages is a fine print one-liner. No one stumbles into James’ shop, they are referred there. If you go there in the afternoon, the place is full of cops and good old boys having a bull session. We went in the morning.
Usually I like James. When I am looking for a firearm, he talks to me, not my fiancé. He doesn’t suggest pretty little purse guns, instead he shows me exactly what I am looking for. This was no exception. I asked to see any Ruger SA revolvers he had. He had one in the display case, and another five in his safe, all of which he immediately brought out for me to look at. In no particular order they were Blued Vaquero in .45LC, Blued Single Six in .22LR, SS Bisley-Vaquero in .44 mag with a 5 1/2″ barrel, SS Bisley-Vaquero in .44 mag with a 4 5/8″ barrel, Bearcat in .22LR, and a Blackhawk in .357 mag. James apologized for not have a Bisley in stock at the moment.
Now the fun begins. I really like the little Bearcats, and I was sorely tempted, but I was after a big bore. The Blackhawk didn’t interest me much, so I was down to four. James explained to me that if I planned on shooting hotter loads, the Bisley-Vaquero frame would stand up better and be easier on my hands. He also told me that he preferred the slightly longer barrel because it felt more balanced. The Bisley-Vaquero felt best in my hand, and I agreed with James about the longer barrel. Neither my fiancé or I have any firearms in .45LC, and I’ve never shot that caliber. I decided the .44 mag was my best choice. I like the idea of having a handgun and a rifle in the same caliber, and this would compliment my Winchester .44 mag Carbine. Did I want SS and the very nice looking blued with color case finish? No question there, blued it was. This revolver is also available with ivory grips, and that was within the budget, barely. We placed the order, and waited.
And waited some more.
Four weeks later, still no new gun. It seems that to get any real service from James, you have to be part of the good old boys network. At first he told us that it would take one week to get the gun. After a week, he told us that the place he deals with didn’t have any, but he had ordered one from another supplier he uses. Two weeks later, they sent him the right revolver, but in .45LC. He ordered it again, and a week later, he got yet another in .45LC. I am not impressed. James kept reordering without telling me what was going on. He refused to push the issue with his suppliers, he said they give him good deals sometimes and didn’t want to rock the boat. Enough of that then, he just lost a customer. Funny thing, after we told him to cancel our order, he said fine, but he had someone making the usual trip to *insert name of big city here* the next day and they could have picked one up for me. Um.. then why didn’t you have them pick one up for me 4 weeks ago?
This was not going well. I was feeling very defeated and unhappy. I talked my fiancé into going on a little road trip. There is a shop about an hour away from us that has a huge selection of firearms. Their prices are higher, but at this point, I didn’t care.
We got to *Paul’s Pawn and Gun Shop at 4pm on Wednesday. I spent the next hour and a half looking at their large selection of Rugers. They did not have the revolver I had originally ordered in stock, but they did have about 10 other models. I had pretty much decided on a very nice Bisley in .44 mag when the lady (yes, I said lady) behind the counter took out a Ruger GP100. Now I have a Ruger Speed Six, so I was not looking for anything like this, but I couldn’t help myself, I had to pick it up. It felt great in my hand, very balanced, perfect fit. Rational went out of the window, and we began the paperwork.
This is the first time we’ve used the new NICS system, and while we had never had a problem in the past, I admit I was a bit hesitant. However, approval came within 3 minutes, and we walked out of the store with a shiny new Ruger GP100, 3 inch barrel, in SS.
The next day we had been invited to a friend’s home to shoot. He has about 20 acres of forest and creek behind his house, which is just outside of town, so this was a great opportunity to test out my new revolver. We packed up all our gear and headed out. After the obligatory firearms showoff session with our friend, we set up for a few hours of punching holes in targets and dead trees.
I cannot hit the broad side of a barn with a Ruger GP100.
I refuse to go into details. I will not say what types of ammo I tried, where (if) I hit the target, or the distances. It’s just too embarrassing.
One hour of sighting it in, three boxes of ammo, and a long string of four letter words later, my fiancé picked up the new Ruger, and put six shots in a three inch circle. He just got himself a new gun, and I considered taking up sewing.
Just to make sure it wasn’t me, I picked up my Ruger Speed Six. I hadn’t shot this revolver in about six months, but I put all six shots in a three inch circle as well.
This has not been fun, but I have learned a valuable lesson. Never let a rotten mood choose a gun for you, and never let your significant other shoot your new gun until you have made a respectable hole in at least 6 targets. Which bring me back to how I got $400 towards a new gun in the first place. Joe, I hope you have better luck with your Bisley.
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